Craig Spiers - Heart Valve Journal

My Journal

523 days ago

Rose Madura, Grace Mason reacted to this

Hi all my name is Craig - iam a Generally fit young man at 23 I was contracted for work in Scotland when I took sick and was rushed back home and woke up days ...Read more

Hi all my name is Craig - iam a Generally fit young man at 23 I was contracted for work in Scotland when I took sick and was rushed back home and woke up days later in Belfast royal Victoria hospital with endocarditis during my stay there I was told I had to have heart surgery and if I’m honest it really did scare me and still does after it all I was told I was a candidate for mitral valve repair the surgery went well but after I was told I still have a tiny mild leak still after the repair surgery. I have good and bad days where I wake up thinking I’m going to die and my life is going to be cut short and days where Iam grateful it happened because I get to live a little longer.

Craig Spiers Just wondering if this is normal…? I often think about it 2 months later and find it difficult to ... Read more

Craig Spiers Just wondering if this is normal…? I often think about it 2 months later and find it difficult to comprehend what happened, and I haven’t really spoken to anyone and find myself researching on google often. I was told by my cardiologist I could return to contact rugby and could live a happy and long life. But I feel like this couldn’t be true.

Jill Porter It may be that you have some trauma from what you experienced. It may help you to talk to someone lik ... Read more

Jill Porter It may be that you have some trauma from what you experienced. It may help you to talk to someone like a therapist. Your cardiologist sounds very confident that you are well. Your should think of that often. It is very understandable that you would be shaken up. Two months is not really a long time. You may just need more time to feel safe again.

Ana Brusso Well said Jill. I agree with you. Craig, it’s only been two months. Find someone to talk to (a prof ... Read more

Ana Brusso Well said Jill. I agree with you. Craig, it’s only been two months. Find someone to talk to (a professional). You can always write in here, we are great listeners and understand where you’re coming. God bless you

Rose Madura Hi Craig and welcome. I'm so sorry you've had deal with this at such a young age. Your body has bee ... Read more

Rose Madura Hi Craig and welcome. I'm so sorry you've had deal with this at such a young age. Your body has been through a lot and so have your emotions. It's very understandable and if most of us heart warriors were as honest as you, we've all had mental stress to go along with it. I agree with Jill that it might help to talk to a professional. And trust your cardiologist. God bless you. I will keep you in my prayers. ❤️‍🩹

Rita Savelis I hear you Craig. Going through unexpected emergency surgery is hard. And even though everything went ... Read more

Rita Savelis I hear you Craig. Going through unexpected emergency surgery is hard. And even though everything went well, you are left wondering. And recovering emotionally. You need time to process. Bad days happen to everyone. It's good to talk about them and about your fears. Those fears are real. Putting words on how you feel can be helpful. Take care. I'm sorry that you had to go through this experience at 23.

Craig Spiers Thank you everyone! I appreciate it.

Pamela Gregory Hi Craig. I can't speak for everyone, but for me I had similar days after my surgery for months. It i ... Read more

Pamela Gregory Hi Craig. I can't speak for everyone, but for me I had similar days after my surgery for months. It is not uncommon after heart surgery from what I have read and experienced. I feel better now (a year later) but still have it creep in occasionally

Marie Myers Recovery is part physical and part emotional. Sometimes the emotional healing takes longer than the p ... Read more

Marie Myers Recovery is part physical and part emotional. Sometimes the emotional healing takes longer than the physical healing. Hang in there, you will continue to progress!

George Gardopee Hi Craig. Regarding your fear that your life is going to be cut short - you may have already been tol ... Read more

George Gardopee Hi Craig. Regarding your fear that your life is going to be cut short - you may have already been told this but if not, it turns out mitral valve repair is one of the very few major surgeries that do not affect your life expectancy. There is a video on this site (and on YouTube) by Dr Chikwe that is worth watching. I also had endocarditis and valve repair, although I was much older at the time. This video was very reassuring to me at the time.

Everything you are feeling is completely normal. Most of us here have experienced these same emotions. It gets better.

https://youtu.be/7NB3OvUXrGk?si=lFaQQDoYmonm7Hk2">https://youtu.be/7NB3OvUXrGk?si=lFaQQDoYmonm7Hk2

Life Expectancy & Heart Valve Surgery: Patient Insights with Dr. Joanna Chikwe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=lFaQQDoYmonm7Hk2

https://www.Heart-Valve-Surgery.com - There is no doubt about it. Heart valve disease can be debilitating and life-threatening. Thankfully, there are several...

Sharon Behl Wise words from everyone Craig. Do not hesitate to speak with a therapist. Often the cardiac rehab pe ... Read more

Sharon Behl Wise words from everyone Craig. Do not hesitate to speak with a therapist. Often the cardiac rehab people have one on staff...it's totally a normal part of healing your WHOLE self after surgery.

Lyle KIMBRELL Craig, you could not have found a better place for encouragement and support than this site. Please ... Read more

Lyle KIMBRELL Craig, you could not have found a better place for encouragement and support than this site. Please keep posting. Understanding that you are not alone and are supported by this warrior community is a blessing.

Robert Miller Usually they don't close you up unless there is no leakage. But some minor leakage later on is quite ... Read more

Robert Miller Usually they don't close you up unless there is no leakage. But some minor leakage later on is quite common. I assume before they did the surgery they did a TEE. Ask your cardiologist to show you the TEE and what it was after. There will probably be a big difference which should help ease your mind. Also talk to your cardiologist what might have caused the problem in the first place. He probably can't give you something concrete but maybe there is something in the family history which you should make your kids aware of.