Andrew's Heart Attack Story
May 28, 2019Heart attack survivor Andrew Luck is on a mission to raise awareness about healthy living
For several days, a “fluttering” sensation Andrew Luck felt in his chest just wouldn’t go away.
He thought it was some sort of muscle twitch, right where his chest met his left shoulder. It wasn’t really painful, just disconcerting. But after four days of experiencing the odd sensation, Andrew thought something might be wrong.
So, on the morning of June 23, 2010 – his 55th birthday - he headed straight to the Abrazo Scottsdale Campus.
“I walked in and man, it was like bells and whistles were going off,’’ Andrew says today, remembering his arrival at Abrazo Scottsdale Campus. “I was having a heart attack while they were examining me in intensive care.”
Turns out, the major artery to his heart was blocked at 100 percent; two other arteries were blocked at 80 percent.
Members of the hospital’s cardiac team went to work during two surgeries to clean out his arteries. Andrew left the hospital a few days later, with three new stents to help his heart function.
But he also left with something else: an overwhelming appreciation for Abrazo.
The hospital staff? “They were wonderful. They really care. No ifs ands or buts,’’ Andrew says.
In the seven years since that first visit to the hospital, Andrew has tapped Abrazo Scottsdale Campus for several other procedures and treatments. He underwent a third surgery to monitor his heart, had regular echo cardiograms and has pushed to improve his health with help from Abrazo Scottsdale Campus physical therapists. But he also changed his eating habits and became one of the first to purchase Meals To Go, nutritionally prepared food from Abrazo Scottsdale Campus.
He continues to be a regular customer, relying on the program’s balanced and low-calorie meals to help his type-2 diabetes and hypertension.
Andrew says over the years, Abrazo Scottsdale Campus has helped him become more heart savvy. And he’s worked hard to give back to the hospital and the community. He was the second highest fundraiser out of the 430 Abrazo participants who raised money for the American Heart Association’s Phoenix Heart Walk in 2017. Andrew raised more than $4,100.
He created dozens of 3-by-5 index cards with his information, asking people not to donate but to “sponsor” him in heart walk. Sponsoring someone makes it more personal, Andrew says. It also gave his sponsors a chance to go onto the organization’s web site and check a box, asking for more information about heart matters.
“My first grandchild will be 2 in October. I want to see my grandchild grow up. I want other people to see their grandchildren grow up,’’ Andrew says.
“The only way I know to do that is to take care of yourself and see good doctors,’’ he says.
Andrew does what he can to steer people to Abrazo Scottsdale Campus.
“My neighbor had heart issues and I had him go to Abrazo,’’ Andrew says. “The people really care, there.”
