Day 1:
Hi,
I'm Beth, I'm a 20 year old student studying Countryside Management with a view to working with children in Environmental Education as a career. To the majority of people I appear to be a normal 20 year old student. I love music, horses and watching rugby. I ride regularly, I sing and I belong to a battle re-enactment society. I have a wonderful family, boyfriend and friends and love my life in my home town of Burton on Trent, my Uni life in Newport, Shropshire and I'm having an amazing time on placement for my course down in Tenterden, Kent.
As I said, people wouldn't think there was anything different about me, but actually, I'm 1 in 100 of people, born with Congenital Heart Disease. At 10 days old I was diagnosed with Fallots Tetralogy which I will explain in another post in time. It meant that overnight at 10 days old I was on life support and had my first surgery at 11 days old. I had a shunt put in to keep my blocked Artery open.
At 14 months I then had open heart surgery to repair the hole in my heart. Since then the only impact that this has had on my life is hospital appointments about once a year for as long as I can remember.
Now, aged 20 it's all going to change. I am due to have another operation, which will be open heart, next Summer. In complete honesty I am terrified as all my other surgery was way before I could remember and hasn't had any affect on me. Ok so I can't run as much, but I never really liked it! Apart from that I had a normal childhood just with visits to the most amazing staff at Glenfield Hospital.
I aim to write this blog to show my journey through the run up, surgery and recovery period. To support those Congenital Heart Disease patients who don't have any recollection of their condition as a baby and have led a normal life until they have to go through surgery as a young adult. It's not going to be an easy journey but I know that the staff at Glenfield will look after my precious heart just as they do for all the other children and adults with precious hearts.
Please follow my journey over the next year, as I aim to show how everything is for young adults who suddenly have their condition brought back to the forefront of their lives. I hope that even if just one other CHD young adult with a precious heart follows this they know that they are not alone.
Beth xxx
P.S
Dear Glenfield, you are some amazing people and whatever happens with the review of Childen's Heart Surgery so many people owe so much to you for looking after our precious heart
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