Jeffrey's Journal

I should've written sooner, however been busy living my fullest life absolutely doing great with no symptoms or any problems. March 7th was my 10 year anniversary. To say it went fast is an understatement. Went through the surgery with flying colors and never looked back. Hope I can encourage others with this post. I had the Ross procedure with Dr. Stelzer March 7, 2012. Thankfully, like I mentioned it all has been absolutely great for 10 years now. I pray another 10 and well beyond. Anybody want to reach out, please feel free I'm always happy to share my story, encourage and send along any helpful information that I can.

5 year Anniversary for me today (March 7, 2012) for my Ross Procedure. Doing totally awesome. Full, busy, active, sporty life..."like it never even happened". Thanks forever to my great surgeon Dr. Paul Stelzer...the BEST. And thanks to my family and friends, and all my great heart valve surgery support group friends. All the best to all of you. If anyone needs support going through this, please email me, write me here etc. Also, many thanks to Adam Pick for creating this amazing online community and for opening my eyes to the Ross Procedure. - Jeff Shebovsky - "Stelzer Ross #509"

Doing GREAT, GREAT, GREAT! So busy at work yesterday I almost forgot my anniversary and did not even have time to post. I am blessed with a strong and well functioning heart and I am thankful I get to live a full, normal life with my family and friends. I am always here for anyone going through this if they have questions or need support. I could not have had a better recovery and outcome. Grateful beyond words.

Hi All, Yesterday March 7 was 3 years since my Ross. All continues to go well. Just had a CT of my chest and the former ascending aortic aneurysm is still looking good (3.5 or somerging like that). I have an upcoming echo and cardiologist visit. I expect all to be great. I'm in Aruba now on vacation and due to poor wifi service I couldn't post yesterday on the actual day of my 3 years. Rest assured that yesterday, many times throughout the day, I thought about where I was 3 years ago. Seems surreal. So in summary, things are great! For those getting ready to go in know that it goes fast and you'll recover quicker than you think. To all my HVJ friends and family thanks for your support. I'll always have great memories of going though this life changing event with great friends I've made along the way here. Here's to a great life ahead for all of us! And as always thanks again to Adam Pick for creating this site and always improving it and for introducing me to the Ross via his book.

Two years ago (March 7, 2012), I was having my congenitally damaged bicuspid aortic valve removed and replaced. I opted for the Ross Procedure so I also had my pulmonary valve taken out and moved over to the aortic position and got a human cadaver pulmonary in its place. If that weren't enough, I also had my dilated, aneurysmal ascending aorta repaired. OH THE FUN! Here I am 2 years later. All is well! Life is good! I am blessed and grateful daily, especially on this special day of my anniversary. For those waiting, know that its a journey and that waiting is probably the hardest part. Once you are fixed, the healing goes incredibly fast. Go in prepared mentally, that is a big part of it. Contact me if anyone out there has any questions. To my good HVJ friends I have made along the way...god bless you all, you are all a special part of my journey. This will likely be my last "I am doing great" post. It's 2 years now, so how many years can I do this? On second thought, maybe every year, we will see. It's good to hear that things are good. I don't want the only time I post on here again is IF things are doing bad. Sooooo....perhaps I will post now and then. If nothing more, than to help others that are awaiting their big day and to somehow give them peace of mind. Take care all.

I just read HVJ friend Janis Kielbasa's update and I thought I would write an update. As usual my update is boring. Doing great, couldn't be better. My surgery was now 21 months ago (3-7-12) and it seems like forever ago as much as it seems like just yesterday. I had the opportunity this past month to get a free echo. A local MRI company whom I send MRI business to, also does echo's. They needed an echo on someone like me for accreditation or something like that, so they offered me a free one. I took them up on it. I spoke with the reading cardiologist afterwards and he said "if I did not know your history, I could never even tell you had surgery or ever even had any condition". That was so great to hear once again. As we end another year, I stand in awe of my journey through this, how well I have done and how lucky I am. I am grateful beyond words to have done so well through it all. As always I am forever grateful to my surgeon, Dr. Paul Stelzer. I am grateful for family, friends and HVJ friends for the support. Have a great 2014, healthy, happy and safe. On a side note: Thought sand prayers go out to HVJ patient Rachel Shelley. An amazing woman with an amazing family in the U.K. I only found out about Rachel from fellow HVJ friend Peter Woglom, as she was mentioned in his journal back in November. Since then I have been following Rachel's incredible story. Her mitral valve repair did not go so well and to make a long story short she has had an epic battle with several surgeries, organ shutdown and superbug infections. She, unfortunately, is now awaiting heart transplant. (well I guess it can be looked at as fortunate in a way, as her own heart, left ventricle, is permanently damaged). You can look her up on the journal here and read her story if you like.

A year ago today I was on the operating table having a Ross procedure performed along with repair of my ascending aortic aneurysm. WOW! Two heart valves replaced and repair of the major blood vessel of the body, right at the point just above where it leaves the heart. I was surrounded and supported by my wife, parents, sister, aunt, uncle, cousins, my best friends from New York and even a couple of close HVJ friends. They were all worried and I am sure it was a LONG day for them. For ME? Well... I just slept through it all. ☺ But when it was over, all was good. I think I still walk around in disbelief most days. Every time I tell my story to someone I get a little choked up and teary-eyed. I could never have imagined doing this well after surgery like this. When people ask me how I\'m doing, I\'ll usually say “110%”. Yes, I am that good and have been for a long time now. If you have followed me throughout this journey or read back through my journal entries you\'ll see I\'ve pretty much had an uneventful and very remarkable recovery. I am truly blessed! I am not sure when I will post on here again. If anyone is reading this who is heading for surgery, know that you can do this and do it well. I am always available to anyone who wants to speak or write to me about my experience. I am forever grateful to my magnificent surgeon, Dr. Paul Stelzer. Like I have said so many times, he is as great a person as he is a surgeon. A million thanks to my wife Carol for being there for me always. Sincerest thanks to my family, my friends and my staff, all of whom were amazing in their support of me. Many thanks to my great heart valve journal friends. Chris, Mitch, Nancy, JH, Chuck, Jim, Jimmy, Janis, Linda, Jane and so many others. You all have been an inspiration to me through this and we share a special bond that most will never truly understand. I am so glad to have met all of you. Lastly, thanks to Adam Pick. We have all said it so many times, but we must say it again. THANK YOU for creating this amazing website. (and for exposing me to the Ross procedure, via your book) Best to all, Jeff

Hi All, Just wanted to drop a note since its been 3 months since I last posted. Time flies! I am 9 months post op and doing great. If it were not for the scar down my chest, I would never know I had surgery. My last echo and cardiology visit went great. Doctor said my echo numbers are like an adolescent. Great to hear that!!! Right now, believe it or not, I am home recovering from toe surgery. Had that done yesterday on my right great toe to remove a bone spur and bone chip that was locking the joint and causing pain. A year ago today, I was just embarking on my path to researching and undergoing open heart surgery. Thankfully, I found this site and it\'s been the #1 greatest resource for me. For those just starting down this path, or nearing in on surgery, you will find great comfort and support and make great friends at this wonderful site that Adam has created. I have a lot to be thankful for this holiday season. I wish everyone here, my HVJ Family, all the very best this holiday season. To those waiting for their big day, know that we are all here for you and that it is worse waiting. Once it\'s done, you will feel the relief. I\'m always available to support anyone who needs it. Just drop me a note. Have a happy and healthy holiday season and new year. Jeff

Well, today is September 14, 2012. One week PAST my 6 month anniversary of my surgery. Why am I posting late you may wonder? Because I FORGOT!! That is right, I FORGOT! HOW can I forget? Because I am doing so well now, and I am so busy living a full life again, that its easy to forget. Funny thing is, I DO think about the surgery just about EVERY DAY! I think about what I went through and how well I have done and HOW LUCKY I AM! I will NEVER forget the surgery, the support of family and friends, my special HVJ friends and of course my surgeon, his team and the nursing staff at Mt. Sinai. I MAY forget to post on the day of the anniversary however but that is because I am totally doing great and don\'t visit HVJ like I used to. All I can say is \"it\'s like it never happened\". I am THAT good! I stand in awe and have great gratitude for such a great recovery. And they say it takes a full year. I can\'t wait to see what I\'ll be like in 6 more months. Until next time.....thank you all for your support and to those waiting, you WILL do this and do it well! I know you will! Jeff

Well yesterday, August 7th was 5 months for me. Hard to believe that 5 months ago I was on the table and in ICU. If someone told me I would be doing this well, 5 months later, I would never have believed them. I am not the religious type, but thank God. I really could not be better at this point. I am doing everything and anything I want to and I am back to work full steam. We are very busy at work now, so I am putting it to the test and have had no issues. Heart surgery?....WHAT heart surgery! If any \"newbies\" want to chat, please reach out. I am here to help. I traveled this scary road and I am here to support you. I stand in awe of what the human body can do and how it can recover. I also stand in awe of my amazing and gifted surgeon, Dr. Paul Stelzer. Amazing only begins to describe how good I am doing now...only 5 months post op!

Hello All: Well, I\'m beginning to sound like a broken record. I\'m doing very well and life is pretty much back to normal and has been for some time. Still get a little tightness in the lower part of my scar with a lot of exertion and this still seems to be mainly triggered by trying any type of forceful manipulation, which just happens to be a large part of my occupation as a chiropractor. It is getting better though and I plan on being fully back to work probably sometime in August. I did have the lower scar injected by a dermatologist a few weeks back and that seemed to help. I go back there again soon for a follow up and maybe another injection. I can do everything else but certain things may trigger a slight pain for a day or so after in that lower right side of the scar. I am running more now. I had this thing where I was worried about my heart rate getting too high. As soon as I would go from a walking pace with a heart rate of around 115 to a jogging pace my heart rate would go past 150 within a minute or less and so I kept stopping to bring you my heart rate back down and then trying to jog again but having the same result over and over of getting into the 150s. I thought it was getting too hig too fast. However, in speaking with other people it seems like a heart rate in the 150s is really not a big deal. I spoke again with my cardiologists office and the nurse said it was okay to continue on with the heart rate at that level as long as I\'m not particularly out of breath and so forth. After that conversation, I ran 1 mile straight without stopping and the heart rate stayed in the low to mid 150s. The next time out I did a mile and a quarter. The great thing is, I used to get out of breath when I got into the 150s and now it\'s no big deal. Also, my heart recovers quickly, back down into the 1 teens, going back to a walking pace . So, from a conditioning point of view things are improving for sure. Baseball season is done and I was glad to be able to play a few games at the end of the season when I wasn\'t even expecting to be back until the fall. When I sit back and think, it\'s really hard to believe that 4 months ago I was in surgery and I would have never thought I\'d be as far along as I am now. I\'m thankful for my rapid healing, and definitely being in shape physically and having the right mental attitude played a big role. Thanks to all out there reading this for your support! I am very grateful. Jeff

Hello All: Just wanted to write a quick update. Today is 3 months. Hard to believe! I am doing so well that is hard to believe that 3 months ago I was on THE table. It is so amazing how much progress one can make in such short a time. I only have two issues still. 1) Heart rate seems to get up too high too fast, I think, with exercise. Still on Metoprolol. 2) I can do most everything but some of the manipulations I must do with my job as a chiropractor, still bother my chest. So, I cannot really do my work yet, though I am doing the admin work. I am walking/jogging/sprinting about 3 times a week 2.2 miles (sometimes more) and do SuperSlow Strength training twice a week. Until next month......

Well, it\'s been 2 months to the day since I had my surgery. Continuing to recover very well. Yesterday, I went out and played some baseball with my teams. I actually played a doubleheader, believe it or not. I had a 1 PM game with one team in the 6 PM game with the other team. I did notice, surprisingly, that my heart rate got up pretty high just doing basic things out there. Normally, when I walk/jog and even throw in a few sprints, on my normal exercise routine since surgery, my heart rate might get above 130 at the end of it (2.2 miles). Yesterday, doing what I consider considerably less, my heart rate was up to 136 the couple of times. I think this has more to do with the intense heat than anything else. Could also be that I forgot to take my Metoprolol yesterday morning. I\'m still on half a pill, twice per day. I took it easy though, Just batted and played a little first base. I wasn\'t expecting to come back and play until the fall season but really was feeling good enough to do so. If someone would\'ve told me 2 months ago, I\'d be playing baseball 2 months from surgery, I\'d have thought they were crazy! I\'m still not back to work physically. I\'ve been working for several weeks now at home doing a lot of e-mails, phone calls, administrative stuff. Physically, I\'m still not able to do the full demands of my occupation. As a chiropractor, one of the adjustments I do involves having to place the patient on their side and then thrust with my arms and body in order to move the lower spinal joints/pelvic joints. This motion just involves too much force on my chest. It\'s kind of weird how I can do certain things physically but then something like this is totally different. Some of the earlier issues I was having like extreme sensitivity in the skin in my upper chest and the tenderness and knot like area of my lower scar are doing much better. Anyway, that\'s my 2 month update. Basically, could not ask for a better recovery.

Coming up on 7 weeks (this Wed.) post-op and doing GREAT! Great energy, exercise going great, threw a baseball today and that is ALWAYS great. All I have is a little nag at the end of my scar but that seems to be slowly getting better. SO, great, great and more great! BUT I still can\'t do housework! LOL

Sorry for the delay in writing but I figured I would not write a 4-week update and rather wait for one month. One month ago today, at this very time, 10PM, I was in the ICU and was just getting my breathing tube out. Hard to believe that 1) it\'s only been a month 2) how much has transpired since then and 3) how much progress I have made. Here are some updates, good and bad (well, only a little bit bad). First the good: I continue to walk 2.2 miles pretty much each morning and on the days that I may not walk, I do the stairs in my house (which by the way is definitely more difficult). On my last walk, I interspersed short distances of jogging just to see how I\'d feel. I was mostly concerned with how my sternum would feel from the bouncing but that felt perfectly fine. I didn\'t want to push my heart too much so I only jogged maybe 150 feet or 200 feet at a time. This went pretty well overall and my heart rate did not get high so I may be starting to add this with each walking routine. I\'m continuing to do SuperSlow workouts with focus only on biceps, triceps, leg extension and leg curls. Again, I have lowered the weights from what I was doing prior to surgery and I\'m not doing nearly the intensity that this workout normally requires. My energy levels remain good and I hardly nap, though I try to most days. At least I get to lay down for an hour or so but probably only sleep 10 minutes if I\'m lucky. I started driving again this past week and that\'s nice. I\'ve been able to sleep on my side probably for the last 2 weeks already. I\'ve been doing a fair amount of work for the past couple of weeks already but this is mainly administrative work that I can do from home like e-mails and phone calls. I started some scar treatment and I\'m using \"ScarGuard MD\", recommended by my dermatologist. In other good news, the upper back spasms and muscle pains have subsided substantially and the massage therapy has really been helpful for this. I have only gained back 4 pounds of the 10 I lost from surgery and hope to keep the rest off! Now the little bit of bad: my biggest issue is the bottom part of my scar. Almost since the beginning, it has had a hard, knotty, ball of scar tissue - for lack of a better description. I had contacted the surgeon and he mentioned that this is the area where there is the most bending along the scar and that this can happen. The issue is, it\'s also quite tender at times and if I try to extend back or straight up fully it puts tension or stretch on this area and gives me a sharp pain. (feels like I might actually tear something) I\'m just not sure if this is normal at this point or not. I\'m hoping it shrinks and loosens up because it\'s really annoying. The worst part is the lack of flexibility in it. I don\'t want to be worrying about this thing giving me sharp pains forever every time I extend my torso. To be clear, this is not a bump of thick scar tissue on the surface of the skin, it\'s more felt underneath. In other not so good news, the last 3 days I seemed to develop a rib issue on the left side. It\'s an extremely sharp pain that occurs mainly on deep inspiration and limits me from taking deep breaths. The sharp pain occurs almost simultaneously in the mid back on the left side and in the front part of the rib cage on the left side. It most definitely seems to be a “rib head” that is out of place and probably also irritating an intercostal nerve. (nerve between the ribs). There seems to also be the possibility of intercostal muscle strain (strain of the muscle between the ribs). It\'s been very annoying the past 3 days and really had me concerned with my breathing. Just this late afternoon and evening, it seems to be getting a little better. Normally, I go see a fellow chiropractor and have it adjusted which is typically very successful with rib head subluxations. Unfortunately, I tried this but it was just too much pressure my sternum to tolerate. Lastly, I\'ve been bothered by alternating left and right costosternal (where rib joins sternum) pain and inflammation. I expect this however as a consequence of open-heart surgery and the moving around of my anatomy (rib spreader etc.) I\'m going to ramp up my use of cold laser on this area. That\'s about it for my one-month update, overall things are going great with the exception of a few minor things which are pretty much to be expected after such a major surgery. Sorry for the long-winded update for those who don\'t like to read a lot :) - ahem...a certain lady in St. Louis who shall remain nameless.

3 weeks ago today I had my surgery and I was recovering in ICU! Hard to believe! I could not even get up by myself, get out of bed, etc. Walking the next day or 2 after surgery felt like learning to walk all over again. Now, I just walked 2.2 miles this morning at a very brisk pace. Things continue to go really well for me. I am grateful that I do not get any of the fatigue that others seem to get a lot of. In fact, I did not even lie down once today and it\'s 7 PM. Most days, I try to lay down for an hour or two midday, but I\'m lucky if I sleep 10 to 15 minutes of that time. I\'ve just never been a napper. I sleep fairly well at night, but now I\'m finding that if I don\'t go to sleep by 10:30PM or so I\'m up til about 1 or 1:30AM. (more my normal pre-surgery pattern) I do sleep decent during the night however and again, luckily, I\'m not affected by fatigue or feeling of any tiredness throughout the day. I\'m mostly bothered by mid to upper back pain and this seems to be in association with chest tightness. Thankfully, I have a wonderful massage therapist who has been coming to my home and this helps tremendously. It just seems that the mid back is quite persistent and took a big hit during the surgery. The chest gives me minimal pain, even when coughing, and like I said prior, I just take ibuprofen 400 mg as needed, and it\'s needed less and less (I only took one in the past 24 hours). So far, it\'s been 3 weeks and no sneeze! I\'ve come close a few times but was able to stop it with the old “pressure against lower nose” technique. Saw my cardiologist today for the first time since the surgery and he was very impressed with the results. He listened to my heart and felt the pulse in my neck and had comments like “very nice”. He cautioned me not to push the recovery too fast as he knows I\'m prone to do. It\'s important during the first few months to let the suture lines/soft tissue heal (and we are talking about the sutures inside the actual heart for the valve etc., not the skin). One of the main things that can affect the healing of the sutures is raising the blood pressure. Obviously, when exercising, blood pressure is increased and therefore exercising too much or too intensely too soon would not be a good thing. I was also cleared by my surgeon to do isolated strength training which I did yesterday. I just worked on biceps, triceps and leg curls and leg extensions using the SuperSlow technique that I\'ve done for years. I reduced about 20% on all my weights and went nice and easy and did not do any high-intensity as I would normally do. From a heart point of view this is perfectly okay, it\'s more of a sternum issue I need to be careful with, and that is why I did only the exercises noted above, which do not put any stress on my chest or shoulders. It\'s so important to maintain muscle mass and strength. The heart serves the demands of the muscular system so it\'s really good for the heart. It\'s just that I need to go easy for a few months, thats all. Even though I was asymptomatic before surgery for the most part, I did notice something yesterday when doing the weights. Even though I didn\'t push it, and the weights were 20% lighter than my normal amounts, I could tell by the end of my set when it was getting a bit more difficult, that I felt “different” in terms of my breathing and my heart. It\'s a little hard to describe and as I told the cardiologist today, “the heart just seems more efficient”. And I\'m sure it is! I\'m also sure that as time goes by and I start doing more and more activity I will eventually come to notice many things that would lead me to the conclusion that I probably was more symptomatic that I realized. Again, I am blessed and amazingly grateful that I live in this day and age and was able to get this procedure done. I\'m looking forward to a long, full and active life, with my highly efficient heart.

There once was a lady named Nancy, It was customer service that was her fancy. She teaches companies how to be nice on the phone. All over the world she travels, far away from home. I saw her speak here in Orlando one day, And she was really, really great, I have to say. Shortly after that talk, it was her turn to go, For that AVR procedure we all know. Was she worried? Not a bit! And the surgery went off without a hitch, She flew through that surgery with not even one glitch. She is fiesty that is for sure, Which makes us love her all the more. I raise my glass to Nancy, who has been so great She has supported us all, easing our wait. Let face it, it’s not everyone who gets to rehab in the Florida keys, Must be nice to be Nancy, basking under those glorious Palm trees. Back to your life Nancy, a full one ahead of you, With that new valve, there is nothing you can’t do.

Time for an update. Things are going great! Sleeping in my own bed -thankfully we have an adjustable foundation bed. And I am actually sleeping!! Sure I get up 3 times a night or so, but it beats 10-12 times like before. I am walking twice daily around my community, which is 1.1 mile. I have that down to 19 minutes now, 8 minutes less than it was just on Saturday. My pace is quite brisk. My appetite coming back but I don\'t want to eat too much and upset anything and also I am down 10 pounds from my PRE-surgery weight and wouldn\'t mind keeping that off. So, I have lost all my surgery weight (20 pounds) PLUS another 10. Crazy! My energy is still good. My pain is minimal. Just take Ibuprofen maybe once or twice a day when needed. I have no issues taking care of myself. People who see me can\'t believe I had major open heart surgery 2 weeks ago today. The ONLY thing is a nagging cough from reduced lung capacity. Doc said that could take a month to get back. It is really annoying, Anytime I try to take a deep breath, I cough and my lungs just feel sore. That is about it. Overall. doing great!

Another great day today. Walked alot, went to see surgeon one last time and went around to thank the nurses who helped me so much. I still can\'t believe how good I am doing. Other than a fast heart beat, and my digestive system being slow to recover, I\'m doing well. In fact earlier today, I almost felt like my usual self. In any case, I know I\'ve got a ways to go and need to take it easy. I\'ll focus on that when I get back home. So, goodbye to NY, my original hometown. It\'s been very good to me and the people in NY are really so nice! (don\'t believe what they say about New Yorkers). Looking forward to getting back to Florida, my home, great weather and most of all my kids. :)

Well, it\'s been one week! Hard to believe a week ago I was on the operating table and now for the second day in a row I\'m walking the streets of New York City and today I went by myself and walked a half a mile or more. I only take Motrin as needed and the last one I took was at 10pm last night. So no pain meds at all today!  But it gets better.  I have boundless energy and I hardly nap at all. I\'m up every hour at night but I do sleep, just this waking up all night long. I know many have great fatigue but I\'m not getting that and I hope not to.   All I can say is I\'m astonished where I am at at one week post-surgery. I\'m blessed and fortunate beyond words. 

I was a discharged yesterday at around 4pm. Spent the day in the hotel. Much better than at the hospital. Doing better. Had my first shower since last Wed. That was NICE! Sleeping is still an issue. Thankfully I have a power recliner at the hotel but even with that I wake up about every hour. I did sleep though, but just woke up each hour or so for a little bit. As I mentioned before pain is not bad and I just take a couple of Motrin throughout the day. Hardest thing now is getting a good cough and try to get the mucous out. The lungs take a big hit on this surgery, I think almost more than the heart. (or so it seems). Nice weather in NY today so I will get out for some good walks. Going to get a pedometer to track my distance and try to increase a little each time. My heart rate is staying high, 110-120, (this morning 103). Woke up at 10:30 last night with rapid shallow breathing and a fast heartbeat (114 even after meds), same as I had in hospital. I emailed my doc out of concern and luckily he emailed me right back and put me at ease. He also mentioned that the echo I did yesterday, before leaving the hospital, looked \"perfect\". So great to hear this after a lifetime of worse and worse looking echos! So, the plan this week is to rest up, walk a lot, get some nutrition in me, get an appetite back, see doc on Thursday and fly home on Friday. Can\'t wait to see my beautiful kids, I miss them so much. Finally, I must say again how humbled I am by the outpouring of support. I cannot read your guestbook entries without getting emotional and choked up. Thank you ALL!!

Day 4 Report: Well it\'s 7pm on day 4. Definitely getting better each day. Managing pain mostly on Motrin and nurses are surprised at how little pain meds I\'ve asked for.  I did take a Percocet last night to help me sleep though and overall it was a much better nights sleep.  Been having lots of visitors which keeps me busy.  Walked more and faster today and the walking helps. Appetite SLOWLY coming back. I woke up today craving a NY city bagel and cream cheese and at 3/4 of it. Couldn\'t eat lunch so had a protein shake instead. I\'ll know I\'m good when I want that NY pizza. Overall much better today. Plan is to discharge me tomorrow sometime and then I\'ll stay in the hotel here and fly back on Friday.  For those of you who didn\'t like my bitching, did I mention this SUCKS? :) Thanks again to all who post in my guestbook, it\'s so great to read all the nice things and have your support.  Keep \'em coming!

Hello all, it\'s me.  Firstly, I want to thank my wife, Carol.  She is the most amazing and supportive wife and mother around.  I love her beyond words. Secondly, my parents, family and friends who were all here for me from early morning til the nighttime.   I am truly blessed to have them here for me and love them all.  To my staff, baseball friends and professional friends, you are all just amazing. And all my heart valve journal friends who have a special place in my newly repaired heart. THANK YOU! I got to meet Mitch Freidman and Chris Dixon which was really special.  Finally, I\'d like to thank Dr. Stelzer and his team. He is an amazingly gifted surgeon and an amazing human being! I literally owe my life to him. Now, on to surgery and recovery. I\'m gonna be honest here, IT SUCKS!  Yes I did great and all that but it still sucks. It\'s major invasive surgery, they stop your heart and lungs and it sucks! I know, I know, but I\'ve been so positive all along. Yes, the guided imagery and affirmations were KEY! In fact I\'m doing post surgery ones now, and these are amazing.  Having my surgeon say positive statements before during and after surgery,  when I was under anesthesia and highly suggestible, I think went a long way. With all that said, it still sucks. Good news it, they say each day is better and it seems to be. I\'m not even 72 hours out but I feel better this morning than yesterday and certainly more than the day before. So much to report that I can\'t do it all now. Appetite is very slow to come back. Lung capacity is horrible. I\'m getting walks in. I can\'t sleep hardly at all. Not cause of interruptions as much as just my mind racing and so forth. I\'ve been up since 4:30 this morning. But at least slept from about 11-4:30, with waking up 5 times! Better than the prior 2 nights with virtually no sleep! I\'m in the recliner as I don\'t like the bed. OK, gotta drag myself up now, try to wash up a little and go for my walk.  Thanks again to all the amazing guestbook posts. I\'ve read many and though there are too many to reply to, it brings tears to my eyes to see the love and support for me that was there as I went through surgery.

Jeff began walking today. He took 3 laps around the nurses station this morning, and three times up steps. Repeated the same this afternoon and tonight. He is doing well but is very tired. He can\'t seem to sleep. He had a massage today thanks to fellow Chiropractor, Rob here in NYC. I\'m hoping Jeff will get some better sleep tonight. If so, I\'m sure he\'ll feel even better tomorrow. Carol (at 11:44pm)

As of 6pm, Jeff was moved out of ICU to his own room. We were able to get him hooked up with a private room for the \"king of recovery\". ---Jeff made me write that last part. Jeff sends his best to everyone and thanks you all for your support. He hopes to be writing his own journal in the next day or two... Carol

Jeff is doing absolutely fantastic today. The doctors are amazed at how well he is doing. One doctor came over to ask him if he is ready to go into surgery. All his numbers including blood pressure, blood supply, oxygen, etc. are like he never had surgery. He\'s talking a lot, eating ice chips, had a popsicle. They are planning to move him into a regular room real soon, within the next couple of hours....Carol

Jeff is doing great. He was definitely glad to get the breathing tube out, like everyone else. That came out around 10pm tonight. Then he asked me if I texted everyone and posted in the journal. Just like him:) He is having a lot of back discomfort, but that\'s normal of course. He had the nurses change his position in the bed, requested his ear plugs, headphones and ipod, his watch to tell time and chapstick for his lips. He was also asking for ice chips which they were going to give him soon. I\'ll post again in the morning. Goodnight.....Carol

All went perfectly according to Dr. Stelzer. Dr. Stelzer told us that he repeated many positive messages to Jeff throughout the surgery. Just what Jeff wanted. He will be happy. We are waiting to see him any minute. Thanks for the wonderful prayers. Prayers are obviously still welcome until he is out of ICU. Hopefully he will be out of ICU sometime tomorrow. Carol

Hi all, This is Carol, Jeff\'s wife. He went into surgery around 9:30am this morning. We will hear from the doctor between 3-4pm. I hope to update shortly after speaking to him. Prayers are welcome all day!!!!

Hi All: Many of you don\'t know something about me. I like to write poems. I guess I learned this from my grandfather, who used to write us letters as kids, but always in a poem form. I\'m not sure why he did this, but it was always a nice touch. My staff knows all too well about my poems. It\'s how I honor them each year at Christmas time. Only their poems mix in some funny stuff too. I literally just threw this together in the past 30 minutes. So, without further ado, my final post PRE-surgery: My surgery is tomorrow, But I go in without any sorrow. Instead, I look forward to a great fix, Playing ball, doing even more sports and being right back in the mix. For all those praying for me, I say thank you very much, So many of you are there for me and that adds a special touch. Tomorrow, I will have my \"magical band of angels\" with me in the O.R., Watching over me and protecting me from both near and afar. For those who don\'t know who these angels might be, It\'s MY \"imagined angels\", each with a face that is one of YOU, you see. Family, friends and loved ones watching over all the way through, And then accompanying me right into the ICU. They are with me without ever losing sight, And make sure everything goes just right. With these angels and some other positive mental attitude stuff, They keep me focused, goal oriented, and tough. Sooo, I know I\'m in the best of hands and all will be well, And when I\'m done, I\'ll have one heckuva story to tell. Thanks to everyone, I\'m ready now to do this, Gonna do great, I leave you all with hugs and a kiss - XOXO Jeff Ross Procedure and Ascending Aorta Repair 3-7-12 P.S. Surgery is 9:30am tomorrow. Wil be about 5 1/2 - 6 hours. My wife Carol will post updates as they are available. P.P.S.: It\'s gonna be a bright, bright, bright, bright, sunshiny day!!! (that\'s my surgery theme song/mantra)