Daniel's Posts

Hi Everyone! One year ago today, I went to Mt. Sinai Hospital in NYC and completed all my pre-surgery tests. Around 3PM, I was told tomorrow's surgery would be on schedule - I passed all the tests. That night (12/6/2016), lying in hospital bed and wondering all different scenarios about my open heart surgery next day, I must admit I didn't get much sleep at all. It was a rather difficult time in my life. Fast forward, one year later, I am happy than ever! I am also doing really well — both physically and emotionally! Yes, my recovery this past year had a few ups and downs. But, just like most other patients, I've overcome each and every challenge I encountered. Many many times, I came to the HeartValveSurgery.com site and found answers to things or questions that were bothering me. I'm really grateful to everyone who provided me guidance and helped me thru this challenging journey! As for my personal life, this past year has been wonderful: My wife and I moved from NJ to PA, enjoyed couple 3-week-long oversea vacations — one to northern Europe and the other was to China. While in Taiwan, I also participated in my university's 40-graduation reunion and met many of my classmates from 40 years ago! But, most importantly, I celebrated my grandson's birthday last month and was told my 2nd grandson will be born in coming January! How wonderful life can be after open heart surgery! Best of luck to you all!

Today, 4/7/17, marks 4-month post op for me. The good news is there isn't much I can share with everyone. My recovery for the past month has been fairly smooth and un-eventful. I continue to have minor pains between my shoulder blades and upper spine. I am also still experiencing mirror stabbing pains from the protruding sternal wires. These pains tend to happen at the end of the day and then go away in the morning, after a good night sleep. The only other event worth mentioning is I had a CT scan done for my brain a week ago at Mt. Sinai. My cardiologist wanted to rule out aneurysm in my brain that may cause a stroke. The report came back negative which makes me very happy! That is all for this month. I will continue to view others post and post my own reports here, but, probably less frequently. I sincerely thank everyone who have been helping and encouraging me to go through this difficult journey of OHS and recovery. I wish you all the best!

Today, 3/7/17, marks the 3nd month post my OHS. This past month, again, has been relatively uneventful. While my incision and sternum continue to heal, after exercise or a long walk, however, the top of my incision tends to get warm, red and/or itchy. Different type of clothing can also make it itchy and warm. Furthermore, this past weekend, I started getting sharp or stabbing pains in some spots at the top of the incision area. These jabbing pains, lasting only couple seconds, can be triggered by arms or body movements. However, the pain does not happen often, it tends to hit me unexpectedly. Not knowing what was going on, I got very concerned. I called my surgeon Dr. Stewart's office and was told to get a non-contrast chest CT scan. After reviewing my CT scan report which mailed him, Dr. Stewart stated that my "CT scan looks perfect. I think the pain you are feeling is just the normal healing process". His statement took a big load off my mind — no surgery needed. Since I know how busy he is, I am rather grateful for his quick response and comments. So, I guess my lesson learned here is while sternum is healing, it can move bones or wire a bit and "create" pains. I continue to work with my local cardiology doctor to adjust my Metoprolol dosage. At this point, I am taking ½ of 25 MG pill each day. My average blood pressure is around 110/75 and my heart rate averages at 75 beat per minute. To lower my LDL (125), my cardiologist also wants to start taking "red yeast rice" supplement. I hope after couple months, my LDL can be lower to below 100. This past Monday, I started my cardio rehab. To my surprise, because my OHS did not involve any of my heart valves, Medicare will not paid for my rehab — who knew? I will be going there 3 times a week for at least a month. One thing I am still learning for my recovery is not to over exert myself. If I do too much the day before, I will be exhausted the next day. This phenomenon is something I never experienced before my OHS. So, I will keep reminding myself "steady as you go" this month, next month, until I am fully recovered. :-)