Annually, approximately 350,000 adults in the United States experience an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. In many instances, these events end in loss of life. Cardiac arrest happens when a person’s heart suddenly stops pumping as a result of an arrhythmia. When this takes place, blood stops flowing to the brain and other bodily organs, and the […]
When a heart beats out of sync, it can be an anomaly or hint at bigger issues. Little did David Keith know, his irregular heart beat was a whisper of what was to come. In December 2020, after hearing an irregular heart beat with his stethoscope, David’s primary care physician determined that he had atrial […]
It was the day after Christmas, December 26, 2022, when six-months pregnant Maria Patterson began to feel strong labor contractions. She had traveled from Texas to North Carolina with her husband, McKinley Patterson, IV, and their seven-year-old son to celebrate the holidays with family. She’d experienced Braxton Hicks contractions just days prior, so Maria figured […]
For Kelly Smith, growing up in foster care was hard. “There was no stability. I was shifted around in my formative years. I felt afraid a lot of the time. And, when I would settle in and make friends with my foster siblings, I’d be torn apart from them and placed in another home.” When […]
How It Started I began smoking in 1972 at the age of 16 — as I was a rebellious teenager who fell into peer pressure. I went into the military straight out of high school. It fueled the habit because while serving my country, I saw atrocities that no person should see. Smoking helped me […]
How It Started I started smoking around the age of 20 while in college because those in my social group all smoked. I had a lot of late nights and was also working at a restaurant at the time. Everyone in the restaurant smoked, so it just seemed natural. I went on to smoke for […]
Joshua Hutchins is a sophomore at University of North Carolina Wilmington and the recipient of the 2022 WakeMed Megan Champ Morgan Scholarship, benefitting WakeMed employees and their dependents who pursue post-secondary education in health sciences. The fund was established by former WakeMed president & CEO Ray Champ and his wife, Meredyth, through the WakeMed Foundation […]
“I would have periodic episodes of a very rapid heart rate, and I discounted them for about six months,” shares Courtney Ammons, a Wake County high school chemistry teacher. Because she had hyperthyroidism, she experienced rapid heart beats occasionally, so she assumed this was an unwanted side effect of her condition. After an eventful day […]
Erika McArtor had COVID-19 the first week of March 2023, but instead of getting progressively better, her symptoms worsened. “I had a cough and shortness of breath. Additionally, when breathing deeply, I would hear a crackle in my lungs. I was convinced I had long COVID.” A Mysterious Lymph Node Emerges On May 24 with […]
The holidays come with many surprises, and we hope they will be wonderful ones — to include thoughtful gifts, warm memories and sweet desserts, but for Stacey Tilton, her holiday surprise couldn’t have been any more shocking. “I fell asleep on my stomach,” shares Stacey, “and I just felt something hard in my breast. That’s […]
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