“It’s a 10 out of 10 pain!”

Surviving a Cardiac Arrest at 41: A Year of Chest Pain Fell Through the Cracks

Living the Unthinkable: When Your Worst Fear Becomes Reality

Mike Corazza
ILLUMINATION
Published in
16 min readJun 5, 2024

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Warning: I outline explicit details surrounding the events before, during, and after my cardiac arrest, which may be triggering for certain individuals. Viewer discretion is advised.

Photo by Jake Espedido on Unsplash

Monica, the pain is a 10 out of 10!”

I have no recollection of anything from earlier in the day, Feb 4, 2020, until my memory resumes on Feb 10.

The story I’m about to tell you is a culmination of details I accrued weeks, months, and even years after that fateful night. Even now, I still discover new things that help me fill in the missing pieces of my story.

A Brief History

Before delving into my cardiac experience, it’s crucial to acknowledge the events leading up to that significant night.

Throughout my adult life, I have struggled with clinical depression and various anxiety disorders, some of which have led to panic attacks.

Chances are, some of you have experienced a panic attack before. Those who’ve endured severe ones like mine have likely found themselves catastrophizing…

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Mike Corazza
ILLUMINATION

Having survived a cardiac arrest & severe depression/anxiety, my writings offer real-life health experiences to help those seeking how to become more resilient.