Meet Payton
Cardiac- Complete AVSD/AV Canal Defect with PA Banding, WPW Ablation, Complete AVSD repair and Mitral Valve Repair
Chest Wall- Slipping Rib Syndrome with multiple repairs, Pectus Excavatum with a failed Ravitch Procedure, and current Nuss bars, Cadaver Fibula to replace rib 3 on Right side
Other- Nerve Damage, Migraines, Ehler's - Danlos Syndrome, Roux en Y procedure to remove choledochal cyst, gallbladder and appendix removed, Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, POTS, PVCs
My medical journey began when I was just 3 days old, when my pediatrician ordered an EKG because she heard a heart murmur. Not sure she realized in that moment that I would have a pulmonary artery (PA) banding, a Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) ablation and open-heart surgery with a complete atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD) repair all before I was a year old. No one had anticipated that I would be born with a heart defect, but my parents and doctors were not giving up!
After my surgeries, some doctors said that I would never be able to play competitive sports. My parents and I had other plans! I would go to the cardiologist for routine checkups, but they never showed any reason for concern. The leak in my mitral valve was stable and my chest was a little concave. I knew I was different, but I did not let this define me. I grew up doing the things kids do. I was a national ranked rock climber. I loved adventure. I was invincible.
Then, when I was around 10 years old, I started experiencing premature ventricular contractions (PVCs)—abnormal heartbeats that felt like periodic shocks in my chest. Around the same time, my pectus excavatum became significantly worse. My chest was no longer symmetrical, and it was beginning to affect my lung capacity. I “failed” a stress test, and the doctors determined that it was time for another surgery.
Because of my significant cardiac history, I was told the Nuss procedure was not a good option. So, at 11 years old, I underwent a Ravitch procedure. During my winter break, I spent time in the hospital having a titanium bar placed behind my rib cage and the cartilage between ribs 4–8 removed on both sides.
Unfortunately, I do not remember a lot of that time. I remember feeling like I could breathe better but I also lost a major part of my life, competitive rock climbing.
Life at that point changed for me. Life was no longer about feeling invincible, I now had to play life safe. They removed the bar after 10 months and I had 3 years of trying to believe I was invincible again. But unfortunately, this did not last long.
It was around the age of 14 that I started having pain again. My ribs were popping, clicking, dislocating, and I was constantly nauseated due to my pain. I would lose feeling in my legs and drop to the floor. Instead of finding a diagnosis, it felt like doctors were telling me that I was the problem.
I was accused of drug-seeking.
I was told I had a low pain tolerance.
I was told there was nothing wrong.
I was told my pain wasn't significant.
I was told my periods were causing my pain.
I heard every variation of, “It's all in your head.”
Eventually, I felt completely lost and hopeless. I didn't understand how I could be in so much pain and have so few answers. I reached a point where I attempted to take my own life because I couldn't see another way for the pain to stop.
BUT GOD HAD OTHER PLANS!
I was referred to a chronic pain clinic for pediatric patients where I found a community of peers who also felt chronic pain. We may not have all had the same diagnosis, but we had support and understanding. During that time, I was diagnosed with POTS, PTSD, anxiety, and depression. I was also diagnosed with a nerve disorder that doctors believed explained all my pain, central sensitization or nerve amplification.
I desperately wanted that diagnosis to be the answer. I wanted something—anything—to explain what was happening to my body.
But it wasn't the answer.
My ribs continued to get worse. I could no longer pop them back into place on my own. My family made the difficult decision to allow me to finish high school through an online program. I also worked as a lifeguard and tried to create an environment where my physical and mental challenges were more manageable.
But even then, I continued searching for answers. My family and I refused to accept that this was simply something I had to live with.
Then I found my miracle surgeon!
I had googled my symptoms (something I do not suggest doing regularly!) and found Dr. McMahon on an episode of “The Doctors,” explaining Slipping Rib Syndrome.
Something clicked- and it wasn’t a rib this time!!
I knew in that moment that this was my real diagnosis!
We scheduled an appointment to travel from Dallas to Phoenix to meet Dr. McMahon. I had a dynamic ultrasound that determined I had 5 ribs that were slipping. After years of being told there was nothing wrong with me, I finally had an answer. I had a complex case of Slipping Rib Syndrome.
For the first time, I felt like someone understood what was happening inside my body. I underwent my first slipping rib repair. My quality of life improved dramatically, and I was finally able to imagine a future that wasn't completely centered around pain. I was able to go out of state to college. That alone felt like a miracle!
College wasn't easy. I ultimately needed three additional slipping rib surgeries before I graduated. Each of these surgeries happened because of unforeseen circumstances that my doctors could not have controlled- a fall down a flight of stairs and then a car accident.
Eventually, after the multiple traumas I endured, the absorbable plates from my previous surgeries were no longer enough to support my rib cage. The pain began returning. It wasn't just pain during certain activities. I was hurting constantly. Even lying in bed could cause my ribs to pop.
So, we went back to Phoenix. This time, we needed a new plan. The plan was to use metal plates and screws to stabilize my ribs and provide more durable support.
After graduation and my surgeries, I moved back to Texas, found the love of my life, and started my next chapter! I was finally living away from my parents, planning a wedding, and working from the comfort of home with my puppy by my side! All things I would have never imagined possible when I was 14.
I felt comfortable and beautiful, and I was able to not focus on my pain. At our wedding, I was dancing, socializing, laughing, eating, dancing more! I felt like a normal 23-year-old bride! It was incredible!
But by the following summer, something else was changing. I started gaining weight. I was exhausted all the time. I was short of breath. My circulation and ability to regulate my body temperature were becoming increasingly difficult. My mitral valve regurgitation was progressing rapidly from mild to severe.
Once again, we had decisions to make. I called Dr. McMahon.
And once again, my medical team had to look at the entire picture—not just one diagnosis. In October 2025, at 25 years old, I underwent another major chapter in my medical journey.
On October 23, my cardiac team repaired my mitral valve, yes repaired! Five days later, Dr. McMahon and her team placed two Nuss bars, a plate and cadaver bone on my right side where I was missing my 3rd rib. My repair from my Ravitch procedure had failed so my pectus excavatum needed to be addressed again and this was the perfect time to do it. They also reinforced the metal plates that were stabilizing my slipping ribs.
Pain management was difficult to say the least and I had multiple rapid responses during this hospital stay. My oxygen levels took longer than expected to stabilize, requiring me to stay in the hospital for a total of three weeks. But I was on the other side and ready to start living again!
And living I am! My medical journey is changing my path in an amazing way!
Of course, now there are days when my body reminds me of everything I’ve been through. There are days when I wish that things were easier. There are days when I am exhausted with memories of having to fight for answers, fight for treatment, and fight to be heard.
But there are also days when I look at my life and realize just how far I’ve come.
The little girl who wasn't expected to have heart problems before she was born survived open-heart surgery before she was a year old.
The 11-year-old who lost rock climbing as a sport found a way to keep moving forward.
The 14-year-old who couldn't understand why no one believed her pain was real found an answer.
The teenager who didn't know if she had a future has found her path.
My diagnoses have shaped my life, but they do not get to decide what my life looks like.
I am incredibly thankful for my family, for the people who advocated for me when I couldn't advocate for myself, for the doctors who refused to give up on me, and for the medical team that continues to help me navigate this incredibly complicated journey.
Most of all, I'm thankful that I am still here. I wouldn't wish this journey on anyone. But I also wouldn't change the person it has made me.
I know there are people out there who are currently being told that their pain isn't real, that nothing is wrong, that they're exaggerating, or that they simply need to learn to live with it. I was that person.
And if sharing my story can help even one person feel less alone, encourage someone to keep advocating for themselves, or help someone find the right doctor and the right diagnosis, then every difficult chapter becomes a little more meaningful.
This is not the end of my story. It is simply the next chapter. I am still healing. I am still learning. I am still living.
And for the first time in a very long time, I'm excited to see what comes next. I look forward to sharing more about what life has been like since my last surgeries. And I hope that my medical journey will provide you with some tools and resources that may help you get through your own medical journey.
Dr. Lisa McMahon and Payton Stamp at CWIG Conference 2026
Payton Stamp’s chest x-ray as of November 2025 as scanned at Phoenix Children’s Hospital
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