The Heart Dialogues

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The NFL player who didn't let a heart crisis stop him
After collapsing during high school football tryouts and having open heart surgery, TJ Carrie made it to the pros.
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
10
Make your job work for you—even when your health is struggling
Career coach Phoebe Gavin on how to talk to your boss, lead a team and build a sustainable career with a congenital heart condition (or any chronic…
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
3
Her rare heart condition was “fixed,” but its impact endures
At age 10, Shari Weiss had surgery to correct a vascular ring. At 36, she's learning that her heart condition is still part of her life.
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
3
10 days in Haiti, 12 children’s heart repairs
Filmmaker Travis Pollert discusses his documentary, “Open Hearts,” in which a team of doctors performs cardiac surgeries in Port-au-Prince
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
“We're allowed to be mad at our bodies”
A former TV news reporter opens up about having a congenital heart condition in the public eye
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
6
“I just appreciate the fact that I'm here.”
At age 51, Beth Gootee learned she had been born with a critical heart condition. A whirlwind of tests and cardiac surgery followed.
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
7
7 decades after heart surgery, a retired lawyer leads a normal life
Bill Causey had an early "blue baby" operation for a congenital heart condition; getting older is "exhilarating."
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
9
How a rare heart defect changed one woman's idea of her body
On the pressure to be thin and "healthy," plus the way medical interventions intersect with bodily autonomy
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
2
A pacemaker and a baby in the same year
It wasn’t Allison Holden’s plan, but “everything just lined up perfectly.”
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
"I'm 29. I have to advocate for myself."
Jake Chico on the perils of transitioning from pediatric care, plus why he's "pretty lucky"
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
5
A doctor opens up about her heart for the first time
Sara Taher doesn't tell most colleagues or patients about her heart condition, worried they'll treat her differently. Now, she's ready to share.
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
Meet the model embracing "scar inclusivity"
Andrianna Acosta had open heart surgery at 8 months old. Her zipper scar is not a flaw.
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Leigh Kamping-Carder
1
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