Jeffrey's Guestbook

Jeffrey Shebovsky  WOW! Congrats to be on the other side. It's amazing!  You will do great. It's hard to believe how fast it goes.  I seriously feel like I never even had surgery, let alone such a major one. Best of luck to you for a speedy and uneventful recovery and a great life ahead.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hey Adam. Great to see and hear from you!  Now that is cool! I love your personal touch. I owe it all to you buddy. Had I not read your book I would never have known about the Ross nor that it was even an option. And this website...wow. Amazing. You have done a great service to the heart valve community.  Hope you are well and hope one day we can meet in person.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Thanks Linda. Congrats on 10 years and becoming a great grandmother. My oldest daughter just got married so who knows, I may be a grandfather one day....I'm in no rush for that title though.  Take care and best to you.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Thank you Margaret. Can't believe it will be 19 years from that surgery. You gave my mom the best gift and we will be forever grateful to you. Sorry you couldn't make it to the wedding, we missed you. It was a fantastic wedding. Hope to see you soon

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hi Matt,

Thanks for writing. I am happy to hear that my journal was helpful to you. And yes, the guided visualization was amazing and SO helpful. This one is awesome and the main one I used pre-surgery"

https://www.healthjourneys.com/audio-library/surgery-prep-recovery/successful-surgery

This one I used post surgery and included healing affirmations and visualizations. I literally used it in ICU as soon as I could.

https://www.healthjourneys.com/audio-library/surgery-prep-recovery/two-guided-meditations-for-cardiac-icu-rehab-config

Best thing you can do is be healthy mentally and physically. My recovery, as you have read, was nothing short of spectacular.

You are truly with the best surgeon and human being in Dr. Stelzer and he is 6 years more experienced now than when he did mine. I am so glad he is still doing surgeries. Amazing! Please say hello from me and send him my best. He is a special guy.

If you would like to speak just shoot me an email and I will send you my cell number. jshebovsky11@gmail.com

Best of luck to you. It will be tough at first but you will be amazed at how fast recovery speeds along. Just look at where I was 6 days post op walking the streets of NYC and where I was even 2 weeks post. Hard to believe.

I am still doing GREAT now just past 6 years. Zero issues. Play baseball, work out, work like crazy. It truly is like this surgery never even happened.

I look forward to welcoming you to the Ross family.

Again, good luck and I am here if you want to talk or email.

Jeff

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hi Ken,
Wow, having both replaced. yes would love to chat about this. Email me at jshebovsky11@gmail.com with your number and we can set something up.
Jeff

Jeffrey Shebovsky  You can get the neck done anytime (unless you are on blood thinners still). For the mid back area I would say 3 months. And ask the Chiropractor if they can do an "anteriority" adjustment rather than "P to A". As of the mid back/scapula issues, I know that all too well. After my surgery that was killing me. I would say get massage. I was getting it 3 days a week for my mid back area. You can have them do it seated. (you obviously do not want to lie face down yet) If they have their own chair, you can lean gently into it with a pillow on your chest if needed. Best of luck with your recovery, the hardest part (the waiting for surgery) is over and done. Let me know if you need anything else.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hello Lisa. I would be pleased to answer any questions you have. Please email me at: jshebovsky11@gmail.com and I will send you my phone number

Jeffrey Shebovsky  On a sidenote. It will be worth every penny to fly up and meet Dr. Stelzer in person and interview him. You'll be sold as I was after meeting him. I have other Dr. Stelzer references for you as well.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hi DJ,
Advice? I have lots I am sure. Try not to stress over it. SO many go through this and SO many do so well. Odds are in your favor. Try some guided visualization/imagery. I did a couple. This one was very good:

http://www.healthjourneys.com/Store/Products/Successful-Surgery-Health-Journeys/29

I did it before and after surgery along with an after surgery affirmation one for healing. My recovery was quick and uneventful. Been just over 3 years now and its like it never even happened. Within a few weeks you won't believe how good you will be doing. The waiting and stressing is probably the hardest part. Make sure you also get a good "adrenal support formula". Google Dr. James Wilson and adrenal. He has some good info and also sells stuff. Heart surgery is a major stress to the body and the adrenal glands deal with stress. Many patients after heart surgery are VERY fatigued. You will see this over and over. I had NONE. Check out my posts. I believe the Guided Imagery and the adrenal formula helped me avoid that. Another thing is get a good meal replacement shake. Bring to hospital with a small magic bullet blender. I use Isagenix. This was helpful for me to get good nutrition especially while I had no appetite. Lots to consider. Write back if you want to correspond some more. Check out Damian Kudelka. He just had surgery like 6 weeks ago. He is on here. He can also give you advice, he just went through it more recently. Best of luck! - Jeff Shebovsky

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Jeff,
Thanks for your support as always. I really appreciate the prayer you did for my before surgery.

Jeffrey Shebovsky  Hi John, as far as I know the usual triggers for surgery are 5.0 on the ascending aorta and less than 1.0cm sq on the valve area. Either one can trigger a surgical recommendation and then at the time of surgery they fix both. What is your valve area and mean pressure gradient? On the ascending aorta, 4.9 is pretty darn close to getting a surgical recommendation. Of course I'm not a cardiologist :)