Erika Laszlo: A Woman With A Lot of Heart

Welcome to my most favorite part of the blog so far, the interviews. The subjects are not exactly Vanity Fair elite, but they are A-listers to me. You see, I looked around at the people I know and thought, "I want to know more and what makes them happy?" So, in honor of Heart Health Awareness Month, I decided to kick the series off with an amazing woman, Erika Laszlo. I hope you enjoy getting to know her, as much as I have enjoyed our life long friendship. 

Fortunately, we out grew our awkwardness.

I met Erika in the first grade. Later our antics included, dying our hair red (we wanted to be Belinda Carlisle, duh) in high school and eating chips and pop (yes, I said pop) in the locker room, waiting for our moment on stage during the annual drama production. Pretty standard stuff, but for Erika life did not start out ordinary. Born with a heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot, which occurs when the right side of the heart does not develop properly in the womb, at two years old she had bypass surgery and at five, open heart surgery. For the facility that treated her, she is the first child to survive both surgeries. Today, Erika has what she calls her "dream job" as the Referring Physician Liaison for the Cardiovascular Center at the University of Michigan. Leave it to Erika to not stop there. Beyond her career in healthcare, Erika became a member of the Patient Family Advisory Council a position that she is passionate about. "Be certain you are informed about your healthcare choices and don't be afraid to challenge your doctor. Make decisions that are right for you." Something she knows about first hand. This drive for advocacy was born out of the battle for her life, literally.

Erika and Bryan Laszlo

Having beat the odds already as a young child, Erika began having symptoms of palpitations and dizziness in her early twenties. Her cardiologist diagnosed her with anxiety, but Erika felt differently. She recalls feeling "very bold out of the blue." "I told my doctor that if she wasn't going to take me seriously, to refer me to someone who will." That boldness saved her life. Her physician took her up on her offer and referred her to someone else. (I know, right?) Erika was then properly diagnoses with Ventricular Tachycardia, an abnormal heart rhythm that can cause the heart to beat up to 200 times per minute. Over time, Erika has received several other secondary cardiac related diagnosis. She was implanted with a cardioverter difibrillator (ICD), which is an internal shocking device. Over the past twenty three years, the device has saved her life ten times.

A few years later, Erika met her husband, Bryan, and despite the cautions against it, they are now the parents of Ethan (12) and Sophie (8). Erika discovered her talent for photography after the birth of her son. "I took pictures of every move he made and started to hear positive feedback about my photos." After winning a local photography contest, Erika says she finally got the validation she needed to pursue her new talent. As her confidence and love of photography grew, she began to expand her hobby, even finding relief from career stresses behind the lens. "Sometimes I have to tell myself to put the camera down and be part of the moment but I have this constant need to document everything." Not surprising from someone who truly gets how precious life is.

A favorite, it captures their "sincere closeness."

Living with a heart condition can't be easy so, I asked Erika what got her through some of the difficult times in her life. She told me that her mother often told her that "God only gives us what we can handle." Admittedly, she often resented those words but now understands that "those crosses make us stronger."  "Faith is priority in our home."  One of her favorite songs on her iPod is "How Great Thou Art." "Its a song I just love to sit and listen to." "This wonderful life I lead feels like a second chance to me." Erika celebrates that second chance with laughter. She is notorious for giggling herself to tears. (I've seen it many times.) These days she gets the biggest kick out of her children's nonsensical jokes, Sophie singing the wrong lyrics and chuckles at the way her husband pronounces certain words. Finding joy in the little things. Her definition of a "happy home" comes ironically from the things that most of us complain about. "Bryan and the kids can never find anything and Ethan and Sophie seem to disappear when its time to clean up after dinner, laundry piles up and no one can get out the door in time for school. As much as these things can irritate me, this is my happy home." Even claiming that if it were any different she would think her home was "invaded by aliens."

Sophie by Erika Laszlo

Erika thrives off that happiness. When many of us would probably approach living with the uncertainty of such a serious heart condition, with resentment or fear. She seems to embrace it, getting purpose and perspective that many people spend their lives searching for without success. Erika was given hers from the start and ran with it. That said, she's not done yet. Her goal is to marry her love of photography and her desire to assist other children born with congenital heart disease(CHD) through a foundation. Its main purpose would be to assist families and children with CHD with travel expenses during medical treatments. 

I was honored to do this interview with someone who usually prefers to be the document-or rather than the subject. My final question during our conversation was "If you had five minutes to speak to the world, what would you say?" Erika's response was "to be nice." Simple but not surprising. With her you really understand that it comes down to not taking each other for granted and of course, listening and taking it all in. "I don't think enough of us are respectful of others and their situations. If we would be nicer to everyone our world would be a much better place to live."  I agree my friend and may I say, you are one of the nicest people I know. Be happy (and nice) everyone!

Photo by Erika Laszlo

For more information about heart health, your risk, or how to raise awareness, please visit the American Heart Association website.

If you have someone that you want to share with our readers, please let me know!