There are over a million words in the English language and not one comes close to expressing how I feel about the staff at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.
At the age of 18, I was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy - the same condition that took my mother’s life. I was told I would not live past my 40’s.
I recently turned 60 years old and I feel great thanks to the team at The Beth.
When I was younger, I had open heart surgery and multiple procedures, including a pacemaker, but my heart continued to worsen. Then in 2013, I had a heart attack. I was living but I had no real quality of life.
That was the beginning of the end for my heart but it was certainly not the end of my story.
I was referred to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and that is when my life really began to change. Less than two years later, I received my heart transplant at The Beth on March 24, 2015. I still remember receiving the call saying they had a heart for me. I hung up and sat down for a minute thinking someone died to give me life. It was a powerful realization.
The morning after my transplant, I was awake and I could actually hear the blood running through my body. I could hear my circulation. I felt good!
In the two years since my transplant, my life has changed dramatically. When I get on a bike or go down to the beach, I feel a joy that I don’t think the average person can feel. It is such a blessing to do things you didn’t expect to be able to ever do again. And, in a large way, I have Newark Beth Israel Medical Center to thank for that feeling.