GUEST AUTHOR CATHERINE E. McLEAN ON HEART ATTACKS IN PEOPLE AND ROBOTS

Catherine E. McLean’s short stories have appeared in hardcopy and online anthologies and magazines. Her latest novel is Hearts Akilter, a lighthearted fantasy/sci-fi romance. Catherine also gives writing workshops, both online and in-person. Learn more about Catherine and her books at her website.

Catherine will be giving away a $50 gift card at her release party August 5th. Visit her website for more information.

Heart Attack Symptoms: Believability in Fiction

Robots can have heart attacks, too. At least, that is what I had to deal with when Henry, the robot in my forthcoming release, popped into my head saying he was suffering from one.

Because believability is a primary factor in writing fiction, I wanted to make certain what the medical robot (Henry) would tell Marlee (who repairs robots) when he described the unusual "pain" he felt. But because Henry is a robot, his "pain" was current that went from his upper left chest and down his left arm. Henry was experiencing a short circuit, which was caused by a bomb that had been placed inside him. But in real life, heart attack symptoms can be similar.

Here are the common symptoms of a heart attack:

Chest pain: While this seems like a vague term, it is used to cover a variety of feelings of discomfort in the chest area. Sometimes called tightness or heaviness, such symptoms may last for a few minutes and then go away.

Other areas of pain: Pain is often reported in the neck, jaw, left shoulder, arms, and even the stomach.

Difficulty breathing: Shortness of breath is common when having a heart attack.

Sweating: Often referred to as a “cold sweat,” perspiration is a common symptom of a heart attack.

Nausea: It is not uncommon to vomit when experiencing a heart attack.

Rapid or irregular heart beats and lightheadedness: Due to the stress the heart undergoes when experiencing a heart attack, the heart will jerk into a rapid or irregular heart beat, and the body experiences an overall wave of weakness, which is often described as lightheadedness.

Two things to keep in mind:

Indigestion or heartburn is often confused with a heart attack. Every day, people are rushed to the hospital because they assume or believe they are experiencing a heart attack, and it turns out it’s just abdominal distress.

Heart attack symptoms in women may differ. In medical studies, women reported having much more vague feelings when it came to cardiac distress, often including a feeling of fatigue for several days.

And like with Henry-the-robot who is dealing with a ticking bomb, the best advice I can give is to reiterate what the experts say: When in doubt, always seek emergency care.

Hearts Akilter

Love, vengeance, attempted murder, and a bomb...No reason to panic.

When a medical robot insists he's having a heart attack, Marlee Evans, a pragmatic maintenance technician, has every reason to panic. There's a bomb inside him. Since Marlee can't risk the bomber discovering she's found the device, her only option is to kidnap Deacon Black, an unflappable bomb expert, and secretly convince him to disarm it. Things go slightly awry when Deacon sets a trap for someone who is trying to kill him, and inadvertently captures Marlee instead. Instantly intrigued by her refreshingly forthright and gutsy attitude, he's smitten. Unfortunately for Deacon, Marlee recently hardened her heart and swore off men, especially handsome ones with boy-next-door grins. But as Marlee and Deacon attempt to identify and prevent the bomber from detonating the device, they discover that love may be the most explosive force of all. 

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