LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — As the American Heart Association prepares for a big event Friday, one of the women who helped make it all happen is Natalie Brawner, sharing her story of survival.

“I was aware of heart disease and how it happened, and it came to me in a different way,” Brawner said.

All four of his grandparents had either heart attacks or bypass surgery, and his father had bypass surgery at age 59.

On February 7, 2018, Brawner had a heart attack but didn’t find out until the next day.

On the morning of the 8th, when she was sent to the catheterization lab, she suffered a cardiac arrest.

Having received CPR for 10 minutes, seven shocks to the heart and four stents, Brawner was on life support for 24 hours.

“It turns your world upside down. You go from your life to the next day where you’re on life support,” Brawner added.

A mother of three, Brawner suffered a spontaneous coronary artery dissection, causing blockages that stopped her heart.

“I always tell this story and it seems like it’s about someone else, and I’m very lucky how far we’ve come since this happened,” Brawner noted.

All this happened to Brawner when he was 40 years old. She calls the time she now has “bonus time” and doesn’t take it lightly.

“I basically died in the cath lab and they brought me back,” Brawner said.

Back in good health with very few limitations, Brawner is doing his best not to worry about the little things, sharing his story in various articles and connecting with other survivors.

“Creating this community, a space where people can communicate and understand each other,” Brawner said.

It’s a beacon of hope for Brawner, connecting with these survivors, and she’s grateful.

“I live a very full life and I’m very lucky,” Brawner noted.

As a member of the Passion committee working with the American Heart Association, Brawner will be on hand at 10 a.m. Friday at the Central Bank Center when the Go Red for Women experience kicks off downtown.