Dave Conway felt his legs shake as he carried a 50-pound bag of corn to pour into a batch of bourbon.
Conway’s days working as a craft distiller in Columbus, Ohio, were long and physically demanding. His work included rolling barrels of bourbon, operating heavy machinery, and climbing up and down ladders in rooms that often exceeded 90 degrees.
Usually he worked up to 12 hours without any problems. But during the summer weeks just after his 30th birthday, daily obligations have taken a toll on him.
This is what it must be like to be 30, he thought.
Conway used to eat snacks at fast food restaurants while working. In the evenings, they often hosted trivia nights at local pubs. On the weekends, I would hang out with friends at bars and go to distillery events. Since graduating from college, he has gained about 25 pounds. Although he did not exercise, his job allowed him to move his body.
One day in early September 2018, Conway felt even more exhausted than usual. He felt dizzy and nauseous, and his chest felt heavy. After looking up the symptoms online, he attributed it to heatstroke and thought he would feel better soon.
Two weeks later, his condition worsened further. He was tired just walking to his car. He was so tired of standing in the shower that he started taking a bath.
Feeling unwell, he decided to go to the emergency room on Sunday afternoon. He was expecting a diagnosis of pneumonia and medication to cure it.
“His lungs are clear, but his blood pressure and pulse are far above what they should be,” the doctor told him. “You need to go to the emergency room right now.”
Conway was annoyed but followed orders.
At the hospital, doctors noticed that his body was suffering, but they didn’t know why.
An echocardiogram showed that his heart was only pumping 10% of his blood to the body. This measurement is known as the ejection fraction. The normal range is 55% to 70%. If it is less than 40%, it is considered heart failure.
Conway called his sister Kate, who is a doctor. When he told her her test results, she was surprised. She called her parents, who live a few hours away from her. She said she needed to pack for more than a night or two because this was serious.
When his parents and Kate arrive, Dave begins to worry.
Doctors said his heart, liver and kidneys were not doing well, but they didn’t know why. He was lucky to be alive, they said.
On the fifth night of Dave’s hospitalization, Mary Ann Conway was sitting with her son when she noticed that he had slurred speech and weakness on the right side of his body. As a physical therapist, she knew those were signs of a stroke. Dave suffered two more strokes in the next two days.
After further tests, doctors determined that Dave had suffered a heart attack. Perhaps he thought he was suffering from heat exhaustion that day in early September.
Dave was still dealing with a 100% blockage of a major heart artery. Doctors said it was too late to place a stent or bypass surgery because there was scarring around the blockage. Other arteries have begun to compensate and will continue to be dependent on them.
Within the first week, Dave’s speech returned to almost normal. He had mild aphasia. In other words, he knew what he wanted to say, but couldn’t find the words. Although he has improved rapidly, he remains at a low level.
After 12 days in the ICU, Dave went home with a long list of medications. Mary Ann took early retirement from her job to care for him.
Dave’s energy level was very low. His efforts to build it proceeded slowly.
He was wearing a defibrillator vest, which can send electrical pulses to the heart if necessary to try to restart the heart after cardiac arrest. He became afraid to go to sleep, fearing he would never wake up again. A therapist helped him sort out his emotions.
“I felt guilty for being depressed because I knew how lucky I was to be alive,” he says.
Mary Ann made sure he had access to speech therapy and encouraged him to start cardiac rehabilitation as soon as possible. She drove Dave to her appointments, cooked for him, and cleaned for him.
“He certainly didn’t want to live with his mother,” she said. “But Dave never complained. He was grateful for another chance.”
One of his first outings was for his regular Monday trivia hosting gig. Mary Ann continued playing the game with her friends for several weeks. It felt like a lifeline to normalcy.
After undergoing cardiac rehabilitation, Dave slowly began to regain his strength. His endurance grew from a 30 second walk to his 10 minute jog.
Dave vowed to do everything he could to get better. That included cutting back on alcohol, cutting back on salt, and exercising regularly. Although his heart will always be weak, he will be able to live a fulfilling life.
“I felt like a part of me that went into the hospital never left,” he said. “I became a different person. Alcohol was a way to hide my emotions. That side of me didn’t get me to where I am today.”
In February 2019, five months after his heart attack, Dave was fitted with an implantable defibrillator as a precaution. The device can detect dangerously irregular heartbeats and deliver a shock to return the heart to a normal rhythm.
Mary Ann was finally able to return home, but she and her husband continued to visit Dave frequently.
For exercise, I do yoga and run, and have even completed a 10K race. His running partner is a friend and former drinking buddy of his who has lost more than 100 pounds since he started walking the pavement.
Dave, now 35 years old, has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and is enrolled in a master’s degree. He recently began work as a vocational rehabilitation counselor, helping people with disabilities succeed in the job market. And this month he got married. The engagement party for Dave and McLaren, who met after a heart attack, was secretly a wedding.
Dave said he was truly happy for the first time in his adult life.
“My philosophy is to learn from yesterday, be happy with today, and strive to be a better version of myself for tomorrow,” he said. “I have a life worth living.”
Stories from the Heart chronicles the inspiring journeys of heart disease and stroke survivors, caregivers, and supporters.
