Many would know Australian entertainer Maria Venuti as a vibrant woman. An accomplished singer and actor, the larger than life performer has also appeared in numerous television shows and theatre productions over the years.
Vibrant is exactly how her daughter Bianca thinks of her too. Thinking back over her childhood Bianca remembers the years that were the heyday for Maria.
“It clearly was not normal, looking back on it. Mum was always doing some fantastic show, then she’d come home and give me a big kiss with her big false eyelashes and all her make-up done up. I would be hanging out with my nan and mum would be getting home from work very late. Mum’s life came alive during the night time.
“She would take me to some of her shows, like a roadie, whether that be a club act or on set during her stage shows. When she was learning her lines, I would always test her. We would regularly meet so many famous people – I grew up as a child going down the red carpet, often photographed for the social pages. I remember when mum got me U2’s autograph once. At the time I was in high school and my teacher, a huge U2 fan, couldn’t believe it. It definitely wasn’t what most people consider normal. I was very lucky.”
Bianca is especially proud of the life lessons she learned from her mother.
“Something I love about mum is that she will be as equally fabulous to all her fans and people she meets, regardless of who they are. One minute it will be a senior executive at a corporate event she’s singing at, the next some international celebrity and then someone who comes up to her at the local shopping centre. She is very grateful and always makes so much effort to say thank-you. I’ve learnt so much from her and hope that I can continue to be more like her in these ways into the future. “
When Maria turned 70 she decided to admit how old she was and publish an autobiography. “No-one believed her age. She is at living legend status. She doesn’t act her age, she doesn’t feel her age. Young at heart is definitely mum.”
Bianca is now a carer for her mother, age 76, after Maria had a major haemorrhagic stroke last year. The pair have always been really close, and once even organised a food tour in Sicily, Italy they called Venuti’s Foodgasms.
Read more: Entertainment legend suffers stroke.
“Mum and I are a family of two. She is my best friend, I am her best friend. Post the stroke, I feel very blessed and comfortable to spend every day with my wonderful mum although it can be really challenging. It’s definitely tricky at times.”
The pair were conscious a stroke was possible, not only from getting older but because Maria had atrial fibrillation, a type of abnormal heart rhythm, which can lead to stroke.
“Although that’s not why she actually had the stroke, it was completely left field and arose from an extremely stressful incident.”
The stroke has changed both their lives around.
“It was a huge shock. We were at the Melbourne Cup three days before, having a fabulous time. We were talking about how November was going to be the start of some fantastic times. There’d been some different challenges in the past couple of months. We had that sense of being grateful and had the perspective of living life to the full. Literally three or four days later, I got a panicky call from mum, five minutes later there was no answer. I arrived just a bit after the ambulance and that was it. She’d had a huge stroke. She was unconscious. Mum had one of the most catastrophic bleeds many of the doctors and nurses said they had seen. She was doing nothing in halves and was already defying the odds by staying alive.”
Bianca then focused on getting over the next few challenges with her mum, which included making continued (albeit slow) progress, and renovating the bathroom to allow her to come home once she was able.
“It’s still very difficult, but things are getting better every week. You need people to support you and you need to support each other. I feel blessed and indebted for the amount of support we have had. Mum is indeed very loved.”
Read more: Researchers discover help for stroke patients.
Bianca is determined to remain optimistic for both of them. “If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t….. well just don’t ever say can’t. You can and you will, it might not be just right now.”
Bianca is now spreading awareness about the importance of knowing your blood pressure and is sharing her story in the hope it will help others.
“It is a bit of a wake-up call. We can struggle to juggle all the different things that we have to do but health is so important. Don’t mess with that. Stories are what can help us, remind us of the important things, and you don’t want to wait until you face it yourself. Learn from others.”
Priceline Pharmacy, the Stroke Foundation and Bianca are encouraging all Australians to have their free blood pressure check in store with Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check. Last year, one in three people checked were found to have high blood pressure, and were immediately referred to their doctor. This year they hope to beat last year’s total of 56,000 checks during the month.
“Through ABBPC I hope I can help people understand how important it is to manage the risks associated with high blood pressure. I know for me, I am making it a priority to keep my blood pressure in check. Going into Priceline Pharmacy to be tested is a lot easier and more convenient than making an appointment at the doctor, plus it’s free and only takes 5 minutes.”
The free blood pressure checks campaign has started and continues until June 14. You can visit a Priceline pharmacy or one of pop up sites in select shopping centres around the country.
A full list of locations can be found here: https://www.priceline.com.au/mission-health