Hook has got an irregular heartbeat
DJ drops bombshell as he adjusts to new life
GEORGE Hook has revealed he has been diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat – and says he believes he will be on medication for life.
The Newstalk presenter told the Irish Daily Mail he wants to encourage others to get heart screening as many are unaware they may have the condition.
A heart arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, occurs when the electrical impulses that co-ordinate heartbeats fail to work properly, causing the heart to beat too fast, too slow or out of rhythm.
While most arrhythmias are harmless, some can be life-threatening.
Mr Hook said: ‘The high percentage of older people with this condition is tremendous in scale, and many people don’t actually know that they have it. In my case, I discovered I have an irregular heartbeat a while ago, and I am now on
‘People don’t know they have it’
medication, which I will probably be on for the rest of my life to protect me f rom potentially having a stroke.
‘While I am feeling okay about everything, it is worth pointing out that there are a staggering number of people above a certain age who may also have this condition without knowing.
‘I feel perfectly fine, and I am sure I will be perfectly fine, but I want to encourage others to get themselves checked out too.
‘Many people, in fact, find out by mistake.’
Mr Hook, who is in his 70s, has previously spoken out about his experiences with gout which he has suffered from for more than 15 years.
He said previously those who dismiss the pain of gout would change their mind if they experienced the pain for even five minutes. He has also been outspoken on depression, and says it is something he has also suffered as an adult.
Speaking previously on RTÉ’s The Frontline, he said: ‘There are times when I can’t go into the production meetings and the team knows that. They know George is in trouble today and we’ve got to get him through this.
‘Every three months the results for the audience figures come out I’m lying at home with the duvet over my head. I can’t get out of the bed until someone rings me.
‘It’s become an internal joke at the station that they have to ring George up to get him up.’
He also said: ‘I think some people cope, and some people don’t.
‘But one in three of us will experience depression at some stage in our life.’
As one of a panel invited on to discuss mental health, Hook admitted he still refused to open up to his family about his inner demons.
He also recalled his darkest moment during the winter of 1991 when, tormented by bankruptcy, his failing businesses and threats of eviction, he was close to throwing himself into the sea.
He told Frontline presenter Pat Kenny: ‘I walked to the end of Dún Laoghaire pier, I sat at the end and I thought, “You know, if you went in there, there wouldn’t be any more bill collectors”.’
He also recalled how depression had affected other family members, including his father and aunt, both of whom spent time in institutions.
However, Hook has had a lot of personal successes and last week the latest JNLRs revealed his show, The Right Hook, has seen his audicene figures jump by an impressive 4,000 to 134,000.