22 Year Old with HLHS Lives Life to the Full

Woman born with half of a heart lives every day to the fullest, unsure of tomorrow (Article from WCPO)

Doctors told Tri-State parents that their baby girl wouldn't live long because she was born with a heart defect. But 22 years later those doctors stand corrected.

Meghan Roswick lives with half of a heart due to a life-or-death decision her parents made more than two decades ago. "I was born with a congenital heart defect called hypo-plastic left heart syndrome," Roswick said. "Which means I was born with virtually half a heart."

Patty and Rick Roswick, Roswick's mom and dad, consulted the doctor when their daughter was born in danger. "We asked the doctor what he would do and he said honestly if it was his child, he would give her morphine and let her die," Patty Roswick said. The Roswicks found a new doctor who was willing to perform experimental surgery to reroute Meghan's blood circulation. The procedure would force the right side of her heart to do the work of the left. "First surgery I was 11 days old, second surgery at six months, third surgery at 13 months, then heart failure again and had surprise fourth surgery," Meghan Roswick said. 

From that point she began pushing the envelope every chance she got by taking up various sports. "I started gymnastics, and my mom was on the phone with the surgeon, saying, 'Is this good? She's ramming herself into the vault, falling really hard on the bars. Is this OK?'" Meghan Roswick said. "(The) surgeon said, 'Yep, it's fine. That's why we do this.'" Her adventures didn't stop with gymnastics. She's pushed herself to the next level ever since. "It gives me kind of a rush," Meghan Roswick said.

"We made a decision that we weren't going to limit her, nor say, 'Meghan, don't do that,'" Patty Roswick said. Roswick took up skateboarding three weeks ago. She skied over the winter. She has the symbol for adrenaline tattooed* on her neck. "I always just wanted to live, to feel adrenaline pumping through my veins, to prove those doctors wrong," Meghan Roswick said. "Who said I would never have a good quality of life?" Roswick makes each day a new adventure, but she's not in the clear yet. Within the next few days, she is scheduled to undergo tests to see if she needs more surgery. "It's really scary, especially getting older because you don't know," she said. "The oldest people with it (hypo-plastic left heart syndrome) are not much more than 10 years older than me, so sometimes I think to myself, I only have 10 more years."

Most of Meghan Roswick's time goes to things that don't make her worry. "The time we have on this planet is short," she said. "We never know when our time is up and I want to do as much as I can, jampack my life with a bunch of experiences and adventures."

You can keep up to date with what Meghan's doing via her Facebook page.

*There are things for you to consider when you have a single ventricle heart condition if you’re thinking about piercings and tattoos. All tattoos and piercings carry some risk and most cardiologists and health professionals recommend you avoid tattoos and piercing altogether. Any procedure which breaks the skin carries a risk of introducing bugs into the blood stream. These bugs can settle on the heart causing endocarditis. The most important thing to know is that good hygiene is vital. Keep the area clean with a skin disinfectant containing alcohol or chlorhexidine before and after the procedure, until the wound is healed.

Remember, the decision to get a piercing or tattoo is yours, and if you choose to proceed, this list will help you make the procedure as safe as possible:

• Visit a reputable place that follows rigorous hygiene guidelines

• Make sure pre-packed sterilised needles are used only once and then thrown away

• Ensure left over ink is thrown away

• If the piercing becomes red and sore, you should remove the ring/stud and seek medical attention

• If you need to remove the ring/stud because of infection, you should not replace it until the infection is completely cleared