Local heart attack survivor brings awareness to heart health

LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — After a red-eye flight from Portland to Lexington in 2018, Mark Meade says he was walking through the airport parking garage when he suffered a heart attack.

“I had intense burning in my chest, I was nauseous, I was sweating,” Meade said.

He then began significantly coughing.

“After about a minute, I came back to my senses, found the car, drove home,” he said.

A few weeks later, Meade was at a doctors appointment doing a stress test for his heart.

“Minutes into the stress test I had sudden cardiac arrest, and so my heart stopped,” he said. “When my heart stopped, I had lost oxygen to the brain and I was thrown off the treadmill.”

He then spent the next six days on life support.

“”When I woke up, I had no idea what had happened,” Meade said.

Meade has struggled with high cholesterol since he was 26.

“At the time I was running 6 days a week, 6 miles a day, non-smoker, not obese,” he said.

His mom had dealt with high cholesterol and his dad eventually died from a heart attack.

“Genetics can play a very large part,” he said.

Meade urges people to have regular check-ups with your doctor, no matter how healthy you think you are. He says being aware can save your life.

“I’m extremely lucky to be alive today,” he said.

Now, Meade spends his time at UK Hospital on a cardiology advisory committee, and he helps others with heart issues. He works right beside the people who kept his own heart beating.

“I can’t tell you how rewarding it is to work with the person that is responsible for saving my life,” he said.