Melissa's Guestbook

Hi Melissa, I am five weeks post op and I am amazed at you talking about going back to work. You talk as though you are in the medical profession. I know my heart is doing well but the muscular/skeletal pain takes over if I push the boundaries. You sound just as I feel. I\'m in total awe of the surgeons and the new life they have given me. I am impatient to get well - there is so much to do with a healthy ticking heart. Best wishes young one. Rosemary Sutherland

Way to go, Melissa! Recovery can be hard work, but so worth it. I continue to wish you the best. One day, you will have only a faint memory of these last few months. Sheila Garrison

Melissa -- I am so glad everything went well for you and you are home !!! I also had surgery at the Cleveland Clinic on Sept 2nd --- One thing that I have used for my scar is a silicon strip and it has made a huge difference in the healing process -- I used a product called scar away and I ordered it via the internet --- I started it on week four ..... good luck to you and your continued healing :) Darlene

Melissa, I\'m glad you\'re finally able to have your surgery. Wishing you a very uneventful surgery and recovery. U hope you\'ll be feeling better soon. Ricki Shine

Dear Melissa, Your roller coaster ride is about to come to the straight part. I\'ll play Pink Floyd\'s Dark Side of The Moon for you on Friday. That\'s what being in surgery was like for me. I was wheeled in and next thing I knew, I was in CCU. A very strange experience for me. I wish the best for you and will include you in my prayers. You deserve a smooth ride now! Today is my 3 month post op date and I am back at my 100%. Haven\'t felt this great in years. Sheila Garrison

Melissa, Know that there\'s a day coming soon when you\'ll look back on all of this, and it will have been worth it. Godspeed to you and your family. Wade Clark

I have been following your journal because it is the most closely related to my condition. You have not posted for numerous weeks so I hope you are doing well. Just to let you know that there are a lot of people you have never met that really do care about you.

Melissa, I spent 12 total days in the hospital this past summer. :( Try to get your husband to get you a great book, take up some crochet (or however you spell it). Try to find away to get your brain out of the room! :) That helped me a lot! Sheila is right, once you have the surgery, girl, you are home free. I believe you are going thru the worst part right now. (The mental part!) Christy

Hi Mellisa, Keep hanging in there. It has to be tough to stay in the hospital. Once you have the surgery, everyhting gets easier (my opinion). You have a good looking family. Prayers going out to you and your family. Sheila Garrison

Melissa, it\'s great that your doc is being careful!!!! From my experience (2 valves replaced) it wasn\'t so bad. I was actually mad at myself for waiting to have it done. I wasn\'t with it when they took the ventilator tube out and several of the major lines. Technology and medication these days are amazing!!!! You will feel so much better!!!! I\'m going to follow your story!!!! Christy

Hi Melissa, I just found your journal and it particularly caught my attention because I am having AVR surgery on 9/8. I am so nervous so it helps me to read the journals on this site. I still have to make a decision on what type of valve I want. Either mechanical or tissue. I was wondering what are you getting. I am struggling with this decision and any input you can give me will certainly help. I wish you the best and a speedy recovery with your surgery. God Bless. Julie (SC)

Hey Melissa, Hope this finds you doing better than your last post... Think that one day post-surgery, these challenges will be a distant memory and you\'ll be feeling better than you\'ve felt in a long time. Have faith! Wade

Melissa, You are taking all the right steps. Slowly but surely, you will see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just keep doing what you\'re doing. My thoughts are with you! Keep on tickin! Adam Pick

Melissa Thanks for writing. For all my years with the bicuspid valve, up to, and including the detection of the ascending aortic aneurysm, I had very few symptoms. Only shortness of breath beginning in Spring 2011. The aneurysm is measured at 4.5 cm, just on the border of concern. Since they will be replacing the valve they are thinking of doing the aorta at the same time. Be well. Tim l

Oh, Melissa! My heart goes out to you now. But, you need to find out why you have that cough. I\'ll continue you hold you in my thoughts and send up some prayers for you. You\'ve gone through so much.... Sheila Garrison

Hey Melissa. I had a very, very bad cough too!!!! I fought bronchitis off and on for the past 2 years. It got really bad in April and May!!! I was on every kind of medication known to man!!!! The cough I had for 2 years, especially got bad when I would lay down flat!!!! I sounded like a 100 year old smoker that had severe asthma. I was put on 80 mg of lasix a day to help with the extra fluid my body was producing due to mitral and aortic valves. The heart had to work harder, producing the extra fluid. I had both valves replaced this past June and the cough is GONE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wish I had this done 2 years ago!!!! I wish you luck on your journey. I had a great surgical experience!!!!! Christy Naughton

Hi Melissa, Sorry to hear that you didn\'t received call backs for your important questions. I hear that the Cleveland Clinic is the best also. As for me, my surgeon worked there for 10 yrs before moving to California and now is the #1 heary surgeon in Calif and at St. Bernardine\'s. I think I\'ve called his office 4 or 5 times with questions (since I\'m an HMO pt. and I\'m still waiting to get approval to see my regular cardiologist) and have talked with his PA or nurse each time. Wish you the best, Melissa Sheila Garrison Apple Valley, CA

Hi Melissa, Do you mean the cardiologist at CC or your local doctor? I never had a problem with CC after they made initial contact. If this is the problem I would make my dissatisfaction known to whoever is in charge of cardiac surgery (Dr. Lytle???) the name should be on the website. My local cardiologist and his staff were a different story. They were NOT excited about me going to Cleveland. I had a very difficult time getting the records from CC transferred to my local guy. I am pretty sure it was not the fault of CC (when you have been there, you will know that they are professional in every way.) Finally, one of the PTs at Cardio-Rehab suggested that I just have CC send the records to me and that solved everything. I don\'t know why I didn\'t think of that. I found the local cardiologist dragged his feet at first but now he is TOTALLY on board because me recovery was amazing. You would almost think he had recommended that I go to CC! He told me that the surgeons he works with are in touch with CC to learn the procedure that I had done. If it\'s your local doctor who isn\'t responding, I would change doctors! Anne

Hi Melissa! My surgeon was Joseph Sabik who is the chair of Cardiac Surgery at CCF. He was wonderful. Like Anne, I can\'t remember the name of my cardiologist but I did like him a lot. As for follow-up appointments in Cleveland, most of us don\'t have them. Once I was discharged from the hospital (6 days after surgery) I was under the care of my doctors at home (South Carolina). It has worked very well for me. I don\'t anticipate going back to Cleveland until such time as I need another valve replacement (I have a bovine valve which averages 15 years, although I\'m determined mine will last far longer!) Like Anne, I encourage you to do cardiac rehab. Some cardiologists don\'t encourage their patients to do it but I found it very helpful in my very easy recovery. Take care!! Ricki

Hi again Melissa, I picked Dr. Mihajevic for my surgeon. I just liked his story but, that said, I made a really intelligent decision. As for my cardiologist, I couldn\'t tell you without digging out my records. I had the surgery on Friday afternoon and on Monday morning a young cardiologist made the rounds and we talked for awhile about my new iPad. Then he said \"We really can\'t think of a reason to keep you here.\" I was released and while I took a shower, washed my hair and got dressed BY MYSELF, my husband went down to see the concierge and changed our plane reservations so we could fly back to Denver on Tuesday. I stayed home on Wednesday by myself and I LOVED it. The sun was shining, the birds were at the feeders and I couldn\'t have been happier. Several friends had volunteered to come up and \"sit\" but I really preferred to be alone and ponder my new valve. Which, by the way, was a bovine valve. At CC, I believe they prefer to use biologic valves - or so I understand from their website. I must be wired differently because once I had the surgery appointment in Cleveland, I relaxed totally. I had the best surgeon in the best clinic in the world and that was all I needed to know about it. Once I got home, I never spent a day in bed or took a nap. I started driving locally in about a week and a half because we live in the middle of the country. Dr. Mihaljevic can usually do aortic valve replacement through a 3 inch incision which means no pain to speak of and quicker recovery. I strongly recommend cardio-rehab after surgery. Please write if you have any questions. My story has been incredibly easy and positive - so much so that I am almost embarrassed by it. A couple of people have even questioned if I am SURE that Dr. Mihaljevic actually did anything. Haha - yes, I\'m sure! Hope you have the same positive results... Between Ricki Shine, Barry from NM and myself, we can pretty much tell you everything you need to know about Cleveland Clinic! Anne

Hi Melissa, I had my aortic valve replaced 7/16/2010 at Cleveland Clinic. I did not have the symptoms that you do but realized when bike riding that \"it is TIME!\". We had been monitoring my valve for about 10 years but it became obvious when surgery was necessary. As long as you have been to Cleveland, you are in the best of hands. I hope they have scheduled your surgery and I will keep you in my thoughts. I was described as the ideal surgery patient because I had no other factors involved. But, I was also 69 and sort of out of shape! Nonetheless, I recovered in record time with never the slightest hitch. I can pretty much assure you that any surgeon you get at CC is one of the best in the country so I wouldn\'t worry unduly about the switch to someone else! Life has changed in the past year! By all means, consider cardio-rehab! It has shown me just what I need to do to take advantage of this second chance at life. Check my journal - I have to do a new post when I have time! Anne Shannon