Go Red For Women Ambassadors are Survivors

Go Red For Women Ambassadors are Survivors
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Photo by Ike and Tash Photography

Meet the 2018 Go Red For Women Ambassadors for the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association in the Seattle-Tacoma region. These incredible women inspire others and raise awareness by sharing personal stories about heart disease and stroke.

Did you know that cardiovascular diseases are the leading killer of women, claiming the life of one out of three? The good news is that about 80 percent of heart disease and stroke may be prevented by understanding your family history, knowing your numbers and making simple lifestyle changes. Visit GoRedForWomen.org to learn how you can take action.

Latasha Haynes. Latasha is an entrepreneur, photographer, and mother to an adorable girl named Wisdom. Along with her husband, she has photographed past Go Red For Women Ambassadors in Tacoma, WA. “During the course of our time working with the AHA, I had heard stories of dynamic and strong women who had survived heart disease and stroke -- and little did I know that I would end up having a story myself just three years later,” she says. In March 2017 Latasha was on her way to the airport when she began experiencing chest pain and trouble catching her breath. Instead of getting on the plane, she went to the hospital instead, where she was admitted and a day later went into acute heart failure. The cause was a viral infection that crept into her heart. Latasha spent 16 days in the hospital, six of those in critical care. “I was a healthy 34-year-old, who ate well, worked out three times a week, and was busy traveling, following my dreams, and achieving my goals -- and in a matter of 24 hours everything stopped and my whole world was put on hold. If I would have died, I would have missed Wisdom's fifth birthday and her first day of school.” Today she has mostly recovered and is putting her life back together, celebrating life by serving as a Go Red For Women Ambassador.

Amy Lucas. Amy Lucas was born with a heart defect called pulmonary artresia, which affected blood flow in her heart and consequently did not pump enough oxygen through her body. Hours after birth, Amy was rushed off to the children’s hospital and four days later had open heart surgery. The surgery created better blood flow, stabilized her, and doctors allowed the baby to go home. Complications, however, continued to rise and by age two, Amy had undergone four heart surgeries. The fourth one resulted in the removal of her pulmonary valve altogether. “I lived without a valve for the next eight years of my life,” she recalls. “During these years, I was restricted from sports and lived a very low energy life. When I turned ten, the doctors decided I couldn’t live like this any longer and I needed a pulmonary valve.” A few days before the surgery Amy was presented the option of having a cow’s vein implanted as a heart valve (instead of a cadaver valve), an experimental treatment at the time. “It was a big risk knowing that it may only last one year or it may last up to 15 years, but it was a risk we were willing to take, as we didn’t have better options.” Amy became the 11th person in the US to get the cow valve and amazingly it has lasted 17 years. “Thanks to the endless efforts of my doctors and the research teams, this technology is saving my life and giving me a high quality of life.”

Laura Pugh. Laura had a stroke while she was sleeping. “I woke up to turn off my alarm and my head was fuzzy and my right arm from the elbow down wouldn’t move; it felt numb, almost like it was asleep. I just thought I slept on it funny. I stood up and my right leg from the knee down was feeling the same. You can’t sleep on your leg funny, can you? Warning bells were going off, numbness on one side of my body! I hobbled to the bathroom to look in the mirror. The right side of my face was drooping a little. That is when alarm bells were blaring!” In her panic, Laura called her mom who told her to stay put until she arrived. Her mother lived 90 miles away and it took two hours before Laura left for the hospital. The stroke left her barely able to walk and move her right arm and talking with a lisp. She was told that a full recovery was not likely. But Laura resolved to fight the odds and made two recovery goals: to write again with her right arm and to complete a half-marathon in April 2014. With a lot of hard work, tears and laughing at herself, she learned to walk again and managed to complete the half-marathon. “I cried like a baby when I crossed the finish line.” Today she advocates for everyone to know the warning signs of stroke. “Do not wait to call 9-1-1. Time is everything.”

Jennifer Reed. Five years ago, Jennifer was diagnosed with a condition called Left Brundle Branch Block, a disorder that affects the electrical impulses through the heart and potentially disrupting a person’s heart rhythm. For Jen, this resulted in heart palpitations and the sensation of her eye pulsing. She thought it was caused by a thyroid issue, but an electrocardiogram prompted a visit to the cardiologist. Luckily it turned out that Jen’s condition is not serious enough to require medication, but she does need to be checked annually and she might require a pacemaker in the future. Jen does make it a point to keep her stress level under control to keep her health stable. She is thankful that so far, she doesn’t need medical treatment or have to limit physical activity, especially with the energy she needs to raise her young son.

Rose Shandrow. Rose says she was shocked when a cardiologist explained that open heart surgery was the only option to fix a problem with one of her heart valves. “It was my husband’s birthday and I had to share this news on a day that should have been celebratory,” she recalls. “I was scared to face open heart surgery. I was about to be a grandmother for the first time and I wondered if I would be around to see my grandchild grow.” Learning that she had a heart condition had been a bit of a surprise. “I was in a meeting and suddenly felt a flutter in my chest, as if a bird was in my chest trying to escape. Fortunately, I sought immediate medical attention and found out that I had a mitral valve dysfunction.” In April 2017 she placed her life in the hands of the surgical team. Even though recovery was slow, Rose is happy that she can now call herself a heart surgery survivor. “The prognosis for full recovery is great and life is just about back to normal due to the excellent care I received.” Rose is thankful that she got to meet her grandson and is enjoying every minute with him.

GET INVOLVED WITH GO RED FOR WOMEN

National Wear Red Day, February 2, 2018: Wear red, raise awareness, and empower women to take action to fight heart disease and stroke. Share your Wear Red Day selfie using #WearRedandGive #goREDseattle or #goREDsouthsound. Make a donation to support the Go Red movement. Info

Give with Heart at CVS Pharmacy, January 28 to February 17, 2018: Customers can support Go Red For Women by Making a $1, $3 or larger donation at checkout.

Get A Red Dress Pin and Save at Macy’s, January 31 to February 5, 2018. Wear red or buy a $3 Red Dress Pin to benefit Go Red For Women and save 25% off storewide and an extra 15% or 10% on select departments. 100% of all Red Dress Pin sales will benefit Go Red For Women. Exclusions and restrictions apply.

Go Red For Women® Luncheon, Seattle, March 13, 2018: Join women from the community in supporting a lifesaving cause. Stroke survivor Laura Pugh will share her powerful story. Sponsored nationally by Macy’s and CVS Health, and locally by CHI Franciscan Health. Get tickets

Go Red For Women® Luncheon, Tacoma, March 29, 2018: Join women from the community in supporting a lifesaving cause. Heart disease survivor Latasha Haynes will share her incredible story. Sponsored nationally by Macy’s and CVS Health, and locally by CHI Franciscan Health. Get tickets

To learn more, visit heart.org/goREDpugetsound.

TM Go Red trademark of AHA. Red Dress trademark of DHHS.

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