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… to my mom, today!
At about 11 a.m. at work yesterday, I started having chest pains. It almost felt like someone was stabbing and punching me in the chest. Then suddenly, I was having trouble breathing and I started panting. I initially thought I was having heartburn because I had eaten a different granola bar in the morning… but then, I decided that it couldn’t be heartburn since I’d had heartburn before and it was not as painful, nor did it affect my breathing.
When the pain subsided a little, I took some Advil and went to the restroom… unfortunately neither of those actions helped much. When I got back to my desk, the pain had increased again. After about 5 minutes -what felt like 15 minutes – the pain finally went away and I was able to breathe normally again. I called Binh, and he asked me to go to the ER or at least a CareNow clinic.
So at about 11:45 a.m. I drove myself to the CareNow clinic. I kid you not, I started having chest pains and couldn’t breathe again as soon as I had parked my car at the CareNow clinic. I was rushed into a triage room as soon as the nurse asked, “Goodmorning ma’am, how can I help you today?” and I told her I couldn’t breathe and was having chest pains.
After running an EKG, taking x-rays and blowing into a tube for the peak flow test, the doctor diagnosed it as an anxiety attack. I’m not sure what could have triggered it… I’ve asked myself that question since the attack happened, but have yet to determine one particular thing that could have triggered it. I think it could have been a handful of things, including the challenges of my latest travel arrangements at work, all of the 2009 planning that I need to do for work, or it simply could have been that the building at work was getting warm and I was starting to feel claustrophobic. I never knew anxiety attacks could be so severe, and now I understand how traumatic that moment can be if you ever have to experience it.
In any case, I now have medication should I feel another anxiety attack come on again. I learned a valuable lesson that I should not take Advil if I should have an anxiety attack or even for heartburn… according to the doctor, Advil is one of the worst things you could take in both instances. At least I can be prepared now.
I attended the Consumer Electronics Show two weeks ago. (Sorry for the delayed post.) At the very last minute, my company asked me to support some analyst briefings… so I booked my ticket and off I went. It was the first time I’d ever been to the show… and boy, it was absolutely magnificent. It was like a huge playground for adults, and there certainly wasn’t enough time for me to roam the entire showfloor at all. Check out some of the amazing, eye-appealing booths I saw (my photos don’t do them justice):
My favorite thing was at the NBC Universal booth, where they had touchscreen tables…
And of course, no trip to Las Vegas could be complete without seeing Jody…
So Jannie thinks I should post my New Year’s resolutions. Hmmmm……….., to be honest, I really haven’t thought about it. I could put down the generic ones, like losing weight, eating healthier, but let’s get real. Everyone has those resolutions. So….., I guess if I don’t want to the same old generic ones that everyone makes at the beginning of the year and crap out on it 3 weeks into the year, I should make realistic ones.
1. Try to be less critical of myself.
2. Get more involved in the community.
3. Have less lazy weekends and get out more.
4. Pick up a new active hobby.
5. Be successful at my new job.
6. Be at a healthy 180-185 pounds.
I guess that should do it for this year. Resolutions come and go, but these should be good for this year with everything coming to steady pace now than compared to this time last year. I don’t even remember much of the beginning of last year up until after May. But we should all make the best of what time that we have with our family and friends. Last year ended without a hitch and this year seems to be trending the same way. I just have to take care of my priorities and handle things as they come and try to avoid causing situations that I would prefer not to be in. 2008 will be a year that I will never forget, but I am looking very forward to 2009. Happy New Year’s everyone!!!!
- Get back into shape. Eat healthy + exercise = lose weight.
- Drink more water. Aim to down at least two full nalgene bottles daily.
- Take my vitamins. Calcium should be at the top of this list since I don’t drink milk.
- Get enough rest. Aim to be in bed by 11 p.m. every night, minus the weekends.
- Eat out less, especially fast food during lunch, and cook at home more.
- Be better about friend’s birthdays, including cards and gifts.
- Show more kindness and allow everyone a second chance.
- Read more, maybe a book or two a month, and do things that stimulate the mind (like crosswords).
- Honk less…. this one is an annual resolution. I can’t help if God made stupid drivers.
