Despite being a medical professional herself, when something was wrong with her heart, Kelly Goodman had to fight to be heard. In the early 2010s, Goodman was in her late 30s. She was healthy and active, running 12 miles each week, but conscious of the risk of heart disease posed by her family’s history. Many women in her family, across generations, were affected and Goodman’s own mother tragically passed away from heart disease.
Early one morning, she jumped out of bed to let her puppy out. Within steps of getting to the door, she fell to the floor with crushing chest pain. She crawled to the bathroom where her husband was in the shower, and started sweating and vomiting. The pain radiated down her left arm, leaving her unable to move it. She went for a chest x-ray, electrocardiogram (EKG) and coronary artery calcium (CAC) test and her results were normal. Doctors suggested she was experiencing anxiety.
Soon after her 40th birthday, the symptoms returned but this time it was worse; she fell to the floor with chest pain, arm numbness and vomiting, but barely breathing. She and her husband agreed; it was a heart attack. Goodman went for a coronary angiogram and was sent home. Three days later the radiologist called her to tell her he could not clear her left anterior descending artery and she needed to go to the emergency room immediately.
It turns out, she’d suffered from a near-deadly “widowmaker” heart attack caused by blockage in one of the heart’s main arteries. Stents were put into place to address the blockage. Every five years she needs to get a cardiac catheterization to monitor her heart.
This experience was formative for Goodman. Despite her critical symptoms and family history being overlooked, she survived thanks to her own insistence that something was wrong. “I knew that I didn’t fit the typical profile for heart disease,” reflects Goodman. “I was young, active and healthy – but my family history increased my risk. I want people, especially women, who read my story to learn to be strong advocates for themselves and their hearts. If you know something is wrong, be persistent.”
Today, Goodman is a Board-certified adult and acute care nurse practitioner and owner of the Kelly Goodman NP & Associates medical group. She joins the Women’s Board of the American Heart Association, bringing her story, expertise and passion to power the 79th annual An Affair of the Heart Luncheon and Fashion show, happening on Friday, February 19, 2027, at 11:00 a.m., at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, D.C.
“When I learned about the Women’s Board’s longstanding mission to fund research, I knew I wanted to be part of it,” said Goodman. “My experience as both a survivor and care provider has shown me how important it is to keep making progress in the fight against heart disease.”