Dannie was born with a form of Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) called Pulmonary Stenosis, Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) and Noonan Syndrome. Pulmonary Stenosis is when the pulmonary valve is too small, narrow, or stiff and VSD means there is a hole in her heart.
Growing up Dannie didn’t think of herself as different from others except that she was aware she was a bit slower at sports and got tired a lot easier. She has never let that stop her nor did she let her heart condition define who she was then or who she is today.
“I often think about how my sister felt during all the younger years when I was so sick, and mum and dad had to spend so much time with me in Sydney. My sister often stayed with our grandparents, but I have a sense of guilt that I took our parents away from her for long periods of time,” says Dannie.
“As an adult now, the HeartKids community have been so supportive and I love that HeartKids isn’t just focusing on kids they are expanding to teens as well as adults,” says Dannie.
