March 07--COLUMBUS -- Mary Rosendahl thought she was too young and too healthy to ever get heart disease.
The 53-year-old from Columbus leads an active lifestyle and is a self-described athlete and exercises daily. She also takes her four dogs for walks every day.
It was during one of those walks that she experienced a burning sensation in her chest. The feeling would lessen after she slowed her pace. Rosendahl thought it was a pulled muscle or possibly acid reflux and that the pain would eventually go away.
It didn't. The feeling went on for a couple of weeks. Rosendahl knew she needed to get it checked out. Her doctor sent her to a cardiologist where she had a stress test performed. She only took a few steps on a treadmill before she was told to stop.
The test showed she had heart problems. After a heart catheterization was performed, it showed her right coronary artery was 99 percent blocked. In November, she had surgery to put a stent in the artery to relieve the blockage.
Rosendahl shared her story Tuesday night at the Columbus Go Red For Women Ladies Night Out, an annual event that promotes heart disease awareness for women. She, along with Barb Osborne and Eileen Rosenkrans, were honorees for the evening.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women, according to the American Heart Association. For the last few months, Rosendahl has been rehabbing. She is also learning to come to grips with her situation.
"You have to accept that you have heart disease, which even now to say that I have heart disease is kind of hard. It's kind of hard to say I have heart disease because that was something I didn't expect," Rosendahl said.
Like many women, Rosendahl didn't recognize the signs of heart disease and heart attack. The signs can be different than that experienced by men.
Pain is often associated with a heart attack, and that is true in women. But unlike men, the pain women feel might not be in the chest and it might not be a crushing pain. Women might experience pain in the shoulder, neck, back or abdomen. Dizziness, fatigue, nausea and shortness of breath are other symptoms.
Rosendahl didn't have a heart attack, but could have if she has waited longer to see a doctor. She does have some family history of heart disease. Her father survived a heart attack when he was 65.
Having family members with heart disease is a risk factor for a woman developing it herself, as is being overweight and having high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Other risk factors include smoking and an inactive lifestyle.
Rosendahl said she considers herself one of the lucky ones.
"My advice for other women is to pay attention to your body and to know when things are not normal for you. Try to exercise and lead a healthy lifestyle," she said.
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