I have always generally tried to take care of myself. In early 2021 after being holed up during the COVID quarantine period, I became more serious about fitness, reaching 100+ mile/week on my bike and working with my trainer 3 days/week. In February 2022, I noticed that I was laboring more and wasn’t able to put in as many miles on my bike or work out as much. After feeling some discomfort across my shoulders near the end of a 20+ mile bike ride in early March, I visited a cardiologist who noticed an irregularity in my electrocardiogram and scheduled further tests for early May. Meanwhile, I started having a lot of fluid in my lungs and was diagnosed as having an upper respiratory infection. After 3 rounds of antibiotics, nothing was improving; I had a hard time sleeping and breathing was getting more and more labored. After several other tests ordered by my primary care doctor, a CT scan revealed that my heart was enlarged; I received a call to proceed immediately to the Arizona Heart Hospital here in Phoenix.

It was determined that I was in heart failure; my heart was very weak, with an ejection fraction of 10, a leaking valve causing the fluid in my lungs, and a major artery completely clogged. I had in fact experienced a heart attack during that bike ride in early March. I was advised that my heart was too weak to endure open heart surgery and attempts to stent the blocked artery were unsuccessful.

In early May, then being diagnosed in end-stage heart failure, I was transferred to Mayo Clinic here in Phoenix for further tests and to determine whether I was a candidate for a heart transplant or if any other courses of action would be appropriate. After a long series of tests and periods both at Mayo Clinic Hospital and at home, I was placed on the heart transplant list on June 27. On June 29, I received a call that a heart was available and transplantation was early morning on June 30. I am so fortunate to have been matched with a donor so quickly.

I am now almost 3 months out from transplant and my recovery is going remarkably well, with no signs of rejection to date, and no other complications beyond a small blood clot attributed to the surgery. Doctors have attributed my fairly quick recovery to my being in good physical condition prior to surgery. Cardiac rehab has been going well and I will go back to work October 1.

I cannot describe the gratitude I have for my donor and their family; not a day goes by that I don’t think about them. I sense a connection with my donor that I cannot describe. I don’t know if I will ever connect with the family, but I hope knowing their loved one’s heart has given someone a new lease on life relieves some of the pain of their loss.

This has of course been the most life-affecting experience I have ever had and feel so fortunate to be where I am after only 5 months since my diagnosis. I would enjoy connecting with others in the heart transplant community, regardless of where you are in the process, pre-transplant and waiting or post-transplant. Regardless of whether I connect with my donor’s family, I would also enjoy connecting with donor family members to learn what the experience is like for them, realizing the amazing gift that their loved one has given.