LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 12: Actress Laura Bell Bundy attends the premieres of Lionsgate and CNN Film Dinosaur 13 at DGA Theater on August 12, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Earl Gibson III/WireImage)

It was the spring of 1981, I was 3 weeks old and my 27-year-old mother brought me in for a well-baby check up. After listening to my outrageously loud heart beat the doctor told her, "I don't think your baby's heart has formed properly." He then took me away from her for hours of tests and shortly discovered that I had a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). In layman's terms, I have a hole in my heart, a condition that many Americans are born with. I have to be monitored throughout my entire lifetime and find doctors who intimately understand my case for possibly over 90 years (I expect to have a long life). The likelihood that my doctors retire or kick the bucket before I do is pretty strong. In fact, it's already happened. My transition from my beloved pediatric cardiologist to my series of adult cardiologists has been a 15-year struggle causing panic, frustration and a whole heck of a lot of confusion.

In 1981, doctors didn't really understand the extent of my problem. In fact, to this day they are still learning about it. Back then, doctors would have had to cut open my chest and crack open my rib cage to get to my heart. As a newborn, doctors felt that surgery would have been more fatal than living with the condition itself.

I was fortunate to have a cutting edge specialist in pediatric cardiology in my hometown at the University of Kentucky, Dr. Jackie Noonan. Dr. Noonan closely and intimately monitored my condition for my entire upbringing. She believed the hole would begin to close over time and was not too eager to cut into me in order to fix it. She was right. However, it never completely closed. She continued to see me once a year for EKG's and ultrasounds to check my condition for changes or improvements. She discussed the possible need for surgery, but being a believer in science, she encouraged my parents and I to wait for medical advancements before operating.

When I was 18 years old, I moved to NYC for college and had to visit a doctor on the Upper East Side for my yearly check-up. When the Doctor walked in, she took my mother aside and said, "I think we have a problem... this issue is serious...her heart is putting pressure on her lungs...and it's our recommendation that she has open heart surgery now to fix this." Of course, my mother panicked and then told ME NOT to panic (yeah right?!). She drove all night (12 hours) to get to the pediatric cardiology unit at UK for Dr. Noonan to take a look at me. Dr. Noonan did tests on my heart and my lungs and then reported that I was totally fine-- my lungs were perfect and nothing was any different with my heart than the year before.

Well, that was the last time I went to any other doctor besides Dr. Noonan for 10 years! I would fly home to KY every year to have my heart checked and she would tell me I was good to continue living as "normal." And, I did! In those 10 years, I led a very active life. I ran 5 miles a day at least five days a week, biked or walked to and from my jobs in NYC, and performed 8 shows a week in three high intensity Broadway shows.

At 28 years old, I moved to Nashville, TN to pursue my lifelong dream of writing and singing country music. Dr. Noonan had retired and I found a recommended adult cardiologist at a hospital in Nashville known for their heart healthcare. The doctor called me within 10 days of my visit with a solemn voice that sounded like he was about to break some bad news... He said there were serious abnormalities, arrhythmias and that I would need to get open-heart surgery within 4-6 months. HUH?! He then went into the details of the operation, the size of my scar, the recovery time and started listing dates I could have the surgery on. I was in shock! I had an album that was due to come out in four months along with a lot of performance dates on the books. My dreams were coming true and I was thinking (in my scrappy hood speak), "Um, I don't care if I'm dying, this album is coming out and I am going on tour before you cut on me, okay?? Or I will cut YOU!"

So what do I do?? I am now an adult. My health is in MY hands now. So, I called the University of KY department of pediatric cardiology to find Dr. Noonan. She agreed to come back in to see me so I drove to Kentucky. Can you imagine a