08/31/2026
Meet Samanthamarie Rivera:
By looking at the photo above, could you believe she was in full-blown heart failure?
After years of struggling with endometriosis, PCOS, and pelvic floor dysfunction, including six surgeries for endometriosis, she was once told she might never have children. After experiencing a miscarriage in February 2021, she eventually became pregnant with her baby boy in August 2021. Her pregnancy was healthy, and she delivered a beautiful, healthy 8 lb. 1 oz. baby boy by C-section on Mother’s Day.
But shortly after delivery, something wasn't right. Her legs and feet became extremely swollen, sometimes appearing double or triple their normal size. Despite bringing the swelling to her healthcare providers, she was reassured that it was normal postpartum swelling.
About a month later, she became increasingly ill with vomiting, extreme exhaustion, weakness, and dizziness. One day, her father arrived to help with the baby and found her collapsed on the bathroom floor, unable to move or speak. He immediately called 911. At the hospital, she rapidly deteriorated. Her heart had stopped, and her ejection fraction (EF) had dropped to just 10%. This was when she heard the words postpartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) for the first time.
She spent three weeks hospitalized and separated from her newborn. She could no longer breastfeed, hold her baby, or experience those precious first weeks of motherhood as she had imagined. While she was hospitalized, her swelling, chest pain, and migraines continued to worsen, and her pulse would drop when she laid down. Her husband refused to leave the hospital and continued pushing for answers, while her mother demanded additional testing.
That testing eventually revealed a pulmonary embolism, adding another life-threatening complication.
Today, Samanthamarie is now considered fully recovered. She believes that early BNP blood testing and echocardiograms at the first signs of symptoms could help prevent stories like hers and potentially save mothers’ lives.
Visit https://letstalkppcm.org/share-your-story-1 to share your PPCM story and help raise awareness.
