Faye GreenwoodAn influencer who had a heart transplant aged 24 said she “couldn’t believe” she had a heart attack so young.
Faye Greenwood had the heart attack in July while on holiday in Paris with her now-fiance Ailbhe Lower, who is also an influencer known as Mr Bruv.
Ms Greenwood said: “I couldn’t believe that something that serious would be happening.
“[You think:] ‘That won’t happen to me,’ and then it did.”
The influencer, who lives in Lewes, said symptoms began when she started to have chest pains and vomited.
“I can’t really remember a lot, but I just felt I was in really bad pain, something I’ve never felt before,” she explained.
“A feeling of doom, like the world was closing in.”
Mr Lower said due to translation issues and people misunderstanding the symptoms of a heart attack considering his partner’s age, it was six and a half hours before Ms Greenwood was admitted to hospital.
Faye GreenwoodMs Greenwood says doctors are still unsure what caused the heart attack and that her previously diagnosed dilated cardiomyopathy was potentially not a factor.
When back in the UK, Ms Greenwood was then told she may have to wait up to a year for a heart transplant, but was able to find a donor and leave hospital in just over four months.
She said: “It’s just something you never really think that you’re going to have to deal with.”
The couple, who have about 1.6 million followers between them on their social media channels, were also hit with a £14,000 medical bill from the hospital in France, and a separate £40,000 bill as Ms Greenwood had to be flown back to the UK in an air ambulance.
Ms Greenwood said the cost was “really scary” as the couple had saved up to move out of Mr Lower’s mother’s house six months earlier.
She added: “So we were only just getting on track with our lives and our jobs and everything, and then it just went downhill.”
‘Unfair’ situation
The influencer, who is known for her fashion and lifestyle content, says she is unsure what the future holds in terms of her career.
“Now it’s a lot different because I have a lot of scarring and things and I don’t really know how brands all react to that sort of thing,” she explained.
Mr Lower said the situation was “unfair”.
“I drink loads of pints, eat Greggs every day, sit on my bum, and then she’s having her green shakes and doing Pilates every day and she’s the one who has the heart attack,” he added.
Ms Greenwood is now urging people to understand and not ignore symptoms of a heart condition, even if they are relatively young.
“If you think anything could be wrong, even a very small thing, just definitely get it checked out or push the doctors to check you out,” she said.
Mr Lower added: ”Don’t just think: ‘It’ll be fine, it won’t happen to me’, because we thought that.”
