Gabrielle's Journal

Richard Munson  I had mine in mid january during covid and my wife dropped me off at the door and picked me up a week later. You quickly learn that it is what it is and you cope with it. The staff in your heart ward will no doubt be the best of the best and in my case understood that i was alone and afraid. Did they take the place of my wife and family ? No. But i never felt abandoned and neither will you.

Joseph Heinzmann  Your feelings are not unusual; you're human and have the same apprehensions as all of us. Call your doctor and ask for help in getting a qualified person to help you talk things out. Use us here to chat back and forth. We have all been through this and a lot of us have dealt with rocky patches. You don't have to be alone with all the wonderful people here who will be able to support you!

Lena Afanaseva  I am 2,5 years post operation, still thinking about it every day. Your feeling is normal, waiting is the worst!

Susan Lynn  Gabrielle - I don't know how much I can add to the great advice already provided by the other heart warriors who have posted, but all kinds of thoughts are going to run through your head while you are awaiting surgery - don't let your imagination run away with you. Most of us have already had surgery - just like Lena said, waiting IS the worst! And, although your friend has returned home, you don't need anyone but yourself and medical team to get through this. Like Richard said, he was dropped off at the door - everyone who had procedures last year found themselves in a similar situation. One big plus of doing this on your own, is that you will only have to concentrate on yourself - not worry about your guest. You'll be sleeping much of the time you're in the hospital and the nursing staff will cater to your every need. When you go into pre-op, you only have one job, sleep. When you wake up, in what will feel like one minute, it will be over. You will put this procedure and all the worry behind you before you know it. Join cardiac rehab, if you can. Focus on something special that you want to do when you're recovered. It's always good to have a positive goal to work toward! If I can do this, you can do this! You're going to be just fine!

Ginny Turner  Hi Gabrielle, I’m new to the group and have not yet had my mitral valve surgery, so can’t offer my own experience as encouragement. But I appreciate those who have posted to help calm your fears - they’ve helped me, too! I feel so grateful for the amazing medical advancements that give us such confidence in having successful heart valve surgery. You’ll be fine and will feel better than ever when this is behind you! Please know I’m cheering you on tomorrow and will say a prayer for you from Texas.

Richard Munson  Just remember that beautiful dog will be waiting for your return home. I still recall my girl jumping up on the bed my first day home and burying her nose in my chest. Every time my wife said enough, she got a little rumble. I think she was there for a couple of hours. You will be fine. Keep the faith.

Richard Munson  I found his outline easily on line and i am a computer dunce . It lists his administrative assistants email and phone number. Contact this person and ask about his number of minimally invasive surgeries he has performed and success rates. Easy beans.

Richard Munson  Her name is andrea phillips, i should have said that. His email is also listed. You would ask the tough questions of a contractor working on your house, the doctor is no different. Also a second opinion never hurts.

Nancy W  I had mitral valve repair at Stanford Hospital with Joseph Woo August 4, 2020. My cardiologist completed both TEE ( trans esophageal echo and angiogram prior to recommending surgery. ( I had mitral valve prolapse and severe regurgitation). Dr. Woo’s team was very thorough in gathering info prior to scheduling surgery. I then had a full day of education and assessment prior to surgery. He was highly recommended and has performed multiple surgeries for valve repair and replacement. He did a minimally invasive procedure for me. Possibly, consider a consult with his team. They were very professional, well organized, attentive and had conducted these surgeries multiple times daily. Let me know if you have any questions- I live in San Jose and would be happy to talk with you. Glad you found this site- it’s been a life saver for me.

Richard Munson  Sounds like you have better input than me being there. I also had all those procedures in advance of mitral valve repair in january. August 26 is only 10 days away. Can’t imagine not having the preliminary steps we had before the big day. Must be a mistake.

Susan Lynn  I agree with Richard and Nancy. Selecting a surgeon is an interviewing process - I considered, but didn't select the surgeons my cardiologists recommended. Do your own research. Ask the tough questions. Also, make sure you have all of the preliminary work done in advance - you don't want any surprises in this process. It's important not to be intimidated by anyone you encounter - this is the time to be your own advocate. You can be pleasant and still be assertive. Best of luck to you!

Gabrielle Morningstar  thank you so much to all who answered....I'm on it ....what a relief to have something to go on. Perhaps it is just me, but since this process with Stanford began in May I feel like I am fighting for information every step of the way and its really freaking me out. If I had know when I started this that I had a valve problem I may have made different choices. Now I feel I'm on an unstoppable path with plane tickets purchased and dates set. I never got a chance to interview anyone . Thank you.

Gabrielle Morningstar  Ricard, I guess I am not as good on internet as you. I can not find what you were able to find. How do I get a number or whatever for Andrea Phillips? I am set up to have meeting with anaesthesiology Thursday cardiac cath Friday followed by a one hour educational talk with Dr. Boyd next monday followed by surgery a week from Trursday. I have not talked with anyone but a scheduler and have no information for after surgery etc. I really need to talk to someone. I have called and asked actually several times for contact and nothing has happened. There has already been a lot of out of pocket money spent and I am not liking how this is feeling. I don't understand the lack of communication. Does anyone know if this is out of the ordinary for Stanford. Maybe I am just doing something wrong. I have read great things about Dr. Woo Nancy but other than wonderful if brief patient reviews I can't find anything on Dr. Boyd. I'd really at least like to know how many repairs he has done.

Richard Munson  Also andrea30@stanford edu. It is never too late to put the brakes on if things do not feel right. This is your heart and you only have one. On this doctors experience page I saw a lot of aortic history not a lot if any mitral valve repair. I may have missed it. My uneducated advice would be to ask how many mitral valve procedures he has done. If you interview a carpenter to install a new kitchen, a roofer would not be your first choice. You also need to ask about minimally invasive or robotic surgical options vs. sternum
Entry and repair vs. replace . You want a doctor whose main focus is mitral valves. Just my opinion of course. Don’t rush into this without having a good feeling about the guy in charge. He may be great, by the way.

Nancy W  Another thought is to contact your cardiologist and discuss your concerns. I would consider getting a second opinion from Dr. Woo- he was an expert in mitral valve work. Are you experiencing symptoms?

Gabrielle Morningstar  Update......Finally someone from the team has contacted me and it seems they have the experience so I am feeling better. But still would like to hear from anyone out there who has had personal experience with Dr. Jack Boyd and his replacement team. It seems my valve is too damaged for repair and it won't be minimally invasive surgery. I have been misdiagnoses and really ill for years so actually am just incredibly grateful to finally be accurately diagnosed. I have had nonischemic heart failure for 13 years but all this time was told that my MVR was not a problem. I am so excited about the possibility of getting my life back. I still would love to hear from anyone who has had MVR at Stanford by Dr. Jack Boyd. I,m loving this site. It is wonderful to hear other person's stories.

Deena Z  Gabrielle, i know your nervous and want to get this surgery ove with, we have all been there. You got some incredible advice in this exchange. Airline tickets can Always be changed. Know that when you go to a top ranking surgeon, they repair, not replace, your mitral valve in 99 PERCENT of the cases. I was in your shoes 5 months ago. I went to Dr Adams at mt sinai in NYC for a mitral repair. If I had stayed with my surgeon in Virginia, he would have replaced my valve. Longevity is improved with a repair over a replacement. What was the reason given for not being able to do a repair?? My valve was severely calcified and had three jets of backflow (severe regurg.).

Sara Latina  Gabrielle - I hope you were able to get your questions answered or other opinions to make you feel comfortable. I went to 3 surgeosn, one out of state, and like what Susan said, "its an interview process". I am grateful to have found this site as soon as my cardiologist referred to me a surgeon. I'm scheduled now for 9/23 in NY. Which means travel but I'm beyond happy with my surgeon choice.