NEED TO KNOW
A 34-year-old man suffered a “widowmaker” heart attack, but he thought his pain was caused by Mexican food he had eaten the night prior
Stephanie James and Mario Ciccarello went out to dinner to mark Valentine’s Day before tragedy struck
“I looked at my son sleeping and wondered if it was the last time I was going to see him,” the man recalled
After a couple enjoyed a Valentine’s Day meal of Mexican food, a man began to suffer chest pain, and his partner jokingly asked him if he was “dying.” He later received a shocking diagnosis: he was suffering from a “widowmaker” heart attack.
Stephanie James and Mario Ciccarello went out to dinner to mark the love-centered occasion on Feb. 14. The following day, Ciccarello, 34, did an outdoor workout and began to experience chest pains, according to Kennedy News and Media.
Thinking the pain was caused by the meal he had with his partner the night before, Ciccarello returned home and told James, 38, he needed to nap because it felt like his heart was “shutting down.”
When James sarcastically replied, “You have been looking rough, are you dying?” Ciccarello responded, “I think I might be,” and the couple went into high alert.
Two hours later, Ciccarello’s chest pains returned, and became unbearable at that point, so he and James went to the hospital. There, he was told he was suffering from the specific heart attack.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Mario Ciccarello suffering from his symptoms.
Credit: Kennedy News/@mariociccarello5
A widowmaker heart attack takes place when there is an extremely high amount of blockage of the Left Anterior Descending (LAD) artery, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The blood vessel supplies blood to a large portion of the heart.
It differs from a normal heart attack, which also involves blocked blood flow, given that it’s “more severe due to its location, requiring immediate emergency intervention,” per the Cleveland Clinic.
Ciccarello’s life was saved by medics, who inserted two stents in his heart to relieve a 95% blockage. He was stabilised that same day.
Kennedy News and Media reported that doctors believe Ciccarello, a father of two, has a genetic condition that makes him susceptible to heart attacks. However, they are running more tests to confirm.
Mario Ciccarello (left) and Stephanie James (right) with their two kids.
Credit: Kennedy News/@mariociccarello5
Looking back at when his pain first began, Ciccarello said his chest “started to hurt pretty significantly, and then it started to move into my shoulder and then my left arm.”
“In my head I thought, ‘These are symptoms of a heart attack,’ but I’m reframing my mind because I’m 34 years old [and] an ultra-marathon runner, so I have heartburn because I ate Mexican food last night,” he continued.
When his pain returned, “like a tidal wave,” Ciccarello said it was “ten times worse. … My whole left side felt like it was detaching from my body.”
“I looked at my son sleeping and wondered if it was the last time I was going to see him,” he added.
The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!
Ciccarello also said that he and James were relaxed about the chest pain at first because he had a sleepless night previously, looking after the couple’s six-month-old and two-year-old. And because it was his turn to care for the kids, James thought Ciccarello was potentially trying to get out of his parental duties.
“We goof with each other all the time, so when she said, ‘Are you dying?’ that’s totally a joke, and I had a joke too,” Ciccarello said of himself and partner James. “But I had something going on inside of me, [and] I had this overwhelming sense of dread that I can’t fully describe. Something was array inside.”
“We had no idea what was going on. People say we should have done this or that, but when you’re in that situation, you’re not thinking the same as you usually would,” he continued. “I could have died, and we should have gone to the hospital sooner, but we did not think for a second I was having a heart attack.”
Added James: “I thought he was just tired from this week. I was joking around, asking if he was dying, and I wouldn’t have ever believed that he actually was. He’s looked really skinny and had less color in his skin in the past week, but I thought he just looked tired.”
Stephanie James (left) and Mario Ciccarello (right) with their two kids.
Credit: Kennedy News/@mariociccarello5
According to James, she is grateful her partner recieved helped before it was too late.
“When I knew he was okay, I felt extreme relief and gratitude. Thankfully, he’s here — and he’s alive,” she said.
“When I look back, I wish I’d have gone earlier, because they say every minute you wait it does more damage to your heart,” James added, however.
Ciccarello, who now has to take blood-thinning medication, is raising awareness in hopes of helping others who may find themselves in similar situations.
A GoFundMe has since been established to help Ciccarello pay his medical bills.
Read the original article on People