I can honestly say I have never lived a day without this. On November 8, 2000 I was diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot/ASD (5 heart defects.) That was also the day I was born. I had my first open heart surgery on April 9, 2011. I was only a mere five months old. I was told that later on I would have to have another surgery. I was lucky enough to wait till I was eleven years old before I had my next surgery. My second surgery was on April 9, 2012. During this surgery they replaced my pulmonary valve with a pig valve. I cannot even describe how much better I felt after they replaced it. I did not even comprehend how weak I was from my valve not working until it was fixed. In September of 2016 I was told it was failing again. So on September 20, 2016 I had another surgery. Since then I have done pretty well, other than some irregular heartbeats. I also frequently have to wear a heart monitor to make sure that my rhythm is fine.

 

Having a heart condition has changed my life. However, some good things have come out of it. It has taught me to be strong and most definitely to be thankful for everything that I have. Everything happens for a reason and I believe that God put me through this because he knew that I could handle it. I don't look at my condition as being a major setback, only a minor one. After all, things could be worse. I'm just very blessed. This condition is a part of my life that pretty much affects me everyday. So of course I wonder what it would be like to not have to deal with it. Would I take it away? Yes. Would things be the same after? No. Mainly because I have grown up all my life thinking that every irregular heartbeat is normal. That very trip to the cardiologist is normal, and that every EKG, heart monitor, or MRI is normal. My life would definitely be different without it.

 

Aside from this though I am a cheerleader who absolutely loves what she does. I enjoy getting to hangout with my teammates and learning new skills. When I am not at practice, I am wishing I was. I am a happy person who loves to smile and who loves to laugh. Being with my family makes me smile. Hanging out with my friends makes me smile. Being a cheerleader and knowing that I have young kids look up to me makes me smile. I will never let this not make me smile. While yes, I sometimes wonder “why me” I know that it was given to me for a reason. I know that I am strong enough to live this life, because the Lord would not have given me it if he did not believe that I could. I will not let this defeat me and I also will never let this define me