4 stories from people sharing their experiences
Classic symptoms: pain from my neck down my left arm, couldn't get a whole breath, dry cough, brain fog. The ER doctor said my blood tests were normal and my heart was like an 18 year old's. Sent me home with Tylenol and Tums. The next morning I couldn't get out of bed. My husband had to carry me to the car. Turns out I was having a widow maker heart attack — only 2% survive that one...
I was diagnosed with atrial tachycardia and scheduled for an ablation. But one night, everything went black. No sound, no color, no thought. Then an explosion inside me — and everything came back. The next morning my heart didn't feel tired anymore. I told every nurse and doctor at the surgery appointment. Nobody believed me until the surgeon finally listened for 5 minutes. My heart was perfect...
After surviving back-to-back-to-back heart attacks — including a widow maker that only 2% survive — I didn't feel lucky. I felt guilty. Why me? Why did I get to live? I had to get therapy for surviving. Nobody tells you about that part. It's like anyone who survives something others don't — a shooting, a shipwreck, a crash. Your body lived but your mind needs time to catch up...
By my third baby, I knew exactly what it felt like to have to push. But here's the thing — I never had normal labor pains. Not once. Every time I had a contraction, I had to pee. The nurse said I was only 3cm and had a LONG way to go. She took me to the bathroom and walked out. Then I started yelling ‘the baby is coming!’ She came back explaining that the baby can't be coming yet, put her hand down to check, and started screaming ‘GET BACK IN BED!’ A student doctor caught my daughter. I called it bladder labor — nobody in that hospital had ever heard of it...