Two women with heart disease had to fight for a diagnosis. Here’s how they advocated for their health

Women's heart disease is often overlooked or misdiagnosed. Two women revealed how missed symptoms put their lives at risk, and how they pushed to get the diagnoses and procedures they needed.

Dr. Philip Adamson, chief medical officer of Abbott’s Heart Failure Division, said women are often diagnosed with anxiety or depression when they are short of breath or experience fatigue — when the true culprit is heart failure. "The team of doctors couldn't decide whether I was a little crazy or whether I was having panic attacks." "Many women … downplay their symptoms or don’t seek care because they are busy caregivers who often also work outside the home." Studies have shown women are 52% more likely to have a delay in diagnosis than men when presenting with a heart attack, a cardiologist said. Melissa Rudy is health editor and a member of the lifestyle team at Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to melissa.rudy@fox.com.

"Women can also be diagnosed with these conditions when they present with fast heart beats or ‘palpitations’ that can be the result of abnormal heart rhythms," Adamson, who is based in Austin, Texas, told Fox News Digital.