CRY Surgery Supporters
Network Newsletter 01 Autumn 2009
News and information for fit and healthy young people living with cardiac abnormalities
Back to track Tracey Duncan’s story P2 CRY Philips ‘testmyheart’ 09 P3 James Doherty’s Wimbledon P4 About the CRY SSN
A few weeks ago I received some exciting news. I had qualified to compete at the UK Athletic Championships in July this year. For anyone, this would be great news. For me, it was so much more than that. In 2004 I was diagnosed with right ventricular outflow tract tachycardia (RVOT). Before this I was a pretty good sportsperson: I had won international medals for 400m hurdles and the 4x400m relay at junior level, including the European Juniors and World Student Games. I competed at the Commonwealth Games and European Championships in 2002. I was just breaking through as a professional athlete. In 2004 I noticed a significant dip in performances which were unexplainable by me or my coach. Blood test after blood test and still no answer. I trained harder. One visit to Professor Greg Whyte at the Olympic Medical Institute (OMI) and the reason began to unfold. The initial test (ECG on a treadmill) showed an irregular heartbeat – really fast beats followed by a very slow beat. I was quickly referred to another cardiologist, Dr Stephens, and told to stop training immediately. I was devastated. In 2005, after an eight month course of medication, I was referred for radio frequency ablation surgery. It was successful. After months of monitoring I was told I could resume sport. Not so easy. Physically the illness hadn't created many complications. The doctors were experienced and extremely approachable. Psychologically, I was damaged much more deeply. There were so many questions – if the trigger for RVOT couldn't be explained, then how could I be sure it wouldn't
return? If I really am OK, what do I do now? With the support of Greg and his team I realised that, physically, I could go back to track if I wanted to. They would take care of my heart so I could get back where I belonged. It was a great feeling when I first stepped back on the track in 2006. I had no fitness whatsoever but the body eventually remembers. With gentle encouragement and slow progress I began to regain fitness. In July 2007 I had my first competition. I felt like I was flying. It was seven seconds slower than my best but it didn't matter. I was a new athlete now. I was happy just to be there. So now I train two to three times a week (rather than the sixday week I used to do) and I have fun. I respect my body and listen to warning signs. If I am more tired than usual on a training day or if I have a cold then I take the day off – I have nothing to prove. Even if I couldn't return to track, I did discover other activities that are less stressful on the body. Most importantly, I am being looked after by my cardiologist. This way he can worry about my heart and I am able to relax and enjoy my sport. Unfortunately, I was unable to compete at the championships this year because of injury. But that's OK, I am so thankful that I have overcome the mental and physical challenges to compete again and to actually enjoy it. CRY Surgery Supporters Network Autumn 09 |
1