RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. Two sisters who thought they were perfectly healthy have described their shock after suffering unexpected cardiac arrests in their thirties, and now they are determined to find answers as to the reason why.
Kayla Messana, 35, and Kendra Cunningham, 38, led incredibly healthy lifestyles in their early thirties, as they were both kept active by their three young children. Unfortunately, life changed in an instant for Messana, of New Hampshire, on June 3, 2022, when she suffered a cardiac arrest at the age of 31.
Messana told Newsweek that she had “no medical history” that could have pre-empted such a catastrophic outcome. It was a typical evening for Messana, who remembers feeding her children their dinner and then watching some television before going to bed. The rest remains a blur, as she woke up four days later in the hospital.
“My husband heard my agonal breathing in my sleep and acted fast,” Messana said. “I was unresponsive, limp and my eyes were open and bulged. He performed CPR for 10 minutes until paramedics arrived.
“I went into cardiac arrest 10 times over the course of 24 hours. I received several rounds of CPR and many defibrillator shocks. I was then placed in a medically induced coma where I underwent various tests to understand why this happened."
The mom-of-three was diagnosed with heart failure and was in a coma for four days. Her ejection fraction rate, the percentage of blood pumped out with each heartbeat, dropped by 25 percent.
As a result, Messana was fitted with a subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) in her chest, which prevents sudden cardiac arrest by monitoring heart rhythms and delivering shocks when necessary.
Sudden cardiac arrests affect 1,000 people a day and can strike at any age. With more than 350,000 events occurring annually in the U.S, and a 90 percent fatality rate, the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation calls it a major public health crisis.
It was horrifying for Cunningham, who also resides in New Hampshire, to learn that her younger sister suffered a life-threatening cardiac event . Unfortunately, Cunningham had no idea that she too would survive a similar experience.
In February 2026, Cunningham was feeding her newborn twins when she became unresponsive. She suffered a cardiac arrest and her husband acted fast to perform CPR before emergency responders arrived.
“I received CPR, emergency medical treatment, and was placed in a medically induced coma,” Cunningham told Newsweek . “I was woken up just a few hours after being transferred to a second hospital.”
Just like her sister, Cunningham does not recall the moments leading up to or after the cardiac arrest.
“I later had a subcutaneous S-ICD implanted to protect me if my heart ever goes into a dangerous rhythm again, just like Kayla. I’ve also undergone extensive cardiac testing and continue to be followed closely by medical teams,” Cunningham said.
For Cunningham, it was “impossible to process” that she and her sister both had a cardiac arrest. It would be unimaginable for one sibling to go through something like that, let alone two sisters in their thirties with no medical history.
They have both struggled to comprehend this new reality, and they are still seeking answers.
Messana said: “I was completely baffled. I could not understand how this terrible thing could happen to both of us. We have gone through a variety of genetic testing so far and everything has come back negative.”
While they are still questioning whether there is a genetic cause, the sisters hope to take part in future research that will allow them to investigate further. Two sudden cardiac arrests without answers leaves the siblings concerned for their children’s health, so they continue to advocate for an explanation.
Not only could it help their families, but it could save lives in the future.
The lifelong effects of surviving a cardiac arrest can include fatigue and dizziness, and it also means that Messana and Cunningham must both take medication every day for the rest of their lives. In fact, the recovery is not just physical—it is also mental. Cunningham told Newsweek that there is “a level of uncertainty” that never truly goes away.
As their fight for answers continues, the sisters are using their experiences to raise awareness and educate others. They started a podcast, Flatlined and Fine , and they regularly share details of their recovery online (@flatlined.and.fine on Instagram).
“One of the reasons Kayla and I started Flatlined and Fine is because we couldn’t find many stories from younger cardiac arrest survivors who were navigating life after,” Cunningham said. “We hope that we can help others feel seen while also raising awareness that sudden cardiac arrest can happen without warning.
“Don’t assume cardiac arrest only happens to older people or those with unhealthy lifestyles. It can happen to anyone. Learn CPR , know where AEDs are located, and trust your instincts. Those few minutes can make the difference between life and death."
As for Messana, she urges people to live in the moment and not to wait for the future to gain fulfillment. As she herself knows, “life can change in an instant,” so make the most of every second while you can.
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Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Charlotte Nisbet and Emma Lee-Sang
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