Tiara Johnson, 32, was diagnosed withheart failurewhen she was just 26 years old.
At first, her doctors wrote off her symptoms and told her it was nothing to worry about.
Those symptomshigh blood pressure, shortness of breath, and fatigueset in toward the end of her pregnancy.
Marie Bertrand
She was put on blood pressure medication and sent home after her daughter was born.
So Johnson just kept pushing through, hoping things would improve with time.
Instead, everything just got worse.
Heres her story, as told to health writer Korin Miller.
It all started at the end of mypregnancywith my second child.
I had a completely normal experienceuntil the last week.
Myblood pressure skyrocketedout of nowhere and my fingers became so puffy that I couldnt wear my wedding ring.
I expressed my concerns to the medical staff, but I was repeatedly told that everything was fine.
So I assumed I was just overreacting, even though I truly felt like something was off.
I had my daughter on July 31, 2015.
I felt a little bit better when I went home, but I kept dealing withshortness of breath.
I couldnt lift my baby, I felt exhausted all the time, and I was sleeping a lot.
I couldnt walk for any long periods of time.
But, because I was told that this was normal, I just dealt with it.
Things changed on October 9, 2015.
In fact, it was functioning at just 10% of its normal capacity.
I remember thinking, No way.
Im only 26but this was real.
Meanwhile, my husband was at home caring for our two daughters by himself.
I finally went home with the defibrillator and a bunch of medications that I took for nearly a year.
I had that placed in my body for two years, and it didnt help either.
I was in and out of the hospital from 2016 through 2018.
It was incredibly difficult but I had to keep pushing.
Im a wife and mom, and I was still working 40 to 50 hours a week.
I would get overwhelmed, go into the hospital, and go back into the same cycle.
I ended up going to the hospital more than 100 times during my journey.
I wasnt initially fond of my new doctor because she was very blunt.
But I had to lose 100 pounds to meet the BMI requirements for the transplant.
I couldnt do anything but stay in bed.
But I managed to lose the weight, mostly by changing my diet.
Because of this, I was denied for the transplant list.
Doctors told me there was no way I could lower my A1C in three months.
Watch me do itand I did.
I lowered my A1C in seven weeks by working with my nutritionist on a strict diet.
I was not playing.
I got a nice outfit and my husband and I went.
I decided to put heart transplants out of my mind for the evening and I had a great time.
I was so overjoyed when I found out.
I prayed to get the right heart at the right time.
And it came, 20 days after I was put on the list.
I had to be at the hospital in two hours.
After the effects of anesthesia wore off, I felt amazing.
My ICU nurses kept telling me to sit down.
I was cleaning my room, taking walks by myselfI was able to do everything for myself again.
Now, I feel great.
Im like a rebuilt car with a new engine.
I also volunteer with theAmerican Heart Associationand do Heart Walks to help raise money for cardiovascular health research.
You have to advocate for yourself.
Even though physicians have important knowledge, theyre still human beings and can make errors.
Im so glad I kept pressing for answers, because it ultimately saved my life.
