Sick & Grounded - not the TR I wanted for this year. OT

As an NBA all-star player, Jerry West scored more than 25,000 points, received nearly 5,400 rebounds and is credited with about 6,200 assists. As the general manager for the Los Angeles Lakers, Jerry West built an indomitable team and won seven championships. But as a patient with a chronic disease, the symptoms and eventual diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (AFib) brought greater challenges.

Undiagnosed during his 14-year playing career, West had symptoms but was unaware that they were related to AFib. “I was experiencing all of these warning signs, but instead of speaking up, I just ignored them. My doctors used to say that I had ‘an extra beat in my heart,’ but that was the extent of it.” Ultimately, West was not diagnosed with AFib until age 42.

“It’s like this condition was some sort of secret that people either didn’t understand or didn’t discuss. Meanwhile, I was walking around feeling like there was a ticking time bomb in my chest.”

In 2007, West retired from professional basketball to focus on managing his AFib and regaining control over his life. “It took me a long time to understand what I was dealing with,” said West. “I thought it was normal to feel anxious all the time, and I didn’t realize the impact AFib was having on my health and well-being.”

To raise awareness about the chronic, progressive nature of AFib, West partnered with AF Stat™: A Call to Action for Atrial Fibrillation, a collaboration of health care leaders and organizations working to improve the health and well-being of people affected by AFib. AF Stat, an initiative sponsored by sanofi-aventis, is raising awareness of AFib and is calling for and helping promote a change in attitudes and behaviors to enhance AFib understanding, diagnosis and management.