About Me (In My Own Words)
My name is Sonya, I’m 22 years old ,a mom to a two year old remarkable little girl. On august 13 2021 I went in to the Er initially with a call for an ambulance for a horrible headache. (Mind you I had been experiencing many alarming symptoms previously all logged by numerous ER visits over a 6 month span and not once ever brought up) Hours later I would proceed to be checked and found I had a murmur that I’ve likely always had. Than put onto a heart monitor and had a heart attack. Things changed so quickly so fast for me I couldn’t keep up. I had many blood tests, many scans and X-rays. They left me in the room with my thoughts racing not knowing what could be wrong or if it was at least something easily fixed but it wasn’t.. at 21 years old they came into the room to tell me I would be needing emergency open heart surgery because I needed to have an aortic valve replacement because I never had my aortic valve since birth and they never caught onto it and I also had a whole in my heart from Lyme disease and endocarditis. I was at this time weighing 98 pounds, malnourished and on my death bed after months of seaching for answers. They told me without my surgery I wouldn’t last a few weeks at my best. I had a daughter I had to get home to there wasn’t a choice. I had a mechanical heart valve put in because of the longevity ,concerning how young I am, getting it to hopefully have less surgeries in the long run but in doing so gave up the ability to carry another child and to be on blood thinners for the rest of my life. (i had to have my surgery 2 days later because my original surgeon got Covid so they had to reschedule) I had a very touch and go surgery I was not In good health and they couldn’t keep me stable so I still have a small leak somewhere that I was warned would need an additional surgery. After surgery healing was still touch and go and my survival rate was not high. I FaceTimed my baby daughter daily with help from family or staff because I was near a Covid wing because the hospital was full so they were hesitant on visitors for a while but the doctors were also scared that if I don’t make it they wanted me to be able to see my daughter and just that thought was crushing, even for a second. That comment made me fight harder than ever to rewalk,to heal, it made me into the now 140 pounds of woman that I am today.
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Tulsa, Oklahoma
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My surgery date is:
August 14, 2021
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I was diagnosed with:
Aortic Regurgitation
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My surgery was:
Aortic Valve Replacement
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My hospital is:
OSU Medical Center, Tulsa Ok
