Stephanie's Photos

Stephanie Jones  yeah. my 3 drain hole scars are horrible. just gaping huge. (i guess because those weren't sealed w/ surgical glue.

Clare Auten  Looks great! I'm almost 3 years out and mine won't fade. In fact it turns purple in cold weather. I still don't hide it. Be proud.

Catie B  You are a beautiful lady and your scar doesn't diminish that in the slightest.
That surgical glue must be a marvel! My scar's much wider and redder and my surgery was in Sept.

Clare Auten  Mine still hasn't faded and it's been almost 3 years. I have embraced mine...I don't hide it. You look great!

Rita Savelis  Yeah, it's tough. Especially since others see it more than we do and can get used to it faster than we can. I still have trouble with mirrors....!
Take care.

Peggy Whitecotton  I'm proud of my battle scar (as I call it). Every time I look at it I am reminded that I have a new heart and I am alive...

Stephanie Jones  No. what is mederma... i'll look it up.
i have neosporin. i saw commercials help that heal... i'm 4 mos. post op now though. too late?

Bob Fessler  Wow. 100 over 77 is normal? I thought that might be a bit low on the top side but I know nothing about it. I'm glad you are feeling it is good. You are getting better which is wonderful!

Stephanie Jones  Well its been 80s over 50s since surgery with 100 pulse at rest. My normal presurgery is 100-125/70

Meredith Bray  Sorry you had to return to work before you're ready. I was still on betablockers when i returned to bus driving. Boy, did that make a difference on tolerating 8th grade students! :) Make sure you get plenty of rest!

Stephanie Jones  Hi everyone! feeling great!! blood pressure still very very low. 80s-60s, this morning it was actually 78/60. pulse 85. my follow up w/ cardiologist was 2 days ago. He changed me from metroprolol back to nadadol. to lower my pulse (which was 100 at rest that day- 85 today so thats working). the scar looks great. they used surgical glue, so no stitches. the bump at the top that everyone gets has gone down a significant amount. thank you everyone for the complements! <3

Amy Steele  I had that same problem. The itchiness and sensitivity went away after several days. I developed an itchy, very sensitive-to-the-touch rash around my incision. The doctor recommended cortisone cream with aloe around the incision and it helped. Also, per advice from an occupational therapist friend of mine, as soon as it's comfortable to do so, you should massage your scar every day to keep it supple and from pulling. I made up a cream with essential oils in a shea butter base to use on mine and it is healing great. I also used my favorite L'Occitane body cream on it before I made up the cream with essential oils.

Amy Steele  I should clarify that I didn't actually put anything on the incision until it was totally sealed and healed. I just put the cortisone cream on the skin around the scar. I didn't start massaging the incision site until week 5 or 6. At your point in the healing, I didn't want to touch the incision...

Steve Farthing  As your husband noted at 10:05, you did receive an annuloplasty ring. A surgeon recently told me every mitral repair he does now includes such a ring which prevents any future issue with the annulus becoming dilated because the ring stabilizes the annulus size. They also use a sizing tool to determine the ring size for each patient. Sounds like you only needed a ring - no reshaping of the mitral leaflets was required and no chord repair. Nice.

Stephanie Jones  Yes that's what it sounds like I will ask Dr Saunders at the follow up exactly what needed to get done. I'm curious because he said in the notes that it was complicated

Amy Steele  Stephanie - Your scar looks great! I was beginning to think that the doctors and nurses didn't know what they were talking about when they told me that the awful lump at the top of my incision would go away. I'm at 9 weeks post-op with a full sternotomy and the lump is gone. My only complaint now is that my surgeon didn't cut straight. :-) My scar veers off to the left... Your scar will heal beautifully. It'll be so nice for you to be home. Keep up the good work!

Patricia McAllister  You look great, Stephanie, and your journal inspires me to stay positive! Tomorrow is my big day. ~Patricia

Catie B  So glad for you, Stephanie! It's a great relief to have the chest tubes removed. In fact, the one that extended up my side caused the most pain of any aspect of the surgery. Your photos are lovely, Keep getting stronger!

Elizabeth Ott  Hi Stephanie. You look pretty darn good in this pic! I'm having my second OHS on my mitral valve in 14 months. I'm more nervous this time around but I also am looking forward to being able to breath easier when playing sports! I wish you a speedy recovery. Liz

Adam Pick  Go Stephanie! Go! Fyi, you inspired over 1,700 Likes and 250 comments at our Facebook page. If you haven't seen the post we shared about you, please click https://www.facebook.com/heartvalvesurgery/

Tina Maroon  Feel better soon Stephanie. I hope you continue to improve. I know the breathing part is the hardest. Its still hard for me sometimes and its 16 mo. post op.

Ben Hyman  Best of luck-you will do great. I really enjoy watching your video blog. Extremely helpful for the rest of us about to go through this

Stephanie Jones  TEE severe Regurgitation
This was my TEE from last month showing Severe Regurgitation through the middle. My surgeon said that because the jet was going straight up through the middle, that it is most likely that my valves aren't reaching each other due to dilation. If the jet were going at an angle to the side, that would mean one of the flaps were not working.

Vicki Hake  Stephanie, I know you must be feeling anxious but I too had the surgery you are getting ready to have. I couldn't believe how much easier it was to breathe, immediately after the surgery. Praying for a quick recovery!

Robert D'Aurora  Yeah, that is something I immediately noticed - how much easier it was to breathe. I didn't realize that I had been struggling to breathe until after the surgery when it became so much easier to breathe. Hope you get the same results!