Did you know cat litter weighs a ton?
When Extreme Fatigue Was a Warning Sign of Heart Disease
Written by Linda Flack
Updated September 2026 with current heart-health information.
It was about 5:30 in the evening, and I was cooking dinner.
I found myself wondering how my 74-year-old father was doing on his first day working as a bagger at Publix.
It had been more than six months since we had lost my mother, and I had encouraged Dad to get back out, stay active, and spend time around people again. He had been sitting for long periods, and I thought a part-time job might be good for him.
When I called, he did not answer right away.
Finally, I heard a breathy “hello.”
I asked how his first day had gone.
My dad, a former Golden Gloves boxer who was usually upbeat about almost everything, gave me an answer I was not expecting.
“Terrible. I’m exhausted and I’m going to bed. Did you know cat litter weighs a ton?”
It was only 5:30 in the afternoon.
Something did not seem right.
We Decided Not to Wait
Dad was already scheduled to have a stress test the following week.
I suggested that instead of waiting, we go to the emergency room and get him checked sooner.
What surprised me most was that he agreed.
Once we arrived, things began moving quickly.
Testing revealed serious coronary artery disease, and by Monday morning my father was undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery, commonly called CABG or bypass surgery.
CABG uses a healthy blood vessel from another part of the body to create a new route around a narrowed or blocked coronary artery, restoring blood flow to the heart muscle.
Fatigue Can Be a Heart Warning Sign
Looking back, Dad’s extreme exhaustion was more important than we realized.
Coronary artery disease does not always announce itself with dramatic chest pain.
When narrowed coronary arteries prevent the heart from receiving enough oxygen-rich blood, symptoms can include chest pressure, shortness of breath, and unusual or extreme fatigue during activity. Older adults can also experience heart problems without the classic chest-pain symptoms many people expect.
That does not mean every case of fatigue is heart disease.
But sudden, unexplained exhaustion that is unusual for the person, particularly when it occurs with exertion, shortness of breath, chest discomfort, sweating, nausea, or lightheadedness, deserves attention.
His Recovery
Within about a week, Dad was out of the hospital.
He then spent approximately 10 days in rehabilitation rebuilding his strength before returning home.
Four and a half years later, he was approaching 79 and still working part time.
His new job, however, did not involve lifting 10-pound bags of cat litter.
Listen When Something Feels Different
The lesson I took from that evening was simple.
Sometimes the warning sign is not dramatic.
It may be someone saying:
“I’m exhausted.”
It may be unusual shortness of breath.
It may be pressure or discomfort in the chest.
It may simply be that someone who normally handles activity well suddenly cannot.
Heart attack symptoms can vary widely, and some people have mild or less obvious symptoms. If symptoms suggest a possible heart attack, current guidance is to seek emergency medical help immediately rather than driving yourself to the hospital.
I’m thankful we decided not to wait for Dad’s scheduled stress test.
And I’ll probably never look at a bag of cat litter quite the same way again.
Updated September 2026: This article was originally written by Linda Flack and has been revised with current information about coronary artery disease, unusual fatigue as a possible warning sign, and coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
