LUCASTA MITCHELL
"I was having pain in my chest, throat, and shoulder for about 4 months, and I was also very tired all the time. Eventually, I went to the doctor, and he immediately sent me to A&E with a letter. I thought it was all a bit dramatic, but he made sure I didn’t know I was having a heart attack.
I was taken straight into resuscitation, and even then, I’m laughing at the great customer service, embarrassed that they were wasting time on me. I thought I had a chest infection. They took bloods, and then I went to a ward. In the night, I was woken up, and they transferred me into the heart ward. They’d had the tests back which showed I'd had a heart attack. They still hadn’t told me. After a scan, I was taken through to theatre to have a camera put in my vein to see what was going on. While this was happening, I was kept awake. The doctor finally said, ‘Aha, we have a 90% blocked main artery, let’s get a stent in.’ I was pretty drugged up, but I started to laugh because I felt glad I hadn’t wasted their time. It still didn’t click that I had a heart attack.
I was put into a room on my own; I know now that it was because, at only 34, I was so much younger than the other patients, and they didn’t want me upset. Later, the doctor came to see me; he was shocked I had survived. The heart attack I'd had is called a widow maker. He had seen from my notes that my ex-husband and I had been having checks for fertility which were totally fine. He suspected the reason I didn’t fall pregnant was because my body was protecting me. If I had fallen pregnant, myself and my baby could have died. He suggested that I don’t have children because they just don’t know what would happen. I have accepted that and refuse to dwell on it.
I, on occasion, have a fear of death because I was so close to it. It is only a moment, but it grips me bad, and I must really change my thought pattern. It still sometimes feels unreal that it happened to me, but when I'm taking my statins and bisoprolol in the morning, it makes it real again. I definitely get poorly for longer than I used to, and I have the odd day when I'm so tired I have to just stop. Also, I will be paying for medication forever! On a positive note, I get check-ups from the GP every year, and if I’m ever in A&E, I get priority.
My lifestyle before was fit and healthy, so I didn't need to improve it at all. I have decided that because of my second chance, I will keep as active as possible. I don't know what the future holds because they don't know why I had it. I do need to look after myself a lot more now because anything could happen at any time. The theory is that my body doesn't know how to get rid of bad cholesterol. I can't do certain activities that would send too much adrenaline to my heart. Hence also why I try to keep myself calm. The heart palpitations can be very high in stressful situations, and my heart can't deal with anymore. I was told that the fitter and more active I was, then the better. The heart is a muscle and needs working. So now I take that as a great sign to do more with my life.
Being young and having a heart attack is very odd, and people feel sorry for me, but they don't need to. I have been given a different outlook on life, and now I live my life for fun and not work. I enjoy my life; I can't be bothered with silly things anymore. I make sure to keep my life as stress-free as possible. Easier said than done when you have two businesses to run, but I know there are things in my life I can't control. I could never have known I was going to have a heart attack at 34, but here I am living my life better than before!"
Unmistakably Human
( Selection of ) 2018- present
'Unmistakably Human' began in 2018, inspired by a family member's diagnosis of a rare chromosome disorder known as 17q12 Microdeletion Syndrome. This condition results from a missing segment of DNA from chromosome 17, leading to various associated health conditions. Among the most common are kidney disease, present before birth, often leading to kidney failure, early-onset diabetes impacting the very young, and a heightened likelihood of anxiety disorders, ADHD, Autism, mental health issues, and behavioral challenges—these are all 'invisible disabilities.' While initially believed to occur in 1 in 20,000 births, ongoing research suggests a potentially higher incidence rate.
Driven by this inspiration, 'Unmistakably Human' emerged as an ongoing project aimed at portraying the vast spectrum of invisible disabilities. These conditions may manifest at birth or arise at any point in an individual's life due to factors such as development, illness, or injury. The project aims to raise awareness about these invisible disabilities and promote understanding and support for individuals and families affected by them.
“The project stands as a collaboration with the subjects depicted in the images. They were granted complete freedom in presenting themselves; it was their personal choice. I aimed to offer them a platform to share their experiences and voices. I am deeply grateful to those who entrusted me to capture their portraits and share their words. Each image features handwritten text quoting the subjects during their interviews, with the exception of one—portraying the child of an interviewee, adding a unique perspective to the collection.”