Laura's Journal

Emily Shively  Hi Laura! By your comment about your valve not being permenant, I take it you chose a tissue valve? I am two weeks post-op with a bovine valve. I'm doing great so far and I'm so thankful that it's over. But the thought that I'll have to go through all of this again keeps creeping into my mind. I'm praying hard for advancements in TAVR!

Bob M  Great recovery! Just like you, others here, and me who are betting on the valve in valve procedure for the next round.

Judi Nunez  I can't wait to be on your side. I am waiting for surgery end of January or early Feb and I am a wreck. I am scared I am anxious i want to cry all the time. I ask myself whats wrong with me ? why do I feel so darn nervous/anxious. I'm not usually a whimp. I feel like my heart is jumping out of my body sometimes.

Joan Napier  Laura, It's good to hear your success story, and that you are doing so well. It must be so nice that life is back to normal again. Wishing you all the best!

Daniel Spurgeon  I had some stiffness in the right side of my neck where the swan was inserted, but no general neck pain. I hope you feel better.

  Hey Laura. I see you've been having a "pain in the neck". The long and short of it is to take pain meds to a sufficient strength. The reason is that massage or over stretching can "wake up" more of your muscle groups and create a bigger problem. So... light stretching will help but not alleviate the pain. Of course, massage is out of the question because (for me) because firstly you're not ready for it and it may be bad for your health. It looks daunting at first but the pain meds buy time and allow you to think straight and doesn't slow down healing. I was on pain meds 3X a day with two pills each and now 3 weeks later I am off of pain meds, The reduction was gradual and it worked. Maybe it will work for you as well. Bob O.

Laura Brase  Thanks for your input! I didn't receive much of a supply of the pain meds when I left the hospital. They lasted for a couple weeks maybe. I do noticertain a significant increase in the neck pain (and of course chest pain) since running out. I take 2 Extra Strength Tylenol in the morning and before bed. I've started cardiac rehab so hopefully this will help too.

Joan Napier  Laura, Thank you for sharing your healing journey. It's wonderful to hear that things are going so well! Best wishes for a continued smooth recovery. God bless you. Joan (and you and your incision look beautiful!)

Sandra Dill  You are doing great. My surgery was 8 weeks ago. I'm doing good except for the anxiety I have been experiencing. 2nd week into my cardiac rehab it's going well. I am hoping to be less anxious really soon. Glad you are doing great.

Eleanor R  I know! wouldn't you think the doctors would share their experience and wisdom with us? My primary care physician said very little, as did the cardiologist. The surgeon gave us a lot of information, from his perspective, and asked us to read Adam's book, as well as a couple of others from the patient's perspective. What was very helpful was once we set a date with the surgeon, his office planned the next steps and gave us a large binder with information on what would happen next, what tests would be done for the pre-op, what would happen in the ICU and then in the cardiac "step down unit", what tests, and what would be expected of me (sitting on the side of the bed, getting into a recliner, walking, etc.) with a rough timetable. It also included what happens after release, at home, how much walking, sleeping, etc. I hope your surgeon's office or the hospital provides something similar. If not, just ask questions at each step, and "what comes next?".
None of us on this site have ever been "ready" to do this, but once you have a date, and know you need the surgery to live, you make up your mind that you can do this, and you will see that you can. I'm 68 and my surgery was July 14th. After five weeks I was driving, cooking, cleaning (a bit, nothing heavy), visiting friends and of course walking and using that dreaded spirometer in the interim, to keep my lungs open and exercised until I could walk even more . I trust that you will do well, and will be telling us all about your experience. My thoughts and prayers will be with you and with your family. Eleanor

Laura Brase  Thank you Eleanor! I really pray that I recover quickly. I have a 4 year old and a 2 year old and I stay home with them. This is a huge bump and I can't wait to get back to normal life with them. As a mom it's been hard to grasp that I have to let go of all the responsibilities that I have with the children and my home. I've never needed physical help so this is going to be hard.

My office didn't give me any of that. When I read about others like yourself getting all this information to go through I feel sad that I'm not informed as well as I could be.

Daniel Spurgeon  Laura, I can tell you that I was anxious about my OHS and visualized running away from the hospital, but actually felt a sense of calm acceptance on the morning if surgery. I was actually joking with the parade of doctors and nurses who visited me in pre-op. The best anxiety reducer for me was remembering that the surgery was literally a life-saving repair to be thankful for.

Michael Meyer  The beauty of this site is the people speaking have experienced the surgical procedures. Many of the gifted physicians that diagnose and take care of us have not experienced this process and I think in many cases the time allowed for them to be with patients prevents these conversations. It's good to have Adam's resource.

Lilly Black  Laura, I understand the anxiety! been there, done that....I'm sorry that it is a difficult time for you. I, too, have to schedule surgery this year, and I am scared. It will be my second one. So I want to share as much as I can regarding my own experience. I found that it didn't help me to hold on to all the anxiety. I had to find a way to get a grip! after all I have family that I care about.....so I decided to delve in as opposed to running away. So I hired a surgery coach, and this is when she told me about visualization, and much more. I began meditating, and visualizing the most positive and beautiful things that I will experience about 1 month before surgery. I practiced relaxation and visualization, and prepared my mind and heart for surgery. It helped SO much! I will do it again for this upcoming surgery. I hope that you find the strength and perseverance to go forward with the surgery that will save your life. Imagine how much better you will feel :o) I wish you the best of luck to you and your family.
Lilly

Terrie Syvertsen  Laura. All that you are feeling...we have all felt and it is normal. What is better for you now is to try and gather your strength and know that to survive this must be done and it won't be long until you are back with those you love and healing with this just a memory you will put in the past one day. The people above and myself have all had the experiences you will soon share with those coming along for surgery after you. It will be a lot less difficult than your imagination leads you to believe. I am on my 7th week of post-op healing and like Eleanor pointed out as you heal and life gets back inline you are able to look forward to the future and living one day at a time knowing that it is possible to go back to living that life and dreaming those dreams. Please be confident that the people(Your Team), your surgeon are the best at these procedures and will take great care with you and FOCUS on ONLY YOU! Believe.......
Prayers and Universal energy for your safekeeping and surgery are being sent your way. Take care and remember we here at the site are pulling for you along with those you love.