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Apologies in advance ! Terrified & can't find a resort with green runs?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Ref trysil, Norway that has been suggested I would just make one comment and that is I too am a horribly nervous skiier and am very happy on greens. the main problem I found there is that there are a lot of buttons and t-bars. At the beginning of the holiday my heart rate at one point registered 158 getting off a t-bar as they terrify me. Trysil (over the hoysfjjel side) does indeed have some gorgeous greens but the drags are just that. So if cash isn't a problem go to the Radisson Blu Mountain Resort (not touristcentre one, as there are 2). It has a great wellness centre with outdoor jacazzi which looked fab (we didn't go in as it costs extra and we couldn't justify it!). If T-bars bother you, see if you can get tuition. I did however crack them this time and they are no longer an issue. If you venture further afield there, don't attempt T9 which has a green which joins with a black for about 100 yards! It was icy the day we did it and I fell and couldn't get back up and was skidoo'd down - terrifying but fun lol). I would say one to one tuition is the way to go as I have always found groups pressurising, but that's just me. So I would say if it were me, that hotel in that resort with private tuition and you will have a great time. 2 hour 10 minute flight and about the same again by ski bus. All the instructors (there is only one ski school) I heard were speaking very good English. We have been to Ruka in Finland and that too was nice thoughavoid green run 5 it isn't one!!!
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
If you're just looking for short green runs, then there is a ski school in Zakopane, Poland that offers just that.

They have 5 really short (the longest is 300m) green runs, across the road from a nice hotel (Nosalowy Dwor).

This place is possibly exactly what you need, very simple runs, all drag/button lifts and there are no steeper/longer runs to progress onto (there are at other venues in Zakopane) so you wouldn't need to worry about the instructor suggesting you try one as there are none to try!

You mention money isn't a concern, but given your specifics you could pay a lot to use a very limited amount of whats available at larger resorts, so somewhere similar to here may be worth considering (you can get tokens to pay per run too if that helps, so you only pay for what to use):

http://nosal.pl/en/
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Old Fartbag wrote:
Thornyhill wrote:
Old Fartbag wrote:
I am someone who thinks that quality 1:1 instruction is more important than worrying about the number of Green runs.......



When the 5h1te is running down your leg and your heart has stopped, I honestly don't think a high quality instructor is going to help.... (Unless he has bog roll and knows CPR wink )

I take your point, but most resorts have enough gentle runs to find your mojo....and imo, it takes the right instructor to give confidence and lay the foundation to improve and so alleviate the need for a bung and/or Imodium. Toofy Grin


EDIT.

That was a lazy answer, but I was tired yesterday evening and so took the easy way out.

I'm now sitting, with Laptop on knee, coffee in hand and hoping that Rocket Ryding will do the business....and hoping for inspiration to strike, so I can write another "Fartbag Fable".

You may think that my view was based on some nebulous whim, plucked from thin air; but it wasn't. It was from hard fought, up close and personal experience.

Lady F - or should I say, the future Lady F, as this was the mid 80s and she hadn't yet inserted the ring into my nose - had all the same nervous issues as the OP, though TBF, she was probably younger, with no serious medical problems. I chose 2 weeks in Les Arcs (1800) for her debut skiing experience, as they used "Ski Evolutif" as the preferred learning system. I felt this would have a greater likelihood of success than her first effort being on long, old-school straight skis.

The first week, stuck in a class, was a disaster. She hated every single second of it, with lots of tears and tantrums. There was even talk of a divorce...and we weren't even married!! The problem was that she wasn't prepared to let the skis run (at all), until she could turn and stop....but you can't learn to turn and stop until you let the skis run (a bit). Stalemate!

The only ray of light was the excellent young (and good looking) Aussie instructor, who seemed to have infinite patience and who the future Lady F actually liked.....so we booked him every day on the following week for private lessons, in the vein hope that she would make it up the beginner chair and down the learner slope, while remaining on her feet for more than 10 seconds.

After another full week of monumental effort, she finally made it without falling (either off the chair or down the slope). Hallelujah! There is no doubt in my mind, that without the intervention of this instructor and his private lessons, Mrs F's skiing career would have been over before it began.

She was so bad and struggled so much, that my family were amazed that she stuck at it....but stick at it she did. Over the following years, we had a series of 2 week holidays, mostly at Les Arcs and La Plagne, but also Montgenevre, Ellmau and even Alta. In each resort, she took private lessons with kindly, patient instructors and gradually, bit by bit, she got better and better as her confidence grew. The small fortune I spent on private lessons could have bought me a luxury chalet in the Jardin Alpin area of Courchevel, beside Villeneuve....but I don't begrudge any of it, as Lady F became a very competent advanced skier.

One interesting side-effect of learning through the Ski Evolutif method, was that she had no problem turning Off-Piste - something to do with having her weight slightly back of centre and swiveling her feet - but slowing down Off Piste was another matter entirely. She would get quicker and quicker....before suddenly disappearing in a puff of snow, like she had fallen down a well, or been shot by a sniper. Ironically, as she improved On-Piste (by getting her weight more forward and learning to transfer her weight early and drive the downhill ski), she lost the ability to turn in the soft stuff.

So there you have it. Lady F went from quivering wreck, to competent advanced skier, due to dogged perseverance and many (many) private lessons.

Unfortunately, due to various medical issues, she has been unable to ski for the last 7 years, but I live in hope that my skiing partner will be back with a vengeance in the not too distant future....not least because she provides the story lines for my "Tall Tales", which help fill in the time until the next ski holiday comes round.

@Thornyhill

Apologies....I meant to put this in a new quote, but the caffeine hadn't done its job and I hit the wrong button. Embarassed

Now sorted.


Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Sun 19-02-17 14:32; edited 2 times in total
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Cracking and Inspirational post OF - really helpful. My oh has said what's the point in lessons as i am technically good but just "won't let go" and that's why I haven't had anything but beginners lessons. I think I'll try again next time (am at a crossroads as to whether I will go again tbh) with one to one.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Lots of wonderful gentle greens through the trees in Courchevel 1850, although it may be a big high for the OP.

Alpe d'Huez also has lots of gentle greens running back into the resort.

Val d'Isere actually has a great beginners area now, at the top of Solaise, but again, I think it's too high.

@TQA, the Trout is indeed a nice run, but it's a pain getting back to the beginning of it as it doesn't have a direct lift!
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bambionskiis wrote:
Cracking and Inspirational post OF - really helpful. My oh has said what's the point in lessons as i am technically good but just "won't let go" and that's why I haven't had anything but beginners lessons. I think I'll try again next time (am at a crossroads as to whether I will go again tbh) with one to one.

I think the message that comes out of your post is, "Don't listen to your other half." Toofy Grin.....a strategy that has worked well for Lady F over the years.

If just one person keeps going and doesn't give up as a result of my post, it will have been well worth the effort.

Go and have your 1:1 lessons, keep fighting the fight and I am quite certain that you will get yourself to a decent level.

Good Luck
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I echo @Old Fartbag, above, in full, also comments of @pam w. Confidence building is the absolute key to this and that goes hand in hand with incremental improvements in technique and accomplishment. Old F's tale about his wife is instructive and quite commonplace. On a private lesson, you call the shots (where you ski, when it's time for coffee etc) so don't be worried about bullying at all, at all. I especially echo Old Fartbag's comments about the importance of patient, one-to-one instruction (I find that it's the apprehensive debutants who often do best, once they've passed the point of astonishment that they can actually do the needful) - many, many good skiers have come up this way and only by this way. Most instructors would probably be more than happy to take you in preference to a group lesson for reasons numerous but all positive. The resorts suggested such as Les Houches, Les Saisies etc would be fine for you. Don't worry, have the most massive enjoyment!!
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I am a squinny on skis. We went to Combloux near Megeve this year and had some private lessons with a lovely English speaking ESF instructor. It is perfect there, wide open nice greens and blues and very empty (though I am sure in French school holidays it is a different story). It did wonders for my skiing confidence. All the lift and ski shop and cafe people were super friendly as well. We had 3 lessons (one every other morning) where she showed us a load of easy runs as well as taught us stuff, then we could confidently go down the runs on our own afterwards.

It is a small place though, you would want to ski blues after a day or two but they are very nice and easy blues - much easier and less steep than some of the greens up from Megeve. You can go ski over to a neighbouring resort ( Le Villard) on nice blues with one short steep bit on one blue on the way back. We also went to Megeve ( few km on a free bus) one day, the short greens around the central bit are nice, the ones up the mountain have pretty steep bits.

In Combloux you do have to be able to speak French a bit at least as there are few English speakers around, and I don't think any package ski holidays go there from the UK , which might be a disadvantage for some people. Not much apres ski to speak of. But its lovely. Top lift about 1800m so not exactly snow sure and only a few pistes have snowmaking machines, but snow was perfect when we were there. Great marked hiking and snowshoeing trails as well.

I wouldn't get fixated on the colour of the pistes too much though. I think there is a lot of overlap between green and blue. Apparently some French resorts had to label a certain number of runs as green to get permission for the resorts, so in some resorts they can be harder than others.

I have previously been to Meribel and Courcheval 1850 which I dont like as much. There are nice greens in Courcheval but they always seemed really busy when we went (3rd week Jan so not a really busy time), same for Meribel. Depends what you want really though - they are much more exciting resorts in terms of bars/restaurants/bustlingness etc.

Good luck !
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Thank you so much everyone.

You have all helped me so . Really do appreciate it Happy
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@Montana, + 1 for Marvel but...if the snow hasn't been plentiful then it can get closed fairly regularly. This year is an example of that. The reason I think is that the bottom section get slushy or too bare in such conditions.

It is a proper run thought and should be thought about because of it. If you find you can do Marvel then you could almost certainly do the Doina run back to Morillon Village - have a bit stop in the Bon Coin before getting back on the gondola. They should keep you well occupied. Beware of interpreting green roads as runs as they won't be much fun on a repeated basis.
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HoneyBunny wrote:


@TQA, the Trout is indeed a nice run, but it's a pain getting back to the beginning of it as it doesn't have a direct lift!


Isn't there a gondola out of Meribel that takes you to a green run above Mottaret on the VT side?

That should take you down to the Trout.

Stay away from the Courcheval side of the Meribel valley though. I have memories of 100 meter ice slides and people going down like skittles.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Val Cenis, France has plenty of green runs and the longest green ski run in Europe :

10-kilometre green run

The 10-kilometre L'Escargot, the longest green ski run in Europe, is ideal for beginners who are getting sick of the nursery slopes. It gives them a chance to stretch their legs with the big boys. The L'Escargot starts at 2,050 metres and winds its way down to 1,398 metres, most of which is in pine and larch forest. From the top, views aren't at all shabby - you'll see the Dent Parachee, the Pointe D’Andagne and even the Grand Paradis. Snowboarders may not enjoy it quite as much as skiers, as parts of the run are quite flat.
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Echo Jayjayjam for Courcheval 1850 for the runs - we stayed in La Tania but took our then 5 year old over on the bus to 1850 purely because the runs over there were so nice.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
@scaredtoski, Nendaz, it'll be great for you guys. Or Villars, both in Switzerland and very learner friendly. In France St Foy or La Rosiere. Austria Ski Amade (Salzburg area).
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Assuming this isn't a troll ('I hate the idea of skiing but am desperate to go skiing' 'I much prefer drags to chairs' etc.), there's no need for a huge resort - unless they're going for the nightlife. snowHead Indeed a low-budget resort is more likely to have drags than a big resort.

What about Valmorel? At €26 per day for the lift pass the 'money no object' trip will have plenty of budget for a private ski instructor. They couldn't possibly go into ski school - they'd hate it and the others in the class would hate them. But ski lessons for €45 per hour would make a big difference to them.
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 Poster: A snowHead
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sugarmoma666 wrote:
dan100 wrote:
Alpe d huez has nice bowl of green runs but is fairly high. Think those runs would be 2200 down to 1800. If you want to reduce the altitude I would suggest Austria perhaps at the beginning of February and pick a resort that is beginner friendly. Equally importantly think about lessons and private lessons until you gain your confidence

It also has the excellent ski school Masterclass, run by Stuart Adamson. I'm confident Stuart would understand and work within your requirements.


+1 for both bits of advice. Although ADH greens south facing so could be slush later in the season (maybe mid March onwards although others could advise). I tried to book with Masterclass but couldn't get in. Full. Just plan well in advance ... as you seem to be doing.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Really if money is no object and you want greens and you cant do heights, take a look as suggested above at the Radisson Mountain Resort at Trysil (not the Turist center one as its not got so many greens)
You could easily spend a week on those greens, they are really good.
Look at skistar trysil
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sugarmoma666 wrote:
dan100 wrote:
Alpe d huez has nice bowl of green runs but is fairly high. Think those runs would be 2200 down to 1800. If you want to reduce the altitude I would suggest Austria perhaps at the beginning of February and pick a resort that is beginner friendly. Equally importantly think about lessons and private lessons until you gain your confidence

It also has the excellent ski school Masterclass, run by Stuart Adamson. I'm confident Stuart would understand and work within your requirements.


+1 for both bits of advice. Although ADH greens south facing so could be slush later I. Season (maybe mid March onwards although others could advise). I tried to book with Masterclass but couldn't get in. Full. Just plan well in advance ... as you seem to be doing.
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Now that we have the list of resorts, what about timing?

Staying below 2000m, it risk having poor snow condition, especially early and late season. Icy slope, green or otherwise, are never confidence building!

So it needs to be covered by snow cannon, or later (but not too late) in the prime of the ski season.

Scandinavia started to sound really nice on that regard, low but snow sure for long period of the winter.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Trysil and Hemsedal snowsure until mid April
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warbis66 wrote:
Trysil and Hemsedal snowsure until mid April


Mid March would be best time IMO. Days are getting longer, but before anything gets too slushy. I doubt queues ever get that long, but may as avoid half term - Gothenburg week 7 and Oslo week 8 I think.
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I suspect that many, many resorts have areas which will have a nice green or easy blue which you can spend all day on for several days - but it's pointless paying a huge amount for an expensive list pass for a big area if you're not going to use it, and you will find that in many resorts (though maybe for you it's a cost worth paying). So in that respect look for resorts which are smaller or have cheaper passes, maybe.
They will also be quieter, and a lot of anxiety in my experience comes from busy pistes where the snow gets chopped up and there are far too many people on there (of all ages, ability levels and speeds) for your comfort zone.

Personally speaking (but this is just my opinion), I would not necessarily bother with lessons on a first trip if just getting there and experiencing it is your priority. You will probably benefit from them in some way, immediately or some time later, but it also sounds as if they (or the particular instructor's style) are a cause of anxiety for you, and if you're happy just plodding around on what you feel safe and just being there (and I don't mean that in a negative or disparaging way at all), then that's great for you, so just get on and enjoy it without feeling pressured.

My thoughts on easy nice runs:
a) Cairngorm (play on Ptarmigan bowl if nothing else) or other Scotland resorts IF they have snow (! so far this year) and you can get up there on an ad hoc basis when the weather is good - but some years they can go late into season which can be nice (Easter, April etc);
b) Arinsal, Andorra. It's basically one long bluey green from top to bottom and an excellent place for developing: and used to be pretty cheap.
c) Kaprun (the Maiskogel in Kaprun itself) in Austria - another lovely long and not too scary blue run (except the very very last bit: but you can cope with that).

I have in my time as a progressing skier and with a very learner boarder spent many a happy days to weeks playing on all of these pistes - the latter 2 with chairlifts, former mostly drags. The latter 2 also higher than the 1st, but not major altitude. I can't comment about hospitals near in Arinsal, but that could be an issue. Scotland is at least NHS and UK speaking and there'll be hospitals in major towns/cities but not on the doorstep. Austrian hospitals will be good and used to UK speakers and I think that there is at least a decent clinic if not full hospital in Kaprun.

If altitude is an issue, then the Lapland and Scandanavian countries are very low indeed (i.e. 200-400m) and most have a good selecton of easy to middle of the road runs (no worse than Chillfactore) which often aren't too long either, and start/end up back in habitation rather than requiring a major gondola/cable car uplift to get on the pistes. Most mainland Europe resorts will involve 2000m+ I would think, especially if snow cover is not fantastic - and many 'beginner' or easier areas can be (though not always) at the lower altitudes where there may not be good or any snow. If you can get out there in March/April I'm told that it's the best time and snow, but you probably won't get a tour operator at that time of year and in Jan/Feb the weather can be pretty foul and the days short and not exactly sparking Alpine conditions.

However, I would not consider a good number of resorts mentioned if you do think that you might need emergency medical assessment or care quickly (compared to care for snow activity injuries which they're probably pretty used to and geared up for). I also have a number of medical conditions which could need very quick attention, and the risk affects my resort choice and comfort/anxiety levels on holiday. Only you can assess what the acceptable distance/time to a hospital, clinic, doctor, etc might be, and how big a medical facility (a GP, a clinic, a full-blown hospital) you might need.
Part of your assessment might be working out how quickly you could get off the mountain, too: helicopter, gondola, ski/skidoo straight down to the base? That will depend on resort/piste/run layout and uplift access, how far away from the centre of things the runs which you want are, etc. And what about if it's not on piste but after hours, evening etc? (That's no different to any holiday, really - but a 24 our hospital/clinic is more reassuring than a phone for help GP only, imho.)

One thing certainly: make sure that you have appropriate winter sports insurance to cover you and your companion for all pre-existing conditions. An EHIC card won't help if you're on the slopes and need to be got off.

Many of the larger established town-based (i.e. proper residential, such as Kaprun, Mayrhofen & many others) resorts should have good general medical facilties, and many Austrian resorts are near (some very near) to large cities like Salzburg, Innsbruck etc which will have excellent large hospitals. Doubtless there are similar examples in Swizerland, France, Italy and other countries, but apart from Chamonix I don't know those. Perhaps this is the way to start your reseach?

I would avoid Ruka and smaller more isolated places for this reason, at least for your first trip: although probably there are hospitals accessable, they're not in or near resort, and sometimes there's only an on-call or private 'GP'. Perhaps someone can advise better on larger Norway or Sweden resorts (or perhaps Levi, Finland)?
Having said that, there are small resorts all over Norway and Sweden which are very much on the outskirts of major towns and cities. Can't remember the names but picked up loads of brochures when in Norway many years ago. You'd probably have to organise your own trip, but it's pretty easy to fly out, hire a car and get accommodation, especially if money isn't too tight. Again, a bit of online research should assist.

Perhaps also therefore avoiding some of the purpose-built European resorts (but I've never been there so it's just my perception) as they may not have much in the way of nearby full hospitals?
Make enquiries via a tour operator or online about hospitals/clinics/medical care etc before finalising your resort choice.

I do hope that you can find somewhere that you feel safe and confident and that your skiing holiday 'career' will open up for you. Smile
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Soldeu in Andorra would be ideal. Lots of long cruising blue runs that are pretty flat. Ski school and instructors are first class. More snow than the Alps and lift queues almost non existent.
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The best resorts for green runs in my opinion are ADH and Courchevel 1850. We've been back to Courchevel for the last 3 years and going again this March as it's so easy and my wife doesn't get freaked out that the kids will go speding off into oblivion! Can't recommend it highly enough.
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Quote:

We did a couple of days skiing in Scotland Glencoe.....


Then you've nothing to worry about. These poncey alpine places are a walk in the park in comparison! (only half joking - I love Glencoe but you'll find lots of much more forgiving terrain, much wider pistes and better uplift in much of the alps).
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@scaredtoski, Have you looked at ski insurance, to see if you can actually get cover?
Due to my recent medical fun and games I was not able to get travel insurance at all at one point!
Thankfully all that is now behind me and insurance isn't so much of a problem. (They just don't cover me for anything to do with pre existing condition)
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As someone said earlier, St Gervais is a good choice for a green run skier. You can travel all the way over to Megeve and back on a combination of green slopes and and telecabines and many of the blues are very easy too.
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Hi. Thanks again for the really useful posts everyone Happy . Very helpful !

Re insurance , yes it seems to be no problem at all as the heart attack was 7 years ago now . I have answered all the criteria it asks me about it on the comparison sites and it all seems fine , even for skiing. Hope those comparison sites are quite acurate and dont suddenly change when you go to do it for real :-/ .


I dont have a passport yet though , so my plan is to get one of those and spend the next few months topping up my skiing skills with some more lessons at Tamworth , with an aim to booking a proper holiday end of 2017 or beginning 2018 .
Thank you everyone Happy
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Sorry , meant to say boredsurfin , do you think they wont cover me if anything goes wrong with my heart again then ?
Is that how it works?
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@scaredtoski, if you disclosed the condition it will be covered unless expressly excluded. Alternatively you can be covered, but with an increased excess in case of a claim relating to the condition, which is what my insurance says. I would take a very dim view of not being able to ski just because I've got heart disease!
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It was such a weird heart attack . When i have filled in dummy run insurance forms , it asks things like do you have heart disease and i actually dont . They said i had no signs of heart disease at all and after studying me like a guinie pig for 7 yrs they still dont know why i had a heart attack.
Then they ask do you have high blood pressure that you take medication for , i dont have high blood pressure , i have extremely low , but they still make me take medication for it , even though its low . So again its hard to answer :-/

Another dummy run form i filled in wasnt interested in details at all as it was over 5 yrs ago and i only still see the specialists to help them with their research .

Anyway thank you for your advise . Helpful . I think i will phone and have a chat with them . Probably safer . They let me run the london marathon 6 times since having it , so fingers crossed i can get ski insurance .
Thanks for your help Happy
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@scaredtoski, what do you mean by a 'heart attack'?
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I was lying in bed having just woken up and suddenly the room started spinning and i started vomiting , i put my hand up to my head and realised that I and the bed was soaked in sweat and i had a really bad pain across my jaw like someone was crushing it .
I staggered down stairs feeling very ill and knew something was seriously wrong, dialed 999 .
Long story short the paramedics came told me it was a heart attack and they were administering clot busting drugs which werent working . They rushed me to local hospital - macclesfield , they tried everything there but they werent getting anywhere.
Luckily Wythenshawe hospital had a specialist unit so they sent me over to there , i got sent in as an emergency for .....now i am reading off my hospital notes now , so not sure if this means anything to you ?

Ecg st elevation v3 - v5 now global t wave inversion
Cxr - nad
Thrombolysis- failed
Pci and stenting to lad site

In short they ram rodded a blood clot out of my heart with a balloon and stent , because the clot busting drugs didnt shift it . Operated through my groin . I nearly died as nothing they were doing was working .

Unfortunately the heart attack left me with some heart damage to my heart as it was starved of oxygen for 6 hrs .

I have to take ramipril, aspirin, atorvastatin,bisoprolol, and ranitidine and gtn spray now ( its to do with preserving my heart function from the possibility of cardiac remodelling) so they tell me , though they have bad effects ie low bp and my heart rate sits at 38 bpm instead of 70 .

Had a fantastic heart specialist . They spent a good 2 years performing all the tests on me to see why i had the heart attack as i had literally no risk factors what so ever. ...female only 39 , never drank, smoked , ate well , exercised regularly, no family history ...the only thing that was waving a red flag was extreme anxiety and ocd that i had had all my life . They tested my blood and found high stress level chemicals and investigated the possibility that the stress had made my blood unusually sticky which had wedged in my heart triggering the heart attack . I have pictures of my heart blood flow before and after the heart attack that they sent me out with ....
Sorry for all the boring details .

In short it was a proper heart attack . They are stillunsure of the reasons for it . I just see them once a year now . What does trigger chest pain and dodgy rhythms for me is anxiety .

Apologies for boring long post Happy
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Not at all boring, or not to me anyway. Thanks for sharing. I hope you never have another such attack. You must at least be very fit if you do marathons.
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Ahhh thanks .
Very stupid of me to do marathons after , and totally disobeyed the specialist advice , but to be honest i had to do it because otherwise i would have spent the rest of my life in total utter terror of having another heart attack . In a weird way i thought to myself , 'well if its gonna kill me nows its chance! '
I figured that if i pushed my heart to its limit and still survived i need never fear it again . It worked to an extent . But was very very stupid of me . I had my reasons though . And at least got to meet Jonathan Edwards ( did a tv interview before the start as was running for heart charity) . Had a bit of a crush on him lol .
Thanks for your interest anyway Happy
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@Grizzler, thank you for your post . Veryuseful Happy

Thank you everyone else too Happy
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@scaredtoski, OH is a practice nurse and has to keep up to date with this stuff all year round. Unfortunately I am her study partner. I found your post quite fascinating. There has been a fair bit of research showing that anxiety and stress can lead to venous thromboembolism. Low BP and low heart rate.....too much Bisoprolol and Ramipril? @Hells Bells is the local expert to be fair.

From an insurance point of view... heart attack is usually covered in the 'Have you ever suffered' questions rather than 'Have you suffered in the last 5 years'.

If it is over 5 years they would normally accept you on normal terms, but they still want to know about it.
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p.s. - Don't be messing with your meds based on what you read on the internet, but I think it would be a reasonable question to ask your GP/heart specialist?
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Ahhh...thanks for your post Happy

They wont take me off the bisoprolol or ramipril , i have begged them , but they really cant . I am on the smallest dose possible because of my low bp and heart rate 1.25 mg , once a day . The problem is , they want to preserve the heart function from the cardiac remodelling that can happen when someone has had a heart attack , so though these tablets are absolutely ridiculous for me , they need me to tolerate them as they have that heart function preserving quality that i need for the rest of my life . There is something in these tablets that they need me to have for future heart protection .
Not sure if that makes any sense ...but they just wont take me off them . They have me on bloomin statins too ,again they wont let me leave them off either , even though my cholesterol is rock bottom , but all these tablets are for looking after me for the future they say .

I am so grateful to them though and people like your OH . Tell her thanks from me for the wonderful job she does ( and you too ) Happy

Thanks Happy
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@Thornyhill,
Ahh thanks ..... i know Happy

They have discussions about me at the hospital everytime i go . No one can decide what to do with me and my meds , i am a puzzle to them , but i would never change anything without their permission , i am a good patient that way Happy
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