1. < Heart & Blood Health

Congestive Heart Failure in young people

Posted by brian Jeronimus @brian_j, Dec 14, 2016

My daughter, Heather, passed from Congestive Heart Failure at the age of 25. This was a total shock as she was very healthy and no examinations have ever revealed this possibility. She did have a kidney infection in Dec 2015 and went for diagnosis twice when she had the symptoms. Both times the doctors just passed it off as anxiety. She died in Feb 2015 at Tampa General. The surgeon tried to install VADs on both sides of her heart. When he came to us in the waiting room he said he never saw anything like the scars inside her heart.

I would like to know if anyone else has a story like this. We can only surmize that Heather must have had a dormant virus that was activated by something she took or was exposed to. I wished now we would have had an autopsy done but there may still be no way of finding out how she contracted this evil in her heart.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Heart & Blood Health Support Group.

Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Mar 1, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

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@bangel

I am so sorry to hear of your hospitalization. I understand your confusion, none of us are really prepared for health challenges like this.
I'm not a medical professional, so I don't have much information to share with you, but please keep in touch and let me know how you are doing.

Has the cardiologist given you any information as to what procedures they are planning?

Please try to stay calm and always ask lots of questions. I look forward to hearing from you again.

Teresa

REPLY
Von, Alumni Mentor | @vdouglas | Mar 2, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

Hello @bangel , I would like to welcome you to the Connect along with the other members and moderators who have done so. I have mitral valve prolapse with heart rhythm issues. My worst symptoms were fast heart rate, or tachycardia, along with PVC's, which feel like skipped beats. Occasionally I would experience Multifocal PVC's which are difficult to describe. All of this was very alarming and extremely depressing. Hospitalization and ER admissions were all too familiar.

I had to rely on my higher power to get me through it. I didn't think it would be possible for my condition to get any better and in my despair I became very aware of that which was truly important in life. I acquiesced putting my life into the hands of that higher power, when I did that I felt peace and calm come over me. That was about 38 years ago. Medications along with some lifestyle changes have improved my condition but I still have many challenging medical issues which are part of my life.

All of my medical conditions have made me a better person for some of the reasons I have mentioned above. It is difficult sometimes because I walk in everyone's shoes to better understand and somehow help share their load.

Tonight I walk in your shoes. The best information I can give your right now is that you must continue to have hope. We should never give up. We are in good hands and have great purpose and opportunity no matter what life throws at us. Continue to do what you can to improve your health and feel good about yourself. Your doctor should be someone you feel comfortable with and should also be encouraging you.

We are here to encourage you. Please keep us posted.
@vdouglas
(Von)

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ramakambhatla | @ramakambhatla | Mar 2, 2018

I am sorry to hear of congestive heart failure at age 25. I had for nearly 2-3 months, bilateral pitting pedal oedema and as it is not resolving with diuretic therapy, trying to find out, if anybody has similar problem and how was it treated. I am stable otherwise, as a patient of Coronary artery disease, with LAD-stent and medical treatment. 2D Echo has not been contributory, with no changes of any significance in > 10 years.

REPLY
1 reply
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Mar 2, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

Hello @bangel

I was just thinking about you and wondering how you are doing.

I would love to hear from you when you can post again.

Teresa

REPLY
bangel | @bangel | Mar 2, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

@hopeful33250 Thanks a lot for your concern. I'm currently admitted in a hospital. It seems they are trying to determine the right dosage of those meds will be good for me. They Doctor says I will be discharged when my heart beat is slowed down. But I'm confused. I keep wondering if this will ever go away? If I'll have to leave on meds all my life. I mean, I'm just 25.

REPLY
bangel | @bangel | Mar 2, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

@vdouglas Thanks a lot for your words of encouragement. I am currently admitted in a hospital. The doctor wants to stabilize my heart beat. I'm quite optimistic. I'm hoping for the best. I'm not mentally ready to avoid salts or take meds all my life.

REPLY
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Mar 2, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

Hello @bangel

Thank you for your post! It is good to hear from you. I hope that they soon find the right meds to help slow down your heart. I understand what you mean about lifestyle changes. I developed heart problems at age 11, but believe it or not, I've taken the attitude that I'm better off because I've had a lifetime to adjust my diet and exercise to be healthier. There is a family history of early death from heart failure and I think I avoided that because I started my lifestyle changes at a young age. Do you suppose you can eventually look at it in a new way?

I look forward to hearing from you again. Let me know how the meds are working for you and how you are feeling.

Teresa

REPLY
bangel | @bangel | Mar 4, 2018
In reply to @bangel "Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating..." + (show)
@bangel

Hello, @hopeful33250 I got admitted in to a hospital. The cardiologist says my heart is beating too fast and needs to be slowed down. I look forward to learning everything you can teach me. Thanks a lot. I will appreciate any information you can give me. I am so confused. I didn't expect this at my age.

Jump to this post

@hopeful33250 Thanks a lot for remembering me. I appreciate it a lot. I got discharged from the hospital yesterday. Doctor gave me a whole list of Don'ts, he asked me to come back after 10 days. So I'm home at the moment. I'm eating almost nothing, and trying to eat as healthy as I can. I really hope this goes away and I have my life back.

REPLY
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Mar 5, 2018

Hello @bangel

I am glad to hear that you are home now. That is good news! When you say that you are "eating almost nothing" what does that mean? Good nutrition is important. You need lean proteins, low in fat, and lot of fruits and veggies. Eating habits are tough to change but I believe that you can do it.

I am so happy that you posted. I would love to hear from you again

I am wishing you happiness as you seek out a new, healthier lifestyle!

Teresa

REPLY
Mentor
Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Mar 6, 2018
In reply to @ramakambhatla "I am sorry to hear of congestive heart failure at age 25. I had for nearly..." + (show)
@ramakambhatla

I am sorry to hear of congestive heart failure at age 25. I had for nearly 2-3 months, bilateral pitting pedal oedema and as it is not resolving with diuretic therapy, trying to find out, if anybody has similar problem and how was it treated. I am stable otherwise, as a patient of Coronary artery disease, with LAD-stent and medical treatment. 2D Echo has not been contributory, with no changes of any significance in > 10 years.

Jump to this post

Hello @ramakambhatla

I appreciate your adding your personal experience to this discussion. I'm sure that @bangel will feel less alone knowing of another person who has been dealing with this same problem. I also see that you recently joined the Connect Community and I would like to welcome you. I hope that others who have been diagnosed with bilateral pitting pedal oedema will respond to your comment and share their experiences with you.

I look forward to hearing more about your history with this disorder. Please share more as you feel comfortable doing so.

Teresa

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