These two little blue ASPIRIN pills can help save a person’s life, so carry them in your purse or as I do in my wallet. A recent heart attack in our family reminded me of the reason why I carry two wrapped safely in cellophane in my wallet.
When you phone 911 with heart attack symptoms, they will probably ask you to get the victim to chew two aspirin tablets as soon as possible. In my family member’s case it brought almost instant relief to the painful heart attack symptoms, while the ambulance was enroute. Many people don’t even have aspirin at home anymore, so at least add it to your grocery shopping list.
Aspirin slows the blood’s clotting action by reducing the clumping of platelets. Platelets are cells that clump together and help to form blood clots. Aspirin keeps platelets from clumping together, thus helping to prevent or reduce blood clots. Most heart attacks and strokes are caused by blood clots.
As the label says: Call 911, then chew 2 tablets if you think you’re having a heart attack.
Also, you may also want to consider having a Heart Start AED Defibrillator like this one from Phillips if you are able to. Also, it could also be handy to have Nitroglycerin, Benadryl, and a EpiPen.
What if you are alone when you have symptoms?
This link outlines a method of giving yourself CPR using a coughing technique. The fact checking in Snopes suggests that it may work, but may also make things worse depending on the cause of your symptoms. So, read this article and proceed appropriately.
Snopes Cough-CPR
Article details:
This one is serious … Let’s say it’s 4:17 p.m. and you’re driving home, (alone of course) after an unusually hard day on the job. Not only was the work load extraordinarily heavy, you also had a disagreement with your boss, and no matter how hard you tried he just wouldn’t see your side of the situation. You’re really upset and the more you think about it the more up tight you become.All of a sudden you start experiencing severe pain in your chest that starts to radiate out into your arm and up into your jaw. You are only about five miles from the hospital nearest your home, unfortunately you don’t know if you’ll be able to make it that far.
What can you do? You’ve been trained in CPR but the guy that taught the course neglected to tell you how to perform it on yourself.
HOW TO SURVIVE A HEART ATTACK WHEN ALONE
Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, this article seemed in order. Without help the person whose heart stops beating properly and who begins to feel Faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness. However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously. A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest. A breath and a cough must be repeated about every two seconds without let up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again. Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating.
The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a phone and, between breaths, call for help.
