Infant heart condition doesn’t slow down Thornhill native

YorkRegion.com
By Simone Joseph
May 30, 2014

When Bailey Bernknopf was five months old, a doctor’s visit led to a life-altering discovery.

When her mother brought her to the doctor for a check-up, the doctor discovered a heart murmur.

An echocardiogram revealed her heart had several congenital defects and she needed immediate heart surgery.

While the surgery corrected some of the problems, others remained. Bailey had an aorta that didn’t grow as much as it should. The aorta is the main trunk of the arterial system, conveying blood from the left ventricle of the heart. She also had very high blood pressure, as well as little energy.

In November 2009, at 14, Bailey needed surgery for an aortic patch repair.

It was expected to take four to six hours, but turned into a more than 12 hour procedure, and the surgeon wasn’t sure if Bailey would survive.

Today, she is thriving.

The Wilfrid Laurier University student will participate in Sunday’s 27th Annual Becel Heart & Stroke Ride for Heart.

She and her mother will be biking 25 kilometres. They’ve already raised $1,677- surpassing their goal of $1,500.

Enduring heart surgeries was never easy, says Bernknopf.

The hardest part was the physical pain and recovery process, the Thornhill native said.

“I just felt crummy and helpless,” she said.

Her strong support system helped her get through this difficult time.

“My family and friends made everything so much better for me. I was never alone, always given encouragement and love.”

After surviving her health crisis, she became involved with the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

“It really helped me turn all the negative challenges I had endured into something positive,” she said. “This really helped because I know that even though I went through something hard, other people can now benefit from it.”