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Blood was leaking into the wrong side of my heart...
AROUTINE trip to the
doctors left up-and-coming
entrepreneur Caroline
Wrights life in tatters. Far
from being run of the mill,
her shortness of breath and tiredness
were actually symptoms of a
rare killer condition that affects
just one in every 100,000 people.
Her doctor broke the news the 26-year-old
would be lucky to see 30 and faced gruelling
open-heart surgery if she was to have a shot at
a normal life.
She had a hole in her heart, he told her, and a
congenital heart condition meant her lungs
were filling with blood.
The news left her devastated.
The fit, bubbly owner of event management
agency Solo Events, her dreams of growing the
company and building a life with her partner
Mark were shattered.
I just cried and cried. I felt really scared. I
had so much to live for and I thought Why me?
Im so young, she said.
I never expected my symptoms to be so serious.
I suffered from shortness of breath, heart
palpitations and always felt tired.
They started to happen more regularly. I
knew something was wrong, but not to the
extent that it was.
After lots of tests the doctors told me that my
condition was called partial venous drainage. I
was born with it. Its where the vein doesnt connect
to the right part of the heart and therefore
blood leaks to the wrong side of the heart and
lungs. Its common in babies, but not in adults.
If left untreated, eventually the left side of her
heart would have ruptured, killing her instantly.
In a scene that felt like a living nightmare for
Caroline, she was put under anaesthetic that
sedated her for 12 hours, while surgeons broke
her breastbone to access her heart.
Tissue was taken from one of her muscle
walls and used to sew up the hole, and an
artificial tube was placed through her heart,
forming a passage that ensured blood leaked
into her heart instead of her lungs.
It was scary and very surreal to think what
they were going to do to me and that I may not
pull through.
I was on a bypass machine during the operation
to keep me alive, having blood pumped artificially
around my body.
It was an anxious wait for Carolines
boyfriend and family. who all stayed close by.
It is a day I will never forget. I just wanted to
put it all behind me.
After three-and-a-half hours in surgery and 11
days in hospital, Caroline made a gradual recovery:
I was so relieved and happy when I came
round. I was worried about what the scar from
the surgery would look like, as it was supposed
to run from the top of my chest to my tummy,
but it didnt look bad at all and it was not as
obvious as I thought.
Being a young lady, I was selfconscious about
how it would look and what people would think.
But the operation saved my life and the scar does not seem such a big deal now.
Apart from a barely noticeable scar, the
only sign that reminds Caroline of her
surgery is a numb feeling in her chest C a
result of her broken breastbone C that is
hindering her mobility for the shortterm.
With a three-month recovery period
ahead, Caroline is staying at her parents
home in Warsash and focusing her energy
on a new project.
When I was in hospital I found out
about the new congenital heart ward the
hospital hopes to open for people my age.
I really wanted to get involved, as it was
something I felt very strongly about.
Wessex Heartbeat is the charity raising
funds for the ward. Through her own
agency, Solo Events, Caroline plans to
help raise money for the new project by
hiring out her new protegees in the form
of Winchester Universitys dance and
gym squad, Passion.
She said: They are a fantastic group
and with their help I will
be putting on events and
will be able to give something
back.
I feel like I have been given a
new chance at life. I feel amazing
since the operation.
Looked after by the wonderful
nurses in the E2 ward, Caroline
said she feels like a different person
now.
I can start to do things on
my own again. Now I want
to help the people who
gave me back my life.
ñ For more information
on Wessex
Heartbeat or to
book Passion for
a fundraising event
go to
heartbeat.co.uk or
www.soloevents.biz.
11:22am Monday 14th April 2008
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