In Remembrance of

By Latoya Johnson Keelen, PhD

3 min read

Heart disease touches us all in different ways. We are either the patient battling it or know someone who has it. Some people struggle with the disease daily, while others manage their symptoms and live full happy lives. In some instances, there are people who even recover completely. Unfortunately, there are also those who lose their battle despite all their valiant efforts. Therefore, just like we celebrate those who achieve milestones along their journey, we should take the time to remember and honor those who lost their battle with heart disease. This is in remembrance of them.

Friendships

I lost contact with a friend following Hurricane Katrina. He was the comedian of our college group of friends. We reconnected briefly a few years ago when he came to my town. He was making his way through various cities trying to find his forever home. We stayed in contact for a while until he lost a dear friend of his and withdrew. Recently, I learned he suffered a stroke, but it was weeks after the fact. Unbeknownst to me, he was still in the area at a local hospital. When I heard, I reached out to him to help him get set up at home as he was to be released within the next day or two. Sadly, he never made it home. I lost the chance to say hello or goodbye. This is in remembrance of you. Thinking of you still makes me smile.

Family

Heart disease tends to run in families. However, family medical histories are not always discussed, especially in communities shrouded with secrecy. This happened in my family. One of my first cousins was born with a congenital form of heart disease. No one ever talked about it though. I did not even find out about her medical history until I developed heart failure, and she was already gone. Nevertheless, this leaves me wondering. Did she know about her own health condition or was it kept a secret from even her? Furthermore, not much is known in the scientific community about the causes of my form of heart failure. Is there a connection to family history? Sadly, she and I will not have the opportunity to research this further – and we loved researching things. However, her loss motivated me to have my children evaluated further, just in case. This is in remembrance of you.

Self

This may seem strange, but I believe a piece of us dies following our heart disease diagnosis. The piece may be small or big depending on what your diagnosis is. For some, the loss is associated with making short-term or long-term lifestyle changes we were not prepared to make, like giving up certain activities or changing eating habits. For others, it may be a loss of total independence. Regardless of the diagnosis, this loss leaves us with two choices – either get lost in the grieving process or find new ways of living. If we allow ourselves to get lost in the grieving process, we not only miss out on life but also increase the odds of speeding up our own demise. Therefore, it is important to focus on finding your new normal and enjoying new ways of living. If you are still living, LIVE! Do this in remembrance of you!