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\n The basketball legend talks candidly about the long road to his atrial fibrillation diagnosis — the symptoms he dismissed and the denial that almost killed him.<\/span>
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\n \u201cI went to a baseball game.\u201d<\/span>
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\n That\u2019s how NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 76, found out he had atrial fibrillation (AFib). Two years ago he attended a Los Angeles Dodgers game, and \u201cevery time I tried to move from one place to another, I\u2019d get extra tingly fatigue and out of breath. And I didn’t understand it.\u201d<\/span>
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\n This wasn\u2019t the first time. Abdul-Jabbar had been dealing with similar symptoms for a while and downplayed them because they\u2019d been subtle and came and went. But now he admits they\u2019d been getting worse over time and the ballgame was the worst yet.<\/span>
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\n His business manager was with him and insisted Abdul-Jabbar go to the hospital. He refused, of course \u2013 this was just a passing thing. He finally relented, however, and once at the hospital he received a quick diagnosis: AFib.<\/span>
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\n In an interview with WebMD CEO Bob Brisco, Abdul-Jabbar said, \u201cWe can’t defeat something if we can’t even acknowledge that it exists. The denial aspect of it is a killer. It’s no big deal, it’s going to go away, and then it doesn’t go away. You’re the one that might go away.\u201d<\/span>
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\n Video Transcript<\/strong>
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\n This transcript has been edited for clarity.<\/span>
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\n Bob Brisco:\u00a0It’s our privilege to have as our guest this morning Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. You may know him as an athlete. He’s also an author, a screenwriter and activist, and a health advocate.<\/span>
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\n Kareem, we have you with us today to talk about atrial fibrillation (AFib). Why are we talking to you about AFib?<\/span>
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\n Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:\u00a0Well, I’m someone who has had to deal with AFib. Just a couple years ago, I was dealing with it and it was not fun, especially because I didn’t know what was happening to me.<\/span>
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\n Brisco:\u00a0Can you take us through that? How did you discover that you have it?<\/span>
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\n Abdul-Jabbar: I started to notice that I was having shortness of breath, and at various times, I felt lightheaded and tired though I hadn’t been doing anything. I went to a baseball game. I got to the Dodgers game. And every time I tried to do something, to move from one place to another, I got extra tingly fatigue and out of breath. I didn’t understand it. My business manager saw what I was dealing with and told me I was going to the hospital and I was like, No, I don’t want to do that.<\/span>
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