But in 2017, all that changed. She came down with a case of viral pneumonia, which turned into sepsis. To help fight the potentially deadly infection, doctors placed Aylsworth into a medically induced coma. When she woke up 12 days later, she couldn’t speak or walk. Doctors told her the infection had weakened her heart and she was suffering from heart failure. About a week and a half later, Aylsworth was able to go home to her then 8-year-old daughter, Zoe. Doctors prescribed medication, and she wore an external defibrillator vest, which detects life-threatening heart rhythms and sends an electric jolt to normalize them. It soon became clear, however, that Aylsworth would need a heart transplant. “I went home and tried to keep up with my mom duties and take my daughter to school, but I don’t think I realized how sick I actually was,” she recalls. Now Aylsworth is sharing her story as part of the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women “Real Women” campaign to encourage women to take action to end heart disease and stroke and to commit to making lifestyle changes for heart health. “There are two possible ways that viruses can cause heart problems: either by direct damage to the heart muscle by the virus, or by triggering the body’s immune system to create heart damage,” says Megan Joseph, MD, a cardiologist at the University of Michigan Frankel Cardiovascular Center in Ann Arbor, who was not involved with Aylsworth’s care. A study published in 2017 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that people with infections like pneumonia and sepsis that required hospitalization were six times more likely to have heart disease in the following year than people who did not have these infections. Similarly, a study published in 2015 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that compared with healthy people, individuals who were hospitalized with pneumonia had a higher risk of cardiovascular events over a 10-year period. Because it is very challenging to confirm that a viral infection is the cause of heart damage, “the true number of cases is unknown,” Dr. Joseph says. But Evelina Grayver, MD, a cardiologist and a volunteer medical expert for American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign, believes it may be a lot more common than we think. “Sometimes it can go completely undiagnosed because we might not always recognize the symptoms,” she says. Dr. Grayver practices at NorthWell Health in Manhasset, New York, and was not involved in Aylsworth’s care. Both experts say it’s important for everyone to know the signs that something may be amiss with their heart. “The development of chest pain, worsening shortness of breath, fluid retention, swelling, palpitations, or fainting could be signs of heart involvement and should be discussed with a physician,” Joseph says. Grayver says, “If something doesn’t feel right, make someone aware of that.”
Another Hurdle: A Veteran Battling PTSD and Alcoholism
For Aylsworth, more heart troubles were ahead. While she was being prepared for a heart transplant, doctors put in an internal defibrillator. “Literally five months later, I had two cardiac arrests, and that internal defibrillator saved my life,” she says. “I was so lucky.” RELATED: Hands-Only CPR Increases the Chance of Survival in Someone Having Cardiac Arrest Shortly after, a heart became available, but the combat veteran, who served in the United States Army for 10 months in Afghanistan, faced another hurdle: She was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and often turned to alcohol to cope. “I couldn’t quit drinking while I was getting worked up for the heart transplant,” she says, “so they denied me.” Patients who abuse alcohol are typically not candidates for organ transplants, according to the AHA. This was a big wake-up call for Aylsworth. “I got frustrated because that meant I was going to die and I didn’t want to die,” she says. “They were not going to approve me for this organ. They had strict demands and I had to meet them.” Aylsworth had been a member of Alcoholics Anonymous for years, but she recommitted to the program. She entered a trauma-therapy-based alcohol treatment program, which gave her the tools she needed to cope with the PTSD and the drinking. She also put herself in cardiac rehab. “I hadn’t been working out since I got sick and I wasn’t sure what my physical limitations were,” she says. “I was scared to go out there on my own.” RELATED: How Heart Failure Patients Can Safely Exercise Then, in the spring of 2020, COVID-19 hit the United States, followed by a host of restrictions to limit its spread. “Every day during lockdown, I got out to walk two miles a day,” she says. “That might not sound like a lot to other people, but for me that’s huge. I used to not be able to push a grocery cart without losing my breath.” Aylsworth also changed her diet, focusing on cooking low-sodium meals, and she makes sure to adhere to her medication routine. “I take it on time every time,” she says. “I keep up with my doctor’s appointments. I completely recommitted to taking care of myself.” This February, Aylsworth marks one year alcohol-free. RELATED: Life After Heart Attack, Three People Share Their Recovery Journey
The Importance of Self-Love
Today, because of the lifestyle changes she’s undertaken, Aylsworth no longer needs a heart transplant. “Making these changes and committing to myself to make it back on the heart transplant list has made it to where I no longer even need a heart transplant,” she says. “I am thriving and officially out of active heart failure.” These days, Aylsworth manages her anxiety through meditation and deep-breathing. She loves painting and going to the beach with Zoe, who is now 10 years old. She’s also working toward a bachelor’s degree in social work. “There’s a lot that we can do to control our own health,” she says. “There’s diet and exercise, and I think a lot of people forget the mental side of it, too — the self-love and taking care of yourself.” These are lessons she’s passing on to her daughter. “I’ve been teaching her about what she eats and how important it is to her health,” Aylsworth says. “We cook together and get exercise by going out on the beach and combing for shells. It’s been a great way for me to bond with her.” RELATED: Self-Care Tips During the Coronavirus Pandemic
