Her Doctor Said It Was Acid Reflux—She Was Actually in Heart Failure and Needed a Miracle To Survive
Jen Maydas-Dering shares how self-advocacy saved her life
Thanks to spending years of her life as a professional racquetball player, Jen Maydas-Dering, 54, had always felt fit and energetic. But a sudden and mysterious health scare left her struggling to breathe and battling to stay alive. She never dreamed the symptoms she was experiencing would turn out to be signs of heart failure. But by pressing her doctors for answers, she saved her own life! Keep reading for her incredible story.
My shortness of breath was a mystery beyond asthma
Living with mild asthma since childhood, I knew that occasionally feeling winded was a common sign of a flare-up. But throughout my life, my asthma had always been controlled and my symptoms rarely lingered.
Then, in December 2020, a nagging cough and shortness of breath sent me to the pulmonologist. I wondered if my asthma had somehow gotten worse. At the time, I was training for a racquetball tournament, but my routine wasn’t different from previous practice sessions. My exercises rarely triggered an asthma flare, so my symptoms were puzzling.
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When I passed all the breathing tests and there was no indication my symptoms were caused by lung health issues, I was sent to an allergist to determine if environmental triggers were causing my asthma-like symptoms. Once again, I was thrilled to receive a clean bill of health, but the allergist then sent me to an otolaryngologist to rule out any ear, nose or throat causes. There, I was told I could have vocal cord dysfunction, and I saw four different doctors in that practice on my quest for answers.
Meanwhile, the persistent cough and shortness of breath worsened, so my primary care physician ran several COVID tests, including checking my blood for COVID antibodies for possible long COVID. Every time another test indicated a healthy result, I was both elated and frustrated. I knew something was wrong and I felt like no one was taking my concern for my health seriously.
A plea for answers
In two months, I made 14 trips to both doctors’ offices and the ER, searching for answers while my health continued to deteriorate. To make matters worse, after a pulmonary function test indicated abnormal lung capacity, the doctor’s response was that I needed to lose weight.
I was extremely frustrated, so somewhat defiantly, I countered his cavalier attitude by saying, “You can blame this on my weight, but my diet hasn’t changed.” His dismissiveness sent me to other providers in the group, with one attributing my symptoms to acid reflux and prescribing medication that failed to provide relief.
Soon, breathing became so difficult that I was unable to walk 10 feet without sitting down to take a break. I went to the doctor seeking answers to why I gained 10 pounds in three days, only to once again feel dismissed for complaining—even though I knew something was very off.
After leaving the doctors’ office in tears more than once at the end of February, I finally told the doctor I wasn’t leaving until they conducted a chest X-ray. An hour later, the doctor called, saying I needed to pack a bag for an extended stay and go to the hospital immediately.
My symptoms turned out to be heart failure
That day changed everything. I was diagnosed with end-stage heart failure caused by non-ischemic cardiomyopathy, a disorder of the heart muscle not caused by coronary disease or blockage, which specialists explained was likely linked to a virus.
A month earlier, I spent time staying with my son while he was in the hospital, and I developed a mild cough. I never really felt ill, so I assumed it was just a cold after several negative COVID tests.
Hearing how gravely ill I was actually terrified me. One son was due to graduate high school in a few months and the other was just a freshman in college. I had so much more to do and see in my life, but suddenly, I was staring down living for just a few more weeks after developing heart failure. Realizing I could have died in my sleep that night if I hadn’t demanded that chest X-ray was an unimaginable feeling.
I was transferred to a high-level trauma hospital, where doctors said they were trying to avoid a transplant, which seemed unbelievable. However, they quickly realized a transplant was the only option to save my life.
“They can’t be serious. How can I be this sick?” I tearfully said when I called my dad from my hospital bed. My husband, father and I scratched our heads, baffled that in two months I went from shortness of breath to needing a heart transplant.
My healing miracle: Recovering from heart failure
A few weeks later, I hit God’s lottery when I matched for a transplant and my life was saved by the unbelievable generosity of another family. It was just one day after my doctors told me they were out of options for a treatment plan.
Despite my early symptoms, I never had a cardiac workup. I believe that, had someone intervened earlier, I wouldn’t have needed a transplant. Still, every day I wake grateful to be alive. While I can’t play racquetball at the level I once did, I’m blessed to walk every day, spend time with my family and have a lot of life to live.
I was saved from heart failure for a reason, so I try to spread joy whenever possible by organizing a monthly breakfast for transplant recipients and their loved ones and sending daily motivational messages to transplant recipients, their families and the amazing nursing personnel who care for all of us.
I’m forever grateful for my second chance at life
I also cherish a wonderful relationship with my donor family. I’m so grateful they agreed to say yes to my donor’s wishes. We’ve spent the past three Christmases together, and they invited my family to their family reunion.
Surprisingly, when I woke from the heart transplant surgery, I told my husband I wanted to get a dog, which was completely out of character for me. But after meeting my donor’s family, I learned she was a dog lover and had a beloved pup when she passed.
I can’t stop telling everyone I meet to advocate for their health because you know your body best. If your doctor isn’t listening, keep pressing for answers. Make yourself heard until you receive answers that restore your health.
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This article originally appeared in the April 6, 2026 print issue of Woman’s World.
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