Hello,

I am 51 and found out several years ago that I suffer from a fairly rare heart disease called Prinzmetal Variant Angina.  I thought for years I was having heart attacks, went through more test than you can shake a stick at and of course, all came out normal.  This is not an easy disease to find, especially if the doctors are looking to find excuses for it NOT to be a heart disease.  I could have easily died before it was discovered because of it always being blamed on hormone problems, even had my ovaries taken out and then the problem actually seem to get worse!  This is because this disease seems to react in some ways to hormones in your body, I had completely taken all of mine away with the ovaries being taken away.  I ended up in the hospital constantly, was being told I had everything from bad nerves to mental problems to GERD.  I was put on so much medicine but of course nothing for the actual problem of my heart so I kept getting worse.  I ended up 3 times in coronary care intensive care because I had all the symptoms of heart disease and a heart attack but lacking a few important things that happen to the normal male having a typical heart attack.  I say, GET REAL, we are NOT all made alike, women are very different and woment DO have Prinzmetal, I am proof.

After getting the proper testing I was finally diagnosed correctly with Prinzmetal and proper treatment began, at least the stages of finding what was going to work for me.  It has been a long hard 4 years and I think I am probably on the best medicines for me and am also involved in the Prinzmetal Study in Cincinnati and would recommend anyone who thinks they have this disease to be tested and have the bloodwork sent to Dr. Glueck at the Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati to find out for sure if you have the disease.

Yes, it can be a VERY dangerous disease because it has totally different symptoms than typical heart disease.  I found that I had chest pains when I relaxed, not when I was doing something, I had so many pains when I laid down to try to sleep.  Typical disease symptoms, the arteries and blood vessels spasm and contract when you rest with this disease because of a lack of Nitric Oxide in your system.  I found out through the study that I was missing the genes that produce Nitric Oxide, I have none!  So I began taking 15,000 mg of L-Arginine, a form of Nitric Oxide and the pains started getting better.  No, it's not a cure, just a way to stop the constant pain that puts the breaks on your life as you knew it.  I have not been able to work outside the home in years, if I did feel pretty good one day and work my body hard, and by that I mean pushing it for an 8 our day of work, then I would pay for it for days afterwards.  No one wants to hire someone like that.

I guess I will be filing for Disability since I have finally come to the conclusion that I will never be able to be back in the workforce like I once was.  Yes, this is depressing to someone who has always worked and who loved to dress up and get out of the house, use her mind...It is a shock to the systems in so many ways.

Feel free to write if you have Prinzmetal or think you might, I will be glad to respond.

doubledmarie0713@hotmail.com

Take care and God Bless