Helen's Journal

Feb 13th...Engraved on my heart forever!! One year anniversary for me today! What a year it has been. Heart surgery, Trip to Europe followed by another surgery(Hysterectomy) and then a trip to India to wed my son to a beautiful Indian girl. If somebody had asked me on Feb 12 that I would be capable of doing all these things in one year , I would have laughed at them. Yup, somehow I managed and I am a stronger person because of these trials. God was on my side the whole time and I am forever grateful for these experiences. For those facing OHS, my advise to you is to have faith and be strong. It will all work out at the end. I know...I know....easier said than done. Please try to calm your nervous and believe in the higher Power. Do you homework and research and trust your doctors. It is going to be ok at the end. Good luck to all!! Love the engraving on my heart.....Feb 13th, 2018

I am seven months post op for MVR and just had a another major surgery , Hysterectomy. Going into this surgery I was really nervous and scared even though I got the clearance from my Cardiologist, I was still nervous. Minutes before I was rolled into the operating room, my heart was racing so fast that the nurse was alarming the doctors and they checked and ruled that it was nerves. That was a scary moment for sure. I think God every single day for the chances he has given me. It has been a tough year and I feel all of your pain my fellow heart friends, but have faith and trust that everything will work out for you too. Good luck to all!!

Seven months ago I went under the knife for MVR feeling nervous, tired and very depressed. Here I am 7 months later and feeling great. Even though I am going for a second surgery for hysterectomy in Sept, I feel that my OHR has prepared well. I no longer wonder about pain, recovery and the "what ifs". I think this surgery made me a stronger person and it also made me realize that we have to trust these doctors that go through an immense education and training. For those facing surgeries soon, have faith and trust your doctors.

Hard to believe it has been 6 months since my MVR. For most part, I have recovered fairly well. I still have some days where I feel very tired and just want to rest. Heart is till sometimes racing, but nothing crazy. I am scheduled to have another surgery on Sept 18th for a total hysterectomy and, as you can imagine, I am thrilled. Not what I had hoped for turning 50. 2018 has been a rough year for me and cant wait to put it behind me. I never thought in a million years that I would face two huge surgeries in one year, but here I am. I hope this one goes as smoothly as my OHS For now, I will think of myself as The Little Engine That Could "I--think--I--can, I--think--I--can." I booked a trip for my husband and I to Europe next month and really looking forward to it. Most of my life I was busy taking care of my boys and their education and now I feel it is our time to enjoy life.

Just want to alert people about something that many of us don't know, well, at least I did not know. I went for an hour walk yesterday and it was 85 degrees outside. That was a huge mistake. My heart rate was so high the entire day which scared me a lot. Please be careful outside when it is too hot or too cold. I am 4 months post op and was feeling great and this walk made me realize that I am still healing.

Has any one here had a surgery 4 months after the OHS? I was told today that I need a hysterectomy ASAP. I am not sure if I am mentally ready and not sure if my heart can handle it since it is still trying to recover. Can somebody here help to ease my anxiety?

I started Cardiac Rehab today. I feel I am beyond what they have me doing, but I like the part where they are monitoring my heart. I was able to do 10 minutes each on the threadmill , bike and arm bike. I will be increasing the intensity every week while being monitored. I am also scheduled to see a nutritionist next week to help me lose weight. Hey , what the heck, it’s all paid for by the insurance and I might as well take advantage of it. Getting on the road for a healthy lifestyle and you can’t put a price on that.

I just came back from an hour hike in the beautiful Ramapo mountain in northern part of NJ. I was a little out of breath on the hills, but not bothered by it. I can't believe it has been exactly 2 months today and still cannot believe this monstrous operation is behind me. After all the years of worries and many, many sleepless night, it is finally done. For all those facing OHS, I wish you nothing but the best results. I hope you have the same recovery as I did. I think at this point I can say I can move on with my life without any concerns, but keeping my fingers crossed. I want to thank this community for all the support I got. You guys are a bunch of great people that care and so glad I found this site. Thank you Adam for it from the bottom of my heart. Only a community like this can truly understand the true feeling of each one of us during the ups and downs of heart disease.

Had a follow up with the fellow Dr at Mount Sinai on last Wednesday. I was a little disappointed that I did not get to see any of my Surgeons, Dr Adams and Dr Pawale. Everything went well and they said I was doing great. I went to my cardiologist yesterday since my heart beats are still too high. He put me on Metoprolol Extended Release 25 mg which I will take at night to prevent dizziness during the day. I have been walking everyday for the past 10 days for 2.5 to 3 miles a day. Who ever thought that OHS would be so easy. The fear and anxiety for the past 3 years took a toll on me which caused me to be very depressed. Now, I am loving life again and planning a big trip in August after I get the ok from my cardiologist next month. For those with up coming surgeries, I wish you the best and you can do it.

Today I took my first nap ever since I can remember.. I think I pushed myself a little too much. Went for an hour walk in the morning outside( it was 30 degrees) then came home showered and went to church. Stopped in the supermarket for grocery shopping then came home to cook followed by cleaning up. I felt like I ran a marathon and crashed on the couch for 1 1/2 hour nap. Is that too much to do for 4 1/2 weeks after surgery??

It is hard to believe that this time last month I was on the operating table for OHS. Feeling great and getting better every day. Follow up with the surgeon on March 21st to get the ok to start driving. It was a little hard to be dependent on people to drive me around, but thankful for them. All that anxiety, sleepless nights, overthinking everything was unnecessary, but who knew. I'm looking at life in a different lens and have so much more appreciation to life now. For those with upcoming surgeries, all the best to you. You are in good hands.

I was recommended to go to Cardiac Rehab after 6 week of surgery, but I am debating it. Can you please tell me about you experiences with Cardiac Rehab? Did you find it useful? I have been walking and hiking for 5 years so not sure if I need it.

So hard to believe that 3 weeks have passed since my surgery. Where did the time go?? Today was the first day that I felt very close to normal. Went out for most of the day and did not feel too tired. Stopped by my office and they could not believe how good I looked. For some strange reason, I had a lot of energy and did not look tired. I still cannot drive so thank God for the people in my life for driving me around. My chest still feels sore and my blurred vision comes and goes, but is getting better and my mood has been better. If somebody had told me three weeks ago that I will feel this great, I would have never believed them. For those with upcoming surgeries, please don't be scared. You got this and you can do it. All the best to you.

So it's been 18 days after my MVR and I'm feeling great. Just finished a 2 mile walk and did it in 35 minutes. Did feel tired a little bit afterwards. Still have a little bit of the blurred vision ( hoping that will go away soon). My cardiologist had me do a partial echo this week to rule out any fluids around the heart and that came back good. My mood has been up and down and I do find myself crying more often now than before my surgery and not sure why. Hoping everything will be back to semi normal soon. Blood pressure is 109/76 now and heart rate at around 90. Those with upcoming surgeries this week, you can do it!!

Today marks my 2 weeks after surgery. I had my cardiologist appointment this morning and everything seems fine. I still have blurred vision and the DR recommended I get an echo just to make sure no fluids around the heart. The echo will be done tomorrow morning. I walked for a mile for the second day and it felt great. Still no meds except a full doze of aspirin a day for now. Sleeping ok at night, but still elevated and on my back. The scar is healing nicely but still very sore. As I was walking I was amazed how far medicine has come in the last 35 years. I remembered when my father had a heart attack and was hospitalized for almost a month. Now looking at my progress, I am just amazed. God bless all the doctors, nurses and anyone in between.

It has been one full week home and I feel great. Dr took me off all meds since my blood pressure remained too low. NO pain meds not even Tylenol. A little sore in the chest but very manageable. Still hard to cough and sneeze. Sleeping very well at night, but I still have to have my head elevated and still sleeping on my back. Scheduled my first app with my cardiologist this week and the follow up with the surgeon next month. I can't really complain here as all going well for me.

So blood pressure dropped to 80/50 this morning. Called the doctor and he took me off Furosemide and lowered the dosage of Metoprotol from 25 mg to 12.5 mg. Still a little lightheaded. Anybody else had/has this problem?

Today I wanted to push myself a little bit so I decided to go for a walk outside. I walked for 15 minutes and did 1/2 mile. I was a bit tired toward the end, but felt a sense of accomplishment to be able to do it. Baby steps are the way go for now! We can do this my friends one step at a time!!

I was debating to sleep downstairs on the couch or upstairs in the guest’s bedroom. So I ended up taking half a OxyContin (2.5 had to break the bill in half) spending the first half of the night upstairs and the other half on the couch. The first half was great. The pain woke me up at around 3:30AM. Was very painful to get off bed and down the stairs. I took a couple of Tylenols and headed to the couch. I got some relief and was able to go back to sleep. Just when you think you are done, BAM the pain comes back.