This time two years ago Leah Kitchen, from Belfast, was waiting to have major open-heart surgery at the age of just 37. Now, Leah is preparing to take on local health charity Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke’s (NICHS) Red Dress Fun Run. As the event takes place during Heart Month (February) the timing couldn’t be more perfect.
The driving force behind Leah taking part in the event is that she wants to raise funds and awareness for heart illnesses. This will be Leah’s first time participating in the five-kilometre run or walk, which is supported by MACE and Musgrave MarketPlace, and which raises much needed funds for NICHS’s care and prevention services and research projects, as well as awareness of heart conditions.
Leah explains; “I was actually born with my heart condition, but it wasn't discovered until I was 6 years old. The school nurse was at my school and she found I had a heart murmur. She asked my mum how long I had had it for and my mum had no idea what she was talking about, so we went to see the doctor.”
“After tests we discovered I had a heart murmur because my mitral valve was torn. The mitral valve is a small flap in the heart that stops blood flowing the wrong way. The tear in mine meant there was a leak and it was causing a backflow of my blood and it wasn’t flowing around my body properly.”
“As a child I went to the Paediatric Cardiologist every three years and at 16 years old that changed to every year. During every check-up I had ECGs and ultrasounds and around 2020 my Cardiologist at the Royal Victoria Hospital started wondering why I wasn't experiencing symptoms like tiredness, shortness of breath and chest pains. According to my test results, I should have been having these sorts of symptoms because my heart was becoming enlarged, it just kept getting bigger and bigger. I never felt any signs of that however, so the news came as a surprise. I thought I was fine and felt good. I was hiking mountains without any problems. I ran on the treadmill. I worked out and lifted weights. There was nothing that stopped me from living a full life. The doctors couldn’t work out why I felt fine and wasn’t showing any symptoms.”
During the first COVID lockdown Leah’s team of medical specialists decided it was time for her to have surgery to fix the leaking valve. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as straightforward as Leah had hoped. “I assumed it would be keyhole surgery but was told it would be major open-heart surgery. That frightened me because previously I had been told that if I needed surgery, it would be keyhole. That changes as you get older however and keyhole surgery is usually only performed on children. I was scheduled into the surgery list and was waiting for a date. That was hard, knowing it was coming but not knowing when.”
“In November 2021 I got the word I was having my surgery in the springtime. I am a retail window-dresser and later that month at work I was kneeling in the shop front and suddenly, I couldn't breathe. I have an Apple watch which I used to keep an eye on my heart rate and it was going crazy. It was showing my heart rate was going up to 220 beats per minute which is really dangerous. I went home but later that night I didn't feel great, so I went to the Royal Victoria Hospital. I was admitted overnight and was told I had had a mild heart attack which was a shock.”
“This all happened during the pandemic and because of the backlog of people waiting to have surgery, my operation wasn’t moved forward even after my heart attack. I didn’t have surgery until March 2022.”
Talking about her surgery Leah explains; “With mitral valve surgery the valve is either replaced or repaired but the surgeon won’t know which the best option is until they open you up. A replacement involves a mechanical valve being put in, but my surgeon said they would prefer to do a repair on mine because you get more time out of a repair. A mechanical valve has to be replaced more often and a lot of people actually hear it ticking in their chest which is understandably disconcerting.”
“I was in surgery for five and a half hours and the surgeon was able to carry out a repair. I was in ICU for four days before moving to the heart and lung ward. I was only in my thirties, so I was the youngest one there by far. I was surrounded by people in their sixties and seventies.”
“A few days later I was getting ready to go home. I was sitting in the discharge lounge and I started to feel very unwell. I was taken back up to the ward and the medical team discovered I had atrial fibrillation which causes an irregular heart rate. My heart rate was going from 160 beats per minute then plummeting to around 70 or 80 beats per minute. This was causing me to feel very sick and lightheaded. I was hooked back up to heart monitors which showed my heart was actually doing six second pauses. It was basically stopping for six seconds and then starting up again, and I felt every single bit of that which was awful. I was scared out of my wits. I had to be sedated and electric paddles were used to shock my heart into a rhythm again. Even after the paddles my heart didn’t fix its rhythm and I was still feeling the stops. The doctors had to try all sorts of combinations of medications to try and regulate it again and it was days before they got it under control.”
Leah spent a further two weeks in hospital before returning home and starting her recovery journey. “It was a slow recovery. Your whole body just sort of shuts down and forgets how to work after heart surgery. I went to cardiac rehabilitation at the Ulster Hospital and that was tough. The whole thing was tough. I had to learn how to walk up the stairs again, but I was determined to make a good recovery. My Cardiologist said I should be feeling back to normal around twelve weeks after the surgery, so I set myself the goal that at that point I would do a hike and I did. I hiked Black Mountain twelve weeks to the day after my surgery which was brilliant.”
“The surgery and recovery process were a journey and it was really tough at times, but I came out the other side. I now have a scar on my chest that I am not ashamed to show off and lots of people comment on that. I’m proud of it; I either have the scar or I wouldn't be alive. I haven't had any problems with my heart since and I am back to doing all the things I love which is great. With some luck I'll not need another surgery for 25 to 30 years.”
Leah is sharing her story to highlight that heart illness isn’t something that mainly affects older people, a frequent misconception. “I want to raise awareness that there are lots of younger people living with a heart condition, and many who are undiagnosed. I am lucky my condition was picked up and I was monitored closely over the years and now I am doing really well after my surgery. Sadly, some people aren’t that lucky. That is why I am doing the Red Dress Fun Run; to raise awareness and funds for Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke. They do so much great work trying to make people aware of heart health, risk factors and symptoms that something might not be quite right.”
Talking about the event Leah says; “I saw a video showcasing last year’s Red Dress Fun Run and I thought it looked like great fun and the fact it’s for an absolutely brilliant cause is a bonus.”
“The other great thing about Red Dress Fun Run is it’s all-inclusive and for every ability- you can run, jog, walk, whatever suits you. You can also bring your dog which I love, and I will be bringing mine along. The atmosphere at previous years looks brilliant and lots of my friends are coming along on the day to support me. I can’t wait to do it!”
Christine Duncan, Events and Marketing Manager at Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke is urging the public to sign up to the event saying; “We are so grateful to Leah for sharing her story, raising awareness of heart conditions and for supporting the Red Dress Fun Run. Sadly, so many people are affected by heart illness in our local communities. Heart disease kills nearly twice as many women in Northern Ireland as cervix, uterus, ovary and breast cancer combined and coronary heart disease is the biggest single cause of premature deaths in people younger than 75 here.”
“So please come run, walk, dance, skip or wheel 5K with us on Sunday 25th February at Stormont Estate, or if you can’t make the live event, you can support us by doing 5k your way any day, or over days, in February. Together we can help rebuild thousands of lives and make a lasting change towards heart health in Northern Ireland. Everyone is welcome to come along and join in the fun - even the family pooch!”
The charity will once again partner with MACE and Musgrave MarketPlace for the 2024 event. Diane Anthony from Musgrave says; “MACE and Musgrave MarketPlace are both backing NICHS’s call for people to dress up in red and come together at this year’s event to raise awareness and funds to fight heart illness. Whether you’re taking part in memory of someone you have lost to heart illness, celebrating someone who is living with a heart condition, or to prevent heart disease happening to someone in the future – sign up and join us to support this worthy cause! It’s set to be a fantastic day.”
If you have been inspired to step up to the challenge, you can sign up to the Red Dress Fun Run at www.nichs.org.uk/RedDressFunRun
