The most terrifying moment of my life occurred on June 8, 2022. My newborn daughter was rushed by ambulance to the ER at Nationwide Children's Hospital as she turned gray. When we got there and she was connected to an EKG, her heart rate was 280 bpm. I remember thinking the machine was broken—hearts can't beat that fast. As it turns out, they can, and hers had been beating that fast for far too long. An extra electrical pathway in her heart allowed her to go into a sustained episode of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), and her heart had been working so hard for so long that she had developed congestive heart failure. Spending 5 days with her in the CTICU gave me a new perspective on the importance of a healthy heart. Thanks to fantastic medical intervention, made possible by research like the American Heart Association does, she is now a healthy and thriving toddler.
Others in my life have been positively impacted by similar medical advances: a pacemaker for my mom, life-saving surgery for an aunt, intervention and treatment for preeclampsia and ongoing hypertension for me. Even a loved one lost to a heart attack in 2020 gained many more quality years after his first cardiovascular event that he may not have had without research-backed treatment.
Everyone is connected in some way to cardiovascular disease, and that has to change. I'm running to help the AHA continue their life-saving work and to show my thanks for the ways they have positively impacted my own family.
