TEACHER Hazel Hunt is campaigning for greater awareness of congenital heart defects (CHD).

When Hazel was born in 1971 she was one of the first miracle babies to undergo surgery for the defect and survive.

She says that medical advances mean CHD, which is the most common birth defect in the UK, is no longer a death sentence for babies and can be successfully treated.

The 37-year-old from Stonehouse is now writing a book on her story and has set up a website with details and advice on the condition.

Hazel's difficult journey began shortly after her birth at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

She said: "It's a miracle I am alive. When I was born I had a condition called Transposition of the Great Arteries or blue baby syndrome due to insufficient oxygen circulating in my body.

"The two major arteries coming out of the heart, the aorta and the pulmonary artery were connected to the wrong chambers.

"I was operated on and then I had major open-heart surgery two years later."

Hazel fought her way back to fitness and is one of a growing population of adults with CHD who simply did not exist 30 years ago.

Although she cannot excessively exercise and faces the future prospect of having a pacemaker, Hazel says her life is perfectly normal.

She is more concerned at the lack of information or awareness about CHD and this has spurred her on to write a book on her experiences and a several blogs on social networking sites.

Hazel added: "I am one of the first generation of survivors.

"I don't know how long I will live for and whether I will get any more side effects.

"One person may need a heart transplant, another will need a valve transplant and another may only need a pacemaker.

"But medicine is moving on and parents with children being diagnosed now must know that the condition is not a death sentence.

"The main problem is that there are lots of people with the condition but CHD is not visible.

"Our scars are hidden and this makes educating the public harder."

Through her websites and tireless publicity, Hazel has already been contacted by dozens of parents keen to know more about the condition.

Her aim is to educate and raise awareness as well as promote the need for testing prior to birth.

For more information on the condition, visit www.cong enital-heart-defects.co.uk or www. myspace.com/hazel_1971