Northern Health Matters

February 8, 2013 Barbara Hennessy Leave a Comment

Watch for the six warning signs of a heart attack. (Source: www.heartandstroke.com)

One of my colleagues recently sent me an email with the link for this short and funny video. In her email she asked how having a heart attack could be funny, but said the video was so great that it needed to be shared with all women.

This video makes me think, why do we need a funny video to make women notice that heart disease is the number one killer of women?

I think it’s that women are the caregivers to the family. Just like the Heart and Stroke Foundation video on “Make Death Wait” shows, women are so concerned that heart disease will affect others in our family that we don’t realize that it is actually coming for us.

February is Heart Month and we should be doing all we can to help ourselves! Here are some tips:

Get informed. Seek out information from great sites like Heart and Stroke Foundation – take a look at their “Women and Heart Disease and Stroke” information.
Know your risk. Heart disease and stroke is the leading cause of death for Canadian women. Did you know that most Canadian women have at least one risk factor for heart disease and stroke? Take the quiz and see what your risk is.
Take control of your health. We know that if women put their health first by making changes they can reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke by as much as 80%.

If we can do this for ourselves, our girlfriends, our best friends, our sisters, our mothers, our daughters, our nieces and granddaughters, we can hopefully all live a little longer and a little happier.

About Barbara Hennessy

Barbara Hennessy is Northern Health’s regional coordinator for cardiac & cerebrovascular services, and is very passionate about improving cardiac and cerebrovascular health for people of the north. Barbara has a Master’s in Nursing from Dalhousie University, with a specialty in adult cardiac population. In her previous roles in cardiac nursing, Barbara has worked in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and – saving the best for last – B.C.! In her spare time, Barbara loves reading, crafting, biking and seeing the beauty across northern B.C.

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Know the signs of stroke: It can happen to anyone

June 29, 2012 Jessica Quinn 5 Comments

My husband is 32 years old, and last month, he had a stroke.

I came home late one evening to find my husband tired and feeling sick to his stomach. After an hour of napping, he sat up and looked at me with a weird expression on his face – his left lip was pulled up slightly and his pupils were dilated. I half-jokingly asked, “What’s wrong with your face – are you having a stroke?” He was aware enough to get up and go to the mirror to see for himself, where he tugged at his lip a bit, but it stayed put. I asked him how he was feeling and he said, “Ummm…” and seemed to be wracking his brain for the right response. When he couldn’t remember what my name was, I knew we had a serious problem.

Do you know the warning signs of stroke? (From www.heartandstroke.com)

June is national Stroke Awareness Month and I wanted to share my story here in the hopes that I can encourage people to learn about the signs of stroke, as I’ve found that many people don’t understand how serious it is. Did you know the following stats?

Stroke is an urgent medical emergency that affects more people than you would imagine; the Heart and Stroke Foundation reports that more than 50,000 strokes occurs in Canada every year – that’s one every 10 minutes.
The first three and half hours are crucial in preventing long-term damage by receiving clot-busting drugs or other medical treatment, but about two-thirds of Canadians make it to the hospital too late to meet that target. Not surprisingly, adults under the age of 50 take the longest to call 9-1-1 due to denial, thereby risking death.
Stroke is the third leading cause of death in Canada.

When I realized there was something wrong with my husband, I admit I still wasn’t sure it was actually a stroke. Strokes only happen to eighty year olds, right? Not so. My husband had no risk factors. That night, he was walking around the house normally, and even went to put on socks when I told him we were going to the hospital, and he functioned as well as he does every morning. But he was experiencing a stroke.

My husband and I are extremely lucky. I got him to the hospital fast enough to save his life, and now, only a month later, he is back to his old self… except for the extreme health kick – a positive side effect of this life-changing experience. We’ve both changed some of our unhealthy habits for the better and look forward to a long and healthy life together.

Make sure you educate yourself and your family by knowing the signs of stroke. It might just save your life one day.

About Jessica Quinn

Jessica Quinn is regional manager, health promotion and community engagement for Northern Health, where she is actively involved in promoting the great work of NH staff to encourage healthy and active lifestyles. She also manages NH's social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc) and moderates all comments for the NH blog. When she's not working, Jessica stays active by exploring the beautiful outdoors around Prince George via kayak, hiking boots or snowshoes, and she has recently completed her master's degree in professional communications from Royal Roads University, with a focus on the use of social media in health care.