Dolicia Meregildo

 Peripartum Cardiomyopathy Support Network

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My name is Dolicia Meregildo, and I am a 28 year old with a 1 year old son. Approx. 3 months after the birth of my son I begin to feel tired, very short of breath, heart palpatations, and the sensation of fluid in my lungs. I went to the doctor and saw the Nurse Practitioner, I told her my symptom's and she told me to drink more fluids and not to sleep on my back she also informed me that if a develop a cough to return. Well, I did just that and for about a month is helped some then I began to cough and the other symptom's had gotten worse. I did my own research and found that it could be Postpartum Cardiomyopathy, and went back to see the my regular doctor and described to him in great detail of my symptom's. He suspected something because he rolled in the EKG and took readings of my heart. Not, good and he was worried enough to contact another office personally to have an exam done immediately, with same day results. The X-rays revealed a dilated heart, so he jumped on the phone again and called a Cardiologist and ask if he could see me right away. I did the blood work, stress test, and had a 3d ultrasound done on my heart. Results, PPCM with a ejection rate of 35%. The cardiologist strongly suggested that I do not have anymore children. Which for me that was hard to hear because I am the only child, especially since I planned to have 3 children. I was prescribed coreg, altace and lasik. I had so much fluid in my body that I lost 18lbs after taking the meds(water pill). Wow! Well today I feel better than I did when I was first diagnosed and I can't wait to go to my appt with the cardiologist. When I first begin to have symptom's I could not walk up the stairs in my last home without being out of breathe. For the past few months I have been walking 6 miles on Saturday and Sunday, and I did the WalkAmerica walk today(4/28) which was a total of 6 miles and could have done more. My original cardiologist referred me to one of the other cardiologist in the same office that has worked with several women with the same condition. She wants to see me once a month vs. every three months and go more aggressive with the medication that I am on to get my heart stronger and functioning on its own. I have my son, but under doctors supervision I someday would love to try for number two. I look back on my delivery and wonder could this have been caused because I was induced because they gave me to much pitocin originally and my contractions were coming without any latency. Not to mention the saline fluid that was pumped into my body. I just don't understand why this happened to me or what caused it.

Strong woman with a weak heart,
Dolicia Meregildo
Deltona, FL