On Monday some research was announced linking Anger to Heart Attacks. Given I wrote about a similar topic not so long ago (Anger Management), it was interesting to see some real research supporting my ramblings.
Don’t make me angry!
The story became a bit of a regular feature on BBC Radio throughout the day. I wasn’t following closely, but suspect it was a bit of light relief from ongoing developments in Ukraine and the Pistorius trial.
Out of the blue, I was contacted by a lady called Liz, a Researcher from the PM Programme on BBC Radio 4: “Would I be interested in being interviewed as a case study?”.
After I’d convinced myself (1) it wasn’t a complete wind-up and (2) I wouldn’t have to provide any Bank Account Details, I responded… Yes, I was interested in participating but unfortunately I was travelling, so finding a convenient time to talk might be difficult.
To be honest, I was also slightly concerned about a live interview. The last thing I wanted to do was feature as a case study on a “People who have Heart Attacks live on the Radio” feature in months to come!
So, I found myself talking to Eddie Mair about my Heart Attack and my feelings of Anger that preceded the event. About an hour later I appeared on BBC Radio 4’s PM programme. All quite surreal!
Eddie Mair
You can hear the interview here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03wpjg6
(I’m on at approx. 41 minutes into the programme)
Prepared as ever, I had notified close family members that I might be on Radio 4 at 6 pm. Unfortunately I was travelling at the time and got my time zones confused. Amusingly this resulted in Daughter #2 listening to Radio 4 News for 30 rather tedious minutes. She had a bit of a sense of humour failure at my mistake but, learning from her father, she took a deep breath and didn’t let it get her angry. She is however much better informed on current affairs than ever before!
A brief mention of the Blog following the interview resulted in unprecedented “hits” for the following few hours. It also resulted in many more Comments and Contacts than I’ve ever experienced before. It was all very exciting!
Incidentally, a big thanks to everyone that has taken the time to get in touch!
It was a real, practical demonstration of the power of the media for me. The exposure resulted in a daily traffic level over 5 times higher than I’ve had before. It’s a level which is going to be tough to get close to again. Tough, but I’ve got a few ideas up my sleeve!
Heart attack waiting to happen 
A natural on R4 – great stuff Paul! You came across really well.
You need to engineer another photo into a blog post sometime soon as – dare I say it – you were actually looking pretty fit it the turbo action shot a couple of months back!
If there happens to be more than just you in the photo you may need to indicate yourself with an arrow as I’m not sure I’ll recognise you this time round. (Three stone – FFS! Paul is the one with the Wiggins-esque frame 😉 )
Keep up the fantastic work, looking forward to your next national media event!
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Thanks Pete!
I don’t think you’d have any problem recognising me, it turns out I used to carry a
lot
more unnecessary weight than I thought. I’m close to my fighting weight now, it’s just about getting it to the right parts of my body!
Looking forward to catching up when I’m next in London!
Cheers!
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Hi Paul – I’ve been “championing” your blog and R4 appearance, as your undisputed #1 fan, and have been receiving very favourable feedback.
A couple of thoughts/comments that came up in conversation:
1. If you were more chilled & relaxed, less “angry” and even less focussed perhaps, would you have been less successful in life than you have been?
2. Following your heart attack, when you were being encouraged to continue your “discussion” and you nipped it in the bud by emailing, apologising and admitting you were wrong, did you really believe you were wrong or did you no longer care very much? I did have one friend who said he would rather die than admit to being wrong if he truly believed he was right. For the record, personally I’d rather live and admit defeat on a point here & there.
Keep up the good work! 🙂
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I heard it on my way home from work. Well done, there will be no stopping you now!!
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Thanks! I’ll never stop being amazed at how many overlaps and connections we have all around us just waiting to be discovered!
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Just read your blog from the beginning, after listening to you on radio4. I have been thinking about stopping smoking for sometime and now I know I need to get serious and stop! Thanks for writing your blog. It has motivated me in so many ways. Thank again and keep up the good work.
Regards
Paul Holdsworth
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Thanks Paul!
Smoking seems to be the single biggest risk factor and it’s completely in our control. I gave up 9 months before my Heart Attack, so it’s not a silver bullet, but I’m very glad I did.
Good luck!
Best Regards,
Paul.
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