Heart Disease Survivor Says Women and New Moms Need to Advocate for Their Health
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Five years after Naz Saleem won her battle against Hodgkin’s lymphoma at just 25 years old, she gave birth to her son — and found out her cancer treatment had left a lasting impact on her body.
The day after giving birth, Saleem, who is now 52 and lives in Oak Brook, Illinois, was diagnosed with an aortic valve leak, also called aortic valve regurgitation. The condition causes some blood to flow backward from the aorta — the main blood vessel that carries oxygenated blood throughout the body — and into the left ventricle instead of out into the body, according to the American Heart Association (AHA).
The radiation that helped cure Saleem’s cancer was breaking down her heart. One month after she had her son, Saleem underwent the first of several heart surgeries, including her first valve replacement. She knew she’d need another replacement down the road.
For the next 13 years, Saleem’s symptoms were under control. She even did CrossFit five or six times a week. But when she was in her early forties, Saleem noticed a persistent symptom: uncharacteristic anxiety, the same kind she experienced during her first week of motherhood, the result of a leaky valve making her heart pump faster.
She underwent a second open heart surgery, this time a much more complex surgery than her initial valve replacement, but doctors worried the fix was not going to be enough. Because the effects of radiation were expected to continue to damage her heart, Saleem was put on a heart transplant list.
In the meantime, her doctors encouraged her to keep up the healthy diet and exercise habits she had cultivated throughout adulthood and to try to keep stress at a minimum. Saleem says she feels lucky that keeping a positive attitude seems to be in her DNA, and, five years after she was put on the transplant list, she was taken off, having been able to manage her condition on her own.
We sat down with Saleem, who is one of the AHA Go Red for Women Real Women of 2024, to hear how she advocated for herself and was able to manage her heart disease as a new mom.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Everyday Health: So much is happening in a person’s body after they give birth. What occurred that told you something was wrong, and how did you effectively communicate that to your healthcare provider?
Nazneen Saleem: My pregnancy wasn’t complicated, but the morning after giving birth, I had a racing heart — that’s when I had my first symptoms. The nurse came in and said, “Well, your heart rate is high, but you just had a baby.” I was consistently not feeling well that day, so I advocated for myself and got tests done and that’s when they found the leaky valve.
EH: Your first week of motherhood was also your first week with a diagnosis of heart disease. Can you describe what that first week was like for you?
NS: Every night, I would have tremendous anxiety. It was like an impending sense of doom would come over me. I kept telling my family, “This is not right, I don’t feel like myself.” I have four physicians in my family, and they all were saying it was just the new baby. They weren’t ignoring the diagnosis, but they had a rationalization for it. With certain heart disease issues, people recognize symptoms such as a racing heart or shortness of breath, but I wasn’t complaining about those issues. Hopefully, my story will help readers understand that sometimes heart disease can manifest as extreme anxiety.
EH: Again, you were a new mom when you were told you’d need open heart surgery. Is there anything you did in your life to maintain a sense of normalcy when you were facing all this?
NS: I couldn’t maintain normalcy. What I did try to do was not be afraid of asking questions so I could make well-informed decisions, and keep as much of a positive attitude as possible, because if I didn’t, it was hard to get to the next day. It was hard to have an infant at home and have a conversation with my husband about what to do if I didn’t make it. My dad said, “You can’t talk about that stuff.” My mother was the one who said, “She has to, she’s a mom now. Women and moms have to think about that.” And that’s where Go Red for Women comes in, and why it’s important for women to get support from other women.
EH: What advice do you have for women or new moms who have recently been diagnosed with a heart condition? Is there anything you wish you could tell your younger self?
NS: Once you have already been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease, learn what your new baseline is and always advocate for yourself. No question is a stupid question, especially when it comes to your health. I’d ask new moms to be in tune with themselves and make sure they take care of that new mom. The early days of having a little one at home can be scary, and you can be focused on the baby or your partner — but don’t forget about yourself. Sometimes if you aren’t feeling well after giving birth, it could be serious and you don’t want to dismiss it and then not be there for the child you love.
EH: Why do you choose to share your story?
NS: It’s scary to say you have gone through these things, because you might worry that people or bosses will think, “This person can’t handle what we are giving them anymore.” But so many friends and colleagues have reached out and shared their stories of strokes or heart disease they haven’t told anyone before. I want people to know you can have aspirations beyond heart disease. You should do your damnedest to prevent it, but if you can’t, do everything you can to live your life with it.
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