John's Heart Valve Journal

Am i the only one who comes back to see how some have made out with there surgery , to wonder how they are doing a few Heart Warriors went in this week and are still to appear I hope there surgeries went well they are recovering maybe don't have access to leave a message yet..

Well I had my TEE & Catherization yesterday , got tot the hospital as requested at 6:30 AM 8 patients later and 3:30 in the afternoon they finally took me for the TEE I was pretty frustrated and pissed to have waited so long but finally , meet the Dr and he staff who was really nice she explained everything to me in detail said tey come a long way since i last had it 20 years ago , she put an IV line in and went to work , the next i remember it was over and she said everything went well. guess they drugs really worked so I was Droggly happy if that's a word, the next I remember i was in the Cath lab on the table and they were doing the wrist Cath , I was awake so i thought, next i know it was over and they said all was well.. 2 hrs later my wife was coming to get me... I'm really happy how the day went except for the long wait it cound not have been a better experience they staff at the VA were nice gracious and caring , made it eazy and finding out everting went well was the cherry on top now i meet the Dr on wed to go over all the findings but thru the day when i said Dr Grossi was doing my surgery all i got were accolades of how he was the main man for valves and world renown so have to admit it has made me feel better , now mind yo I hat that I hve to do this but im glad that the people who will be responsible are highly thought of. Hope everyone's test goes as well as mind did... onward Heart Warriors.

Thinking Out Loud,
I hope this is ok here , If its a bit much ill delete it , Since I was diagnosed with my Valve issues, I have had a hard time coming to terms with this , I know im not alone in the why me sometimes self pity club, I know my shortness of breath and light headedness were getting progressively worse as I dealt with my prostate cancer last year. I was just dealing with it and concentrating on the cancer treatment , I kept thinking maybe it was a pulmonary issue well , 2 Echo's later its my Mitral valve Regurgitation as well as my Afib. and tricuspid leaking severely, Thursday I go for the TEE and Cath pro op test...
So now why is every little ache and chest pain an issue and magnified, not to mention the fear of the surgery. I’m a veteran and get my treatment at the VA hospital as there is no thoracic at my VA I was sent to NY so I don't get many options of where to go and who to do it. The surgeon I was assigned is from NYU who has 30 + years of experience and is a professor at the school and the head of thoracic at the VA so why am I worrying. Maybe because I am like everyone elseI think about my family and all the things I feel I still ave to do in life,.I do music for a living and constantly travel the world today I had to tell my agent I had to shut it down for at least March and April, my health is # 1 if I don't have it there isn't a gig in the world worth it .. My visit with the Surgeon was good and we decided we will do it March 11th , I have a two week tour to do in Australia and NZ , he said go do it , come back and we will do the surgery but still I worry anyway ,

im sorry if this is the wrong place for this . I just needed to talk out loud and apologize to my heart Warriors , but seeing all the success stories here gives me hope ill be one of the good ones. much love and prayers to all the Warriors.

Make Sure to Come Back... I was thinking today as I came here looking for updates When I was dealing with my Prostate cancer I noticed that when we are looking for help assistance and support we tend to be very active. In my short time here I have also noticed that once some people have had there surgery and are on the road to recovery they no longer visit. I would like to implore some of you who have had successful surgeries to please come back and help support those like me who are still to have there operations and are longing for support and encouragement, as you know this is a really big deal operation and the support many get here help them us get thru this . so please make sure to come back and help those who like you need help in the beginning.

Well its Christmas Eve Day and most of my day gets consumed with the thought of my future surgery whenever that may be as I don't see the surgeon till the 9th Jan ,its so easy to say don't think about it,. Burt since its a OHS the fear of not getting up, really is messing with my head. anyway just finding some time to share my thoughts with everyone here who understands these feelings , and wishing those who are in recovery the best of luck you've done it , and to those of us who are waiting and scared your not alone , I wish you and your families the best as we all wait for that day to come , i'm in there with you wishing it was all behind me and I was recovering till then I will try not to let it over consume my thoughts.

John

OK Heart Valve Family, Sorry for a repost but5 needed to add some more information to it.. Finally had a chance to speak to Dr Grossi this week about my case, and he said I need ,a mitral valve and tricuspid repair, as well as a possible maze to deal with my afib, he said after 20 years of having afib my heart has enlarged a bit causing the Miral to leak and it needs repair, I have had various ablations over the years as well as having a pace maker . He has almost 30 years of experience in OHS. I’m going to need the whole gambit of test which anyone who has had this is familiar with Jan 9th for most of the test and Jan 15th for the Cath test. and all the blood test , to say this is totally freaking me out is to put it mildly.

I told the receptions he souds like he’s changing his socks and she said he does surgery almost on a daily basis, and forgets that for the patients it’s a big deal . but there is always a risk of fatality ,they will not do robotic or MI as he explained I have multiple issues which are nor a good candidate for robotic...

I know I don’t have any options but to get the surgery . I’m so scared but i see so many here who have had them done with great success. I love seeing the pictures of people post there procedure and doing so well , I wish i could wake up and have this all behind me it will probably be a few months before I get it done unless he says otherwise when I finally go in to meet him but im going to use all the successes on here to help me get thru this....

Has anyone else had both valves repaired as well as a-fib arrhythmia dealt with during their surgery. I am now assuming that it will be a longer recovery period for me due to the complexity of my case . anyway thanks again and sorry for the many post, everyone tells me I'm so brave I just finished a bout for prostate cancer and this followed a few months behind I will need much support in the next few months to get thru this.

This may sound sliek a stupid question but post the surgery where is it most painful during the recovery I'm thinking does the heart feel pain like when you pull a muscle in your leg ??

And last but not least I don’t think it was smart to go watch some YouTube videos’ for the surgery
John

OK Heart Valve Family, I got a chance to speak to Dr Grossi this morning about my case, and he said I need , Mitral Valve and tricuspid repair and also dealing with my afib, he said after 20 years of afib my heart has enlarged a bit causing the Mitral to leak and it needs repair, HE has almost 30 years of experience in OHS. Im going to need the whole gambit of test which anyone who has had this is familiar with. TEE, Cath , Cat scans, Pulmonary function and all the blood test , to say this is totally freaking me out is to put it mildly ,
He has done surgery almost on a daily basis, but there is always a risk of fatality they will nto do robotic or MI as I have multiple issues which are nor a good candidate for robotic... I know I dont have any option but to get the surgery . Im so scared but i see so many here who have had them done with great success. I wish i could wake up and have this all behind me it will probable be a few months but im going to use all the successes on here to help me get thru this....
Has anyone else had both valves repaired and a-fib arrhythmia dealt with during there surgery I am now assuming that the traditional surgery i will get means it will be a longer recovery period for me. anyway thanks again all I will need much support in the nest few months to get thru this.

And last but not least how smart is it to go youtubeing looking at the operation , was probably nto a smart thing to do I guess..
John

Hello everyone my Name is John im 64 and live in NJ , I hope you are all as well as can be, I have arrived here in search of support and comfort form those who are like mem scared of the thought of OHS death petrifies me ... I battled Prostate Cancer earlier this year and just as i was feeling better and recovering after all the treatment this ,I had severe shortness of breath and constantly tired and sometimes get lightheaded , has most of the test done and thought i had some pulmonary issues and 2 weeks ago the ECHO reveled severe mitral valve regurgitation I knew something was wrong i could barley get up a flight of starts without huffing and puffing. and my legs were swelling up a bit. yesterday the Dr redid the ECHO himself and confirmed the diagnosis. And said you need this repaired. Being a Veteran adn no other medical insurance i don't have many options but i have to say i have always been happy with my care at the VA.. I live in New Jersey they said they will send me to NYU and a Dr called Eugene Grossi at NYU Langone .. and am waiting for my appointment to meet with him to discuss my case and I assume make an appointment for the surgery. I also have afib and i have a pacemaker to boot.

I travel extensively for my work and fly very often long haul flights. so for those with some pre op experience , i have a few questions how do you deal with the extreme shortness of breath are there any tricks to help make it more manageable and take less strain off the heart .
For me as im sure for most the mental dwelling and worrying is overwhelming to think og OHS i couldn't think of anything worse to worry about .
Thank you in advance to anyone who answers and shares in my struggle , mos tof us come here because were desperate for someone to tell us were goanna be ok. My wife and family are super supportive but if yu r like me you don't want to burden them with your stress. OHS makes you think of the worse things

John
John