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Colby Bishop had open heart surgery in the summer of 2024 [Rex Features]
Portsmouth striker Colby Bishop says that he "counts his lucky stars" following open heart surgery in 2024.
The 29-year-old underwent a procedure before the start of last season after a potential risk had been identified during cardiac screening.
He then missed the first portion of the campaign, eventually making a surprise return to the Pompey side in early November 2024 after an extensive recovery period.
The Portsmouth number nine has since been reflecting on the journey nearly 18 months since, recovery to full fitness and returning to a role as a regular fixture in John Mousinho's starting XI.
"I'm very lucky that in our line of work we look at these things but if I wasn't then maybe I wouldn't have seen it," Bishop told BBC Radio Solent.
"But I count my lucky stars, I'm very fortunate to have found it and rectified the problem.
"The whole club was there for me in a very tough time - the fans, staff, everyone around here so I'm very grateful."
Bishop's return to the Portsmouth side came as a surprise to many last season, appearing on the bench against Preston North End.
In what was a moving and remarkable moment the striker then scored in his first game back, slotting home a penalty in front of the Fratton End before pointing over at his family in the stands as he celebrated the goal.
Despite being cleared to play again by specialists, Bishop said there were still some nerves around his return.
"You're obviously nervous but I think my family as well around me was so nervous because you just don't want something bad to happen," he said.
"You've got to trust that the surgeons know what they're talking about which they obviously do and I just trusted that I'd worked so hard that I'd be fine and luckily I was, it was a good day.
"It was tough, especially my wife who was pregnant at the time and due to give birth.
"I think being pregnant is hard enough as it is, never mind your husband coming home and saying he needs open heart surgery, I'm very lucky to have someone who's very strong and she looked after me."
Helping others and looking forward
Bishop was speaking about his experiences of recovering from a major heart issue alongside fellow pro Tom Lockyer for an initiative set up by Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The pair have joined forces this Christmas to urge fans to learn CPR, as part of the 'Every Minute Matters' campaign on the BHF's website.
"It just takes 15 minutes to go on the tool and learn what to do," Bishop said.
"If this does happen at home to a loved one, you want to be in the best position possible to be able to save them, and this allows you to do that.
"We think these things happen in hospitals but they're more likely to happen in random places and I think it's best that we try and get as many people to learn the skills required to help people."
Since Bishop's return he has been a regular in Portsmouth's side as their main striker when fit.
The forward has only scored once this season but has featured 18 times across all competition.
Since last summer he has not had any further issues with his heart and appears to be able to look forward without any need for further surgeries.
"I've not had any scares or anything like that," Bishop added.
"When you get the procedure that I had, your body's not used to having what is inside you now so you get a lot of strange feelings and really weird sensations.
"But I'm lucky that I've got people around me that have had the same procedure and I'm able to talk to them and ask, is this okay?
"And as soon as they say it's normal you kind of just forget about it and just crack on with it, but there's some really weird sensations in your heart, itching, burning, but I know it's normal now, so I crack on."
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