Joan's Journal

Tammy Pilcher  Dear Joan, Oh my, I'm so sorry to hear of your setback. You will definitely be in my prayers! Much love, Tammy

Joan Napier  Thank you Tammy! You remain in my daily prayers too, and i hope that things are going well for you. Love, Joan

Joseph Ballett  Joan I am sorry to here this, but as we all know on here we are strong, you are strong,this is a set back but some of us do get them. Let the Doctors do what they do best and you will be back on the road to recovery. Believe in You!

  Joan do not be sorry to have fallen off of the radar. You and your recovery come first. Ugh, so frustrating, isnt it. But great that they can fix these issues asap, we would all be in trouble if they could not. Hang in there, and if you can move around, keep up the walking and positive attitude, or get angry (that one works for me, just joking..have to watch the bloodpressure :), and hopefully you will get out of there soon. Praying for you, I wondered if I was going to get Afib as I was informed about 30 percent get it after surgery. I am 7 weeks post op now. Glad they are taking good care of you. I promise to think and pray for you.

Nancy D  I posted on here, but it got lost in cyberspace somewhere. I am glad you were treated quickly and are back on the road to recovery. It sure takes the wind out of your sails, but with rest and good care, you will be back on the healing path. I too had the speed bump of A-fib in my healing journey, but now, at 3 months today I am able to do 75 minutes of sweat producing cardiac rehab. Rest and recoup from this, and take good care- this will pass and you will get better!!!!

Melinda Hacker  Joan, sorry that you are having complications but it sounds like you are in good hands. I'll keep you in my prayers heart sister❤️

Ruth Valenzuela  Joan,
My prayers are with you! I'm sorry you are going through this but glad you are in good hands...

Jim Hernandez  Thoughts to you....i hope things get taken care of soon so you can get back home and continue your recovery :)

Joan Napier  Thank you all for your support! I am still in the hospital but hoping to go home today. I have been in a pretty good frame of mind throughout all of this, but this latest setback has put me in a precarious place. I am usually such a positive person but I'm feeling discouraged and a little sad. Thank you for your prayers and uplifting words. As I said before, they are carrying me through right now.

Joan Napier  Have to share this with you: my cardiologist just stopped by to see me here in the hospital. He emphasized how afib occurs in 1 out of 3 HVS and it's even more common with MVS. He explained that the heart is normally inflamed and irritated post-op, and the electrophysiology of the heart is disrupted. So they are treating the a fib with oral amiodiorone, and will give me anticoagulants for 3 months to avoid the temporary increased risk of blood clots. They will watch me closely, and he believes everything will be fine. I feel better hearing these reassuring words, and thought I would share them in case anyone else may face this situation :)

Lenore Mitchell  Hope you're back home soon. Thanks for the info on a-fib. That's one of my issues pre op and I think they plan a maze procedure during surgery, however I'm not certain if that prevents the post op temporary a fib. We'll see, I suppose. Anyhow, get home and get better soon!

Joan Napier  Thanks Lenore! I should be discharged this afternoon. 'Im not sure about the procedure either, and how it impacts post-op a fib. If you have a chance ask your doc and let us know.

Ruth Valenzuela  Bless you Joan. Thank God your cardiologist stopped by and put your mind to rest. Will continue to pray that you'll steadily improve each and every day.

Ruth Valenzuela  Bless you Joan. Thank God your cardiologist stopped by and put your mind to rest. Will continue to pray that you'll steadily improve each and every day.

Nancy D  Joan, that was exactly the case for me....Third day post op I went in to A-fib. Had another period of a-fib after my medicine for it was decreased in dosage. I was back in hospital just for monitoring and medicine was increased back to the original dose. I had no more problems with it, and was taken off the med completely at the time they feel the heart is healed from the inflammation and irritation. I was a bit nervous coming off, but had no recurrence since. ;-) In January, if all continues as is, I will be coming off the blood thinner as well! We are living in a wonderful time where all this is understood and handled fairly easily and we continue to rehab, rest and recover......I hope you have no more speed bumps along your road. Just listen to your body, and rest when it insists it is time! take good care!

D. Carol Moore  Joan, So sorry to hear of your setbacks. I've been in chronic A-fib since 2001 and live a very active lifestyle with some limitations (we all have limitations of some nature). The A-fib is being treated w/meds to control the heart rate and of course, Coumadin has been a big med for me since 1976. I know that this is new for you and you may feel restless and in fear, but rest assure that you'll be fine. Much love to you, Heart Sister. Take care, do not fear, trust God and rest in His love.

Lillian Mark  Joan,I read your story and this one journal entry of yours. I find it very difficult to read and follow all the great caring HVS family members here. I jumped over to your page. Considering the fact everyone is different, we also have similarities too,plus we all care. I saw some similarities in your story. I still have water around my heart, calcifications, resting HR still average 115 BPM. Fluid in lungs. ....no pneumonia here as well....i am happy for your not having pneumonia☺I am also so glad that you got your repair VS replacement. I had lots of bleeding issues during surgery . I only had low blood levels after....no bleeding issues. I was re admitted as I gave everyone a scare a few weeks after. But i have had funky heart and vascular issues since surgery. And visual disturbances. So without touching on everything,Joan,I totally get the frustrations and fears with setbacks. I still have complications and am very closely monitored, But,I have finally come to terms with my new issues and trust the Doctors when they say my heart will most likely not just quit,and I wont have another stroke.i may need an intervention,but not reopen /OHS. Despite continued In and out of ER,doctor offices,tests and medication switches,bleeding issues .....i am finally moving on to a fuller ,richer and active life. I am getting my life back one step at a time. I hope the same for you at whatever pace is best for you. You are very courageous💗I tend to drop to depression emotions frequently, but I learned to live with that and all my other med issues. BLESS your heart, you are strong and smart and I pray you improve in some way or another each day,as I pray for this entire Heart family .☺

Ken Obermeyer  Hey Joan! I’m playing catch up after not being online for a little while. You are such a trooper!!! It brings tears to my eyes. You go through the surgery and ten days of recovery and then bam! Hang in their girl; you’re invisible support team cares so much for you and is caring for you in spirit. I don’t have to tell you to relax and trust, but I did it anyway.  My thoughts and prayers remain with you.

Joan Napier  Thank you one and all for your prayers and words of support. The ups and downs of recovery have caught me off guard. Your positive and encouraging continue to get me through!

Susan Ericsson  Keep trusting that recovery happens, even though the pace isn't what we'd choose. Preaching to myself here too.

Melinda Hacker  Great to hear Joan. Each day gets better. Take all the help you get from your family and friends. Your job is to just focus on getting better.

D. Carol Moore  Joan, thanks so much for the update. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. I am so happy that you are home and doing well. Rest and enjoy every moment!

Eleanor R  I know your family is so glad to have you home. You, too! now you can sleep whenever you wish, ask for anything you crave, or nothing at all if you're not inclined. Do your breathing, walking and resting and expect to be really tired for a while, but better weekly. Thanks for the good news.

Adam Pick  Joan, I am so, sooo, sooooo, soooooooooo happy to hear of your successful surgery. Sleep well tonight at home. Take a nice, long nap tomorrow. Enjoy this special time with your family. Let guy spoil you rotten. You deserve it. Much love, Adam

Cheryl Batzing  So glad to know you are home healing, Joan. You give me hope I can get through this in the very near future.

John Noriega  Hooray Joan! So happy to hear all went well - even bettevthan you were prepred for. We'll keep praying for a speedy recovery and look forward to more posts from you. O&U!

Jim O'Brien  Good News! You're on the road to recovery and I hope and pray that the road ahead is as smooth as silk. Good Luck to you Joan.

Sintayew Atl  That's good news. I'm happy for you Joan. I'm looking for to do Aortic valve operation soon. god will keep us.

Nancy D  Welcome to the recovery process....walk, eat, hydrate, breathing exercises and REST!!! Celebrate the little successes because each one adds up!! Big progress is a result of little steps! Take good care!!

John Noriega  Good to hear! Just do what the nurses ask you to do and all will be well!
God bless - onward & upward!

Eleanor R  She will get more peace in the private room, but the best will come at home. I'm glad to hear she is doing well, best wishes to you both.

Virginia (Ginger) French  When I was working we always told patients to get the most rest possible and be sure to take adequate medicine to control the pain. No sense using your energy to fight pain when you can instead use it to heal. Rest for Joan and take care of yourself, too, Guy!

Victoria Lopez  So glad you're doing well, Joan! My brother's birthday was the date of your surgery, so it was a good day! I'll be having my surgery on 12/8. I also have a bleeding disorder (HHT or Osler-Weber-Lindau). I haven't discussed it with my surgeon yet, but your story alerted me to the necessary precautions. Thanks for sharing, and best wishes for a smooth and complete recovery!

John Noriega  Hooray! I am so very happy for you Joan! Prayer works & this is definitely answer to all of the prayers lifted up on your behalf. You've an awesome lifetime ahead of you. Go for it!
Onward & Upward!

D. Carol Moore  Joan's Husband, Guy: Thanks so much for posting Joan's update... this is great news.
"Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ..." Eph 5:20

Jim O'Brien  That's wonderful news! It's good to hear that the surgery went well. Good luck with recovery and good luck to our upcoming surgery patients.

Don Netz  Great news. Joan's picture and story came up twice on my phone (faceebook). I prayed for her each time.

Virginia (Ginger) French  Tremendous news! It seems rare to hear that a valve is actually in good enough condition to be repairable! Guy, please let Joan know we are all so delighted for her and will continue to pray that her journey continues to be smooth. I, too, am a very strong believer in prayer. I have been through five major surgeries in the last four years after not one surgery before then. There was a cancer diagnosis and surgery included in all of that. I was truly amazed at the calm comfort and peace I felt before each surgery, and with five now happening the same way, I can only think that what happened is that prayers were answered. Praise the Lord!

Susan Ericsson  I'm so glad! Thanks for sharing. She's been constantly in my mind and prayers and on my heart. Tell her to keep on tickin!

Linda Hillman  That's good news. So glad everything went as planned. God is so good to all of us. Have a speedy recovery. LInda an Elsie AVR 9/9/12

Jayne Martinko  Joan, i will be thinking of you tomorrow as you begin your journey. I am 10 days post operative and felt the information offered here was so spot on. Allowing me to find the strength and patience to get through each day. Looking forward to the updates from your family letting us know you are on the other side. Looking forward to comparing stories.

  Joan, my thoughts and prayers are with you, we will be waiting to hear good news of your successful surgery and the beginnings of recovery! bless you and your family and doctors and nurses ~

Joan Napier  Thank you, Jayne! It's good to hear from you, as I have been wondering how you're doing. I hope all is going well, and I look forward to comparing notes in a week or two. I agree that this site and the wonderful people here are so helpful in getting through this challenging experience. Wishing you a very smooth recovery! Joan

John Noriega  Joan...have no fear! It has been 23 days since my aortic valve replacement. Everything that has been written on this site has been helpful. I actually have found that I am recovering better than I thought I would. I am weaning myself from the pain meds as much as I can. I took some tonight at 8pm PST. Prior dosage was at 3:30am. The only reason I took a dose tonight was I sneezed and thought I had been shot once again. It hurt - so took it to help alleviate the pain. Coughing is like 0-1 on the 10 scale - the sneezing is like 15! Walking 2 miles now with a couple of short walks in between. Eating is back to normal. Only thing not right yet is my BP. It's a bit high - changed my dose of meds. I see the cardiologist on Thursday so hopefully we'll get it straightened out. Again HAVE NO FEAR - just know that when you wake up after surgery, you'll know that your heart is now NEW! I will be praying for you & the surgical team as will our other friends on the site!
Onward & Upward!

Joan Napier  John, thank you for the update on your recovery. It's great to hear that you are doing so well! I really appreciate the good report, as it gives me much hope. I also need to hear "have no fear" especially the night before surgery when my anxiety is kicking in to full gear. Thank you so much for your positive message and for your prayers :)

Kathleen McClung  Joan prayers are with you as you lead us into this week. Looking forward to your update and being able to post mine.

Joseph Ballett  Joan what a nice post, and believe, we will all be thinking of you next monday (we will think of all the others booked for next week also) I hope you recover nicely and back to yourself in no time . And yes the was a awesome picture of your family.

Eleanor R  You have done the best thing, staying busy while waiting. It does help to keep your mind a little occupied while your body is busy, plus you end up with nice results of cleaning, visiting, journaling, etc. I am wishing the smoothest surgery for you on Monday, and am glad they discovered everything before the surgery. We will all be with you in spirit, so let us know how your recovery comes along. Best wishes, Eleanor

Ruth Valenzuela  My prayers are with you Joan. I'm glad your surgeon had a vacation. He should be well rested for you! Bless you and continue to trust the Lord.

Linda Crawford  Joan, you will be in my thoughts on the 10th. I'm looking forward to hearing that you are doing just fine.

Nancy D  Prayers for an easy Monday, successful surgery and your start of your recovery process! We are here praying for you and sending lots of positive energy!

Ken Obermeyer  Enjoy your weekend Joan. Monday will come and go, and Tuesday will find you alive and smiling, beginning Life: Part 2. You're in my prayers.

Lynn Ennis  You will soon be on the recovery side of OHS Joan. The waiting is terrible..the whole thing is no walk in the park either but a year later I can honestly say it was a positive experience. Take it step by step and try to relax your mind. I will be sending you good healing vibes!!

Virginia (Ginger) French  Joan, So glad that you know about the blood disorder, albeit one you will rarely have concern about. But it should make the course of your surgery smoother. My mom died of breast cancer at the age of 56, when I was pregnant with our first child. Two of my sisters were here in late September for what would have been Mom's 90th. We have reminded each other through the years that we may not have gotten quantity, but we sure were blessed with quality! And both my identical twin and I are breast cancer survivors.

Yes, my valve replacement was two years after bilateral mastectomies. Thankfully, you do not have that as your past!

You will be in my thoughts and prayers continuing all week and after, as you recover. The best advice I can give you is to try to relax some and rest this weekend. You will need lots of energy for healing. By now you know everything you need to and more. If you can relax, with soft music, prayers, meditation, or something on the less rigorous side, it will be easier for you to relax and go with the flow while going in for the surgery. Let them take care of you, and ask questions when you have them. Knowledge is power and shoves out fear. Remember that God will be there to guide your surgical team and skilled staff, and you will be asleep! So there is nothing you can do better than to be as calm and relaxed as you can.

You know from the many voices on this site that while this is not a surgery everybody on your block will have had, our numbers are many and those of us who are past surgery are doing well and getting closer to attaining our health goals than ever before. Soon that will include you, and we are praying and cheering you on! Many hugs coming your way with all of those prayers.

(My twin and my birthdays are the 12th, so we think this is an extraordinarily special time of year. The first twins in the family for hundreds of years and before fertility treatments were happening! Surprise!) So I will be raising a toast to you and to your good news. You will be fine, no question! My best to you, Ginger

Ruth Valenzuela  Yes, your mom and the good Lord are watching over you indeed! It is so good that this abnormality was found prior to your surgery. That is answer to prayer!

Adam Pick  Oh my Joan. That is some story about your mom. I'm so sorry. So very sorry. And yes, I do believe she is watching down. This is a blessing. You have a wonderful perspective that this delay is something to be grateful for. My thoughts are with you!!!

Joan Napier  Thank you Adam. I greatly appreciate your kind words of support! I think my mom has been talking to the Big Guy upstairs….praise God.

Tammy Pilcher  Joan it is a blessing that they found this beforehand. I know the Lord is watching over you and will take good care of you. I will be praying for you.

  Joan ~ I am so very glad this was all uncovered for you, praise God, the angels, the doctors, and your mother. I also believe she had a hand in this, the bonds of real love are never broken. Blessings and peace to you and your family ~

Susan Ericsson  Oh, what a hard story about your mom. Glad they were able to find this out and protect you. Prayers continue!

Elaine Foster  I found tears coming to my eyes reading this as I was so close to my Mom also. She passed 6 years ago. My one thought during my diagnosis has been that at least my Mom isn't here to worry over me. She lost my brother at age 39 due to heart problems and it was very difficult for her. I praise God they found this ahead of time for you. Rest in his grace and take it a day at a time.

Joan Napier  Elaine, I'm so sorry for the loss of your dear mother and your brother too. No matter our age, we always need our moms. I find comfort in talking to her, and feel that she is with our Lord. Thank you for your kind words of support. May God bless you. Joan

Eleanor R  We are lucky to live in a time when new discoveries and developments are made daily. I am so sorry about your Mom, and know this must have been weighing heavily on your mind. I hope this brings you some peace and solace, to know what the cause is, and in your case to be able to prevent it before it happens. God bless you and your family, and best wishes for your own surgery. Eleanor

Donna Broquet  Definitely have help from above on that one! So glad it was discovered beforehand. Trust in your team, including the one above!

Joan Napier  Thank you for your kind words, Eleanor. I definitely feel a sense of peace that I did not feel before. Mom is looking out for me from above. Thank you, God.

Linda Hillman  Joan I saw you on Stephanies sight and just read your blog here. My prayers go out to you.God is so good he will take care of you. And yes your Mother will be helping too like my Dad when he had surgery years ago I knew he was around when I had my surgery 2 years ago. Good luck to you. Linda and Elsie AVR 9/19/12

Nancy D  I will be praying for you and know you will do well on the roller coaster of cardiac surgery. Pre-op was difficult for me to, the tests, decisions, preparations did help me as well. This sudden finding after being told all my life I wouldn't ever need anything done was a big enough hill to get over. I made dinners in the freezer, downloaded music to listen to to, to drown out the hospital noises, did some shopping for necessities etc. Just know that although this is YOUR first time, the doctors have faced what you are needing to do last minute before, and know how to do it. I think we nurses (I am not a cardiac nurse!) make it more difficult on ourselves than lots of others. No ones experience pre op or post op will be the same as yours. We all do things differently and have different things placed before us along the pre and post-op course. My story is so like yours, our age, occupation, relatively sudden onset of symptoms past the point of medicine treatment, etc....but I promise you, your personal journey will be a good one, easier than some harder than others. A lot is out of our control, like the roller coaster you mentioned. some things you are just going to have to let go and go with the flow. I am almost 8 weeks out, and am making progress daily. I am not a journal writer, in fact this is my first group of any kind to join- my story is available and if I can answer any questions that aren't written there, do not hesitate to ask. I hope very soon, you and I can both look back and be glad this is behind us and be proud that we got through it!! Have faith- there is nothing we can't accomplish with God on our side!
NancyD

Tammy Pilcher  Hi Joan, I will surely keep praying for you. I can only imagine what it would be like to get so close to surgery and then have to delay it. I don't have my surgery date yet, I just know it needs to be done before the end of the year. I am also so ready to get this over with. I hope you get good news and can go ahead on Thursday.

Daryl McCallum  You will be fine......prayers your way for a good day. I remember the priest asking me if I'd like to do confession and I said father this thing doesn't have me so I will do my confession after the surgery is complete. After the surgery he came in and said I guess you were right in Gods hands when you made that statement and I said probably as I felt very strongly that there was still some things for me to do while I'm here. Post 6 months and doing OK.....not perfect yet but getting there.

Joan Napier  Thank you all for your prayers and kind and encouraging words! I will respond tomorrow after I've had some sleep. I'm a bit drained from the news today, but still hopeful things will stay on track.

Jason Gastwirth  Praying for you, Joan -- hope it all works out so you can proceed and look forward to hearing about your good health to come.

Susan Ericsson  Praying for you. At this point any is due brings an "are you KIDDING me?!" Before long though you will be on the other side.

Ruth Valenzuela  I'm so sorry to hear all you are going through. I have and will continue to pray for you. They say God will never give us more than we can bare, but sometimes I wonder why does it have to be all at once...

Eleanor R  I hope everything gets sorted out for your upcoming surgery, Joan. You have some wonderful looking caretakers whom I'm sure will be with you every step of the way. We will too, in thoughts, prayers and spirit. Best wishes, Eleanor

Tom Elliott  Hi Joan. There's no doubt that the run-up to surgery is an unsettling time. I freaked out on a pretty regular basis. One thing that did help me was listening to relaxation and surgery preparation audios. There's a ton of them out there - Google something like "surgery guided meditation" and stand back. I found Belleruth Naparstek very helpful, but it's very much a matter of personal taste and what works for you.

Good luck, and hang in there!

Debbie cross  Joan, As I sit her ( not very comfortably) in my recliner,I can relate to all you said. This is such a process and everyone struggles to get through. I am 12 days out,and I know I should count my blessings that everything has gone as well as it has.But, pain (the back/shoulder area, incisions, headaches, etc. coupled with the lack of sleep and NO food since the 25( dehydration) have left me weary.I am just saying,be kind to yourself and know this too shall pass.Maybe just not as quickly as we would like! I will be praying for you.

Liidia Wootten  Joan, your post brought back my time period of roller coaster emotions - and after I posted the horrible space that I was in, I got sensitive, rational, thoughtful feedback from other hearties that went through the same thing. One thing I did notice for me to stop the sadness was that I was spending too much time alone. I was accomplishing much off my to-do list, but not satisfied. I remember insensitive remarks when I had my knees replaced 14 years ago - couldn't believe it. It was hard to dismiss because it hurt. One real thing that kept me going a few days before heart surgery was - I was going to get well and then get even with the people who irritated (used a stronger word here) me. The staff in the hospital just roared with laughter - that laughter really helped settle me. You have such a beautiful family, get well to enjoy them.

Eleanor R  The before and after is indeed a vulnerable time. As we make ourselves more knowledgeable about the process, and in my case I certainly included every risk known to man (and imagined by this woman!), to see people just kind of shrug it off, to say "don't worry, you'll be fine" was more hurtful than in my normal state when I would have passed it off with humor (ok, will you give me that in writing, that I'll be fine?, or something snarkier). Everyone has different coping mechanisms. What worked for me what just acknowledging what I was feeling and then getting up and doing something. I had found, for example, that I had run out of hangers in my closets. That would only be because I bought new clothes and now had no space or hangars. So I made a project of sorting out sections of clothes, which doesn't lead to much introspection but rather ""do I sort by sleeve length or color or both". Honestly! I ended up with two amazing closets, a lot of bags for Goodwill. At another point I straightened out the pantry, and the fridge. A final project was tidying up bookshelves and seeing what could go out to other readers or the library's book sale. I think my anxiety was more fear of "what if" as I tended to discount insensitive or ignoring the help I might need as simply not knowing. Who gave a hilarious example of ignorance of OHS was Janet, in describing what a young coworker said on the phone, you might want to read her journal, but basically "oh, so you will be out a couple of days, but by Thursday.....". People just do not know. At one point I was ready to send a youtube link of an OHS to someone, just to "educate" them, but didn't go there. Prepare yourself Joan too for after surgery, as all kinds of feelings come - in my case it was a weird "blah" feeling. I told myself, "what, you've survived this, and now you have this whatever feeling??" In that case it was medicine induced, tinged with nausea from that particular medicine. Once it was removed after a week, I perked back up. But be prepared now and later to be kind to yourself, and ask for understanding in advance, and even afterwards voicing what you're feeling, much like Debbie did above. I never had pain after being released, but did have nausea and was weak and felt like I might be like that forever. Of course not, every day was an improvement and even when we do not see it ourselves, it is great when your spouse or other caretakers mention that today you can do X, which you could not do yesterday. In my case it was that I was visibly stronger when standing, could walk longer, reach more, begin to become independent again. Baby yourself, and try to stay busy as much as you can now, and line up some interesting books, music, videos or TV shows you want to catch up on when you come home. For me it was audio books and magazines, both of which are not normally part of my day. Writing about is another way of getting it out of your mind, so this site is a blessing for that, as well! Best wishes to you. Eleanor

Elaine Foster  I too, am pre-avr, Waiting for my surgery date. I guess one thing I have always done when facing a difficult situation ( like death of my parents) is to remind myself I am not the first one to go thru this, others have dealt with it and handled it and I can too. As for this particular situation we find ourselves in, this site has been wonderful because everyone here understands!! I, too, have had people fluff off my situation and say "well you will be ok". Yes, I believe I will be ok, but I don't feel the understand the gravity of what we will be going thru. But, the main thing I do to stay calm and have peace is I trust in my Lord Jesus, and read scriptures and pray. If you would like me to share some of the scriptures with you that have been a comfort to me, let me know, I will be happy to send them to you. I try to remind myself to take one day at a time. Hope some of this helps, you will be in my prayers as are all those facing surgery.

Susan Ericsson  I called my cardiologist sobbing one day, and my primary. And friends. It's tough, waiting. And, as my surgeon said many times, "this isn't hernia surgery! This is a big deal!" Some people just don't get that and give you the proper support, and others don't know what to say. That's why this is such a great place.

Susan Ericsson  I meant to add for coping I used some relaxation stuff, the Cleveland Clinic has some good ones you can download from iTunes for free. Then this site was great, and friends that understood. Hope things get better!

Adam Pick  Joan, thanks so much for taking the time to share your journey with all of us. You have our prayers, you have our support and your have our love. I can relate and remember to so many of the feelings you describe above -- fear, denial, disbelief. Those feelings are all normal. Your mitral valve, however, not so normal. The good news... It's going to get fixed. You have a lot more life and love to experience. Now, let's focus on the positive. Let's focus on getting you ready for what lays in front of you and your family. Let's get you set up with a good recovery plan. Let's look forward to "VS Day" as a rebirth of your heart. If I can do it. If so many members of our community can do it... So can you! If you need anything, please let me know. Keep on tickin! Adam

  Yes it's all challenging but with all your family support and love you will be fine! Waiting is the hardest and patience with your recovery is the second hardest from my viewpoint . You'll be in my thoughts and prayers!

Debbie cross  Jane I had valve repair(mitral and tricuspid),and the maze procedure last Friday.We are from Missouri,but came here to Dr.McCarthy at Northwestern.I was released last night to a downtown hotel and should be staying here for 2 more days for test.I would never say that it is easy,but as a nurse you already know that! After 29 years of "watching it", it's great to have it done finally!

Joan Napier  Adam, thank you so much for your kind and affirming words! I needed to hear everything that you said, as fear and worry can sometimes get the best of me. My focus is getting in a positive place so I can go through this with the right attitude. My cardiac nurse advised me to do whatever i needed to get in a positive frame of mind because it does make a difference. It's great we're all here for one another. Joan

Joan Napier  L.E. Thank you for your kind words of support! Waiting is so stressful. I appreciate your prayers. Joan

Joan Napier  Debbie, I'm so happy to hear your surgery and procedure went well, and at least that part is behind you. You are correct, this has been such a long time coming. Positive thoughts and prayers will continue for your quick and uneventful recovery. Please keep us updated. Joan

John Noriega  Thank you. I believe in the Power of Prayer. Everything we do or that is done to us is guided by a powerful Lord in our life.

Janise Mc  Hi Thank you for this great prayer, I have the same leaky valve, I am very close to surgery also. My hugs and prayers are with you when you get your surgery. I am here for you if you need support. I totally know how you feel since I have the same severe leaky valve. I work very hard everyday to find the brightness in the day. My only daughter just turned 18 and is in college, so I spend a lot of time alone and need to catch those pesky mvp fear voices in my head. Much love to you. j

Joan Napier  Thank you for your kind words of support, Janise! I greatly appreciate your prayers. It sounds like we have much in common, and I am here too if you need an ear. My thoughts and prayers are with you as well. Hugs, Joan