Chelsey’s Story: A New Heart for Christmas

“My name is Chelsey. I’m thirty-five years old, and last year I had a heart transplant.”

In the summer of 2023, Chelsey Kimmich suspected she had pneumonia. She visited an urgent care, received some meds, and went home thinking she’d be just fine. A few weeks later, her now-husband, Jim Kimmich, noticed that Chelsey was not improving: she was getting worse.

One day, Chelsey took a bath, hoping it would make her feel better. After she threw up in the bathtub, Jim took her to visit the ER.

“When we were at the ER, I couldn’t walk five feet in front of me without feeling exhausted,” Chelsey said. “It turned out I had multiple pulmonary embolisms and two blood clots in my legs.”

Heart Failure With Complications

The next day, Chelsey’s doctor informed her she was in heart failure and that she might need a heart transplant. Heart failure is a condition in which the heart is unable to pump enough oxygen-rich blood to meet the body’s needs.

“In Chelsey’s case, her heart failure was complicated by heart rhythm issues,” said Yasir Abu-Omar, MD, DPhil, Surgical Director of the Advanced Heart Failure & Transplant Center at University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute.

“We couldn’t process it at first,” Jim said. “We just sat there for a while in silence. When we finally had a grasp on it, we started thinking about how we’re going to beat this.”

Chelsey was given a LifeVest to wear: a wearable defibrillator that gives the wearer a shock if it senses a potentially fatal abnormal heart rhythm. The shock returns the heartbeat to a normal rhythm. People at risk of sudden cardiac arrest often wear a LifeVest while waiting for a more permanent solution such as a heart transplant. The only time you can take your vest off is when you bathe.

Cardiogenic Shock & Cardiac Arrest

One afternoon after Chelsey luckily delayed taking a shower and removing her LifeVest, the device saved her life as the couple sat on the couch talking about their day.

“I looked at Jim and tried to say the word ‘dizzy,’ Chelsey recalled. “I barely got it out before my head fell backwards as I passed out.”

Chelsey’s LifeVest then shocked her, bringing her back to consciousness. Jim called 9-1-1 immediately.

After her care team stabilized Chelsey at the hospital, they told her she would have to go to University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center to receive more specialized care than what they could provide. She was given the option of taking an ambulance or a Life Flight.

“Luckily, we chose the Life Flight,” Jim said, “because it was not long after we arrived in Cleveland that Chelsey went down again.”

“Chelsey had gone into cardiogenic shock and cardiac arrest,” explained Eiran Z. Gorodeski, MD, MPH, FACC, FHFSA, a cardiologist on Chelsey’s care team and Medical Director of the Advanced Heart Failure & Transplant Center at UH Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute.

The severest form of heart failure, cardiogenic shock is a life-threatening condition. Even when treated immediately, only about half the people who experience cardiogenic shock survive it. Due to the severity of her heart failure, Chelsey was then approved for a heart transplant.

The Wait

“When you get a heart transplant, it’s not like what you see on TV,” Chelsey said. “It takes time to find a donor and coordinate the harvest surgery, which requires multiple surgeons.”

“It’s probably the scariest time of your life,” Jim said, referring to the couple’s time waiting for a donor match for Chelsey. “There’s so much day-to-day uncertainty.”

“When they told me they we’re looking for a heart donor between the ages of 18 and 23 for me, it broke my heart,” Chelsey said. “That’s someone’s child. And the fact that this would happen right before the holidays – I couldn’t even imagine what that family was going through.”

During Chelsey’s stay in the hospital, she and Jim focused on what they called the “little wins,” because they knew there would be a big win in the end. Little pieces of happiness helped keep Chelsey going – whether it was a family member stopping by, a dog coming to visit, or getting to spend some extra time with the nurses she loved.

The Greatest Gift of All

On Christmas Day 2023, Chelsey’s team woke her and told her she had a new heart.

“That was really special,” Dr. Abu-Omar said. “What did Chelsey get for Christmas? A new heart. We couldn’t have been happier for her.”

“When I talked with family and friends that day, I was able to tell them, ‘Hey, by the way, I got a new heart – Merry Christmas!’” Chelsey said.

While Chelsey’s old heart had been very sick, she had been otherwise healthy, which her doctors say helped her recover so well. Both Dr. Abu-Omar and Dr. Gorodeski have been thrilled with her progress.

Healing Hearts & Changing Lives

“To the supporters of the Go Red for Women campaign, you’re changing lives,” Chelsey said. “Whether you’ve met the person you’re helping or not, you’re making such a difference. You never know who’s going to need this kind of help, and my story shows this can happen to anyone, regardless of age or health.”

“Where Chelsey is now shows what we can achieve in the modern era with the support of organizations like the American Heart Association,” Dr. Abu-Omar said.

“I’m excited to hear Chelsey wants to be a nurse,” Dr. Gorodeski said. “I think she would show a deep empathy towards patients, the kind of empathy we all want to see in our caregivers when we’re sick. It would be fantastic one day if Chelsey became a cardiac nurse. We’d love to hire her!”