DIRK
Lammert just wanted some answers. He first noticed
something wasn’t right in 2000, when his heart felt as though
it was beating out of rhythm. For the next 10 years, he saw
several different doctors, none of whom could tell him what
he had.
Frustrated by the lack of diagnosis, Lammert just tried to live
his life, but that proved difficult. The irregular beating of his
heart progressively got worse, and it was starting to affect him
physically.
“I would get tired going up the stairs and at work, and
eventually I would feel tired just by standing up,” said the now-
55-year-old Rhinelander resident. “I helped my buddy drag a
deer out of the woods one time, and my heart was beating so
fast I thought I was going to die.”
It wasn’t until 2010 that Lammert knew he had to see another
doctor and get his heart checked out. The moment of truth
occurred when Lammert was by his wife’s side after she had a
mountain bike accident. As he watched the ambulance crew
care for his wife, Lammert’s heart felt like it was going to beat
out of his chest.
Finally, an answer
Lammert made an appointment to be seen at Aspirus
Cardiovascular Associates in Rhinelander, where his dad had
received care previously. At his appointment, he received a
heart monitor to wear at home to record his heart activity.
“After my results came back, they called me and said ‘You
have to come in right away,’” Lammert said. “They told me they
found something, and I remember being elated because there
was finally a reason for what I was experiencing.”
Lammert had atrial fibrillation (a-fib), a common heart
condition where a faulty electrical impulse causes the heart to
“My heart hasn’t
gone out of rhythm
since the procedure,
and it’s like I have a
new lease on life.”
10
aspire
Winter 2014
