Tracey Conway

Biography

Tracey Conway Was 38 When Her Life Changed Forever:
The Emmy-winning actress was taping a television comedy show when she literally dropped dead from Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Twenty minutes later, paramedics shocked her heart into beating again. Overcoming 20-to-1 odds, she survived and turned her miraculous recovery into poignant yet laugh-out loud presentations that have wowed everyone from maximum-security inmates to Oprah Winfrey.

Tracey's inspiring, informative talks "Drop Dead Gorgeous!" and "Dead: Been There, Done That!" are rousing anthems that motivate women (and men) to get passionate about their health and life priorities. Grab-your-tissues sniffles alternate with rousing belly laughs in presentations that have entertained and engaged audiences from Boise to Budapest.

A classically trained actress with a Master of Fine Arts degree in Drama from the University of Southern California, Tracey moved to Seattle to pursue a stage career. When the local TV comedy show "Almost Live!" needed an unknown face to give an "eyewitness" account of the supposed toppling of the Space Needle for a live April Fool's Day sketch, Tracey's performance was so realistic the station was flooded with calls about the "disaster," and the city's 911 callboard was temporarily disabled. Her destiny was apparent, and Tracey joined the cast full time in 1990.

Aside from being an internationally acclaimed speaker, Tracey is an accomplished writer. She most recently contributed the lead story in Chicken Soup for the Soul, Healthy Living: HEART DISEASE and received two Emmy nominations for her writing on "Almost Live!" Sought for her effervescent-yet-educated presence, she served as a panelist on Second Opinion, the PBS series that showed -- in a way never seen before -- how doctors navigate their way through tough medical decisions.

Tracey regularly keynotes Go Red For Women! events for American Heart Association chapters across the country, and she is also involved with several national organizations promoting the use of AEDS (automated external defibrillators) and the therapy of ICDs (internal cardiac devices) for heart arrhythmia disorders. She serves on the board of Seattle's Hope Heart Institute and is a professional member of the National Speakers Association. Most importantly, she is "mom" to the most beautiful dog in the world, her four-year-old Siberian Husky, Lulu.

Titles

Drop-Dead Gorgeous
Healthcare speaker Tracey Conway shares the lessons she learned in the literally heart-stopping moments in which she suffered sudden cardiac arrest on stage. She discusses learning how to avoid heart disease and how to live with a chronic illness, and talks about what has come to value in life since she was given a very rare second chance.

Dead: Been There, Done That!

Healing the Broken Heart
Often a follow-up to "Drop Dead Gorgeous," this presentation delves more deeply into the emotional aftermath of a life-changing health event. Tracey Conway addresses the misconception of how heart disease does and doesn't affect the way survivors can be fully contributing members of society, adapting to healthy change, facing economic problems due to an altered medical status, and embracing life as fully as possible.