Pacemaker at 12: How a beauty queen became advocate for heart health

Shree Saini
My first heartbreak was at the tender age of 12, and it was far from the romantic kind. I had gone to the hospital with my mom for a routine annual health checkup. I will never forget the look on the doctor’s face as he felt my pulse. At times, my heart would not beat for as long as five seconds. I was diagnosed with a complete heart block.
I was born in Ludhiana, Punjab, and my family moved to the US when I was five. There were telltale signs that something was amiss for quite some time. I used to be the last one to finish a race at sports class in the US. Now I know that it was because I had a very low resting heart rate. The only way my heart could beat at a normal rate would be with a permanent pacemaker, a device that sends electrical impulses to the heart. The average age of a

pacemaker

recipient is around 80. At 12, I became one of the youngest to get one.
My diagnosis came as a complete shock for my parents and grandparents — they couldn’t fathom that their vibrant child would become a heart patient. When I was rushed to the operating room for an emergency heart surgery, I was told that my physical abilities would be limited forever. Doctors said I should be withdrawn from all school sports and dance classes. Being bedridden felt rather lonely. My life had abruptly come to a halt.

When I returned to school after months of recovery post heart surgery, I was bullied. Every day I would hide my tears and remind myself, ‘If I have a heartbeat, I have a purpose.’ This purpose was instilled in me as a little girl, when I first watched Miss World contestants make a positive impact in their communities. I knew I wanted to do the same.. My mother said when others treat you badly, they show you their hurting hearts. You must respond to them with a loving heart so they can heal.

While in college, life presented yet another challenge. A rollover car accident left me with facial burns that made me scared to look at myself in the mirror. My doctor suggested I take a year off from college to heal. But instead of being ashamed of how I looked, I went to university to continue my education. I wore a sun hat and mask to protect my burns.
I’ve gone through two pacemaker surgeries, and a total of eight heart surgeries in my lifetime. Just like any other machine, my pacemaker’s batteries will die after a point, so my cardiologist will have to replace them with a new pacemaker. I always joke and say, “My heart is so big — so I needed a generator!”
Becoming

Miss World America

and then the first runner-up at Miss World 2021 brought its share of fame alright, but I wanted to use that fame to reach out to others, create a positive impact and influence. I began volunteering with the

American Heart Association

, one of the world’s largest nonprofits, apart from organising weekly heart health awareness projects for other nonprofits. Heart disease is the number one killer globally, taking more lives than all forms of cancers combined. A third of our world’s population will die from heart disease, which is nearly 18 million people each year. I made it my life’s mission to advocate for early heart checkups, heart health and a healthy lifestyle that can prevent 80% of deaths from heart disease. By raising awareness, we can save 14 million people each year.
From my own life, I understood what physical and emotional pain was and wanted to do all I could to help heal others. The first step in overcoming any challenge is acceptance; the second is taking continuous action toward growth. That’s exactly what my family and I did. We embraced the situation, and together, we worked through it with resilience and determination.
As told to Shimona Kanwar