Today is the 3 year anniversary of Sloane’s open heart surgery. She was just 5 days old. The surgery took All day: We were one of the first families to enter the waiting room in the morning and one of the very last to leave that evening. It was undoubtedly one of the longest, most stressful days of our lives. God and her cardiology team truly worked some miracles that day!
Getting in some kisses and snuggles before we handed Sloane over to the surgical team
Our first time seeing Sloane the evening following her surgery.
This time of year brings up a lot of intense and mixed emotions as we move through Sloane’s birthday and our various medical “anniversaries.” I am doing my best to focus on all there is to be grateful for, but it isn’t easy. Not a day goes by I don’t thank God for our amazing little girl. We are so grateful to have her in our family! Days like today just bring it top of mind more than usual.
Sloane has proven she’s one tough cookie since Day 1, and now that she’s 3… WoooWeee! 😵💫🫣😂 Watch out, world! This girl has opinions, a fighting spirit, and she demands to be heard! We love her and her wild spirit so very much! ❤️💝💖
Welcome! Thank you for being here! My name is Lauren Doyle. My husband and I have been married since 2013, and together since 2011. We have 2 wonderful kids and live in the Twin Cities suburbs. I have both a Master’s and a Doctorate and am a board-certified Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner. I also have the student loans to prove it.
In 2019 our lives were turned upside down. Our daughter was born with a serious heart defect that required open heart surgery when she was just 5 days old. A couple weeks after her birth (while she was still in the hospital), I found a mass in my abdomen which required major emergency surgery to remove. At first, we were told it was just a fibroid; we learned about a week later that the mass was a rare and aggressive type of cancer – leiomyosarcoma. Through multiple surgeries and chemo, I have come out the other side, changed in many ways. I am now considered Stage IV, with a chemo-induced heart condition, and struggle with several other severe side effects from treatments.
I continue to work and live and love as best as I can. I will not claim to have all the answers about anything, but I can tell you I have learned a LOT in my 35+ years of life thus far. My passion has always been helping and educating people in whatever ways possible. I am hoping this blog will allow me to do that for a broader population beyond the patients I see at work, share my unique journey, and help keep friends and family in the loop along the way.
Thank you again for being here.
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Lauren MG Doyle 
Sloane is precious!! Such a beautiful child….
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Very beautiful ❤️
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