"You eat extremely healthy, that would never happen to you," she remembered her boss saying to her.
As per reports by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about 90% of people who experience cardiac arrest outside the hospital lose their lives to it. Things were lucky for Brittany Williams who was on the brink of losing her precious life at the young age of 24. Williams was at New York City’s Time Square when life flashed across her eyes as she experienced her heart drop and stop beating for almost two minutes.
It was an unexpected event of her life as it nearly ended until two strangers gave her CPR for eight minutes. The incident occurred in 2014 when after being put in a medical coma she gained consciousness after 48 hours. While talking to TODAY, Williams embarked on a new journey to spread awareness about her diagnosis amongst the young generation. Often heart diseases are categorized as age-related ailments but a recent spurt in heart failures among younger generations has shocked people across varying ages.
Williams shared the warning signs of cardiac arrest she ignored earlier. The New York City-based woman explained how CPR can be a lifesaver in a situation like that faced by her. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that “it's possible to reverse cardiac arrest if a bystander starts CPR and uses a defibrillator to shock the heart back to a normal rhythm within minutes.”
Dr. Stacey Rosen, a cardiologist at Northwell Health's Katz Institute for Women's Health and volunteer for the American Heart Association, told the outlet that people shouldn’t ignore their bodies and signs. "Listen to your body. Heart disease affects young people, old people, and thin, healthy runners. And when you feel something isn't right, act on it."
"I was at work, and all of a sudden the left side of my body went numb and tingly. I sat back and thought, 'Oh no, this doesn't feel right. This is not what I feel like on a day-to-day basis,'" shared the former heart patient about the warning sign she ignored before experiencing the heart ailment. "Three things came up: stroke, heart attack, cardiac arrest," she added. When the young lady told her boss about her condition she brushed it aside saying, "You're 24 years old. You run five miles a day. You eat extremely healthy, that would never happen to you." She replied in disbelief and found the suspicion ridiculous.
"I trusted her. And three days later, I was on the ground in a restaurant in Times Square with no pulse," continued Williams as she spoke with the outlet. "My mom and dad looked over, and they thought I was having a seizure. My eyes rolled to the back of my head, and I just collapsed, and I was unresponsive,” revealed the woman to create awareness through her near-death experience.
Williams underwent surgery to instill a defibrillator which prevents irregular heartbeats as per the Mayo Clinic. "But I knew deep down that I had gotten a second chance at life, and I wasn't going to waste it," opened up Williams who spilled some beans about her fear of its recurrence. The young spirited woman shared how she overcame her fear to live her life with the aim of spreading the important word about the heart ailment.
Reference:
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/cpr.htm
https://www.today.com/health/disease/woman-cardiac-arrest-warning-sign-rcna69315
Cover Image Source: YouTube | Today
