Welcome to Inner Heart Glow
Hi, I’m so glad you’re here :) Welcome to Inner Heart Glow - a space born from my own healing journey.
Starting this blog is something I’ve been thinking about for a long time and to be honest, I’ve gone back and forth with it. Sharing publicly doesn’t come naturally to me and oftentimes feels uncomfortable—but something inside has been nudging me forward, and I’m choosing to trust it.
Inner Heart Glow is personal. It’s built from my lived experience. It’s not a guidebook — it’s a reflection of what I’ve learned (and what I’m still learning) about healing, living well, and trusting your body from the inside out.
I was born with a complex heart condition — Hypoplastic Left Ventricle, Transposition of the Great Arteries, and Double Outlet Right Ventricle. I’ve had ten surgeries over the years — three open-heart and one open-chest, during which I received a pacemaker.
Despite all of that, I lived a really full, active life and honestly didn’t think much about my heart outside of doctor visits.It wasn’t until much later — in 2021 — when I learned that my heart condition had started to affect my liver (which I’ll share more about in a separate post), that I began to understand:
Healing isn’t just about one part of the body. Everything is connected.
That same year, I also went through yoga teacher training, and something clicked. I began to see how deeply the body, the mind, and the spirit are all part of one whole — and how important it is to take care of all three.
Unless it came up or someone asked about my scar, I rarely talked about my heart condition — not out of shame, just because it never defined me. But I’ve come to realize there’s so much power in sharing. Especially for people living with CHD or chronic illness — because so much of our care focuses on the medical, the clinical, the physical.
But we’re more than our diagnoses. And healing goes deeper than labs and scans. It’s the food we eat, the way we move, the people we surround ourselves with, the way we breathe, and the way we stay attuned to ourselves and move in rhythm with life.
I created Inner Heart Glow because I believe there’s a gap — between what the medical world gives us, and what we need in our day-to-day lives to actually feel good and healthy. My hope is that this space can help bridge that gap, in whatever small way it can.
Part of the reason I’m doing this is because I wish something like this had existed when I was younger — a place where I could hear from someone who had walked a similar path. Just knowing someone else out there had gone through it and was still living fully would’ve meant everything. If I can be that person for someone else now, then this space is already doing what it’s meant to.
You’ll find reflections on healing — the kind that takes time, intention, and learning how to show up for yourself again and again.
I’ll share what’s helped me — from wellness tools and practices to how I manage stress and care for my heart and liver with intention. I’ll also talk about what it means to advocate for yourself, especially when your health story doesn’t fit the mold.
Whether you’re navigating CHD, another chronic condition, or simply exploring a more intentional approach to your health — I hope what you find here feels supportive.
I hope what I share helps you feel more connected, more empowered, and more at home in your own body.
Whether you’re here with a heart condition or simply a heart wide open — welcome.
Thanks for being here. This is just the beginning.
Let’s Glow Together!
- Courtney Merhab
