Christmas came late for Doug Katzenberger and his family. Doug and his wife Karen made an emergency trip to Saint Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield on Christmas Eve. Earlier that day, Doug had gone snowmobiling with his son-in-law. Doug recalls, "On the way home, I wasn't feeling good. It felt like severe heartburn. I didn't know what was wrong with me, but I just didn't feel right."

When he got home, Karen said, "I'd better take your blood pressure." She saw how high it was and rushed him to the emergency room. Doug, "It turned out, I was having a heart attack. We were having everyone over for Christmas, and we had to cancel Christmas."

On Christmas Eve, a stent was put in a vein in the right part of his heart. He was hospitalized for a few days, and returned home, celebrating Christmas with his family the following week. A week after that, Doug returned for a stress test and learned that the left side of his heart had severe blockages.

Two weeks after Christmas, he underwent open heart surgery with a double bypass. All went well and he has returned to a normal schedule. Initially, Doug, who is part owner of Gaffney Plumbing, was concerned about being able to return to his usual activities.

"The therapy was really helpful. They'd have us go on a treadmill or ride a bike, and watch our heart rate." Initially, he scoffed at the need for follow-up physical therapy, but soon came to see its value. "After a heart attack, you don't know what to expect. Can you still work?"

The physical therapy helped him ease back into his normal activities. He learned, "It's ok to get your heart rate up. They would check how I was feeling and let me know how I was doing. That gave me confidence and made me feel like I was getting better."

Not long after Doug's bypass surgery, his older brother, Norman, had a routine physical. "He told his doctor what had happened to me, so the doctor said, 'We'd better check you out.' They found he had over 90% blockages on the left side of his heart - that's the pumping side."

It's quite possible that Doug's heart attack saved his brother's life. "If I hadn't had that surgery, he might be dead of a heart attack by now," says Doug. After that, their younger brother had his heart checked. "His heart was ok, but he has high cholesterol so they put him on medicine to keep that under control."

Doug is convinced that two things saved his life. Karen's quick action, and the care he received at Saint Joseph's Hospital. "We have such good healthcare right here in Marshfield. I probably wouldn't be around here if we hadn't had that care so close to home."

Because Karen works as a Medical Assistant at Marshfield Clinic, she was aware of the symptoms of a heart attack. "I'd have been a stubborn man and didn't want to go to the hospital, but when Karen insisted, we went." That saved his life.

Dr. Buddemeier handled the stent procedure. "I'd recommend her to anybody. When I went in that room, I was sort of half out of it, but I kind of knew what was going on. That was a scary moment. I'd never had any health problems before that." Dr. Maki performed the bypass surgery for both Doug and his brother Norman. Both Dr. Buddemeier and Dr. Maki are Marshfield Clinic physicians on staff at Saint Joseph's Hospital.

The follow-up care has helped Doug to make changes in his life. "I'd always taken care of my health and didn't have a clue. We didn't have family history of heart disease." Now he watches what he eats, but he still allows for splurges on weekends. He eats more fruits and vegetables at mealtimes, and has given up his old habit of grabbing a quick burger for lunch every day. He chuckles a bit as he adds, "I still want to have fun. You can't totally watch everything."