Wendy's Amazing Story

It only took one look at Wendy for us to realize that this little girl was a much more serious case than we had anticipated. On top of having a very sick heart, Wendy also had a very broken heart. Abandoned on her fourth birthday, just two months before she arrived at NDFH, we knew that there were deep, fresh scars on Wendy’s heart.

         
Testing showed that Wendy had a very severe heart condition: TGA, ASD, VSD and dangerously high pulmonary hypertension. Because of her age, Wendy was at high risk for sudden death after surgery. But without surgery there was no chance of survival

Day by day we saw changes in Wendy. She learned how to smile, how to laugh and how to trust. Medically she was weakening, but emotionally she was gaining strength. Sad and scared was slowly being replaced by bright and happy.

On the 16th of December, 2011, Wendy had heart surgery. It took six and a half hours and was a success. The surgeon, the top surgeon of that hospital, was able to do a complete repair.

Wendy’s pulmonary hypertension was still very high. At any moment we knew that she could go into heart failure, so we braced ourselves for a long and scary recovery.

The next day Wendy was taken off of the ventilator. Two days later she was transferred out of ICU and ten days after surgery Wendy was released from the hospital. Risks continued to be great so Wendy was kept in isolation for a few weeks. But she was recovering well and did not have to stay there. Now she runs and happily plays with all of the other children.

Wendy has gained strength, and there’s a new spark in her eyes now. It’s the spark of a life reborn.

Find it here on the website!