Jackson's Journal

I had a routine cardiologist visit a month ago thinking I was going to just pass with flying colors and be on my way. After the echocardiogram I dreaded the way my cardiologist looked at me and said “I have some concerns based on the imagery” and she drew the heart on a piece of paper and explained while my aorta is not enlarging and other parts of the heart aren’t, the imagery shows the lining in the chambers thickening. My aortic regurgitation is worsening. I wore a ziopatch for a week which was annoying especially having to be mindful of a reunion with a friend and it getting in the way of a hug but it came back normal. This Wednesday I undergo a stress test and September 11th after my data is reviewed by a surgical board at the University of Chicago, I will see if I carry on with business as usual, get restrictions placed on me, and if surgery is in the near future. One of the most stressful predicaments of being a young person with Aortic Stenosis/ Regurgitation is this constantly being in limbo phase and the waiting. I honestly just want to try and get the surgery over with at this point. I had a similar scare in 2022 with a different cardiologist when I lived in California. I lost some weight and changed my job and that improved it for a time. Although I’ve always been told valve replacement would always be a question of when than if. I’m doing my best to make myself an ideal candidate for the Ross procedure as in Chicago several nationally renowned hospitals perform it.