A woman reveals that she suffered from a rare heart condition, mistaking it for a panic attack. Maggie Jane Colvill, a social worker student, was scrolling through her phone when she felt her heart start to race and was unable to catch her breath.
Marking it down as a panic attack she carried on her life until a second attack had her fearing for her life, ending up in A and E.
Investigating her conditions, doctors discovered she was suffering from Wolf Parkinson White Syndrome, an abnormal heartbeat that causes the organ to pump very rapidly.
“I was terrified that I was going to die and my parents wouldn’t be there,” the 24-year-old from Sheffield, England, told NeedToKnow.co.uk.
“I just kept thinking, I was going to die and it would be my little sister who was going to find my body and how traumatised that would leave her.
“I remember being really scared and overwhelmed and just wanting it all to stop.
“Everyone was telling me it was a panic attack, but I knew there was something else that was wrong.”
Suffering the first attack in May 2022, Maggie claims it lasted only 10 minutes, so she didn’t think much of it.
It wasn’t until the second attack, over a year later in April 2023, that she became worried.
She said: “With the first palpitation attack I thought it was some kind of panic attack… I did think it was weird because I don’t suffer from panic attacks and I’m not an anxious person – but I didn’t think too much about it.
“The second attack, I was just watching TV and my heart started beating incredibly fast and I couldn’t seem to catch my breath.
“Everything I was trying, wasn’t helping it to slow down and it was just getting worse.
“My parents were in New York and my little sister was at the library studying for her A Levels.
“I thought I was having a heart attack and that this was it for me, I would be found dead on my bedroom floor.
“I called 999 and they said that I needed to get to A&E immediately, but there were 2-hour waits on ambulances, so… I called one of my friends and luckily, she was able to take me.”
Rushing to A and E, doctors immediately ran an ECG and stayed with her as her heart rate slowly returned to normal over the next two hours.
Five months later, the diagnosis was revealed as Wolf Parkinson White Syndrome.
It was also revealed that the heart wall on the left side was thicker than the other side.
“I never expected that I would need surgery, I thought that it would be some sort of medication that they would put me on,” she added.
“So when the cardiologist told me I would need surgery, I was very shocked and I didn’t really know what to say… luckily my dad was there.
“I was very scared, no one expects to be having heart surgery at 24.”
The proposed surgery aims to cure the disease by fusing the hole in her heart back together, however, the risks are very high.
There is a one in 200 chance Maggie could have a heart attack during the operation and a one in 1,000 chance she won’t survive the procedure, however, her odds of survival without the surgery are much lower.
She commented: “When I heard the risks of the surgery, I was absolutely terrified.
“I just kept thinking I am way too young for this and I kept thinking about all the things I hadn’t yet done.
“When I got home from the hospital, I think I cried about it on and off for 3 days.
“I remember thinking why me?
“I am healthy and I have always taken care of my body – so how did this happen to me?
“It did bring me some sort of peace knowing I was born with it, so actually there wasn’t anything I could have done differently.
“The emotional toll has been quite a lot, it’s one thing to process a heart condition at a young age, but surgery with a high risk of death is another thing.
“I try not to think about it too much and just enjoy my life before the surgery, just in case.
“It’s a scary thing to go through at any age but to go through it while you’ve got so much life ahead of you and so much left you want to achieve, is another type of fear.”
Despite the upcoming surgery, scheduled for February 2024, Maggie won’t stop it from affecting her life, trying to look on the bright side.
“I am keeping positive, by surrounding myself with my friends and family (luckily they’re very supportive).
” I have written letters to people, with my final words to them and wrote a list of things to do with my funeral/with all my things, just in case.
“Also, I’ve been throwing myself into my university work and I’m really enjoying my course.
“I’m raising money for the British Heart Foundation which has really helped me stay positive because it’s helped me turn such a negative situation into something that can help people and ultimately helping people is what I do best.
“Also, listening to a lot of Taylor Swift!
“If I survive the surgery, I can’t wait to finish my university degree and go on to help vulnerable young people – the options are limitless, I would love to do work with young offenders, or children who experienced abuse.
“I also will get to see Taylor Swift live with my best friend, which will be a dream come true.
“If the surgery goes well, I have so many things I want to do and achieve and the surgery will be the first stepping stone to me starting my life properly with no fears.”
