Dennis's Journal

On May 12, I had surgery for aortic valve replacement, mitral valve repair, and repair of a major aneurysm of the ascending aorta. Despite a few complications, all went well and I am now home and recovering quickly. I walk 2 miles daily and have begun working again at home a few hours a day at my consulting activities (water supply in developing countries). My strength increases every day, and I am now looking forward to cardiac rehab as soon as possible. Being a lifelong runner, my personal program is to begin running again after 12 weeks with the hope that I will be able think about 5k and 10k runs by the end of the year. I am very grateful for the messages sent by several heart valve runners. Your examples of returning to running are a great encouragement to me and give me confidence that running is possible after HV surgery. Running has been a central core of my identity for most of my life. Reading about your experiences with rehab and your return to running has been one of the best medicines in my recovery.

My surgery for aortic valve replacement and mitral valve repair is scheduled for May 12, 2014. I have been a runner all my life: 35,000 miles, including 23 marathons, and a run across Switzerland. Two years ago, I had a knee replacement, which stopped my running for a while, but I was slowly regaining my form when these cardiac issues arose. Are there other runners who managed to run again after heart valve surgery?