Tyler Kiel was a newly married father of three when the 31-year-old collapsed walking into work on Oct. 13.

“I don’t remember even driving to work that day. I don’t remember any of that day, I just know I went to work,” Kiel said. “According to my coworker who saved my life, he saw me coughing uncontrollably and, by the time he got to me, I fell onto the curb in the parking lot.”

The heart attack happened on a Monday. Kiel had just dropped off his two older kids at school. But he does not remember anything until waking up Thursday evening.

“I was shocked with a defibrillator, I was told, about six times over multiple minutes,” he said. “There were several minutes where I did not have a heartbeat. This led to a lot of memory loss.”

Smoking and cholesterol

Kiel works the swing shift at a youth correctional facility.

“My time is always very limited. In the past, I would often skip meal-prepping and just eat what I could get. I drank a lot of coffee and energy drinks,” Kiel said. “It started to build up my cholesterol and caused my artery to be blocked.”

Kiel is also a smoker. When the heart attack happened, he learned there was an 80 percent blockage and the left side of his heart was not receiving blood.

“It was right at the edge of the widow maker spot where the veins come together,” Kiel said. “It was less than a centimeter away from where I would have needed a bypass rather than a stent.”

Cardiac intervention at Salem Health

Interventional cardiologist Norman Aiad, MD, went through Kiel’s leg to insert a stent. Kiel said he’s still in disbelief that he survived.

“The only thing I felt leading up to the heart attack is what felt like bad indigestion,” he said. “A bad burning pain from my stomach into my throat. I didn’t have any pain in my arm. I wasn’t short of breath. It’s like it happened instantly.”

Kiel is now taking medications to manage his heart and keep his blood thin and moving. He’s meeting with Dr. Aiad every three months and going through cardiac rehab in the meantime.

“They really want me to focus on the causes, so I’ve changed my diet, I don’t eat fried foods anymore,” Kiel said. “They really are pushing me to quit smoking.”

Living with heart failure

Through this experience, Kiel learned he’s facing a more progressive form of heart failure.

“Dr. Aiad has been very transparent about what happened to me,” he said. “My heart is misshapen now because it was so serious. The left atrium is bigger and one of the walls is thinner. He was very clear about what he did to fix it and what still needs to be done.”

Kiel said if his heart failure gets worse, he will end up needing a heart transplant.

“Dr. Aiad wants me to be prepared and take care of myself now the best I can,” he said. “I’m just grateful I have people pushing me to be here.”

Your path to cardiac care

From heart attacks and high blood pressure to heart disease and failure — we’re here to address your cardiology concerns at Salem Health. Learn more about our team and the steps we can take to get your health back on track.