- [Anchorwoman] And
as the age of 33,
Heather's starting
over with a new heart.
- Luckily, my heart
failure was so slow
that we had time to
really prepare for it.
- [Anchorwoman] How
she's helping raise
awareness about women's health.
- [Anchorman] Now,
from Minnesota's most
watched station,
this is WCCO 4 News.
- We have a lot more
still ahead, including
raising awareness
about women's health.
- Heather is living with a new
heart after
struggling for years.
What she has to
say to help others.
- February is American
Heart Month, which is
a time to raise awareness
about heart disease.
- Every year in
the United States,
heart disease leads
to one in four deaths.
Medical research has
enabled doctors to be more
successful treating
conditions, like heart failure.
Today, a North Branch woman
shares her battle which
ultimately led to a
lifesaving heart transplant.
Angela Davis spoke to her.
- I was born with
it and it didn't
affect my life until I was 26.
- [Angela] Heather
Peterson is now 33,
and reflecting on
how she survived two
genetic disorders that
caused heart failure.
She was active as a
teenager and into her 20s.
She had no idea there
was a problem with
her heart until she
went for a run one day.
- I was feeling like I was still
sprinting for a
long period of time.
Like, your heart is just
pounding out of your chest.
- [Angela] When
you're fully rested.
- Fully rested.
- [Angela] Tests revealed
Heather had heart failure,
meaning her heart was not
pumping as efficiently
as it should, and over
time, causing damage.
After years of
treatment, she would
need a new heart to survive.
Five months ago, Heather
had a heart transplant.
- The recovery process is,
I think, a third of what it is,
or what it was,
- [Angela] Faster?
- Yeah faster.
Transplant success
rate is for someone
my age and being
healthy is like 90%.
So I was really,
really excited to
know that I was in good hands.
- [Angela] Heather is
now a volunteer with the
American Heart Association
and credits it with helping
fund the research that allowed
her doctors to save her life.
But she still sees a need for
more heart disease awareness.
- Especially since with
women's symptoms, they're so
different than men's symptoms
that just letting everybody
know that it doesn't have
to be the pain down the arm.
It can be an anxiety
or shortness of breath.
- Angela Davis, WCCO 4 News.
- There were 75 heart
transplants in Minnesota
last year and about
11,000 Minnesotans are
hospitalized each year
because of heart failure.
Heather Peterson is taking
part in the upcoming
fundraiser for the
American Heart Association.
She is walking the
runway in the Minnesota
Red Dress Collection
Fashion Show on March 3rd.
You can find all the
details at wcco.com/links.
- Chris is here now.
