In 2018, I, Tiffany Gould, principal human resources business partner, in Mission Enabling Products (MEP)’s Structures operating unit in San Diego, California was vacationing with my family in Lake Tahoe, California. On the trip, the family was cycling through the beautiful mountain terrain at a very high elevation where the air is thin, and I found that the riding was too physically exertive, and I had to turn around. I thought it was simply because I was not used to the altitude and the physical demands of the activity.
A few months later, I was having trouble breathing at home. I then went to the doctor where I underwent a series of tests where the doctor discovered I had two failing valves in my heart. I was scheduled for surgery to replace the two failing valves and finally had the answer to all of my symptoms. “I couldn’t believe I had a heart issue; I was too young. It was the scariest thing I have ever experienced.” My doctors suspected that her condition was congenital or from the rheumatic fever I contracted as a child.
Once my surgery was scheduled and I had a plan of action, I started researching and expanding my community, like joining a nation-wide Facebook group for people with heart valve disease which allowed me to connect with people all over the country sharing my struggle. I had surgery on October 7, 2019, and woke up the next day to find out my lung had been punctured during surgery which added an extra layer of fear, especially for my family but I am stable now and know that this journey has made me a stronger and more resilient person. One of my favorite quotes is “Only the hardest battles are given to the strongest warriors,” because I feels like it captures the essence of my struggles.
I share my story to raise awareness and promote self-advocacy for your own health. The research the American Heart Association (AHA) is doing today, has made breakthroughs in cardiovascular and stroke discovery, translation and clinical application. These discoveries may even benefit me directly one day as well. I will require another surgery as I elected cow valves, which wear out within five to ten years, rather than mechanical valves put into my heart.
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