The vital triple zero call after vague ache that stopped ex-pilot having a deadly heart attack

A survivor of three blocked arteries is urging the community to know the symptoms of a heart attack and never hesitate to seek medical attention when it comes to cardiac health after a simple phone call saved his life.

Seven years ago, at a glance, Kangaroo Valley’s Matthew Gray appeared to be the pinnacle of health for a 57-year-old.

“At the time I was an airline pilot,” Matthew said. “I got checked every year and I wasn’t overweight, blood pressure was under control, cholesterol was fine, but I was coming up to that age where the regulator starts to have a lot more interest in your heart health.

“I’d exercise; I was fit; I slept and I was in pretty good condition.”

Throughout 2017 his only concern was ongoing fatigue, which he put down to job stress or lack of quality sleep.

But by the end of the year, he started experiencing obscure symptoms.

“The last two weeks of December, anytime I’d exercise I’d get this very strange feeling in my hands; they felt very heavy. It was consistent but very vague and nothing particularly alarming,” Matthew said.

On 2 January 2018, he was still feeling fatigued and had a bit of pain in his shoulders when walking between offices which he thought he could combat with a bit of exercise.

“I walked up a very steep hill and I got the same feeling in the hands again but this time I got pressure between my shoulder blades,” he said.

“It was very mild and I’d never felt it before, so I stopped and it went away.”

When he started again, the pain returned.

In the back of his mind, Matthew recalled knowing that pressure between the shoulder blades was indicative of a heart problem.

“I got to the top of the hill, I walked home and it was still bothering me, the little voice inside my head saying, ‘You need to do something about this’.

“I did the only thing I could do and I googled it.”

After quick research confirmed that it could’ve been a symptom of a heart attack, Matthew grappled with the choice of what to do next.

“The hardest thing I ever had to do was call the ambulance,” he said. “There were two factors – one’s the emotional decision, and one’s logical.

“The emotional one is, ‘This can’t be happening to me; It’s not possible; I could be wrong and waste everybody’s time’.

“Then there’s the logical one, and I remember sitting on the end of the bed going, if you die this would’ve been your first chance to save your life and you didn’t take it.”

He made the call which ultimately could have been the difference between life and death.

“They got there very quickly. They gave me a resting ECG and said it’s normal.

“I looked at him and he looked at me and said, ‘If you’re worried, we’ll take you up to the hospital’ and I said, ‘Yeah, we need to do that’.

Matthew underwent a barrage of tests in hospital which revealed he had three blocked arteries, two of which were more than 95 per cent including the left anterior descending artery.

He was told that he would need surgery to insert stents immediately.

“She said, ‘Your left descending artery is called the widow maker for a reason; if that goes, you’ll probably die’.

After his operation, Matthew said it was not only the physical recovery that was important, but also managing the mental and emotional impact of his experience.

During his rehabilitation he was involved in a program with other heart attack survivors and noticed that they all had something in common.

“I was in a room with 20 people and funnily enough none of these people had the Hollywood heart attack symptoms,” he said. “Nobody had crushing chest pain or arm pain; they had very vague symptoms. A lot of them had gastric reflux but nobody ever had the Hollywood ‘grabs my chest and falls over.'”

Before his surgery, Matthew was well-informed about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack and knew he was likely predisposed to a cardiac condition after both his maternal grandparents died of heart disease, his mother experienced a quadruple bypass and his younger brother had also had a mild heart attack.

His awareness of the more obscure symptoms prompted him to seek help, but he has been shocked by the number of people he has spoken to that are unaware of their own family history or what to look out for.

“This is the number one killer of people – more men than women. If you don’t know what the basic heart attack signs are or if you get anything that’s very strange and lasts … I think the doctors say more than 10 minutes, you should get it investigated because it may well be the difference between you having a long healthy lifespan or a funeral; it’s that simple.”

He is hoping to spread awareness and support for Heart Research Australia next month for RedFeb to help improve education and outcomes for people who have experiences like his own.

But most of all he is urging anyone not to hesitate in making that crucial call to receive help, even if you’re uncertain or think that you’re not an at-risk group.

“All the way through the cardiac care I got, they said it was the best decision I ever made was to call the ambulance.

“They kept saying it doesn’t matter if you’re wrong, just call us and we will come.”

For more information about heart disease and RedFeb visit the Heart Research Australia wesbite.