Heart Warrior Project: For cardiac arrest survivors & those at risk

Grant McLeod, a cardiac arrest survivor from Canada, shares his story of surviving a cardiac arrest during a hockey game 8 months ago. In this episode, Grant discusses how he survived the event, what caused the cardiac arrest, and how his life has been since then. As I mention in the episode, I met Grant during one of our online Cardiac Comeback Crew meetups, which we host here at The Heart Warrio...

What question would you like to ask Dr. Samuel Sears? Let me know by going to the following link: ⁠⁠⁠https://heartwarriorproject.com/experts/⁠⁠⁠ . Every once in a while, I will invite a medical professional or a health expert to the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project to help you as a cardiac arrest survivor live a better life. Whenever a new professional or health expert is about to appear on th...

Markus Lindgren, my first guest on the show from Sweden, shares in this episode his recent experience of surviving a cardiac arrest and the impact it has had on his life. Having survived it only but 8 weeks from recording, it’s all pretty fresh. Yet, the way Markus approaches it all, and has returned to doing competitive dog agility (more of that in the episode), is inspiring. Show notes about thi...

Winnie Donoghue, a cardiac arrest survivor and heart warrior, joins us on the show as the first guest from Ireland. In this episode, Winnie shares her journey of recovery after a cardiac arrest, discussing the complexity and uncertainty of cardiac health diagnosis, the importance of seeking multiple medical opinions and evaluations, the mind-body connection, and much more. Show notes about this ep...

We ship the mug worldwide, with no additional fees (besides the shipping cost, of course). The price of the mug already includes VAT. Here it is! The very first artist collaboration! This mug for heart warriors is sure to make all your favorite beverages taste even better with its unique design and message.  This stunning design was created together with the incredibly talented Eva Mpatshi , my fa...

About 11 years ago, Joke Gysel, a Belgian dentist, suffered a cardiac arrest while riding her bicycle with her daughter. This led her to restart BIPIB, a nonprofit organization in Belgium that helps provide information about pacemakers and ICDs. Here, in this episode, Joke shares her story on what life has been like these past 11 years since her cardiac arrest. Show notes about this episode: https...

Douglas Rachac (better known as Doug), who is the moderator of several support groups for ICDs, a device patient, and a former Medtronic employee, answers various questions sent in by you, the listener, in this Q&A episode on the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project. Show notes about this episode: https://heartwarriorproject.com/all-about-icds-douglas-rachac/ ____ ⁠📰A Newsletter for Heart War...

In this checkup conversation, I had the pleasure of welcoming cardiac arrest survivor Brooke Jones back to the podcast. These checkup episodes provide an opportunity for me to reconnect with guests who appeared on the show about a year ago, allowing us to catch up and see how they've been doing. Show notes about this episode: https://heartwarriorproject.com/the-emotional-struggle-after-a-cardiac-a...

What question about ICDs would you like to ask Douglas Rachac? Let me know by going to the following link: https://heartwarriorproject.com/experts/⁠ Every once in a while, I will invite a medical professional or a health expert to the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project to help you as a cardiac arrest survivor live a better life. Whenever a new professional or health expert is about to appear on...

Djara Walgien, a fellow heart warrior from the Netherlands, who not only survived a cardiac arrest but also battled cancer a decade ago, endured a sudden cardiac arrest in his sleep after discovering his heart condition just 3 months prior. Luckily, his wife was there with him to save him—along with plenty of other people who soon came to his aid.____ 🧡 Get Involved - Support The Heart Warrior Pr...

Dr. Sears is considered by many as the world authority on the psychological care and quality of life outcomes of patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). He has published over 200 articles in medicine and psychology research literature and has well over 10,000 citations. In 2021, Expertscape.com named Dr. Sears one of the top 50 experts / prolific authors in the world on impla...

Derrick Purdy had a cardiac arrest at the age of 17 while playing basketball. His mom, who was watching the basketball game, rushed toward him to perform CPR. Luckily for him, a retired paramedic was also at the basketball game and immediately went to get the AED. Show notes about this episode: https://heartwarriorproject.com/derrick-purdy/ ____ 🧡Get Involved - Support The Heart Warrior Project🧡...

*Note: Upon review, Dr. Adesina realized that he mistakenly stated, 'The higher the LDL, the lower the risk of heart blockages.' He acknowledged that it should be the opposite: 'The lower the LDL, the lower the risk of heart blockages.' This is just to make everyone aware of the correction and ensure accurate information is communicated :).* In this Q&A episode on the podcast of The Heart Warr...

What question would you like to ask Dr. Samuel Sears? Let me know by going to the following link: ⁠⁠https://heartwarriorproject.com/experts/⁠⁠ . Every once in a while, I will invite a medical professional or a health expert to the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project to help you as a cardiac arrest survivor live a better life. Whenever a new professional or health expert is about to appear on the...

In this episode, I had the pleasure of welcoming, for a second round, the first guest I had on this podcast! Cardiac arrest survivor and heart warrior Jamey Bowden survived a cardiac arrest while driving and was saved by his partner Alma. Show notes of this episode can be found here: https://heartwarriorproject.com/cardiac-arrest-while-driving-jamey-bowden/ ____ 🧡Get Involved - Support The Heart...

What question would you like to ask Dr. George Adesina? Let me know by going to the following link: ⁠https://heartwarriorproject.com/experts/⁠ . Every once in a while, I will invite a medical professional or a health expert to the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project to help you as a cardiac arrest survivor live a better life. Whenever a new professional or health expert is about to appear on the...

Surviving a cardiac arrest is something you don’t wish upon anyone. Truly. It’s only those who went through one who can state with absolute certainty that it can completely shatter someone’s life.  Therefore, once I read our guest for this conversation, Kevin Marcus Miller , had 12 cardiac arrests, I was shocked. As well as intrigued. Shocked by how, despite all this, he has continued to fight. An...

At the age of 17, Mike Papale survived a cardiac arrest while playing basketball. In an act to prevent more people from dying from a sudden cardiac arrest and spread more awareness on this topic, Mike started In A Heartbeat in 2015, a foundation which so far has donated 200 AEDs, raised $35,000 to research, trained 3,000 in CPR, and screened 4,000 hearts. Show notes of this episode can be found he...

Bethany and Hannah Keime are two sisters who were both diagnosed at a young age with HCM (Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy), the number one killer of student-athletes. While both have the same heart condition (with differences in severity) and found much support from each other in that, they also have their own personal challenges dealing with the heart disease and all the life changes it has caused (m...

In this episode, I had the pleasure of talking to renowned cardiac nurse and rehab expert, Angela Hartley, about cardiac rehab for sudden cardiac arrest survivors. About Health Expert Angela Hartley: Angela Hartley is a cardiac rehab nurse who has a private practice in London. She has dedicated her life to helping those who have suffered heart attacks, heart surgery, or a sudden cardiac arrest, be...

Matthew Wood had a cardiac arrest at home. Luckily, his partner heard something and immediately jumped into action. Show notes of this episode can be found here: https://heartwarriorproject.com/matthew-wood/ ____ 🧡Get Involved - Support The Heart Warrior Project🧡 Note that The Heart Warrior Project is run by one guy, which is yes, me (Jellis Vaes).  In between work, studies at university, and ju...

Joseph Fisher (or Joe for the friends), is a psychologist, fellow cardiac arrest survivor, and heart warrior. He had his cardiac arrest while swimming at the pool. An off-duty police officer managed to save him. Show notes of this episode can be found here: https://heartwarriorproject.com/joe-fisher/ https://heartwarriorproject.com/joe-fisher/ ____ 🧡Get Involved - Support The Heart Warrior Projec...

What question would you like to ask Angela? Let me know by going to the following link: https://heartwarriorproject.com/experts/ . Every once in a while, I will invite a medical professional or a health expert to the podcast of The Heart Warrior Project to help you as a cardiac arrest survivor live a better life. Whenever a new professional or health expert is about to appear on the podcast, I wil...

Alan Owen had a cardiac arrest while playing walking football. Luckily, an ex-police and military officer on the field knew what to do and started performing CPR on him while two helicopters flew in to provide further support to Alan. All of this was unfolding right before the eyes of his teenage son. Show notes of this episode can be found here: https://heartwarriorproject.com/heart-warrior-alan-...

Brandon Griffith had a cardiac arrest at home while reading a book. Despite his SCA, he is still an active police officer and founded Griffith Blue Heart, a nonprofit organization that specializes in training, preparing, and equipping law enforcement for cardiac emergencies. Show notes of this episode can be found here: https://heartwarriorproject.com/heart-warrior-brandon-griffith/⁠ _____ 🧡Get I...