Category: Mended Hearts Blog
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Gateway into Living with CHD
By Meghana Dwarakinath I have always assumed that my life would figure itself out that all the problems would fade out of existence merely by me being ignorant of the events happening. I had relatives who suffered from various medical issues, primarily cardiac, but as a mere teenager, I never really thought that I…
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A Silent Blessing
By Amanda Primus My parents welcomed me into their lives in the spring of 1986. At my six-month well-child check, I was diagnosed with Aortic Stenosis Bicuspid murmur, which means oxygenated blood would flow back into my heart. My family did not treat me any different. I did everything my brother did; we ran, climbed…
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Buckle Up for Flu Season!
Flu season is well underway, and every flu season brings out two types of people. For one type, the flu shot is a necessity; it is a responsibility; it is an obligation. For the other type, the flu shot is painful; it is insignificant; it is an inconvenience. Ultimately, this is an unfortunate dichotomy. Opposing…
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Online Pharmacies Provide Savings on Prescriptions as Long as You Can Spot the Fakes
If you take prescription medications, you know that the cost of getting prescriptions filled has gone up in the past few years. At some point, you may have even had to choose between buying the medication you need and paying for other necessities. If youve heard about the savings offered by online pharmacies, you might…
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Filling in the Missing Pieces of Your Mended Heart
By Todd Matthews With Kathryn Kopp My name is Todd Matthews, and I am a 50-year-old survivor of coarctation of the aorta. I’m not sure how I want to share my own rugged scar. A tattoo? An outline on my t-shirt? Maybe I can start by just sharing my story with you… By the…
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My Heart Journey So Far
When my daughter was 4 years old, her doctor heard a faint clicking sound in her heart at a well-child visit. We discovered she had a bicuspid aortic valve and several other heart defects. She is now 19 and has always been asymptomatic and hasnt needed surgery. Because a bicuspid valve is congenital, her cardiologist…
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My Path to Volunteering
William J. Farr was born in Camden, NJ in May 1944 and graduated from Winthrop High School in 1962. After high school, he attended Florida State University from 1962-1969 & graduated with a BA in geology. William decided to join the armed forces and was commissioned in the USA Corps of Engineers & went on…
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Bill Schramer Is in It for the Long Haul
Bill Schramer was raised in Wheaton, Ilinois, and moved to California in the mid-1980s. Hes an IT professional with 35 years of experience as a Systems Programmer, Systems Analyst and Business Analyst. He was married in 1988, and widowed in 1994. He married again in 2003. After his open-heart surgery in 2005, he started volunteering…
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Nonprofit Leadership in the Time of COVID-19
by Jodi Smith, Program Director for Mended Hearts and Mended Little Hearts In the best of times, nonprofit leadership can be hard. Nonprofit staff have often chosen a path where the financial benefits may be far less than those of their for-profit counterparts, but where they believe what they do makes the world a better…
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Heart-Healthy Tips for Springtime
Spring is a time of new beginnings and fresh starts, so its also a perfect time to revisit your habits and adopt some heart-healthy routines. During the winter months, its easy to become sedentary, but spring is the time to get back in motion and take advantage of all that Mother Nature has to offer.…