Yesterday, my dad suffered a heart attack. He woke up in the middle of the night to chest pain that radiated to his arm, and it was so intense that he was unable to return to sleep.

In the morning, he spoke to my sister, Jaimie, about it, who in turn asked my sister, Jess (who is a doctor) for advice. Jess recommended she take our dad to the hospital. He stayed overnight at the ICU and is still at the hospital in the recovery ward as of now.

According to Jess, two of his major vessels were blocked/heavily calcified to the point where the doctors couldn't even place a stent because the vessels were so narrow. One of the vessels is 100% blocked. The doctors are medically managing him by giving him medications to open up his blood vessels. It sounds like he'll be discharged potentially tomorrow, but should he continue to have chest pains, he will need to follow up with a cardiologist for stent placement.

My dad is pretty lousy at taking his medications. He already has bad cholesterol and diabetes, and now we find that he has an unhealthy heart. I shouldn't be surprised. I wonder how well he'll be able to manage it.

I never had a great relationship with him, but I find myself actually worried. I called him and he thanked me for checking up on him. I hope he'll take better care of himself when he's out of there, but I can't say I'm optimistic.

One of the shitty parts about getting older is that your parents are getting older, too. And one day, they'll be gone. I'm at the age where this may become a reality in the near future.

Eat well and stay healthy. If not for yourself, then do it for your loved ones.