I have been a pretty active mama since my second son was born in August 2007. Staring down a bridesmaid’s dress and a Hawaii destination wedding within five months of his birthday, I had ample motivation to get going. I started walking, then running, and the baby fat melted off. The next spring I ran […]

My sons’ school participates in Jump Rope for Heart every year. The children learn about heart health, jump rope for as long as they can (in our school it is a gym class unit), and raise money for the American Heart Association. This year, Jump Rope for Heart is a big deal to my 10-year-old, […]

This is the best news I’ve heard in a long time. And by long time, I mean since August 14, the day of my heart attack. It turns out that your body will, if you treat it properly, mount its own defense against heart disease and future heart attacks. It grows extra, natural bypass vessels […]

I’ve been transitioned. After six weeks and 1 day at rehab, I’ve graduated to “Level III: Transition” care and won’t be returning to outpatient rehab at the hospital (at least, I have no intention of having to return there!). This is my report card, er, “outpatient discharge summary.”  It has a sort of kindergarten-report-card vibe to […]

This weekend was Twin Cities Marathon weekend – the race I was training for this summer and was planning to run with my brother, Mike. Life, as we know, intervened. So a few weeks ago I asked my rehab physiologist (aka boss-of-me) if she thought I could run the TC5K instead. I got permission from her, […]

Her name was Mary Jean and she leaned over to talk to me as I waited for orientation on my first day of cardiac rehab. “Will you be joining us?” she said. “Yes,” I said. “I had a heart attack last Sunday, and I left the hospital on Wednesday.” “Oh,” she said, and paused. I […]