Summary: My sister Elissa and I are raising awareness and money for research into Myocarditis. This little known and under-researched heart condition took the life of our little sister, Amy Wiggins, just under 2 years ago aged just 29. 

In the UK alone Myocarditis takes the life of one young person a week and is on the rise.

If anyone knows of any healthcare professionals working in cardiology, please do talk to them about this too as we are looking for ways to connect with hospitals both to further research, and to ensure signs and symptoms are not missed as they were in our darling girl. Anything you can give will be much appreciated. Thank you.

Anna: I’m doing something I’ve been scared of my whole life to raise money and awareness about Myocarditis. Funding for research is desperately needed and we're asking you to help so others don’t have to suffer the sudden loss of a loved one as we have. I have always had a fear of heights but will be doing a skydive in May to raise money and awareness of Myocarditis.UK XxX

Elissa:  I am doing this skydive to raise money for a great charity on behalf of my sister and to raise awareness of the much silent disease, Myocarditis. I've had a fear of heights all my life and I couldn't think of a better challenge to face, to enable my contribution to such and important charity. XxX

Please support us fund this vital research.

Full story
As some of you may/may not know, our family sadly and suddenly lost our darling little sister Amy at just 29 years of age on the 20th May 2019. 

She was living with me, Ben and the children at the time, having been newly diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in January 2019, whilst travelling in the Far East. Upon diagnosis, she returned home, but was hospitlised mid-February with flu-like symptoms. After various tests, she was discharged with antibiotics to treat an infection (although this was not specific and merely a precaution). She quickly recovered and was in perfectly good health. Once settled, she had regular visits with the diabetes nurse/consultant-all of whom marvelled at how well controlled her levels were. She was at a peak of wellness-mentally and physically, despite being newly diagnosed with the diabetes, working close by in a new job role, keeping herself busy and fit. However, a few weeks before her untimely death, she began to suffer (intermittently) with palpitations/panic attacks. Amy was always conscious and aware of her body and went to the doctors, who put her symptoms down to anxiety. While this may have been true, there was no exploration of the connections to the possibility of Myocarditis, nor to the previous hospital admission, diabetes, or having been travelling in potentially unhygienic areas, all of which could have been pointers to possible Myocarditis. Had I known of the word, or indeed causes of Myocarditis at the time, we could have made the links; with diabetes being an autoimmune condition and the fact that she could have contracted a viral/bacterial infection while travelling. In any event, she was sent on her way and she carried on as normal. Then, on the Thursday before her death, she went to visit friends (6 hour drive away), perfectly healthy and in good spirits, if a little tired. Then came the unbelievable phone call from her fiancé at 8.30 Sunday morning to say she’d been admitted to the ICU with a suspected heart attack. The utter fear and panic rose in us all, as we drove the 6 hour drive to see her. When we arrived, she was visibly exhausted, but sat up in bed (albeit attached to various machines) telling us how grateful she was to the staff and how well they’d treated her. We stayed with her for the evening and took turns to shower her in love and stroke her hair. During this time, she was very sleepy, in and out of consciousness. The doctors explained that they thought she had inflammation of the heart muscle, however, there was still no mention of Myocarditis. With obvious signs that she needed to rest, we left the hospital, but our parents stayed as there was only one bed/room, having been told that she would be fine and that she was having 24 hour round the clock care. We kissed her and told her how much we loved her and that we would see her first thing in the morning. Sadly, she went into cardiac arrest by 5am and despite having CPR for 90 minutes, she was already gone. We have been left completely broken and devastated at the loss of our darling girl and believe there just isn’t enough awareness/knowledge/understanding of this (sometimes) fatal disease. Never in a million years would we ever have seen this coming. We are hoping to talk about it, highlight the fact that this needs far more research and as a result, hopefully, preventing other families from the suffering we have, and continue to suffer as a result of this very silent disease.

Due to delays from the pandemic, Elissa and I will finally be doing our big jump on the 22nd of May this year, just 2 days after our darling girl’s 2nd angel anniversary.

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