Have You Ever Thought You Might Have FH? – Madi’s Story

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Madi always knew high cholesterol ran in her family, but she assumed everyone had it under control. That’s why one day in 2016 caught her so off guard. She was just 23 years old, but she knew she was having a heart attack.

“It kind of happened out of nowhere,” says Madi. “I had no symptoms … Read More →


When Going Vegan Doesn’t Lower LDL: Liz’s Story

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Liz found out she had high cholesterol when she was just 10 years old. “It wasn’t too shocking,” she says. “We knew my dad’s family had a history of high cholesterol and heart disease.” Her uncle passed from a heart attack when he was just 39, and Liz remembers her grandmother’s cholesterol … Read More →


Laurence and a waterfall

These Are My People: Laurence’s Story

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“I think the hardest part of my story is that I didn’t know anything. I’m still coming to grips with that.”
Laurence grew up in Ireland and came to the US in the early 1990s. He always considered himself a very healthy person with an allergy problem. “I look after my health, I do all my … Read More →


Mackenzie's Story

Life After Your Loved One’s Heart Attack

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I’m not sure where this story starts. When I ask myself, what’s life been like since my mom’s heart attack, I have to ask, which one?
Does the story start with the heart attack she didn’t know she had? Does it start with the one she nearly didn’t survive? Does it start with her emergency … Read More →


Cat Davis Ahmed's Familial Hypercholesterolemia Story

Remembering Tom Davis

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He worked hard to outrun FH

This is my first Father’s Day without my dad, Tom Davis, and I miss him.
He was 82 when he died December 7, 2022. It was only five months after my mom, Judy, passed away. Like so many of the families I have worked with at the Family Heart Foundation over the past 10 years, … Read More →


Family Hypercholesterolemia story - Isabelle B.

Why I Race: Knowledge Brings Positive Change

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As a new team member of the Family Heart Foundation, I was thrilled to join an organization aligned so well with my goal to make a positive impact on peoples’ lives.
Not only was I eager to help others, but joining the Family Heart team in March of 2023 meant I would have even more opportunities … Read More →


Family Heart Advocate Daniel H.

Why I Race: My Story Could Have Been Different

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My mother died of a heart attack when she was just 46 years old. It was the late 1960s, and I was a young kid – just 13 years old. At that time, we were only beginning to learn the connection between cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. Stents were still in development, and medical science was … Read More →


Family Heart Advocate - Charlotte M.

Not only did she give me life, but she also saved it

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After you’ve lost your mom, Mother’s Day is complicated. Sadness and “what if’s” mix with gratitude and “I remember when’s.” My heart swells with love for the woman I was fortunate enough to call “Mom.” And even though I talk about her in the past tense, my swollen heart still … Read More →


Living with elevated Lipoprotein(a)

It Wasn’t a Panic Attack. It Was a Heart Attack.

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Jenny’s Lp(a) Story

I thought it was a panic attack. In fairness, I was only 41. A nonsmoker. A longtime vegetarian with good cholesterol numbers. As physically active as I could be while working a full-time job and wrangling a toddler.
But what happened in October 2019 wasn’t a panic attack. It … Read More →