Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women. Do you think you are at risk?

Each year, heart disease claims the life of nearly 25,000 Canadian women. Many of whom had no idea they were at risk. Below are just a few heroic stories of local women, their cardiac crisis, and the journey of recovery thanks to the team at St. Mary’s Regional Cardiac Care Centre.

Meet Bunny
“I didn’t associate [my pain] with heart disease, because I always thought that it would be like radiating down your arm. You hear about people feeling like there’s an elephant on their chest. I never had that.” Read Bunny’s story

Meet Sandie
Given her extensive family history of heart disease and diabetes, Sandie had anticipated experiencing some health challenges in her lifetime.  The fact is, she now has both.  At the age of 49 Sandie developed diabetes, and at 57 she was diagnosed with heart disease. Read Sandie’s story

Meet Jane
Jane admits she’s a “Type A” personality.  “I don’t sit still very well,” she says.
That’s why when she felt “odd” after hosting a big family dinner on Easter Sunday in 2015 Jane did what most busy women do — she didn’t think much about it and walked it off until she felt better. But then the odd feeling returned and Jane’s arms became numb. Read Jane’s story

Meet Julie
Julie thought she might be having a heart attack when she awoke suddenly at 4 a.m. with searing chest pain. When she shook her husband awake to tell him, he thought she was being silly and having a panic attack instead. She was 46 and didn’t have any risk factors or family history. Who has a heart attack at 46 under such circumstances? Read Julie’s story

Meet Diane
At first, it was just heartburn. Diane felt it every time she pumped as hard as she could during spin class last year. “I thought I should have it looked into, but it’s probably nothing.” Diane is a nurse at St. Mary’s General Hospital, she prepares people to have heart surgery. Read Diane’s story

Meet Marie

Marie comes from a family with 16 children; eight of which have heart conditions – not all have survived. Her first connection to heart disease was the loss of her mother at the young age of 59. Read Marie’s story

Meet Margaret
Margaret didn’t have the common symptoms. There was no pain in her chest – no “classic warning signs” – before suffering a heart attack three months after her 40th birthday. Read Marg’s story

Meet Fran

It only took a few seconds of unbearable, stabbing pain behind her shoulder blade for Fran to realize what was happening; she was having a heart attack. Read Fran’s story

Meet Arlene
Arlene’s first warning signs of heart disease appeared last fall during her nightly walks around her neighborhood. It wasn’t like the movies; there wasn’t an intense pressure, or sharp stabbing pain. Read Arlene’s story

Meet Lisa
It was a normal routine day. Lisa felt lousy but chalked it up to indigestion or maybe a pending flu bug. But then the pain in her chest went from bad to worse – it began to radiate down her arm and up into her jaw. Read Lisa’s story

On June 8th WEAR RED!

 for the hearts of the women you love!

Tag your social media images with #RedDAYFriday – and share a lifestyle modification you could make to improve your heart health!

Visit www.redday.ca  to:

Register your personal or workplace participation

Download RedDAY celebration materials

Learn more about women & heart disease

Share how you will improve your own heart health!

What is Heart Disease? – What you need to know…