Hitting the Wall
In my last newsletter, I explained how a typical whole-body MRI can be helpful but should not give a false sense of security. Not only do whole-body MRIs miss tumors and other abnormalities, but they also don’t screen for certain life-threatening diseases, like coronary heart disease, which could cause death tomorrow.
Life is fragile, and although we often acknowledge this, we don’t always truly believe it. A drowning, a traffic accident, cancer, early dementia, and of course, a heart attack could happen tomorrow. One minute you’re here, and the next you’re slumped over a chair. If you’re lucky and survive the sudden death caused by a complete blockage of the left anterior descending artery of the heart (appropriately called “The widowmaker”), or if your death from cancer takes 15 years instead of 15 months, you get the not-so-envious benefit of living life with purpose, gratitude, and reflection—experiences many never get a chance to have.
No matter how young you are or how young you feel, it’s best to maintain an attitude of gratitude for being alive and understand that risk is essential to measure, moderate, and mitigate. We assume that acting or looking younger improves your chances of living a long life, but I've seen relatively young individuals die suddenly. I recall a young urologist falling off his bike after a massive heart attack and an insurance salesperson dying suddenly while relaxing in his rocking chair on the front porch of his cottage.
I’m not suggesting that you should be petrified every day of your life. Instead, I believe we should never have a false sense of security just because you’re young, work out, or look “good for your age.” My wife and I met up with a friend of hers from work and her husband for dinner, and when we found out he was 70 years old, we were amazed. Both of us remarked how well he looked for his age (even though I knew better). He then stated very matter-of-factly, “ya, until you hit a wall.” His wife was slightly embarrassed because he didn’t elaborate on the comment until she asked him to do so. He said everyone said the same thing to his golf friend, who was 75 but looked and acted as if he were 60. Then one day, he and his wife saw him in the clubhouse, barely walking, looking more like 85. When they asked another friend what happened to him, he said he was golfing 18 holes one day and that night he had a stroke. One minute, he was looking great, and it was like he “hit a wall.”
During my early days as a physician, I remember asking the cardiovascular surgeon if he could consult on this 87-year-old woman who just had a cardiac catheterization revealing diffuse coronary disease. Hoping he would operate on her, I told him that although she’s 87, she looks much younger than her age. He looked at me and, without hesitation, said, “When I open someone up, they all catch up to their stated age.”
So, enjoy life, be grateful, and treat your body well, but never get too cocky; you never know when you’ll hit a wall.
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