Since leaving the Big Brother house, Reggie Sorensen’s life hasn’t been easy.
Almost 15 years on from her popular win, she’s facing a struggle beyond what most could even imagine.
A sufferer of a congenital eye condition, she will go blind within a matter of years. But, as she revealed on A Current Affair in 2016, worse than the thought of losing her vision, is the thought of losing her son.
Seven-year-old Lucas has cystic fibrosis – a life-threatening, genetic condition that causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs. He requires daily physio, and often struggles to breathe – something people are surprised to hear when they meet the active little boy.
“They all look at him and go, ‘Gee you don’t look sick’, but inside it’s a different story,” Sorensen told the program. “He’s battling a big fight to stay alive.”
As if that wasn’t enough for one family to deal with, Reggie has now been diagnosed with a hole in her heart.
The serious health condition has already caused her to have a minor stroke and it could also require major surgery this year.
“About five months ago I had a minor stroke at work,” Sorensen recently told 9Honey.
“I was on the phones and my Team Leader came up to me, tapped me on the shoulder and told me to get off the phone and asked me if I was okay.
“All the right side of my face went numb and my right eye just drooped and I couldn’t talk properly. I didn’t know what was happening.”
She ended up in the emergency ward at Gold Coast Hospital, where tests determined she had a cardiac anomaly.
The doctors originally thought Sorensen had Bell’s Palsy but then they realised she’d had a minor stroke.
“So that was bloody scary and I thought ‘oh shit’,” she told 9Honey.
She was referred to a cardiologist who asked her if she gets a lot of migraines. And after more testing, the hole in the heart was discovered.
Sorensen has been told she needs surgery and has been place on the waiting list. It’s taken her several months to recover from the stroke.
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“It feels like you’ve been to the dentist and you’ve had the numbing… that’s what it’s felt like. Luckily there’s been no permanent damage.”
The Big Brother personality believes recent stress has contributed to her deteriorating health.
Last year she had to get a restraining order against her ex-boyfriend, who was charged with domestic violence.
She was also involved in a dispute with her landlord, who was threatening to kick her out of the home she has lived in for years.
Despite all this, Reggie continues to smile and raise much needed funds for Cystic Fibrosis research.