About Me (In My Own Words)
Just a brief early history. In 1964, at the age of almost 3, I was diagnosed with myocarditis. This illness left me with MVP. I was basically asymptomatic until the Fall of 2018. I had been followed by a cardiologist previously for a few years, but due to no symptoms, I had not had an appointment since 2006. I found myself being extremely fatigued, short of breath, light headed and disoriented, and experiencing heart palpitations. In January 2019, I finally scheduled an appointment with my cardiologist. An echo showed severe mitral regurgitation. He treated it conservatively, but the medication lowered my already low blood pressure and the dizziness was overwhelming. He referred me to a surgeon who recommended minimally invasive MV repair. Initially, he told me I could take some time to think about it; however, the next thing I know is a nurse is asking about scheduling surgery 5 weeks later. Wow. On June 6, 2019, I went into surgery at 2:30 in the afternoon. I highly suggest that if you are having a serious surgery, do not agree to an afternoon surgery. Mine originally was in the morning and then was changed. I was the 5th procedure my surgeon did that day and I think it made a difference. Apparently, I was awake briefly after the 5 hour procedure to speak to my loved ones. THAT was terrifying, because I don't remember any of it. My anesthesiologist was the first face I saw the next morning and he told me that. I asked if I said anything stupid, and he said "no". PTL. Of course, I was glad to awake. It is all a bit surreal. There are so many tubes and wires. My biggest concern prior to the surgery was going on the heart lung bypass machine and being intubated. I am a Speech/Language Pathologist and have worked extensively with patients who experience multi-system failure and have had complications from intubation. My anesthesiologist is the person I respect the most out of this whole experience. I expressed how being extubated as soon as possible was important to me. So, at least I woke up with only oxygen via nasal cannula. I spent 7 days in the heart hospital. I had a collapsed lung (right pneumothorax), some damage to the left lung, anemia, significant fluid retention, and low blood pressure. I did get a blood transfer while there and increased lasix following. As with most big surgeries some fluid retention is expected (around 3-5 pounds), but I gained 13 overnight. My blood pressure was around 64/35 the first 2 days and with any exertion my oxygen saturation fell below 90%. Of course, as with many who go through this, I became constipated from the anesthesia, pain medication, and iron supplements, so day 6 I got the molotov cocktail of magnesium citrate. That was fun. So, my story continues of complications and recovery since surgery, but I am new to this site and unsure where I write all the info. I'll end there and try to navigate to other people's stories. I am glad to find this site. It has been a long journey.
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
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I am from:
Indianapolis, Indiana
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My surgery date is:
June 6, 2019
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I was diagnosed with:
Mitral Regurgitation
Tricuspid Regurgitation
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My surgery was:
Mitral Valve Repair
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