Heart Survivor Story - Janice Remmetter

Janice had been sick for three days, feeling nauseous and weak. What she thought was just a stomach bug turned out to be so much more.

After being cooped up and under the weather, Janice decided to get out of the house to get her nails done, a decision that turned out to be lifesaving. At first, everything was fine. Then, out of nowhere, she vomited and passed out in the pedicure chair. The nail salon staff acted fast, calling 911 and Janice’s children.

Janice remembers two things: Waking up to the EMS team telling her to pick a hospital, and the pedicure spacers still being between her toes! Janice was having a heart attack. She chose Baton Rouge General and the next thing she knew she was in the Cath Lab running tests.

She recalls feeling so strange in those moments. Even though she was surrounded by doctors, nurses and her children, she longed for her husband, who had passed away 12 weeks before to the day.

The Cath lab team found that a piece of plaque in Janice’s coronary artery had come loose, causing a heart arrhythmia and, in turn, a heart attack. After placing two stents, Janice is back to her normal life. She’s now 75 and says it’s so surreal that when you fill out a form at a doctor's office you have to put down, “I had a heart attack.” Never in her life did she think this would happen to her.

She urges everyone to know the signs and symptoms of a heart attack, especially women. You may think a heart attack equals chest or arm pain. But it could be as simple as a stomach bug symptom.