Lauren’s heart journey began in June of 2023.  “I will never forget that day at work on Thursday, June 22. I hadn’t been feeling well all week, but I kind of chalked it up to anxiety or stress from work.” Towards the end of the week, though, Lauren was unable to lay down without experiencing trouble breathing. She had extreme fatigue, loss of appetite, and could barely lift her legs to walk. Lauren reflects that there were other signs along the way, but “I didn’t pay attention because I have no history of heart issues. I’m an active mom of two little kids, I work full time, and most of my life I’ve been healthy.”

Lauren knew that afternoon there was a problem. Yet when she left work at the end of the day, she went home because she had promised to take her kids to the pool, and she does not break her promises. That evening she told her husband that she needed to go to the hospital, but she didn’t go, admitting “as moms we don’t pay attention to our own needs as much.”  She made an appointment with ZoomCare at an Urgent Care in Portland.  She was advised to quickly come in. They ran tests and said Lauren either had heart failure or a blood clot. Her heart was enlarged, and they urged her to go to the emergency room immediately.

In complete shock, she and her husband drove to the ER.  Lauren was admitted and it was confirmed she had heart failure.  She was in the hospital for 10 days and recalls the doctor stating she would either heal from this or need a heart transplant. She remembers thinking, “I’m not that person who will need a heart transplant, and I will heal from this.”  They sent her home on heart failure medication before the Fourth of July.  She would return five weeks later where she went to the ICU, ultimately waiting for heart transplant. Lauren was put on life support the moment she arrived.  

Only a couple days before being admitted to the ICU, Lauren had an echocardiogram which showed her heart function had not improved.  She remembers the ultrasound technician stepping out of the room. She knew it wasn’t good. Lauren received a call later that day informing her that she would very likely need a heart transplant.Medical staff had prepared to treat her the following week, but she didn’t make it that long and went to the emergency room. They started Lauren on IV medication to support her heart. Two weeks later her body began to go into cardiogenic shock.  Physicians inserted the Impella® heart pump to allow her heart to rest while she waited for her heart.

On September 8 of 2023, Lauren received her heart transplant. Lauren went from a completely healthy woman to nearly dying multiple times in the process of hoping to receive a heart. “They tell you the day before and it happens very quickly. The challenge for me for getting a heart transplant, is high sensitization which measures the likelihood your body will reject a heart based on immune system. I needed a very specific type of heart.” Lauren went through chemo treatment to shut down her immune system. She found out the day before, which she describes as an out-of-body experience. “I found out I was getting a heart on September 7 at noon, and they started prepping me that day for surgery the next morning.” In the middle of the night, her cardiologist and surgeon confirmed the donor match would work. Lauren was in the ICU from August 6 to September 25.

“I think in all the preparation that the hospital goes through to make sure you are the right candidate, having to prepare for reality that you could pass away is difficult. I had to meet with palliative care, which was another out-of-body experience, because I was not happy talking to them. I couldn’t believe I was sitting there having this conversation at age37. I hate to say it but as much as I was hopeful and determined to live, Ialso had to prepare I wouldn’t be there and so I did things for my family in the event I didn’t make it. My family is my reason “why”.

Today Lauren is going through a lot of transition. She thought life would return to normal, yet it doesn’t; there are a lot of challenges with post-transplant recovery. “I have no immune system because I’m on so many immunosuppressant drugs. She didn’t expect the vigilance you have to have as a post-transplant patient. On the other end of spectrum, Lauren is so grateful to her donor and medical team and know she wouldn’t be here without them. “I get to raise my children, and while the progress is not perfect, I get to be here.”

Lauren urges women not to ignore the signals their body is sending. “I always think of it in terms of what they tell you on airplane, incase of an emergency you must put on your mask before you can help others, because we are moms, and we run ourselves ragged to make sure everyone has what they need.”