MARISKA HARGITAY - HEALTH CRISIS MADE HARGITAY COUNT HER BLESSINGS

HEALTH CRISIS MADE HARGITAY COUNT HER BLESSINGS

LAW & ORDER: SVU star MARISKA HARGITAY has spoken out about her recent health crisis, which forced her to put her acting career on hold.
The actress suffered a collapsed lung and checked into hospital in 2008 and again earlier this year (09) in an effort to correct the damage done by an on-set fall.
The 45 year old says, "At first I thought I had the wind knocked out of me."
But the diagnosis was much more serious.
The actress feared she was having heart problems after suffering "chest pains and shortness of breath".
She tells Redbook magazine that further problems arose on New Year's Day (01Jan09), when she felt as if "someone stabbed me".
She adds, "I went down on one knee and just couldn't catch my breath."
An X-ray revealed her right lung was 50 per cent collapsed and Hargitay started to "panic".
The actress reveals, "I was so scared."
The scare made the wife and mother realise just how lucky she is: "I had so much to lose, so much to live for... I have so many blessings, and I've learned from all of my experiences and my losses."