Tara's Posts

Today marks 1 month since I had my mitral valve replaced for the second time and for the last time! I have overcome so much in the last month and am so grateful to have my life back. I think it's pretty cool that not only is today the one month milestone, but also the final game in the NCAA which UCONN is playing in. You see the coach of the UCONN mens basketball team, Jim Calhoun shares a history of heart disease with me, we also share and trust the same fantastic cardiology team at UConn Health Center. Jim and his wife feel so strongly about the UConn Health Center Cardiology team that they put thier name on it! I had my surgery at the UConn Health Center at the Pat & Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center. The day I was released from the hospital, actually the minute I sat down in my husband's car the UConn Men's Basketball team won a game at the buzzer where they would go on to the next round of the Big East tournament. I would love to be able to celebarate this 1 month milestone by having the UConn Men's Basketball Team Win the tournament! My fingers and toes are crossed for tonight!! I want to use this journal entry to thank my friends and family and of course the Heart Valve Journal community. This website has been so helpful, during a time when I otherwise would have felt alone, I found comfort and support from people across the world who were going through the same thing as me. I received messages from people I've never even met telling me they were praying for me which was truly touching. And on that same note, have prayed for people whom I have never met, so for that I thank you HVJ community! My friends and family have been more than supportive. I received so many cards, visits, phone calls, e-mails, Facebook messages, gift baskets, flowers, etc (you get the point). from people who just wanted to let me know that they cared. Friends of mine from high school who I haven't chatted with in years reached out to me on Facebook to offer words of support. So many of my friends came by to visit and I am truly grateful. I have been truly blessed with the most amazing support system. I love you all! I also want to thank my colleagues at work for all of the support they have given me and for picking up the slack for the last 4 weeks I was away from work! I am so lucky to get to work with such a fantastic group of people everyday. I must thank my fantastic Doctors, & Nurses at UConn Health Center. They are all truly fantastic! My Cardiologist, Dr. Schulman has always held a special place in my heart and always will. He is truly an incredible doctor and has a special way with his patients! And of course the man behind the mask, Dr. Hammond, my surgeon has for the second time in my life saved my life! Last but certainly not least my parents and my husband who sat with me for hours every single day and night that I was in the hospital. I know it was hard for them to see me in so much pain and hooked up to what seemed like every machine in the hospital, but they stayed strong and positive for me. I remember taking walks in the hospital holding onto my father and my husband, my two favorite men were there to hold my hand every step of the way (literally). My mom stayed with us for the first 2 nights after I came home from the hospital just in case we needed anything, her and Craig let me relax while they figured out the many medications I'd be taking. And when I had to sleep on the recliner in our living room for a week, my husband wouldn't leave my side, he slept on the couch so he could be close to me. My husband and I have always had a strong relationship and though I wish I never had to go through this, this experience has brought us so much closer together! I really don't think there are enough words of appreciation for all of the prayers, and words of encouragement that I received over the last few weeks. I'm so glad that this is behind me and I'm ready to get back to my life, I will happily return to my job on Wednesday April 6. I am truly, truly, blessed and thankful for each and every one of you! THANK YOU! ~Tara

I've been journaling less often, but I guess that's a good sign, I don't have much to report. It's amazing what a difference each week makes. I am happy to say that I have reached many of my goals from last week with the exception of laying flat on my back, I pretty much reached all of the goals I set last week. *Take longer walks *Eat out at a restaurant *Maintain normal Coumadin level!! *Go to the store I had my follow up appointment with my surgeon's nurse practitioner and had my coumadin levels checked and it was 2.6, for the first time it was normal, that for me was the most exciting news! I am looking into purchasing an at home INR machine with the help of my insurance, has anyone else done this? The thing that is scary to me, is that as soon as I find out that I'm pregnant I have to switch over to Lovonox, because Coumadin is very dangerous to the baby during the first trimester. I would prefer to switch over to Lovonox prior to getting pregnant but I've been told its expensive and there is a chance my insurance won't cover the cost of Lovonox until I'm pregnant. I just pray that they will. Other than that my only complaint right now is that my back gets sore when I sit up for a long period of time, does anyone else have this problem? I'm hoping it goes away with time. This week I'll be home by myself the whole week. I'm hoping it goes fast. Last week I had a friend stay with me for a few days and was really only home by myself on Friday. My plan for now is to stay home this week and try to go back to work the following week maybe Wednesday April 6th. I have a follow up appointment with my cardiologist on Tuesday April 5th so as long as he is comfortable with me heading back to work, than I'm ready to start slow and go back a few days a week and maybe work from home the other days. Lots of good things to come in the near future! ~Tara

Yay! I'm so excited to finally reach the 2 week milestone! I have to say for the most part, I've been feeling so much better this whole week. It's amazing how much progress I've made in the last week. It hasn't all been easy, there have been a few difficulties along the way and I'm really hoping that my recovery only gets easier. Today was a beautiful day out and a friend came over with her 5 week old munchkin and we went for a walk, my longest yet! I felt winded towards the end so we stopped. Later on I started to feel a little fever coming on, I took a cool shower and just drank a lot of water. Hopefully I can sleep it off tonight, I really don't think I have it in me to fight being sick. I REALLY want to get better. My husband goes back to work on Monday and I want him to be able to go with a peace of mind so he doesn't have to worry about me, he's done plenty of that! I am going to miss having him home though. My Coumadin levels haven't exactly been steady which for me is the scary part. I've had a visiting nurse here 3 times this week. First it was high 3.8, then it was low 1.7 and again today it was low 1.7. For those of who you who may not know, a good coumadin level is between 2 and 3 however my doctors want to see my levels between 2.5 and 3.5. I think I'm just scared about having to manage this the rest of my life. Today the nurse pricked my finger and no blood came out because I was so low, thats crazy! I'm trying to find out if my insurance will cover the purchase of the INR machine (the machine used to test my coumadin levels) It's such a serious medicine to be on and being too high or too low is soo scary to me. I'm trying to find a primary care physician near me. I had an appointment with one earlier this week, but I really didn't like him. He seemed so antiquated and it was obvious that he does the same thing with every patient. He asked me to lay flat on his patient table and when I told him I couldn't he said he wouldn't be able to hear my heart. I had to remind him that I was just 2 weeks shy of having had open heart surgery and laying flat on my back hadn't been added to my list of accomplishments yet. So I did a little more reasearch and have an appointment with another doctor next Friday. ((Fingers Crossed)) I realized that this journal entry started out so positive and then I started to complain. My apologies, so I'm going to end on a positive note: Here are some of my accomplishments within the last week: *Sleeping in my own bed (with lots of pillows) *Reached 2,500 on Incentive Spirometer *Stopped taking pain medicine *Back to a normal diet and eating habits *Can walk up and down stairs on my own *No passing out in the shower! *Did the dishes on my own *Prepared meals on my own *Took my longest walk yet Goals for next week: *Lay flat on my back *Take longer walks *Eat out at a restaurant *Maintain normal Coumadin level!! *Go to the store It really helps to read everyone elses progress so I can compare it to my own. At times I feel like I can do anything but than I have to remind myself that I need to take it slow and not rush anything. ~Tara