My daughter Jessica was born with a congenital heart defect (CHD) called hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). This is a complex CHD where the left side of the heart doesn’t form correctly. Basically this means that Jessica only has half a working heart. Babies born with HLHS need to have heart surgery in order to survive.… Read More
The two photos below were taken three years ago today. They capture some precious moments with Jessica as we prepared for her to go to theatre for the second time since she was born. I remember it like it was yesterday. The anxious waiting, not wanting to leave her cot for a moment. Wanting to… Read More
For Father’s Day, I asked my husband to share a post about his journey as a heart daddy. This is his raw and honest account of his feelings about the journey we have taken as a family so far. It has been very hard and emotional for him to share this. I would like to… Read More
Like many other children with CHD, Jessica has needed several operations. Her heart can never be fixed – surgery can only help improve her heart function. The usual surgical pathway for children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) involves three procedures. These are the Norwood procedure, Glenn procedure and the Fontan completion. The aim of… Read More