Jessica Eastes.Photo:Texas Children’s Hospital
Texas Children’s Hospital
Jessica Eastes had a feeling she would end up working in the field of cardiology.Born blue due to lack of oxygen — “I looked like a Smurf,” she tells PEOPLE — she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect when she was a few days old. By the time she was 7, she’d had eight open-heart surgeries.“I spent my childhood in hospitals around cardiac nurses," says Eastes, 43, of Junction City, Kansas. “My first friend was a nurse.“Her many surgeries were a success, and 30 years later she was working toward her childhood dream of becoming a cardiac nurse. In nursing school, she worked as an EMT and emergency room tech at Ascension Via Christi Hospital in Manhattan, Kansas.But in 2018, she started experiencing an elevated heart rate and other signs of atrial fibrillation (Afib), an irregular heart rhythm that causes heart palpitations, fatigue, trouble breathing and dizziness, according to theCleveland Clinic.Jessica Eastes.Texas Children’s HospitalEastes was shocked to learn in fall 2021 from her doctors at the University of Kansas Medical Center that she was experiencing heart failure and would likely need a heart transplant. The medication she was taking had helped for years, but she was having more issues requiring multiple hospital stays.“It was scary,” she says. “Being a nurse is a great thing, because you kind of understand what they’re saying to you. So they can talk to you like normal medical jargon. But it’s also a curse because you know what to expect.”Her cardiologist referred her toTexas Children’s Adult Congenital Heart Program, part of the Texas Children’s Heart Center in Houston. Her first appointment was in May 2022.Jessica had a “complicated cardiac lesion,” saysDr. Edward Hickey, surgical director of the program.“She essentially has half a heart,” Hickey explains. “These are some of the most extreme transplants in terms of risk and complexity. In all the databases and registries, this category of transplants are particularly challenging and risky, which means that historically people have shied away from them.”Jessica Eastes.Texas Children’s HospitalDoctors determined that she was, in fact, a good candidate for a transplant. But since she was feeling well enough and knew surgery would disrupt her life, she decided to push it off another year.Unfortunately, she soon felt her body going downhill again. In August 2024 she was admitted to Texas Children’s Hospital, where she would stay until a heart was available for a transplant.Her husband, Ethan Eastes, a 34-year-old paramedic she met in 2015 when she was working in the emergency room at Ascension — they didn’t start dating until years later — helped take care of her.“The nurses loved my husband because he did a lot of stuff for them at night, he was always checking my drip levels, he was checking my blood pressure, he was noticing changes,” Eastes says. “He was a really good support. Whenever I couldn’t really advocate for myself, he was my advocate.”Jessica and her husband Ethan Eastes.Texas Children’s HospitalEastes was in the hospital for 2 months. Her 12-year-old stepdaughter, Sydney, FaceTimed daily while she waited for her transplant. “She always was giving me encouragement. She kept telling me, ‘I’m praying every day you’re going to get your heart, mom.' ”Eastes finally received her new heart on October 18, 2024.Jessica Eastes.Texas Children’s HospitalHer transplant surgery was 16 hours long. “These are really, really big operations,” Hickey says. “Jessica is a remarkable lady, a very inspiring lady. She made a fantastic recovery.”When she woke from surgery, she looked at her fingers. For the first time in her life, her nail beds weren’t blue. And, she noted, it was the first time in her life that she didn’t have freezing-cold hands.When she got out of the hospital on November 7, she felt noticeably different. She stayed in an apartment near the hospital for a few months before going home to Kansas.“It’s just amazing the energy I have now,” she says.She doesn’t have to stop when walking up a flight of stairs and she can easily keep up with Sydney.Jessica Eastes as she prepares to leave Texas Children’s Hospital.Texas Children’s HospitalShe comes from a family of runners — and now, for the first time, she is training for a 5k with Ethan. She is also starting a new position at Flint Hills Community Hospital.And she looks forward to other firsts ahead.“I always wanted to ride a rollercoaster with my stepdaughter. But with heart condition, they always recommend you don’t. So, that is something I promised her to do this summer,” she says. “She’s trying to talk me into skydiving. I’m not quite there yet.”About four months post-transplant, she is now golfing with Ethan and spending time with Sydney outdoors.“Everything that I’ve always said I wanted to do in life, I never thought I could, and now I can finally do it,” she says. “There’s nothing I can’t do now.”
Jessica Eastes had a feeling she would end up working in the field of cardiology.
Born blue due to lack of oxygen — “I looked like a Smurf,” she tells PEOPLE — she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect when she was a few days old. By the time she was 7, she’d had eight open-heart surgeries.
“I spent my childhood in hospitals around cardiac nurses,” says Eastes, 43, of Junction City, Kansas. “My first friend was a nurse.”
Her many surgeries were a success, and 30 years later she was working toward her childhood dream of becoming a cardiac nurse. In nursing school, she worked as an EMT and emergency room tech at Ascension Via Christi Hospital in Manhattan, Kansas.
But in 2018, she started experiencing an elevated heart rate and other signs of atrial fibrillation (Afib), an irregular heart rhythm that causes heart palpitations, fatigue, trouble breathing and dizziness, according to theCleveland Clinic.
Jessica Eastes.Texas Children’s Hospital
Eastes was shocked to learn in fall 2021 from her doctors at the University of Kansas Medical Center that she was experiencing heart failure and would likely need a heart transplant. The medication she was taking had helped for years, but she was having more issues requiring multiple hospital stays.
“It was scary,” she says. “Being a nurse is a great thing, because you kind of understand what they’re saying to you. So they can talk to you like normal medical jargon. But it’s also a curse because you know what to expect.”
Her cardiologist referred her toTexas Children’s Adult Congenital Heart Program, part of the Texas Children’s Heart Center in Houston. Her first appointment was in May 2022.
Jessica had a “complicated cardiac lesion,” saysDr. Edward Hickey, surgical director of the program.
“She essentially has half a heart,” Hickey explains. “These are some of the most extreme transplants in terms of risk and complexity. In all the databases and registries, this category of transplants are particularly challenging and risky, which means that historically people have shied away from them.”
Doctors determined that she was, in fact, a good candidate for a transplant. But since she was feeling well enough and knew surgery would disrupt her life, she decided to push it off another year.
Unfortunately, she soon felt her body going downhill again. In August 2024 she was admitted to Texas Children’s Hospital, where she would stay until a heart was available for a transplant.
Her husband, Ethan Eastes, a 34-year-old paramedic she met in 2015 when she was working in the emergency room at Ascension — they didn’t start dating until years later — helped take care of her.
“The nurses loved my husband because he did a lot of stuff for them at night, he was always checking my drip levels, he was checking my blood pressure, he was noticing changes,” Eastes says. “He was a really good support. Whenever I couldn’t really advocate for myself, he was my advocate.”
Jessica and her husband Ethan Eastes.Texas Children’s Hospital
Eastes was in the hospital for 2 months. Her 12-year-old stepdaughter, Sydney, FaceTimed daily while she waited for her transplant. “She always was giving me encouragement. She kept telling me, ‘I’m praying every day you’re going to get your heart, mom.' ”
Eastes finally received her new heart on October 18, 2024.
Her transplant surgery was 16 hours long. “These are really, really big operations,” Hickey says. “Jessica is a remarkable lady, a very inspiring lady. She made a fantastic recovery.”
When she woke from surgery, she looked at her fingers. For the first time in her life, her nail beds weren’t blue. And, she noted, it was the first time in her life that she didn’t have freezing-cold hands.
When she got out of the hospital on November 7, she felt noticeably different. She stayed in an apartment near the hospital for a few months before going home to Kansas.
“It’s just amazing the energy I have now,” she says.
She doesn’t have to stop when walking up a flight of stairs and she can easily keep up with Sydney.
Jessica Eastes as she prepares to leave Texas Children’s Hospital.Texas Children’s Hospital
She comes from a family of runners — and now, for the first time, she is training for a 5k with Ethan. She is also starting a new position at Flint Hills Community Hospital.
And she looks forward to other firsts ahead.
“I always wanted to ride a rollercoaster with my stepdaughter. But with heart condition, they always recommend you don’t. So, that is something I promised her to do this summer,” she says. “She’s trying to talk me into skydiving. I’m not quite there yet.”
About four months post-transplant, she is now golfing with Ethan and spending time with Sydney outdoors.
“Everything that I’ve always said I wanted to do in life, I never thought I could, and now I can finally do it,” she says. “There’s nothing I can’t do now.”
source: people.com
