07/01/2025
New mom Brooke was suddenly overheated, had chest pain, shortness of breath and was sick to her stomach.
Then her husband, Rob, found her face down on the floor. Her skin was gray, and she was foaming at the mouth. She wasn't breathing. He called 911.
Rob had never performed CPR. But with the dispatcher coaching him to give chest compressions to the beat of "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees, he kept going for seven minutes before the EMTs arrived and took over. They finally managed to get a light pulse.
At the hospital, doctors said Brooke had two more episodes of cardiac arrest, which is caused by faulty electrical currents in the heart. She was placed in an induced coma to let her body heal from the trauma and to minimize brain damage.
Doctors told Brooke that the cardiac arrests were brought on by a sudden onset condition that caused a coronary artery to collapse, disrupting blood flow to her heart.
They thought it was due to a combination of factors – anxiety, lack of sleep, caffeine intake, a low potassium level, postpartum hormones and the use of an inhaler for her asthma, which can increase cardiac risk. She now takes medication to help her blood flow normally.
Brooke calls Rob her hero, and credits him with saving her life. But she struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and panic attacks. She was not able to return to work.
"I miss my career every day, but I also have this golden opportunity to stay home with Reese," she said. "She's a miracle, and I'm a miracle."
One thing that has helped Brooke heal emotionally is becoming an advocate for heart disease awareness. She promotes CPR training and is supporting a state bill to mandate cardiac emergency response plans in Virginia schools.
"I didn't want my heart event to ruin my life, but to guide it and give it a new purpose," she said. "This work helps me take my power back."
