Three Strikes and Still Beating

A.K. Thiagaraj
  • 5.0 (16)
  • PERSONAL JOURNALS
  • SERIES

Was I lucky to survive three brushes with death — or unlucky to still be here, sorting through the wreckage? A heart attack. A cardiac arrest. A heart valve replacement. I survived all three — and now I’m figuring out what survival actually looks like.   Three Strikes and Still Beating is my twenty-two-episode documentary memoir — a limited series that follows my journey from the morning of my first heart attack, to the near-death experience of cardiac arrest, to the slow walk into my home after open-heart surgery — a story that unfolds over seven years. It’s about hospitals, doctors, uncertainty, and fear, yes, but also about marriage, fatherhood, work and career, faith, and what it means to keep rebuilding a life when it gets torpedoed. This isn’t a podcast about advice, inspiration, or being strong. It’s raw. It’s honest. Sometimes dark. Sometimes funny. Just me, processing the absurdity of what happened — physically, emotionally, spiritually — and saying the things I couldn’t say in the moment.   Through humor, vulnerability, and a few haunting saxophone motifs, I try to make sense of what it means to keep going after life stops your heart three times.   I’m A.K. Thiagaraj, a San Francisco Bay Area software professional whose creative life was catalyzed by those three cardiac events. What started as an attempt to process trauma and disbelief turned into a story worth sharing — one that might make a few people laugh, others cry, and maybe help someone feel a little less alone in their own private battles.

  1. EPISODE 1

    Episode 1: The Bill Comes Due

    It started like any other workday — until a sprint to the train turned into something else. Denial, bad decisions, and two cans of Coke later, I found myself facing a family legacy I didn’t ask for. This is where everything changed — the day the bill came due.

    13 min

  2. EPISODE 2

    Episode 2: Eighteen Hours - Give or Take

    After eighteen-ish hours of chest pain, denial, and enough bad decisions to fill a medical textbook, I finally gave in: urgent care. What follows is a blur—baby aspirin, blank stares, and an ambulance ride that felt more like a backstage pass to my own collapse. No one said “heart attack” right away, but the looks said enough. And when the words finally landed, they hit hard. This episode covers the moment things turned real. The fear. The dark humor. The quiet math you start doing when you’re not sure if you’re coming back.

    8 min

  3. EPISODE 3

    Episode 3: Coat Checked – Ego and Dignity

    The ambulance doors open. A swarm of medical staff waits. Suddenly, I’m not a person—I’m a case.Vitals, wires, stickers, floral gown with an open back.My ego? Dignity? Coat-checked at the door, no claim ticket. This episode dives into the surreal chaos of the ER: the pit crew efficiency, the gown humiliation, the quiet panic. And the moment my wife walks in—no words, just that look that says everything we weren’t ready to say. Because when survival takes over, pride is the first thing to go.

    14 min

  4. EPISODE 4

    Episode 4: You’re Having a Heart Attack—Sign Here

    You’re having a heart attack,” the doctor says.Then he mentions groin access.And just like that, my remaining dignity packs its bags. This episode covers the next wave: the groin panic, the stack of consent forms, the casual phone call to my manager (yes, during a heart attack), and the real tragedy—having to cancel our Airbnb. Because when life falls apart, your brain still clings to spreadsheets, travel plans, and corporate calendars.Sometimes, denial isn’t loud. It’s just absurd.

    10 min

  5. EPISODE 5

    Episode 5: The Cath Lab – Sedation and Stents

    The Cath Lab. Sedation. A stent in my heart. This was supposed to be the fix—but it left behind more questions than answers. This episode dives into that strange in-between: the moment after the heart attack, when you’re alive, but everything feels… off. There’s sarcasm (still intact), paperwork I probably didn’t read, and the first time I hear the words “permanent heart damage.” Also: what it means when your wife asks for help while you’re still pretending you don’t need it. Not just about survival—but about the unraveling that follows.

    12 min

  6. EPISODE 6

    Episode 6: Wait, what? The Heart Has a Valve?

    After surviving a heart attack, I figured the worst was behind me. Then a doctor walks in and tells me I have a leaky heart valve—from birth. Congenital, he says. Casual, like he’s pointing out a flat tire. Suddenly I’ve leveled up from cardiologist to cardiothoracic surgeon.This episode walks through the post-op fog, the morphine haze, the surreal hallway “exercise,” and the moment you realize your body isn’t just hurting—it’s permanently changed. Also featuring: Tamil in a hospital hallway, a dignified hospital discharge (in a wheelchair), and a return home that felt anything but normal.Oh, and somewhere in there—I remembered to ask if we canceled the Airbnb.

    10 min

  7. EPISODE 7

    Episode 7: Sticker Shock: Dog, Friends and Family

    Coming home after a heart attack isn’t the end—it’s the beginning of something strange. In this episode, I talk about that first week back: being greeted (or not) by my dog, peeling off hospital stickers like trauma souvenirs, trying to parent through fear, and realizing that “normal” might never feel normal again.There’s some humor, some heartbreak, and a lot of moments in between. I share what it felt like to see my family trying to help without knowing how, the quiet grief underneath the jokes, and why even a trip to the cardiologist felt like a family field trip.This isn’t a how-to. It’s just me, figuring it out—one sticker at a time.

    13 min

  8. EPISODE 8

    Episode 8: Road to Recovery with Bumps

    After the heart attack, life didn’t just go back to normal—it limped, laughed, and stumbled toward something almost like it. In this episode, I take you through my first post-heart-attack vacation (yes, we still went), returning to work (awkward), and starting cardiac rehab (with a side of senior citizens and sarcasm). I talk about rebuilding strength—physically, emotionally, and yes, socially. There’s wine, awkward coworkers, and a disloyal dog. It’s messy, it’s real… and it’s recovery, with some bumps.

    12 min
See All Season 1 (23)

5
out of 5
16 Ratings

About

Was I lucky to survive three brushes with death — or unlucky to still be here, sorting through the wreckage? A heart attack. A cardiac arrest. A heart valve replacement. I survived all three — and now I’m figuring out what survival actually looks like.   Three Strikes and Still Beating is my twenty-two-episode documentary memoir — a limited series that follows my journey from the morning of my first heart attack, to the near-death experience of cardiac arrest, to the slow walk into my home after open-heart surgery — a story that unfolds over seven years. It’s about hospitals, doctors, uncertainty, and fear, yes, but also about marriage, fatherhood, work and career, faith, and what it means to keep rebuilding a life when it gets torpedoed. This isn’t a podcast about advice, inspiration, or being strong. It’s raw. It’s honest. Sometimes dark. Sometimes funny. Just me, processing the absurdity of what happened — physically, emotionally, spiritually — and saying the things I couldn’t say in the moment.   Through humor, vulnerability, and a few haunting saxophone motifs, I try to make sense of what it means to keep going after life stops your heart three times.   I’m A.K. Thiagaraj, a San Francisco Bay Area software professional whose creative life was catalyzed by those three cardiac events. What started as an attempt to process trauma and disbelief turned into a story worth sharing — one that might make a few people laugh, others cry, and maybe help someone feel a little less alone in their own private battles.

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