Jessica Pegula says her mother, Buffalo Bills co-owner Kim Pegula, suffered cardiac arrest in June

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Jessica Pegula is clearing the air about the health of her mother and Buffalo Bills co-owner Kim Pegula.

In a moving essay entitled “I want to talk to you about my mother” for The Players’ Tribunethe 28-year-old professional tennis player, revealed that her 53-year-old mother suffered a cardiac arrest last June and was still recovering from the incident.

“This is the story of my mother, my family, and the past year,” Pegula wrote in her essay, which she describes as being inspired by the “weird, messed up, coming full circle moment” of the Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest mid-match. .

“My stomach sank because it was the exact same thing,” Jessica wrote of the impact of Hamlin’s emergency on the field, which brought to mind her mother’s own medical issues – something which the Bills described as “unexpected health problems” in a June 2022 press release.

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Jessie Pegula/Instagram

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“I was sitting on the bench for a tennis event in Sydney, Australia. I felt like throwing up. I was supposed to compete in the mixed doubles in 15 minutes and I remember saying to one of my teammates : “I’m a little panicked right now, it’s too close to home and I feel like I’m going to have a panic attack,” Jessica added.

“I texted my husband, Taylor, to tell him that the situation with my mother was weighing on me. When can we start talking about it?” Jessica wrote. “When can I tell his story, my story, my family’s story? Everyone keeps asking me. I really need to get rid of this.”

On Monday, she did just that, while praising the use of CPR for saving the lives of Hamlin and her mother.

“My mother was sleeping when my father woke up with a cardiac arrest and she was unconscious for quite a while,” she wrote. “My sister gave him CPR until the ambulance arrived. She saved his life. Although she doesn’t like to take credit for this terrible situation, she absolutely saved his life, followed by the critical work done by paramedics who arrived and were able to restore a heartbeat.

Phil Walter/Getty Jessica Pegula

Eight months later, Kim continues her recovery, her daughter said, but is getting better every day. His mother suffers from aphasia as well as significant memory problems.

“She can read, write and understand quite well, but she has difficulty finding the words to respond,” Jessica wrote. “It’s difficult to deal with and it takes a lot of patience to communicate with her, but I thank God every day that we can still communicate with her. Doctors continue to be amazed by her recovery, considering where she started ., and his determination is the driving force.

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Jessica, her father Terry, 71, and her four siblings are now adjusting to a different schedule as her mother stops helping to run the family sports empire.

“She loved to work. She did everything and our family constantly told her that she needed to slow down and take time for herself. She was the woman behind my father’s success and my father would readily admit that,” she said. writing. “Now we realize that all of that is probably gone. That she won’t be able to be that person anymore.”

Randy Litzinger/Sportswire Icon/Getty Damar Hamlin

After a personally triumphant season in which she finished ranked third in the world – and wore a No. 3 patch in Hamlin’s honor at the Australian Open – Jessica now reflects on the juxtaposition of her success and the state of health of his mother.

In November, Jessica won her first WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara, Mexico, but her family was never far from her heart.

“In my acceptance speech, I dedicated it to my mother,” she wrote. “I wanted her to know that even after six terrible months, I was still fighting every day because of her. If she could fight what she was going through, I could too.”

“She cried during my speech and the trophy ceremony,” Jessica added. “I’ve wanted this job since I was seven years old, before sports teams, businesses, money, etc. My parents helped me realize this dream that I’m living. Even though we weren’t always happy “Okay, they pushed me, and I pushed back and that brought me to where I am today.”

“My mother deserved to see me lift a trophy after what she went through.”