Lara Kolb, junior, was born with Pro-long QT syndrome, which is a heart condition that can cause fast and chaotic heartbeats.  To control this condition, Kolb had a pacemaker, a small device put in someone’s heart so their heart beat regularly, inserted when she was a freshman.

“Having a pacemaker sounds a lot scarier than it really is.  You can do the same things you were doing before you had it, and you’ll probably be able to do even more with the pacemaker,” Kolb said.

Kolb said she was on medicine for her heart condition for most of her life, but the pacemaker has made her life easier and more enjoyable.

“Before I got my pacemaker put in, my cardiologist was really strict about me being able to play sports, jump off the diving boards at the pool, ride roller coasters, he didn’t even want me using an alarm clock [because he did not want my heart rate to speed up or slow down too much].  I didn’t ride my first roller coaster until the summer going into sophomore year,” Kolb said.  “I actually really like [the pacemaker] because I can be a lot more active and not have to worry about my heart condition,” Kolb said.

Even though the procedure to get the pacemaker put in is not the most enjoyable, Kolb said it is “totally worth it” because it makes her life so much easier and she can do so much more without worrying about her heart.

“[If I could tell myself something before the procedure I would say] ‘let the doctors put in the IV,’” Kolb said.  “I am horrified of needles.  I tried to let them [put the IV in], but I kept pulling my arm away.  After several attempts, we all just gave up.  The doctors had to put me on laughing gas, which made me relax, so they were able to put the IV in, but my fear of needles prolonged the whole process, so I wish I could have gone back and let them do it.”

Although Kolb said she would want to let them put the IV in, she said her life would be so much easier without her heart condition because she would not be so concerned that something would happen with her pacemaker or heart all the time and she would be able to do more without worrying.