Today I have a pulmonary test done. I'm wondering what that is all about. The hospital I'm having the surgery at is Providence Medical Center in Everett, ...Read more
Today I have a pulmonary test done. I'm wondering what that is all about. The hospital I'm having the surgery at is Providence Medical Center in Everett, WA. It's among the top ten hospitals in the nation. My surgeon is Dr. Joseph Austin, he's the top heart surgeon in WA. I met him two weeks ago and was very impressed with him. He answered my many questions with patience and compassion. I still get a nervous stomach in the late afternoon. Yesterday being one week pre-op I kept thinking one week from today at this time I'll be going into surgery. One week from today I'll be on the heart lung machine, then I'll be in recovery and so on. I'm trying not to dwell on things but I know too much and it's been on my mind for three years. Once I was told I had to have an aortic valve replacement, I've been obsessing and worrying about it. Now the time is close at hand. I can't believe how quickly it moved along. I was asymptomatic until two months ago then everything happened so quickly once I had to go to the ER. Thank God things did move quickly. My valve opening is closing up, it's .86 cm from 1.1 in April. The doctor said he's never seen this happen so quickly before. I started not taking vitamin supplements yesterday. Hopefully today won't be so worry some. I'll let you know how I make out with the test. I'm curious to know what it is. Have a good day and my prayers go out to those of you having just had and are going to have their surgeries soon.
Lora Lee Peterson Fran, your post is an echo of what I'm feeling, and what I think is happening to me. I keep saying I ... Read more
Lora Lee Peterson Fran, your post is an echo of what I'm feeling, and what I think is happening to me. I keep saying I wish I didn't think about it so much, but it's pretty difficult not to think about it. Good luck with your test, and I'm saying prayers for you too!
Eddie Patton For me it was just blowing into a tube a couple of times. Only a few minutes.
Janea Christensen Fran, the pulmonary tests is to rule out that something related to your lungs (not your heart)is caus ... Read more
Janea Christensen Fran, the pulmonary tests is to rule out that something related to your lungs (not your heart)is causing shortness of breath and other symptoms. I just had my pulmonary evaluation. I am also in the Seattle area. Glenn Barnhart is performing my surgery at Swedish in Seattle.
Fran, I understand your anxiety. My surgery is July 14. I still can't believe it. I am afraid my b ... Read more
Fran, I understand your anxiety. My surgery is July 14. I still can't believe it. I am afraid my body will not know how to deal with this. I have pretty much been healthy and zipping through life without any problems until the last six months. Reading all of these surgery experiences has shown me that we can be repaired. Yes, it is scary. I will be praying for you. Try to do some things you enjoy. Take care.
Tammy Pilcher Prayers and best wishes, Fran! God bless you!
Recliner delivered yesterday. It fits in the room! We don't have much space. Had a bad morning yesterday. Woke up with the surgery on my mind. Been getting ...Read more
Recliner delivered yesterday. It fits in the room! We don't have much space. Had a bad morning yesterday. Woke up with the surgery on my mind. Been getting up at 4 AM. My stomach is very nervous. Trying to think positive thoughts. Got my hair cut short so it's easy to take care of after surgery. Went to Barnes and Noble, had lunch with my daughter and got a word seek book to do while recuperating. One test on Wednesday and two tests on Thursday. It's getting closer. When I lie down I can hear my valve going a mile a minute. Don't like hearing that. Happy Father's Day to all the dads on the site. Talk to you soon.
Jeanette Davidson I totally get you Fran! I think it's all natural and normal to have a nervous stomach and wake up ea ... Read more
Jeanette Davidson I totally get you Fran! I think it's all natural and normal to have a nervous stomach and wake up early in the morning. The waiting game is no fun. Glad you are preparing and getting yourself ready. Stay strong Heart Sister!š
Bob M I pray your surgery will be textbook and your recovery will be uneventful. It will be a new day when ... Read more
Bob M I pray your surgery will be textbook and your recovery will be uneventful. It will be a new day when you wake up with a fixed heart. God bless and rise up!
Fran, my surgery is not until July 14 and I have days where I can't believe I am going to do this. I ... Read more
Fran, my surgery is not until July 14 and I have days where I can't believe I am going to do this. It is like my head knows it but my body won't know what is happening. I am afraid my body will not know what to do. š I have been waking up at 3 and 4 for the last two weeks. Today, I was irritable. I did not get a nap, ha. I did make a cherry pie, did some shopping for the hospital, and took a good walk. Do things you enjoy when your mind is heavy. Thinking of you, heart sister.
Larry Beck My recliner was delivered today, brilliant minds think alike! When I had my rotator cuff surgery thre ... Read more
Larry Beck My recliner was delivered today, brilliant minds think alike! When I had my rotator cuff surgery three years ago my recliner saved me since I had to sleep sitting upright for a week after the surgery. Enjoy!
Tammy Pilcher Prayers and best wishes, Fran! God bless you!
Joe __ Fran , I did the exact same thing - cut my hair (what's left of it) shorter so there's one less thing ... Read more
Joe __ Fran , I did the exact same thing - cut my hair (what's left of it) shorter so there's one less thing to get to in immediate recovery. Do these little things and take your mind off it. You just got to show up and sit don after all. You got this
I was diagnosed with heart murmur 2004. In April around my 70th birthday, my aortic valve opening down to 1.1. Started having trouble with getting out of ...Read more
I was diagnosed with heart murmur 2004. In April around my 70th birthday, my aortic valve opening down to 1.1. Started having trouble with getting out of breath climbing stairs then feeling dizzy and weak. In two months valve openiing down to .86. Had cath, need by-pass surgery also, 80% blockage in circumflex artery. Met surgeon June 10th. I'm thrilled with him. Top surgeon in WA state. Surgery scheduled June 30th. Also had to have infected tooth extracted. Done June 11th. Recovered quickly from it. Bought recliner and pillows yesterday. Have good days and bad days with being out of breath, weak and fatigued. Can't avoid stairs, live in split level house. Pulmonary function test and pre-op tests next week. Now it's waiting game. A little nervous but want surgery so I can feel better. Symptoms have changed my lifestyle drastically.
Petey Bello Good luck to you Fran and you will be in our prayers.
Tammy Pilcher Prayers and best wishes, Fran, for your surgery and recovery!
Gerald Schaffer Best of luck and take it easy until you have your surgery since you have some blocked arteries.
Ray Lockhart Best wishes for you Fran. They say the waiting is the hardest part. Hope they are right:)
Fran Walsh Thank you everyone for your prayers and best wishes. I've known about this surgery for three years a ... Read more
Fran Walsh Thank you everyone for your prayers and best wishes. I've known about this surgery for three years and I've dreaded it all that time until I had symptoms. Now I want to get through this and back to normal.
Dr. Junaid Khan is a world-renowned heart valve surgeon that has performed thousands of heart valve operations that include minimally-invasive techniques.
