"I feared that I would die."

CeCelia was 17 when she dealth with her obstacle.

"When I was 17 I was diagnosed with STV which is Supra ventricular tachycardia. It’s a heart issue where an extra beat would start before my heart finished a full cycle of beating. I ended up in the ER with a heart rate close to 300. The doctors stopped my heart twice, and I later had to have a procedure done to stop the extra beat from starting. It was very difficult to deal with because I had to stop all of my activities for a while, and I lost a lot of confidence. I also became very paranoid that my heart would get out of control again. I feared that I would die, and I eventually stopped exercising because every time my heart rate got above 90 I would have a panic attack. Eventually I had to face my fears and I began exercising again. I thought “if you could get past the fear of death you could do anything.” Don’t get me wrong, I still have a fear of the unknown, but I don’t let it stop me from doing the things I love anymore."

Written by CeCelia Burgess.

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