- Krish Waje, 26, from Blue Mountain’s NSW was born with secundum atrial septal defect (ASD) – a hole in her heart
- Her illness wasn’t discovered until her mother Neeta gave her a hug
- Krish had heart surgery to fix her heart murmur
Here Krish shares her story in her own words
Peering around the apartment, I took in the bare walls and empty rooms.
‘It’s going to look so good when you’ve decorated!’ I grinned at my sister, Vruchi, then 24.
It was December 2013, and my dad, Nitin, 56, my mum, Neeta, 50, and I were visiting the flat Vruchi had just purchased.
We were staying over, and later that night I sprawled out on a makeshift bed of cushions and blankets on the floor.
As I was lying next to Mum, she pulled me in for a big hug, resting her head on my chest over my heart.
‘It sounds like you’ve got a murmur in your heart. You need to get that checked out,’ said Mum, who works as a doctor.
‘Okay,’ I said, rolling over to sleep.
Aged 15, I didn’t give it much thought.
I was more focused on school and my friends.
A few weeks later, Mum had booked me an appointment with a cardiologist.
At the hospital, I had an ultrasound – also known as an echocardiogram – on my heart.
Mum joined me as the cardiologist talked us through the results.
Your heart is twice the size it should be
‘Your heart is twice the size it should be, and you have a secundum atrial septal defect (ASD) which means you have a hole in the middle of your heart,’ he explained.
Because of this, one of my heart valves wasn’t closing properly and my heart was working overtime.
‘You would have been born with this. I’m surprised it’s gone undetected for so long,’ he added.
An secundum atrial septal defect (ASD) is a heart condition in which there is a hole in the atrial septum (the wall that separates the left and right chambers (or atrium) of the heart.
It is the most common type of ASD.
What is secundum atrial septal defect (ASD)?
I was shocked.
A few weeks later, in February 2014, I went back and the doctor discussed my treatment plan.
‘You’ll need open heart surgery to repair the hole. If you don’t have it, your heart will give up by the time you’re in your 30s,’ he explained.
‘Okay,’ I stammered in disbelief.
I couldn’t believe how serious it was.
Mum’s hug had saved my life.
So the operation didn’t affect my mid-year exams, I was booked in during the school holidays.
That June, surgeons wheeled me into theatre, where they patched up the hole with another part of my heart.
Coming to after, my chest was in a lot of pain, but the surgery had been a success.
While many people don’t suffer any symptoms, those with larger defects can cause:
-shortness of breath
– fatigue
-increased heart rate – particularly during exercise
What are the symptoms of secundum ASD?
‘I’m so pleased you’re okay,’ Mum said, relieved.
After 10 days in hospital, I was discharged.
But my recovery wasn’t quite over, and I spent the next few months going to rehab before school to build up my strength with exercises.
A decade on from the op, everything is now back to normal.
I live with my partner, Quincy, in the Blue Mountains and run a candle business, Lunaire.
I’m still so grateful to Mum for picking up on my heart murmur – who knows what could have happened otherwise.
