Duane Chapman, the senior citizen known as TV’s “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” was rushed to a hospital this week with a heart scare – less than three months after the loss his wife to cancer.
TMZ reported that Chapman was hospitalized “after suffering a heart emergency that may require surgery.”
His representatives said via Twitter that he was back home and resting comfortably after the scare.
"I can confirm Dog is under doctor's care and is resting comfortably. Thank you for all of your well wishes- keep 'em coming."
Rep For Duane Dog Chapman. pic.twitter.com/9yNXinHP5A
— Duane Dog Chapman (@DogBountyHunter) September 16, 2019
The beloved reality star told FOX31 in Denver this week that he was suddenly unable to breathe, feeling as if he had just gone for a 3- or 4-mile run. While he initially feared a heart attack, TMZ reported that his angiogram came back clean and more tests will be performed.
“It feels much better now. And I’m going through some psychological things right now too, so that doesn’t help,” Chapman told FOX31. “I think, basically, I had a broken heart. And of course, it’s going to heal.”
Chapman is more correct than perhaps he realizes as “broken heart” is not just a figure of speech.
It’s a very real condition that can strike grieving seniors such as the 66-year-old bounty hunter, still reeling from the loss of his wife and costar Beth Chapman, who died of complications related to cancer in June.
The two had been together 31 years, and married for 15 of them.
In 2017, a study found that people in grief after that kind of loss have less heart function, including a reduced ability to pump blood, and in some cases even the same kind of scarring on heart muscle seen after a heart attack.
While the condition isn’t fully understood, many experts agree that there are three steps anyone in grief should take to cut the risks.
- Watch your stress. TMZ reports that Chapman’s scare was likely “stress and blood-pressure related.” Chapman himself told Fox 31, “there’s something haywire or it’s psychologically… I don’t know… I guess things happen like that.” It’s a reminder to take time to unwind when you can.
- Fight inflammation. A study last year found that levels of inflammation – which can lead to a heart attack and other chronic health problems – jump by an average 17 percent during grief. And for 1 in 3 people in grief, inflammation skyrockets by nearly 55 percent. Supplements including fish oil can cut inflammation and are good for the heart, too.
- Care for yourself. At least some of the health problems in grief are due to people who stop caring for themselves. They don’t eat right or barely eat at all, and may skip their vitamins or medication.
But in the end, the best cure for grief is the passage of time time.
Chapman said just last week he’s still coming to grips with it himself.
“It’s really hard [being] alone,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “Because as soon as you get alone, bam, it hits you. So I try not to be alone.”
He turns to his children for support, but he said they know when it’s time to give him space.
“Sometimes they know I gotta be alone,” he said. “But it hurts worse or you feel it more when you’re all alone.”
In a desperate search for help coping, he said turned to the same place we all do when looking for everything from recipes to the day’s news.
He searched Google.
“Google says you get smarter when you’re forced to deal with it,” he told the Armchair Expert podcast.
But so far, it hasn’t happened for him.
“I still go, ‘What time do you have to be up in the morning, honey?’ I’m setting the alarms,” he said. “I depended on her for so much.”
Chapman is currently starring in “Dog’s Most Wanted” on WGN America. The current episodes were filmed before Beth Chapman’s death, and show him coping with her diagnosis and in denial over how serious it would turn out to be.