Skip to Accessibility Menu Skip to Login Skip to Content Skip to Footer

Without Warning

CommunityMember5eab83's avatar image

By CommunityMember5eab83

1 min read

I'm an athlete (swimmer and runner) and a physical therapist by career. Suddenly, at the age of 66, I wasn't feeling well. It was nothing specific, but I was tired and not myself in many ways.

I finally got a consult with the cardiologist on a Friday. Three days later, I was in the ER, finding it hard to breathe. The diagnosis: HEART FAILURE!

A virus from my exposure to isolation patients had nestled in my heart. Every test showed the heart of a teenager, except the nerve study and my echocardiogram.

I'm functioning with only 20% of my heart's capacity and coping with the deep grief of an unexpected loss. Medications, fluids, salt, rest? I'm having to face that I'm not who I was, yet don't know who I now am. Everything is calculated!

By providing your email address, you are agreeing to our privacy policy.

This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. The Heart-Failure.net team does not recommend or endorse any products or treatments discussed herein. Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here.

Join the conversation

Please read our rules before commenting.

Community Poll

What topics are you interested in learning more about?