My dad had a severe heart attack last week and will be coming home from the hospital soon. I live with my parents and do most of the cooking in our house, so I’ll be taking on the majority of the meal prep and cooking for him moving forward. (I always told him that his diet was very problematic but this topic always became heated.)

I’m vegan myself, but I’m willing to cook fish and eggs for him if those would be good options for heart health. My parents honestly aren’t very knowledgeable about nutrition or cooking, so I’m trying to learn as much as I can and help him make changes that he’ll actually enjoy and stick with.

Before this, his diet was pretty rough : lots of canned soup, rotisserie chicken, frozen meals, cereal, and very few fruits or vegetables aside from the occasional meal I made.

He really loves Vietnamese food, so I’m hoping to lean into that, as well as Mediterranean (both I have experience cooking.)

I’d really appreciate advice from anyone who’s cooked for a family member after a heart attack. I plan on meal prepping for him as well, as well as freezing food so he can have options so he can have autonomy. Is there anything else I should know (: I live close to many health food stores, farm stands and Whole Foods, so I really am open!

34M, moderate smoker.

Since Nov 2025, after taking metoclopramide + fluoxetine, I had what felt like a panic-like episode. Shortly after that, I started developing persistent symptoms that have not fully resolved.

Main symptoms since onset:

• Persistent or recurrent retrosternal constrictive chest pain
• Intermittent “electric shock” sensations in the left chest/retrosternal area
• Mild dull discomfort involving the jaw/teeth area with no dental cause found
• Jaw feels mildly tender and produces a dull ache/discomfort when touched
• Symptoms occur both at rest and during exertion
• Chronic, persistent course without full remission

Medication & mental health context:

After the initial episode in November 2025, I changed my psychiatric medication from fluoxetine to escitalopram, and was also prescribed a short course of benzodiazepines, as fluoxetine was suspected to be too activating.

Following this change, I actually felt noticeably better for about 1–2 weeks.

However, in December 2025, I suddenly developed intense constrictive chest pain, which triggered significant fear and a panic-like reaction. Since then, the chest pressure has persisted as part of the ongoing symptom pattern.

I am also currently being treated for an anxiety disorder (panic disorder) with escitalopram.

I’ve never experienced anything like this before, even with my anxiety/panic disorder, which is why I’m quite confused about what is going on.

Cardiac workup:

• Resting ECG: normal
• Echocardiogram: normal
• Exercise stress test: achieved 12.4 METs, with the cardiologist concluding the test was clinically and electrically normal, with no ischemia and no symptom reproduction
• Blood tests including troponin: normal

➡️ Overall, cardiac causes were considered very unlikely based on testing.

Gastroenterology workup (endoscopy):

• Grade 1 hiatal hernia
• Distal esophageal erythema (reflux esophagitis)
• Mild chronic gastritis
• H. pylori infection (currently under eradication therapy)

Current issue:

Despite ongoing treatment, I still have persistent chest constriction and dull jaw/teeth discomfort, and I’m struggling to understand the cause.

What I’m trying to understand (differential diagnosis considerations):

Given the negative cardiac workup (including normal troponin) and GI findings, possible considerations I’ve come across include:

• GERD / reflux-related non-cardiac chest pain
• Hiatal hernia–related chest discomfort
• Esophageal hypersensitivity or functional esophageal disorder
• Musculoskeletal chest wall pain (costochondral involvement)
• Neuropathic or referred discomfort (possible cervicofacial involvement explaining jaw/teeth symptoms)
• Central sensitization or post-inflammatory / post-anxiety physiological amplification (hypothesis, not diagnosis)
• Contribution of underlying anxiety disorder with somatic symptom amplification

At this point I’m trying to understand what could explain this combination of:

• chest tightness
• dull jaw/teeth discomfort
• normal cardiac workup (including 12.4 METs, clinically and electrically normal stress test)
• mild but present GI findings
• and the fact I’ve never experienced this pattern even with my panic disorder, which makes me feel confused

Has anyone experienced something similar or has any idea what direction I should explore next?

My mom died 3 months ago from heart attack (66), suddenly with no known symptoms or conditions.
I went to check myself and found out, that my lip (a) is 365 nmol/l, LDL is 115, apo(b) 99
I’m terrified
Unfortunately, I’m currently under huge stress and close to depression with my baby 16 months old who wakes up every hour combined with unhappy days in my business and sudden death of mom.
I’m pretty healthy otherwise 38(f), waiting for my cardiologist appointment next week.

Please help me to calm myself 🙏

I ate an edible yesterday. I fell asleep and woke up three hours later with blurry, unfocused vision — this has never happened before.

Could this have been a stroke?

I called the health helpline and spoke with a doctor; they didn’t think it could have been a stroke because I’m only 23. Did they dismiss it too easily?

The vision problem disappeared after a little while and I feel totally fine now. I just read an article linking cannabis to “mini-strokes.” Should I worry?

My cardiologist wanted me to get a Kardia monitor to track my PVCs so we can try to determine a trigger. I ended up with the KardiaMobile Card, because for me, the more convenient it is, the more likely I'll use it.

It will NOT read my fingers. Not dampened, lotioned, warmed...doesn't matter. I had my husband and my mother try it, and it reads them just fine no problems. Then my husband suggested I have a coworker with skinny fingers try it (my fingers are quite small) to see if it was a surface area issue, and hers showed up just fine.

I'm not sure if I just have super low conductivity in my finger tips? It works for my family members so I'm not sure I really want to try one of their other models and spend the money on another device that doesn't work.

Anyone have any suggestions?

I already exercise and watch my diet but my blood pressure is still borderline high and only 41. Also my doctor says i am not at medication level yet but I want to be proactive. What supplements or lifestyle changes have actually made a difference for your heart health?

Hi guys i’m very new to this group so i don’t even know if you guys would have any answer to this but i just wanted a little bit of advice.

I’m doing my first ever marathon in october this year, and As i’ve been training, i’ve noticed my apple watch has been bumping up to 200-205 beats per minute (i’m 20 years old) at times during my long runs. now this was before i had a chat to my friend last week who i ran with who said just monitor your heart rate during our 15km run and see what happens.

My heart rate stayed between 160-180 beats per minute for the full 15km run. so i just thought okay maybe i just need to keep an eye on it and go slower then ive been going in previous runs. for the first time i played indoor football (i live in australia) and recorded on my watch. i covered 2.4kms and my heart rate was going as high as 198.

Is that something i should bring up with to a doctor or is it maybe because im unfit? i’ve played years of local footy at a decent level which is why im confused why it gets so high and if i should talk to someone about this.

Today my hr has ranged from 76 to 159. The most strenuous thing I’ve done today was walking and I didn’t feel tired or anything.

How do Ik if I have tachycardia or if I’m just out of shape?

Edit: I didn’t post this initially because I don’t want any comments about my weight. I’m aware my BMI puts me in the overweight category. I have body dysmorphia because of this, but visibly I do not appear overweight. I am a 20F and 5’1.5” and 140 lbs.

I also am experiencing non-medication induced akathisia. And I have been experiencing non-POTs symptoms for dysautonomia.

Hi, I am a 29-year-old man, healthy and fit. I follow a mediterranean diet, consuming many healthy fats (olive oil, nuts, avocado, seeds) and occasionally 'bad' fats in moderation (cheese, cured meats). I engage in light physical activity, specifically power walking (about 5–6 km, 3–4 times a week). I have a family history of cardiovascular disease; my father has a Lipoprotein(a) level of 150 mg/dL. I recently had blood tests to assess my cardiovascular risk with the following results:

• Total Cholesterol: 176 mg/dL
• HDL: 48.5 mg/dL
• LDL: 113 mg/dL
• Lipoprotein(a): 34.6 mg/dL
• Homocysteine: 14.5 µmol/L

I am very reassured by the Lp(a) value, but I am concerned about the HDL and LDL levels, which have remained similar in previous tests. What should I do?

My doctor is recommending that I have a Reveal implanted heart monitor put in. For those of you who have one, what is your opinion of it? Also, was yours implanted in your Dr office or in a hospital facility? Thanks in advance.

Hello everyone. I’ve been dealing with symptomatic bradycardia for quite some time, mainly during wakefulness and at rest. What draws my attention the most is that whenever I stay around 3–4 hours without eating, the bradycardia seems to become much more pronounced and I start feeling lightheaded, mentally “foggy,” mildly dizzy and generally unwell, especially around 11:15 AM and again near 4:15 PM. I’ve noticed this pattern repeatedly over time.

I’m 33 years old, weigh 104 kg, and train at the gym around 3 times a week. Despite being overweight, I still seem to have relatively preserved exercise tolerance. While running on the treadmill, my heart rate can reach 165 bpm without major limiting symptoms, so chronotropic response during exertion appears to be intact. The issue is mainly at rest, especially during fasting or when my stomach is empty.

At rest, sitting or standing still, my heart rate may stay around 55, 53, sometimes even 47 bpm while awake. It’s not constant, but it happens frequently enough to concern me. I already underwent two Holter monitor evaluations, and both confirmed sinus bradycardia. During sleep, one Holter recorded my heart rate dropping to 30 bpm.

Another important aspect is that I seem to have significant gastrointestinal hypersensitivity. When my stomach is empty, the bradycardia and malaise worsen noticeably. On the other hand, when I eat too much or have large meals, I start experiencing bothersome premature beats/extrasystoles. There seems to be a very clear gut–heart interaction in my case, which makes me suspect a strong autonomic/vagal component.

I’m also tapering off escitalopram after approximately one year of treatment. Throughout the treatment period, I subjectively noticed the bradycardia becoming progressively more evident. I don’t know whether this is causal or coincidental, but I believe it’s relevant to mention.

Another strange symptom involves peripheral circulation sensations. Sometimes it feels as if my extremities are not receiving adequate blood flow. For example, when measuring blood pressure, if the cuff compresses my arm for a short period, it becomes numb and uncomfortable very quickly. I often experience a sensation of “weak circulation,” although I understand subjective perception does not necessarily reflect actual hemodynamics.

What worries me the most is the psychological burden this has created. I constantly monitor my heart rate and keep trying to correlate symptoms with food intake, fasting periods, posture, gastrointestinal activity and autonomic fluctuations. At this point, I genuinely don’t know whether this is primarily a functional/high-vagal sinus bradycardia amplified by anxiety, hypervigilance and gastrocardiac interactions, or whether there could be an actual autonomic dysfunction, conduction abnormality, metabolic/endocrine component, or even something partially related to escitalopram use/withdrawal.

I would appreciate technical opinions, especially from people who have encountered similar cases involving resting sinus bradycardia associated with fasting, gastrointestinal hypersensitivity, postprandial extrasystoles and possible autonomic/vagal dysregulation.

Feel slight chest/rib pain sometimes too but I guess that's normal