Kenneth's Journal

Steven A Husted  bless you Ken hope you are having a smooth recovery yes i love our NAVY god bless America and the USN amen i used to live in queens new york i went ot richmond hill high school i worked for con edison electric for a short time then went into the NAVY i live in parsonsburg md now retired from the USPS

Sophia Ridley  Hi Kenneth, I'm having Physio treatment to get over my mitral valve repair as I have EDS hypermobility and everything moved about.
The Physio and I were discussing the muscles which are affected with OHS, sternocleidomastoid muscles will be directly affected and those at the rear of the neck. The SCM can cause a whole host of issues (see link) including cough and hoarseness. Know could be a long shot, but Physio sessions might be worth a try... Probably feel better afterwards regardless! :)

http://www.natural-solutions-for-muscle-pain.com/sternocleidomastoid-muscle.html

Kenny Knox  My right shoulder and back were very sore after surgery. I also had some big bruises on my left arm and left leg. The docs told me some bodies bruise more than others during surgery due to the way they move you and restrain you. After about 2 weeks all my soreness was gone and bruises faded.

Duane Beeman  My arms and hands are hurting all the time. Feels like arthritis but it's only been around since surgery. I hope it goes away at some point. I have no idea what's causing it but it's aggravating

Naomi Ivker  My shoulders and back are more sore than anything else. I was told it was because of the rib spreader and the position you are in. I'm 2 weeks out.

Kim Schurman  I also had mostly upper back pain, bilateral shoulder pain, and burning pain down my right arm. The doctor said that it was due to surgery position, but the left arm was also the one that was for blood draws since i had a heparin drip in my right arm most of my stay in the hospital. The pain lasted for several weeks after surgery and i couldnt sleep on my left side at all even 1.5 months out. I had a few episodes of severe burning pain down my left arm that was agonizing and lasted for several minutes and then would taper down as well. Now more than 2 months out I dont have any issues with that anymore.

Jackie Owens  I had this after I had a heart stent put in. I have a brachial plexus injury from the positioning. I have permanent damage to my left shoulder and nerve damage in my left arm which leaves me with numbness in my left hand and constant burning in my shoulder. At times if I hold anything slightly heavy in my left hand I just lose grip and my fingers lock up. Hopefully yours goes away over time more so than mine did.

Elaine Foster  My left shoulder gives me the worst time of it since my AVR. Both shoulders and upper chest area hurt for quite awhile. (I am 8 1/2 months out), and still do some. When taking a shirt off over my head sometimes the left chest/shoulder area screams at me. Riding my bike seems to aggrevate it too, I guess I lean to heavily on the handle bars. It is getting better, but not back to pre-surgery

Steven A Husted  i had pain in shoulders and upper back after surgery and they gave me a pain patch for about 4 weeks it helped until the pain slowly went away

Kathleen F.  Yes I still have left shoulder pain too, 8 months post-op. It's really the only lingering issue so I can't complain... but it is annoying. I've gotten used to it and stretching has helped the impingement a bit, and I think with time it should get better. It seems to be taking a long time though. Patience...

Terry Shermeister   Hi Kenneth: Yes, I had soreness. Also, I sometimes still get muscle spasms in my arm and back. I talked to my cardio guy and he said that I should not worry as it comes from some of the restraints and OHS. I was worried that I was having a cardiac event, but because all my arteries are clear that I need not worry. Since I am doing dumbbell exercises to strengthen my chest I've noticed that a lot of the muscle pain has diminished.

Lila Robinson  when was your surgery date Kenneth? Mine was April 23rd...I think I'm about 9 weeks out too! Scar is looking good for me too; I'm stick not loving the occasional sneeze! But it doesn't hurt to cough; I'm having bond pain from my outer rib cage sort of in front of my arm pits. Like you, I have to stop and remember I can't lift or pull/push on heavy stuff. It is nice to sleep on my side a bit. Great progress to you Kenneth....keep it up! Did you do cardiac rehab? I just finished 2 weeks M/W/F at 4:30 but we have a holiday off tomorrow!!!!

Nancy D  Indeed it does at any age!!! I am 10 months out and still if I over do too many days in a row, I have to listen to my body telling me to take it easy for a couple days. I find it screams at me especially if I haven't slept well a few nights in a row. Fatigue really isn't good for me. Insomnia makes that a bit more problematic than if I was a good sleeper. Be patient with yourself and listen to what your body is telling you! Take good care!

Tammy Pilcher  It sounds normal to me too, Kenneth. I'm 51 and 8 months out, still get tired easily. I do what I feel like and stop when I need to. Prayers and best wishes, Tammy

Jeff Lashins  Great news, Kenneth! Must feel great to drive. I'll be 5 weeks post-op on Friday. I don't think I'm ready to drive though. I'm still in a decent amount of pain and jerking the wheel quickly would be rather painful. Your pain level must be less than mine?

Terry Shermeister   That's great news. I have my visit tomorrow, it's just after three weeks, I'm hoping that I can drive again. I feel very limited.

  Sounds like you are recovery very well, Kenneth. God is Faithful. You are one week ahead of me. I see my surgeon June 1st....and should be able to drive myself to cardiac rehab on Wednesday, the third.
So true...... every day is different. My healthcare team have all said each week, look back and see the overall improvement from one week to the next. Otherwise, the day to day experiences might be disappointing at times.
It is definitely hard to restrict activities, but that is temporary, and you don't want to slow down your progress.
It's great you are taking pictures, again.
Are you in cardiac rehab?
God Bless You as you continue to heal.

Tim Goff  Super news Kenneth- glad to hear you are moving in the right direction. it takes some time to pass off items you used to do yourself, but solutions are found to that and other activities from it too I find

Tammy Pilcher  I'm so happy for you, Kenneth! You're right about taking it easy and not doing anything that your body's not ready for. Prayers and best wishes for continued recovery. God is Great!

Eleanor R  I know! Don't try to drop the pain meds, take what you need. They made me sick (Tramadol was what I came home with), so I moved to Extra Strength Tylenol quickly, using the Tylenol mostly at night. The surgeon's nurse suggested spacing them out, and taking only 1 Tylenol every six hours, and that seemed to work. I could not sleep in the bed, too hard to get into and out of, harder still to roll over. I did love that electric recliner! I honestly thought I should buy it since like you mention I could move around in it, with the different settings, and was so comfortable. Finally, after having the recliner for 2 months, I allowed it to go back, and got back in the bed, but it sure served me well the first several weeks. Sounds like you are on the path to steady healing, keep it up.

Terry Shermeister   Hi Kenneth: I'm having one of those power recliners delivered tomorrow. I hate them, but I'm told it will allow me to sleep better. At my pre op I was told not to fall behind in the pain med department. I guess they were telling the truth. Thanks for the up date.

Eleanor R  Its great that you are already cooking. I was too, not too much stamina, but good spurts. Do you walking and breathing, and rest frequently.

Terry Shermeister   Thanks Kenneth I was wondering how you were. My surgery is coming up next Thursday 7 AM in the morning. Glad it's early. I understand now what you were saying about being frustrated with how some people respond when you let them know about the surgery. I am glad you are doing well and getting better daily.

Terrie Syvertsen  Glad you are home. What kind of birds do you have visiting you? Do you have visible stitches in your incision? If so, don't leave your shirt off as your birdie friends might land and make it part of their nesting material......
I don't know why that seemed funny to me...no drugs here just a bad head cold and I'm stuffed up big time! I just watered my garden out in my small backyard and I have to tell you the garden is one of the best things to set you well on your recovery. I feed the birds and am amazed at how peaceful it is watching these little buggers go at the 3 seed hangers we have in the yard. The blue jays are busy here this morning robbing the dishes of sunflowers and "Kat" is doing her best to intimidate them. It sounds really great that you are in and out of bed by yourself and without pain. Keep an eye on the fluid and don't overdo it even though if you are like a lot of us, getting home makes you feel like kicking up your heels! Doesn't it feel amazing when it hits that all that time you spent waiting ended up being behind you and YOU ARE HOME! Enjoy the birds and time healing. Enjoy your naps too as your body has a lot to make up for and when you combine the walks, food and naps it is helping to build up
all your strength. Take care now.

Tom Fitzmorris  so great to hear from you on the other side, Ken. Sounds like you are progressing nicely. By the way, I realized that for myself, since I have no previous surgery experience I unconsciously thought that my improvement from one day to the next will be at the pace of say, recovering from the flu. But recovery pace from flu is measured in days, while OHS is measured in weeks. It is easy to get impatient...Tom (AVR on April 13th.)

Tim Goff  So glad to hear you are doing well Kenneth. I am still having a few lung issue's but pales in comparison to the alternative.

Bob Bemben  Way to go Ken! Welcome home. It does start feeling a bit better with each passing day. The hard part is behind us!

Elaine Foster  Thinking of you Bob and Ken! You have both joined the Post op heart warriors! Take lots of naps, short walks, drink fluids, eat as you can, and if on narcotic pain pills, --take Stool softner! In a few short weeks, you will be amazed at how good you feel. God Bless you both

Eleanor R  You seem to have done great, quickly at home and looking great just hours/days after the surgery itself. Keep up the healing and recovery, its all in the rear view mirror now.

Nancy D  remember your deep breathing and Use the incentive spirometer!! No place like home! Now rest and take good care!

Tammy Pilcher  Yay Ken! I'm so glad you've got your surgery behind you now! Prayers and best wishes for a great recovery! God is Great!

Terrie Syvertsen  Glad to hear you are already home and you look fantastic! Take it one day at a time and do as everyone posted above!!!!!!! Take care and bless you! Looking forward to hearing your progress in further updates but don't try posting if you are not up to it-better a rest! It gets tough on the back and shoulders sitting too long at first on the computer! Take care!

Steven A Husted  yes remember to rest and dont rush it time is the healer short walks and plenty of fluids lots of water you are in recovery now if you can i think cardio rehab is a very good idea phase 2 is a good start to help in recovery

Ann Keating  Glad to hear the surgery went well and it's behind you. After my surgery I wondered what was I thinking? It was rough going for awhile. It does get better though. Hang in there and it's so true--it beats the alternative, as Jason pointed out.

Tammy Pilcher  Great list Ken!! I have to add one: You get your heart fixed! Prayers and best wishes for your surgery and recovery! You are a great supporter to everyone here! Thank you!

Linda Whitney  Love the list! And it is so true! You also learn the value of being vulnerable. Sometimes it's a relief to cry and get genuine hugs of support.

Kenneth Cole  Linda, thanks for the comment. I understand that emotions are just that, emotions. Don't understand what tears mean, but they are there, I would be a liar if I said otherwise. A little humor helps a lot, as well as all the prayers and good wishes. God bless you all. My big day is only hours away.

Pat Bluemel  You'll have aches and pains for a while, but nothing that isn't manageable. I rented a recliner, mainly to sleep in, it had the lift option but I never needed it and used it once just for giggles. They teach you in the hospital how to stand, sit, lay and move. No special lifts needed at home. Just start practicing standing up without your arms now, then you will be ready.

Daniel Spurgeon  It wasn't painful getting up, I just kept my arms crossed in front of my chest as the nurses instructed.

Terry Shermeister   Kenneth, Dan, and Pat, I want to thank you for this information, and Kenneth the question because I wondered the same thing. I've made arrangements for one of those recliners, as a matter of fact, I traded in a relatively new Weber LP grill for the use of this electrical recliner. I just want to make sure that I can get up, walk and do tasks around here after the procedure. Again, thanks,

Meredith Bray  I used my electric recliner for adjusting positions so I could sleep. I moved back to my regular recliner two weeks after surgery. I never needed the electric lift portion of the electric recliner.

Ann Keating  I had never even thought about a recliner beforehand. Wish I had. Getting comfortable was impossible for awhile.

Pat Bluemel  While I was grateful for my recliner rental for sleeping, I was even more so of my shower stool. You get stiff and are a bit sore, especially in the morning, there was no better waking up therapy than sitting in a hot shower until the hot water ran out. It also helped as I had anemia and was freezing for a while. Consider this for your post surgery planning as well. Again, not a must have but sure was nice to have.

Steven A Husted  hi ken i would say it is different for each person as far as the electric recliner i can not do with out mine i bought it before surgery and i am glad i did before surgery i would sleep on my stomach but after surgery i could not because of the incision so i would sleep in the recliner and it was a big help getting up and down i still sleep in the recliner to this day and i am almost 9 months out your heart brother steve (popeye)

Kenneth Cole  Thanks again my dear friends for your helpful comments. I'm doing my homework, got the shower stool, already have a recliner, doing my leg exercises, and deep breathing, so after surgery it will not be foreign to me.

Eleanor R  I loved the electric recliner that I rented and placed by my bed. It was very helpful the first two weeks in getting me up and out. During the day, I was downstairs and got up and down just by crossing my arms over my chest and using those leg muscles. I was glad that I had done some practice before the surgery so it wasn't an unknown. I could also go up and down the stairs before I left the hospital - not too many stairs and certainly not fast, but doing it. Before they release you, the hospital generally makes sure you can get up and down, in and out of a passenger car, etc. You should be fine. I would make sure someone keeps an eye on you on your first trips upstairs and your first showers, just for safety. My adult daughter never had to intervene, but she was there as a "vigilante" just in case. Like you, I had a shower stool and moved from the shower to sit on the edge of the tub to dry off, then moved to an armchair to dress. Slower than usual, but all do-able. Good luck to you.

Steven A Husted  yes a shower stool is a great help in the shower but you may want to take a warm shower they say hot water on your incision is not good at least for several weeks be careful you dont want a re-op your heart brother steve (popeye)

Penny Prichard  I had bilateral cataract surgery in October 2014 and mitral valve repair in March 2015. No problems regarding OHS. My problem was my cataract surgery did not correct my vision as hoped and ophthalmologist feels may be heart related

Tim Goff  Great news Ken! I just had a mitral repair and MAZE procedure 3 weeks ago. My chief concern was a repair over replacement and was so relieved when I woke up with a repair. You will do fine.

Ann Keating  My thoughts are with you--hoping for the best for you. I just had a mitral valve repair on February 11, 2015 and have had good results so far. Please let me know if you have any questions. Glad to share.

Jason Lathrop  I am 7 days post op for a mitral repair and feel better than I would have guessed possible. It is hard but do-able. We are pulling for you.

Wiliam Height  Great news Ken! In a center such as you are going to, I would expect the repair rates to be in around that percentile. We're lucky to be so close to NY and the world class health care centers--but even I i didn't live so close I would seek out and go to a heart center. Positive thoughts sent.

Jim O'Brien  Hi Ken, I'm 3-1/2 months post Mitral Valve repair, and every time I go to the doctor, he says my heart sounds great! I had a very loud murmur and a severely leaking valve. Heart wise, I'm doing good. My surgeon gave me a 95% chance of repair and I live in a much smaller city with fewer surgeon choices. So, you should do great when they REPAIR your Mitral Valve! Positive thoughts and best wishes to you.

Cheryl Batzing  So glad to hear of the most likely repair, Ken. I had a mitral valve repair in mid December and am recovering well. Will keep you in my prayers.

Kenneth Cole  My dear friends, thank you, thank you thank you for all the great comments. It means so much to me. God bless you all.

Kenneth Cole  Hello William. I'm thinking either repair or replacement of the mitral valve, at Columbia Presbyterian. I'll leave the choice up to the surgeon.

Wiliam Height  You're valve will be repaired. I'm a graduate of Mt Sinai Mitral Foundation 1/30. Keep us posted.