Nine monthspregnant almost to the day, Nefertari Nelson-Williams sankintoher couch followinga exhaustingSunday taking careof herfour children. Afterward,she turnedonthe televisionand switchedto hercurrentfavoriteprogram,”A Baby Story” onTLC.

Even though she was an seasoned mother, viewing shows about complicated pregnancies served as a helpful reminder that each childbirth and infant is unique.

As she watched, she was thankful she and her baby were healthy. She knew from an ultrasound that she was having a fourth girl.

Following the episode, she turned around to stand up. Suddenly, a severe ache pierced her middle section. The discomfort was positioned too upperly to signify labor. As she tumbled to the ground, the pain subsided momentarily. Soon after, however, it returned with renewed intensity, feeling akin to having an elephant press down on her chest.

She found it difficult to inhale deeply. Her spouse, Shawn Williams, assisted her in standing. Filled with anxiety, he attempted to appear composed in front of their children.

In the hospital, doctors confirmed that Nefertari wasn’t in labor. Yet she gasped for air. For hours, and overnight, the otherwise healthy 34-year-old sat in a hospital room as medical staff tried to figure out why she couldn’t take deep breaths.

The following morning, a cardiologist arrived beside her bed. He thought she might have experienced a heart attack due to

spontaneous coronary artery dissection

SCAD occurs when the wall of a coronary artery abruptly tears, which can slow down or completely block blood supply to the heart. This condition tends to be more frequent among women and is frequently associated with physical or mental stress.

Her heart too was dilated. A section of non-functional cardiac tissue had created an aneurysm, a protruding fragile area prone to bursting at any time. As Nefertari oscillated between awareness and unconsciousness, a helicopter transported her from a New Jersey medical facility to the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia, where she would receive more comprehensive treatment.

She found herself awake in the intensive care unit, with various tubes extending from her limbs and medical staff gathered around her bedside. “You’re quite ill,” remarked one of them.

Further tests verified it as SCAD. Nefertari’s heart was scarcely circulating blood effectively. To improve blood flow, doctors inserted three stents into her heart to clear up blocked arteries.

The doctor delivered unthinkable news: “You’re stable now, but between you and your baby, we may only be able to save one of you.”

Nefertari’s infant kicked violently, causing her nausea.

Several days afterward, a doctor burst into her chamber. Dr. Michal Elovitz, who was serving as an attending physician in Maternal Fetal Medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, waved off everybody else and bent down beside Nefertari’s bedside.

“I’m not losing you or this baby,” Elovitz said, her hand on Nefertari’s cheek.

“Everything will be okay,” said Nefertari, her eyes welling up with tears.

Elovitz slept in the hospital until Nefertari went into labor a week later. It happened on Nefertari’s mother’s birthday, a significant one since her mom the prior year had a stroke that caused partial paralysis.

“What kind of music do you like?” Elovitz asked her in the operating room.

“Jazz and club,” Nefertari said.

While club music blared from the speakers, Nefertari experienced significant blood loss; her blood pressure dropped dramatically, and fluid accumulated in her lungs. She went into cardiac arrest multiple times, requiring emergency resuscitation efforts from the medical staff. At one point, her heart was operating at just 6% efficiency, far below the normal level which should be at least 55%.

“Neffie, you made a promise about giving me a baby,” Elovitz exclaimed loudly.

A few moments later, she presented a baby girl to Nefertari. “Congratulations,” she said to her.

“Issatna,” anah Nefertari.

Shayna Williams arrived at nearly 38 weeks. Nefertari returned to critical care as nurses dressed the baby in a onesie covered in pink roses that Nefertari had picked out weeks earlier.

During the following fortnight, Nefertari suffered from strep throat, double pneumonia, and a bacterial infection. Slowly but surely, both she and Shayna regained their strength and health. They were healthy enough to be discharged on what would have been Nefertari’s daughter Olivia’s eighth birthday.

Nefertari traveled about an hour each way to visit the Philadelphia hospital every few days for checkups on her heart. She also learned she has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder that can weaken the heart’s arteries. Five months after giving birth, she received in her chest an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, or ICD. The device will deliver an electric charge to her heart if it falls out of rhythm.

Even so, 16 years following her harrowing experience, Nefertari continues to live with severe congestive heart failure, a condition where the heart fails to pump sufficient blood to satisfy the body’s basic needs. Each time her heart contracts, it manages to push out just 35% of the blood. The aneurysm she had persists as well.

“I walk slowly and sit most of the day, but I’m a diva in my own right,” said Nefertari, who lives in Willingboro, New Jersey. Her daughters visit often to do her hair and makeup, and she loves dressing up.

A former teaching assistant, Nefertari enjoys sharing her story – mostly online – and educating people about SCAD. “Everyone with SCAD should be treated as if they’re having a massive heart attack,” she said, “because there’s no downside to that, but there is a downside to taking a wait-and-see approach.”

Shayna, who’s 16, has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome as well. She started seeing a cardiologist and takes medicine for her increased heart rate. Shayna excels in school, hopes to work in the food industry, maybe as a chef, and joins Nefertari for her new hobby of archery.

“My mom made me a great person,” Shayna said. “She has a beautiful spirit, and she always has a positive attitude.”

Nefertari has discussed a heart transplant with her doctors. But for now, her heart is still stable enough that she doesn’t need to go on the transplant waiting list. In the meantime, she literally stops to smell every flower. “I have hope and faith,” she said.

“I love people, I love fall and the rustling of the leaves, hearing children laugh when they’re walking home from school,” she said. “I was always a bubbly person, but now I’m even happier, and I’m so grateful to still be here on this earth. I find myself being thankful for every single moment.”

____


Stories From the Heart

chronicles the inspiring journeys of heart disease and stroke survivors, caregivers and advocates.


American Heart Association News

Covers cardiac and neurological well-being. The viewpoints presented in this narrative do not necessarily represent the official stance of the American Heart Association. The copyright for this material is retained by the American Heart Association, Inc., with all associated rights reserved.


©2025 American Heart Association, Inc., released by Tribune Content Agency, LLC