"Little acts of love” help her face heart disease

Sujatha (Suji) Krishnan was notorious for pulling out all the stops when hosting her infamous dinner parties. In the 1990s, her Brampton home was often full of friends and family enjoying multiple courses, all homemade and sumptuously plated.

A diagnosis of cardiovascular disease in her mid 40s was not a shock, as her 10 siblings and her mother all have heart conditions.

In 2019, Suji had a heart valve replacement. This was the first of multiple surgeries.

Suji experienced chest pain as a child and was told she had a heart murmur when she was 17. An angiogram in her 40s revealed that one of her arteries was 90 per cent blocked.

Two stents to help the blockage failed, so she got a bypass. After getting a heart valve replacement, she needed emergency surgery to fix an artery damaged during the procedure.

Suji is now in her 70s and has difficulty walking long distances. Her family has forged "little acts of love" to support her everyday life. Her husband sorts her pills for her every morning. Her son accompanies her to all her appointments. Her daughter and grandson visit often. She loves cooking for them and small groups of friends. Her dinner parties aren't as extravagant, but the steadfast support from her family is what she savours more these days.

"I'm a person who loves life; loves people," Suji says. "That's what keeps me going."

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