Carys Havard, a former Welsh national-level swimmer, is set to begin her medical career as a foundation doctor at University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, the same hospital where she underwent treatment for a rare throat condition that ended her competitive swimming career.

Havard, 23, had long struggled with unexplained breathing difficulties and frequent fainting episodes during training and competitions. After years of uncertainty and misdiagnoses, including being told her symptoms were asthma and suspicions that she was exaggerating, she was finally diagnosed in March 2020 with laryngomalacia, a condition in which floppy tissue obstructs the airway.

She underwent three surgeries at University Hospital of Wales to trim and reshape the affected tissue, significantly improving her health. The recovery allowed her to return to swimming recreationally and led to other opportunities, including winning the title of Miss Earth Wales in 2023 and representing the United Kingdom at the international Miss Earth pageant held in Vietnam, which promotes environmental awareness.

Havard, from Crickhowell in Powys, pursued medical studies at Keele University while managing additional diagnoses of dyslexia and dyspraxia, conditions affecting coordination and learning. She credits the diagnosis and subsequent support for these conditions with helping her successfully complete her education.

Reflecting on her healthcare experience, Havard recalled instances where medical staff initially dismissed or did not adequately respond to her symptoms. She recounted a particularly alarming episode in the emergency department where a doctor intervened only after she turned blue from lack of oxygen. That moment marked a turning point in her care and further fueled her aspiration to become a doctor.

“I want to be like that doctor who understands how helpless a patient can be in that moment and I want to listen to everything that patient says,” Havard said. She described the opportunity to start her medical career at the hospital that played a central role in her own treatment as “incredibly surreal” and a “full-circle moment.”

Havard expressed hope that her personal experience as a patient will inform her approach to medicine, making her a more compassionate and understanding clinician. Upon receiving her appointment, she was moved to tears, emphasizing the impact her journey has had on her ambitions and perspective toward patient care.