Lady shares testimony as she graduates from Varsity after 4 heart surgeries

Laura Anne has shared her inspiring story of how she survived four heart surgery and still graduated from university.

Meet – Laura Anne Hunter, against all odds she survived 4 heart surgeries and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Journalism and Media Studies from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. 

The 22-year-old, Laura has a condition known as Pulmonary Atresia and had 3 heart surgeries before she turned 3, and in December 2019, she went in for her fourth operation in Cape Town. 

The surgery went well. However, she got pneumonia and some minor complications and ended up staying in the ICU for a month. 

While many people aspire to attain some tertiary qualifications, it’s no secret that the journey to the graduation hall differs for everyone.

But almost certainly, any graduate has a story to share about the uphill battle to finally wearing an academic gown.

For Laura, however, the process was far more challenging than it’s been for most, as she not only had to study as hard as most other students, she had to overcome serious health complications. 

“The only encouragement I could give somebody in a similar health position as I was at the time is to remain calm, reach out for support and look at the end goal. Mine was getting the degree, and nothing was going to stop me. I also now completely understand the saying ‘Health is wealth’,” she said. 

Laura is aspiring to be a Publisher and says she decided to study Journalism and Media Studies as a pathway into Publishing.

Her next education step is to get her Master’s in Publishing this year as a way to validate her love for literature.

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