Heart Attack Teen: Detention Saved My Life

A teenager discovered she had been born with a rare condition that could have killed her at any time when her first school detention triggered a heart attack.

Sixth-former Tabatha McElligott had no idea she was suffering from the congenital syndrome, which was, as she says, like "a ticking time-bomb".

It was when the then-17-year-old was sneaking out of school grounds with friends to buy chocolate that the potentially fatal condition manifested itself.

Tabatha, now 19, said: "When we got to the gates, I could hear my teacher calling my name, and my heart started hammering.

"She began to tell us off, but my heart kept beating harder and harder, and her voice sounded really distant.

"I felt my legs turning to jelly, and then everything went black. I now know my heart was a ticking time-bomb waiting to go off."

An emergency first-aider was able to dash over and successfully restarted her heart within three minutes.

She was then taken to hospital and was diagnosed with a rare condition which causes the body to pump blood around the heart the wrong way.

Tabatha was born with the congenital condition called "anomalous left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery".

Only 10% of those who suffer from the condition live longer than their first birthday.

But Tabatha, from Leigh-on-Sea and who studied at Westcliff High School for Girls , has now been able to make a full recovery after open heart surgery.

And after the detention incident, she decided to take a course in first aid, so she, too, could help those in need.

She added: "I was off school for the rest of the term, so I never was given that detention!

"In a strange way, I'm actually incredibly lucky I had a heart attack when I got shouted at. There was someone there who could help me.

"I could easily have been left brain-damaged or even dead if my heart had stopped for longer.

"Since recovering, I have trained as an emergency responder, so I can carry my own defibrillator and be first on the scene if an emergency happens near me.

"I've now made it my mission to ensure all young people are taught CPR, and as many as possible train to become emergency responders. It might just save a life."