Janell Hull’s second pregnancy went well until the last month, when she started experiencing some unusual symptoms, including swelling and shortness of breath. It was especially scary because her mother and grandmother both died prematurely of heart attacks, and Janell herself had been followed by a cardiologist from a young age.
The timing wasn’t great either. The COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing, and medical visits had been adjusted in many ways, with some only being done virtually. Janell shared her issues with her medical providers, but they chalked it up to late-stage pregnancy.
In reality, it was much more serious. Four days after giving birth to a healthy baby girl, Janell was diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy, or pregnancy-related heart failure. “Each woman is different in how it is triggered,” she said. “In my case it could have been undiagnosed pre-eclampsia mixed with genetics mixed with bad luck.”
Her daughter was cleared to go home, but Janell was transferred to a heart hospital, where she remained for two weeks. There was talk of a transplant, but the strategy was to keep her heart in her body as long as possible in the hope she might improve with medication.
In the end, her condition got worse, and just over two years after her second baby was born, Janell had to seek emergency treatment. This led to another round of testing, and a firm decision that she needed a transplant. “I got admitted on Nov. 15, and I was added to the waiting list by Nov. 22. By a miracle of God, I got the heart offered Nov. 28 and had the surgery Nov. 29. I’m very grateful that I got this heart as quickly as I did. The fact that I got a heart within a week of being added to the list is just mind-blowing.”
While there have been ups and downs, Janell’s recovery has been smooth overall. She has more energy to do the daily tasks she struggled with during her time of heart failure. “Now I pretty much have all good days,” Janell said. “I can do a lot more things at one time. I can take care of my kids and then go grocery shopping. Before I would have to take a lot of breaks between activities.”
Today, Janell is a big advocate for donation. She often wears shirts or tank tops where her scars are visible, which starts the conversation, allowing her to dispel myths and encourage others to register. She has also reached out to her donor family in hopes of hearing from them.
She encourages others who are on the transplant waiting list not to be afraid to lean on family and friends. Janell herself found help in an unexpected place. She and another mom who met in the hospital – and received heart transplants around the same time – became “heart sisters.”
“Throughout these years of going through heart failure, the surgery and recovering from the surgery, I’ve realized that support is everything,” Janell said. “It’s okay to receive help.”
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