Julie Bowen Reveals She Received Lifesaving Pacemaker At Age 29

Julie Bowen has made a shocking, emotional confession about how she got a pacemaker at just 29 years old. The Emmy winner, now 55, revealed the news in an interview on the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast, as she explained a medical scare stemming from her heart needed a long-term, immediate fix.

Bowen had been diagnosed with sick sinus syndrome with hypervagotonia, which is when a person's heart rate is abnormally low due to the vagal nerve being stimulated too much. The syndrome, which affects the heart's own pacemaker, can result in fatigue, dizziness, and, in the most extreme cases, fainting, if left untreated. In Bowen's case, her heart rate had been plummeting to alarmingly low numbers, something she initially dismissed, given her competitive-runner past. "I do have a pacemaker," she admitted during the interview.

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The device had been placed there to prevent her heart rate from dropping below 45 beats per minute. For comparison, the average resting heart rate for women is about 60 to 100 beats per minute.  Bowen said she was only in the dark about what was actually happening for a day or so before her sister, who was in medical school at the time, caught the red flags. What Julie believed to be the result of athletic training was now revealed to be a primary cardiac problem, one that might not have been detected for far longer had her sister not been so hyper-aware. Now, Bowen lives like any other active girl, rarely giving thought to the little device that subtly helps keep her heart in rhythm. You forget it's even in there, she said.

Her honesty is a stark reminder that even those in peak physical health can have underlying health concerns and that paying attention to your body and loved ones is key. With her story, Bowen becomes the latest addition to the long list of celebrities speaking out and putting a face to previously hidden health concerns, which helps demystify and open up conversations about heart health, particularly among women.