When 38-year-old mother Laura Smith first felt unwell, she assumed it was just a nasty bout of flu. Little did she know, her body was actually battling something far more sinister - heart failure.
The First Warning Signs
"I had all the classic flu symptoms - fatigue, breathlessness, nausea," Laura recalls. "But when weeks passed and I wasn't getting better, I knew something wasn't right."
Despite multiple visits to her GP, doctors repeatedly diagnosed her with viral infections. "I was told to rest and take paracetamol," she says. "No one thought to check my heart."
The Terrifying Collapse
Laura's condition dramatically worsened one evening when she collapsed at home. Rushed to hospital, tests finally revealed the shocking truth - her heart was functioning at just 20% capacity.
"The doctors said if I'd waited any longer, I might not have made it," Laura reveals. "I went from thinking I had flu to being told I was in heart failure within hours."
The Road to Recovery
Now undergoing treatment, Laura wants to raise awareness about heart failure symptoms in women. "We need to trust our instincts when something feels wrong," she urges. "My story shows how easily serious conditions can be missed."
Key Symptoms Women Shouldn't Ignore:
- Persistent fatigue that doesn't improve with rest
- Shortness of breath during normal activities
- Swelling in legs, ankles or feet
- Rapid or irregular heartbeat
- Unexplained nausea or loss of appetite
