Larissa lost her maternal grandparents at 14 and one of her uncles shortly after, a devastating event for any young person.

Then, at just 17, she was diagnosed with the same genetic heart condition that killed her loved ones, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Two years later, Larissa suffered a stroke and it was decided she should have a pacemaker defibrillator fitted to help her heart beat at a normal rhythm. At 21, she underwent open heart surgery to cut away a growth in the heart. It left a scar down her chest, which made her self-conscious and embarrassed.

In 2013, tragedy struck the family again. Her wonderful mum passed away at just 48 years old. Following this, Larissa had a heart attack. She was 24. While the doctor described it as mild, her condition has been closely monitored ever since. 

“I think my Dad has been through the most.”

Every one of us can have an impact on a family like Larissa’s by donating to cardiovascular research. Larissa, like each of us at the Heart Research Institute, is hopeful about the future of cardiovascular research. She doesn’t want other families to go through what she went through.

“I believe the work of the Heart Research Institute will save generations of families, including my own and they won’t have to go through the pain of open heart surgery to survive.”

"We always joked that 'we have the same heartbeat', It was our thing."

(Larissa talks about her mum).