An emergency dispatcher had her own
medical drama last week when she had a heart attack that was so severe
that she was left without a heartbeat for almost an hour.
Olivia Arnold called her neighbor when she experienced chest pains on March 27th and she knows how lucky she was to survive such a emergency.
'They call it the widow maker and they say maybe less than two per cent survive,' she told The Tennessean.
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Even her doctors seem shocked that the 35-year-old made it through such a harrowing procedure.
'I told her from the get go, "if she was going to survive this, it was because of God." We were just her doctors,' Dr Chris Scott said.
After calling her neighbor to tell her that something was wrong, the neighbor immediately knew it was an emergency.
'When I first saw her I thought she was actually dead,' neighbor Lynn Cross told USA Today.
Ms Arnold's heart had stopped beating by the time that paramedics arrived.
Though they revived her en route
to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, her heartbeat
disappeared once more, and this time it didn't come back for almost an
hour.
Now Ms Arnold has vowed to live a healthier life to avoid a second heart attack. She quickly gave up smoking and she and her friends have set a goal that they will run a 5k race by this time next year.
'Going through it at 35 is not fun,' she said.
Olivia Arnold called her neighbor when she experienced chest pains on March 27th and she knows how lucky she was to survive such a emergency.
'They call it the widow maker and they say maybe less than two per cent survive,' she told The Tennessean.
SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO
Suvivor: Olivia Arnold, 35, had a heart attack and her heart stopped beating for an hour
Scary: Arnold was alone in her home when she started experiencing chest pains so she called a neighbor
'I told her from the get go, "if she was going to survive this, it was because of God." We were just her doctors,' Dr Chris Scott said.
After calling her neighbor to tell her that something was wrong, the neighbor immediately knew it was an emergency.
'When I first saw her I thought she was actually dead,' neighbor Lynn Cross told USA Today.
Ms Arnold's heart had stopped beating by the time that paramedics arrived.
Emotional: Arnold has vowed to get healthier and stop smoking
Now Ms Arnold has vowed to live a healthier life to avoid a second heart attack. She quickly gave up smoking and she and her friends have set a goal that they will run a 5k race by this time next year.
'Going through it at 35 is not fun,' she said.