Jamie's Heart Valve Journal

4 months since surgery

March 21, 2012

It has been 4 months since my Heart surgery and I am doing great. Most of the time, I feel like I didn’t even have surgery. I would say I’m 95% back to my “normal” self. That last 5% is more mental healing that needs to be done, not physical. I spent 18 years with that little pig valve in my heart, thinking and worry about when it would need to be replaced again and now that it has been replaced, It’s hard to not worry about something happening to this mechanical valve and having to have it replaced as well. I went to see my Cardiologist for a follow up yesterday. He reassured me again by saying that this valve should last for the rest of my life. He said it sounded great and my echo showed no issues. This surgery was a huge thing for me to get past. Spending all of my adult life thinking “when is it going to be time” left a huge impact on me. I really believe that Mac and I were supposed to come back to Houston just for me to have the surgery here in the wonderful facilities at the Texas Medical Center. A second surgery has more risks, and I am greatful that I was lucky to have a wonderful and talented surgeon do mine. So I guess as the day’s go by I will learn to trust that I’m going to be fine and hopefully I will get to a point where I don’t think about it at all.

My INR continues to be in the acceptable range. I have not had any problems with my blood getting and staying in the range. If it gets out of range because of something I ate or took, they adjust my meds for a couple of days and it falls right back in range. I have been lucky that I haven’t had any side effects or complications because of the Coumadin. I am learning everything I can about it and trying to incorporate it into my life. And it hasn’t been that big of an adjustment. I hope that will continue to be the case.

Thanks again to all of my family and friends for all of your support during my time of need. I love you all very much!

12 weeks since surgery

February 7, 2012

It has been 12 weeks since my open heart surgery. Wow! I can’t believe how fast the time has gone by. I pretty much feel like nothing even happened. I graduated from my rehab program last week and that feels great. I have returned to doing normal workouts that I was doing before I had surgery and I can tell you that the way I feel now during and after exercise vs. what I felt then are night and day. Sometimes I think why didn’t I have heart surgery sooner. LOL! I can’t even explain how much of a difference it is, and in only 3 months…it’s amazing and I have so much gratitude for my surgeon and his team. Yesterday I was running at a higher speed then before and my heart rate was 30 beats per minute lower then what it used to get up to…it was amazing…I could breathe…I loved it and I felt so good! I have some aches in my sternum, but nothing serious at all and it’s barely noticeable, still working on doing pushups and planks, but I’m getting there. I really feel like I will enjoy exercising so much more now. My INR continues to stay in the “acceptable” range and has been for some time now. For me taking Coumadin really hasn’t required too much of a lifestyle change. Hopefully that continues to be the case. I still hear my valve clicking away, but I’m really used to it and it’s getting less and less noticeable.
It’s amazing to me that almost every day another person joins the journals and shares their story. I never realized how many people are affected by heart valve disease. I’m just so grateful that I found Adams blog, because all of these stories and all of these people helped me very much in my own journey. It’s a connection that we all share and a connection that we all understand and I am grateful for it. Good luck to all of those who just had surgery or will be having surgery very soon. You’re in my thoughts and prayers!
Thanks again to all of my family and friends for all of your love and support. I can’t thank you enough for what you have done for me. And each one of you played a huge part in my recovery and success. I love you all so much. I was very nervous to have surgery here in Houston with the majority of my support system being in Salt Lake City but, to all of my friends in Houston, I don’t think I can say Thank You enough for all of your willingness to help me out in all the ways that you did, you have all shown me what true friendship is and I appreciate it more then I can ever express. You are a great group of ladies and I’m so grateful to have you all as friends. Thank You to everyone who spends the time reading my journal I hope that my words help you in some small way.
Love you all
Jamie

8 Weeks since surgery!

January 13, 2012

Well it has been a little over 8 weeks since I had surgery. I still continue to feel better every day. I still have some stiffness and aches in my chest, I think it’s because I have had my sternum broken twice and because there was more scar tissue from the first open heart surgery. I am able to lay on my side at night for a little while, but not all night long. If I lay on my side or sit for too long I’m pretty stiff when I get up. I notice that I stand up and I hunch forward automatically, so I’m working on trying to correct my posture… I’m doing re-hab with my trainer and that is going really good. I definitely notice a difference in the way I feel while I exercise. I can breathe!! And I feel like I am getting more oxygen to all of my muscles. Also, my heart rate comes down a lot faster than it used to. I haven’t tried any strength training yet, but I’m hoping to do some light weights next week. It’s all really exciting to me and I am encouraged by all of these feelings. This past week I have been trying to learn as much as I can about Coumadin and how it works with my mechanical valve. Just trying to learn what the best diet for me will be is interesting and sometimes frustrating. There are a lot of foods that have vitamin K in them, so I’m just trying to balance everything out. But I will get it and hopefully I will get used to those limitation or challenges soon. My INR levels continue to be in the acceptable range. I still hear my valve clicking away. But it is a welcomed sound and it isn’t irritating or bothersome in anyway. . It is getting more and more normal and I don’t hear it all the time. It doesn’t keep me up and night. I think it actually helps put me to sleep. lol... Sometimes I find myself stopping whatever I am doing to try and listen for it…I like to hear it…It helps me!
Thanks again to all of my friends and family that have encouraged me on this journey. I love you all so much and I feel grateful to have you all in my life!
Talk to you soon
Jamie

7 Weeks since surgery!

January 4, 2012

Today it has been 7 weeks since my surgery. I feel great. Mac went back to work yesterday and the kids went back to school today. So today was my first day at home by myself in what feels like forever. It’s a little sad and I miss them. But it’s also good to get back to a normal routine. I started re-hab with my personal trainer this week. Monday we took it pretty slow just to see where I was at, but today I feel like I really had a good workout. It is the first time since surgery that I actually broke a sweat, had red cheeks and had to wipe my face off with a towel. It felt so good! Thanks Traci!! And I have felt really good all day since. My pain is a lot better this week too. I still have some stiffness in my chest. My range of motion is not quite back yet so, things like driving and stretching are interesting. Turning the steering wheel in the car is probably the hardest thing, but I can do it, I just have to move my hands around the wheel a lot more and it looks pretty funny! My kids think I’m strange…ha ha ha… Overall I feel really well. The past 7 weeks are starting to feel more like a distant dream. I continue to feel blessed by modern medicine and blessed that a man made valve is keeping me alive and healthy. My INR (blood thinning) levels have been in the normal range since before Christmas and have stayed pretty much the same, so lucky me I have only had to have my blood taken every two weeks for the last little while. Hopefully that continues to stay the same.
Thanks again to all of you have kept up with my progress and all who have sent encouraging words my way. Your thoughts and prayers truly mean the world to me.
Talk to you all soon
Jamie