More
children are being diagnosed with heart defects than any other defect.
Adriana
Garibay is a mother of two children born with heart defects. "Mended
Little Hearts" helps families like hers. They began providing
information, resources, and support to two families a few years ago
and now are helping 25.
Garibay
says, "Having a sick child and nobody being able to tell you
what was going on with her, and ignoring you. And it was really
hard... I had a normal pregnancy. I was healthy. She looked normal."
Garibay
says there's help for people with heart conditions in the area, but
not for infants. So they had to go to Dallas so her one year-old
daughter Jovianna could have open heart surgery.
"Mended
Little Hearts" provides them support as they make out of town
visits to diagnose their children's heart defects. Garibay
says, "They brought us a bag, you know, with deodorant,
toothbrush, toothpaste, you know, stuff for the kids. It's nice
having somebody to talk to that knows what you're going through."
Jovianna's father Brian Loya says, "Her days were numbered if it wasn't for the doctors down there... Luckily they told us that with her heart defect. How they patched it. That she'd be 100% normal. But you know, you still have that little iffy that, you know, she's not going to be 100% normal."
Jovianna
is now off meds and going through yearly checkups with a
cardiologist. Then Garibay had another baby Felicity who doctors also
discovered had four different heart problems, one of which they've
fixed. She says, "Having one was hard enough, and now two. So
we're still in the process. She's on heart medication right now."
Garibay
says Felicity needs meds indefinitely. They're going to Dallas in
upcoming weeks to find out her other three heart defects.
The
organization hopes to continue helping mend more little hearts like
Felicity's and Jovianna's.
Jessica
Abuchaibe, NewsChannel 10.
