It was no secret that I’d been under a lot of stress lately. A lot of it came from work, but some of it came from my personal life and avoiding decisions that I knew had to be made in different areas of my life.
I’d been telling myself, for too long, that I’d make the time to figure things out—soon. Every time my heart rate jumped 20 beats, I’d take a few deep breaths and promise myself that I’d slow down soon.
However, all the signs and symptoms had surfaced for a burnout. I’d hastily brush them off because I didn’t have the time. Things kept popping up, but I had a good excuse for everything. I was always worried about everyone else. I always came last.
A day that started normally
Tuesday December 30, 2025, started off like any regular day. I got up and went to work. Work went smoothly. After work, my plan was to run a few errands. I had to pick up a birthday cake for my partner, as his birthday was on New Year’s Day. I’d be off that day and both of us were looking forward to spending some time together.
I ran the errands, picked up chicken shawarmas for supper and a chocolate confetti cake (complete with birthday candles) for the birthday celebration.
After supper that night, I started feeling a little strange. I took a few deep breaths, assuming the feeling would pass. Unfortunately, five minutes later, I started feeling an uncomfortable pressure near my heart. My heart actually felt as though it was being squeezed. My heart rate would plummet to 50 beats, and the next minute it would hit 125.
I kept an eye on it, and the pain didn’t intensify, so I took deep breaths and waited for the feeling to go away. It was uncomfortable, but the pain was manageable. Next thing I knew, though, I also felt nauseous and short of breath. It had been more than a half an hour, and I wasn’t feeling any better.
It was just after 7 p.m. Both my uncle and father had experienced heart attacks when they were in their early forties, and I was in my mid-forties, so I knew I should take my situation seriously and get to the hospital. I couldn’t wait any longer. I had no idea what would happen next, but I couldn’t take a risk. I needed to get to a hospital as soon as possible.
Registration and triage
By shortly after 8 p.m., I was registered at the local hospital. Within a couple of hours, I was given aspirin and an electrocardiogram (ECG) to check my heart activity. I also had blood work done and a chest x-ray.
After everything was done, I was told by a friendly nurse that it would take several hours to get my results. At 3:30 the next morning, the nurse called me in to triage again. She said my blood pressure looked good for the time being, and although it would still take a couple more hours, it was important that I wait for my results. I was due to show up for work in less than four hours.
At this point, I found myself calling work (we’re open 24/7) and explaining my
situation. Hours earlier, I’d already tried to contact every available staff member to fill in for me. No one had picked up. I had no one to cover my shift. I was in the hospital, in pain and I had no idea what my results would show. Yet here I was, worried about work. My co-worker assured me they’d figure something out and told me to focus on myself.
Time to slow down and reflect
At 8:30 in the morning, a doctor saw me and went over my results. They concluded that I was under a lot of stress, and this was my body’s way of telling me to slow down.
I couldn’t believe it. The night before, I’d been sure I was having a heart attack. Now the doctor was telling me that my heart was fine. The issue was I needed to take time to breathe, slow down and listen to my body instead of ignoring it. I was grateful that everything was fine, but I knew that heading into the year 2026, I had to slow down. Things could have turned out very differently.
Lucky for me, I still have time to make changes to my lifestyle and slow down. I took a couple of days off from work. I got a lot of rest and spent a lot of time reflecting. I made a lot of promises to myself, which I intend to keep. First on my list is to make my health my number one priority.
Here is to a wonderful, happy and healthy 2026.
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