About Me (In My Own Words)
I am 61 years old and live in Cary, NC with my husband, 16 year old son and sweet Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Cody.
I have known since I was 4 years old that I was born with a bicuspid aortic valve. I have been monitored by cardiologists over the years and have been a first-hand witness to medical advances since 1968. I wonder if anyone else remembers what an EKG used to entail?
I’ve always known that there was a good chance that my valve could become stenotic and I would require surgery. I had hoped I might be one of the ones to avoid this, but several years ago my echo showed that my valve had become stenotic. Fast forward to my cardiology follow up last month and it was determined that it was time for me to see a surgeon, which I did this past week. Until very recently I had not really had any symptoms other than feeling generally tired, which I easily attributed to poor sleep, stress, having a teenager, etc. etc. etc!
In addition to the stenotic aortic valve, my ascending aorta is dilated. The numbers are borderline, but the surgeon has recommended that this also be repaired, necessitating a sternotomy. This was a bit of a blow, but I am working to get used to the thoughts of it all and have been reading up here about people‘s experiences with recovery. I’ll add that I am a very anxious person and have a lot of medical anxiety, so this time until December 2nd is going to be very challenging for me.
I started following Adam’s website over a year ago to try to prepare for the inevitable. I have learned so much from the articles, videos and everyone’s shared stories and experiences. It has been wonderful to see the kindness, care and support that everyone shows for each other.
More Info About Me & My Heart
More About Me
-
I am from:
Cary, NC
-
My surgery date is:
December 2, 2025
-
I was diagnosed with:
Aortic Stenosis
Bicuspid Aortic Valve
Aortic Aneurysm
-
My surgery was:
Aortic Valve Replacement
Aortic Aneurysm Replacement
-
My surgeon is:
Dr. Jeffrey Gaca
-
My hospital is:
Duke University Hospital
