Larisa Bailey - Heart Valve Journal

My Journal

470 days ago

I am going to be at week 10 tomorrow after open heart surgery. My incision scar is still tender and hurts off and on. I am wondering how long it takes to heal ...Read more

I am going to be at week 10 tomorrow after open heart surgery. My incision scar is still tender and hurts off and on. I am wondering how long it takes to heal completely!?

Rose Madura Larisa, I remember my scar hurting off and on for months. But it gets better. Consider it like a bro ... Read more

Rose Madura Larisa, I remember my scar hurting off and on for months. But it gets better. Consider it like a broken bone. Hang in there!

Pamela Gregory As Rose said, it is a broken bone, plus touching and fixing your heart that was never intended to be... Read more

Pamela Gregory As Rose said, it is a broken bone, plus touching and fixing your heart that was never intended to be touched

Nancy Romero Hi Larisa, no pain after one week, and I was fine after a month or so. Dr Adams and Staff were exce ... Read more

Nancy Romero Hi Larisa, no pain after one week, and I was fine after a month or so. Dr Adams and Staff were excellent at Mount Sinai hospital in NYC.

Grace Mason You are still very early on in your recovery. Everyone heals differently and some people have more ne ... Read more

Grace Mason You are still very early on in your recovery. Everyone heals differently and some people have more nerve pain than others. I noticed a big difference in how I felt, overall, at about 4 months.

Larisa Bailey Thank you all! It is nice to know that it is not the same for everyone.

Robert Miller I guess it's a matter of what level "hurt" is on. I had no pain at all. A little discomfort, yes. Esp ... Read more

Robert Miller I guess it's a matter of what level "hurt" is on. I had no pain at all. A little discomfort, yes. Especially a seatbelt rubbing on my chest when in the car. Sometimes some random sensitivity. But nothing that did hurt.

Having said that, after about half a year after my second surgery, I started to develop some discomfort. It mostly disappeared after about 2 months. I still have a bump. The nurse who shaved me for my cardioversion nicked it and made it bled. No big deal but that bump sometimes does feel strange.

Larisa Bailey Yes, the shoulder seat belt is very annoying. A lot of the time, I just slip my arm through it so I a ... Read more

Larisa Bailey Yes, the shoulder seat belt is very annoying. A lot of the time, I just slip my arm through it so I am only using the lap belt!

Robert Miller Well, I am not sure avoiding the shoulder seat belt is the best/safest option. Maybe put a very thin ... Read more

Robert Miller Well, I am not sure avoiding the shoulder seat belt is the best/safest option. Maybe put a very thin pillow between the seatbelt and chest (that's what I did for some time) or tape some thin padding around the seatbelt where it rubs your chest. Not ideal but a lot safer than no seat belt around your shoulder.