How to Survive a Heart Attack When Alone

Let's say it's 4:17 p.m. and you're driving home (alone of course) after a typical hard day at the Board of Regents. All of a sudden, you start experiencing severe pain in your chest-that begins to radiate out into your arm, and up into your jaw.

You're only about five miles from the hospital nearest your home; unfortunately you don't know if you'll be able to make it that far. What can you do? You've been trained in CPR, but the person who taught the course neglected to tell you how to perform it on yourself...

Many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, Without help, the person whose heart stops beating properly, and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 SECONDS LEFT before losing consciousness.

However, these victims can help themselves if they do the following:
- Cough repeatedly and vigorously.
- Take a deep breath before each cough.
- Be sure the cough is deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum formed inside the chest.

Repeat the deep breath and vigorous cough every two seconds. Until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.

Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm.

In this way, heart attack victims can get to a phone and, between breaths, call for help.

Tell everyone you know, as many other people as possible about this; it could save their lives!