Lorraine's Journal

Mike Czaplewski  I have but I have a bad aortic valve. Had OHS on 1-9-17 when I had a bovine valve put in. Went into ER on 3-31-20 and the hospital 4-1 and 4-2 because my heart was POUNDING in my chest and head. Found out the valve I had put in a little over 3 years ago is failing. My ejection fraction is down to 25%. Had a TEE done on 5-8-20 and a CT (TAVR) on 5-15-20 that I am STILL waiting to hear the results for. Sorry I can't help you with your issue but I'm sure it happens. I believe your surgery wasn't all that long ago? Have you contacted your cardiologist? Blessings. Hope you find answers soon.

Marie Myers  Might have had a low Blood pressure for a few seconds when you stood up. That can give you all those nasty symptoms. Have the docs changed your BP meds recently, or might you have been a little dehydrated? Those can contribute to “orthostatic hypotension”. Hope it does not happen again!

  Thank you for The Word Lorraine. Very encouraging, staying in prayer always for all of us and the world.

Jo Orsini  Just saw your Feb 14th post & Psalm 108... incredible! Love it! Glad you’re doing so well. Awaiting my Mitral & Tricuspid repair in a couple weeks. I’m near Toronto Canada & know there is a Salt Room near here-haven’t been - but thinking it would be nice to check out after. Sounds wonderful! Keep well!

Adam Pick  Hi Lorraine! Glad to hear you are feeling better. Nothing worse than the flu. That salt room looks like a wonderful experience. I have never heard of anything like that. But, I may have to in the future.

Lorraine Mobley  @Jo, maybe you should try it before hand! The waiting room for me was harder than the surgery or the recovery! I wish you well!

Lorraine Mobley  @Adam, Thank you! Yes, I just learned about salt rooms a few months before my surgery at a spa when I went to a convention and had an extra day to treat myself. I don't really think there's anything scientific to prove it but I just love them! I feel relaxed and like my sinus and allergy issues improve a lot.

Frank Giovanniello   Hi Lorraine, glad your feeling better. I just googled salt therapy. There is a place one town over from me. I gotta look into this.

Lorraine Mobley  @Frank, I loved it! There is just something so relaxing about it. I do however, recommend hydrating yourself well before during and after, unless you are fluid restricted. Also my skin was kind of dry and crepey after so using a lot of moisturizers is important.

Susan Lynn  Lorraine - I'm so sorry to read you had to experience that pain. Glad you were able to quickly resolve it. Hope it was an isolated bump in the road. Be well! ❤

Lorraine Mobley  Yes, I was a little fatigued today, took a nap and 1000mg tylenol and feel much better. All in all, I cannot complain, my recovery has been pretty smooth.

Lorraine Mobley  Carol- it goes by in a blur...of course when you are in the "thick of it" you are in it but once home things start to fade away really quickly. Best of luck, see you on the flip side!

Lindsay Rouse  This is so encouraging to hear Lorraine! Especially about pain management! Praying the rest of your recovery goes just as smoothly! :-)

Rob Sparling  Being home and being in your own bed is a huge improvement, but it gets so much better when you can actually SLEEP. Good for you!

Lorraine Mobley  I agree! I slept for 6 hours last night--felt amazing. I am actually being productive with email tasks today!

Susan Lynn  Sorry to read about your complication, Lorraine, but you're right - the glass is half full! You'll see progress with each passing day and surgery will quickly become a distant memory. All the best!

Rose Madura  Hi Lortaine. Yes, the waiting can be horrible and the diagnosis puts you in grief mode with the same emotions. Glad it will be over soon for you and you will. E in the recovery.mode.

Joy Vera  I can so relate. I had a longer wait for my first surgery in 2010 than I did for the one this last May & was sure ready for it when the time arrived. 9 more days & you can get-er-done & come on over to the recovery side!

Thomas Brusstar  Lorraine, the waiting is tough. My mind needed to race through all possible permutations. I was just glad to get it done. Once you're through surgery, you will amaze yourself at how fast you heal! It is truly exciting to see all the progress. I'm not going to say it isn't stressful sometimes, but the mitral repair process is so well understood now that there is no real reason to be worried!

Judy S  Congrats to you Lorraine! The waiting is the hardest part but mental preparation is the healthiest part. I am over one year out, and it feels as it never happened. Life goes on better than before!

Cindy Williams  Lorraine, it sounds like you are ready! For me the waiting was stressful, i was actually relieved the morning of the surgery, the day was finally here, as we waited in the waiting room, I was relaxed and confident, as I was prepared at home and mentally ready. I had 110% confidence in my surgeon, it all just seemed right. I’m sure you will feel the same. Sleep well, no-stress, practice breathing exercises, leg exercises (this helps as you will use your legs a lot for getting up and down from sitting and bed as you will be using your arms to protect your sternum, so it will be all legs) Be strong ❤️💕

Lorraine Mobley  Thank You all so much! You have no idea how much your comments and support mean to me at this point.

Frank Giovanniello   Lorraine, I had to wait from Monday night to Friday morning. That was the worse part for me. To much time to think. I am out 9 weeks now, recovering fine. You'll soon have it behind you, and you'll do great.

Lorraine Mobley  Thank you, yes the waiting is excruciating whether it is months or days...I had prior committments and thankfully my surgery was not considered urgent but this has been a very, very long emotional wait.

Wanda Mroz  It’s so very normal to have the feelings you are having. Been there and done that... we really are stronger than we think we are... and you will get thru this. Everyone recovers at their own pace.... and you’ll have good days and bad... but it’s a process that takes time. Be positive... remember to breathe. Blessings to you for a successful procedure with a speedy recovery.

mary chenoweth  Good Luck Lorraine, I am very new here and I don't even know what T-9 means but I wish you luck on your surgery and so glad that your condition is not urgent and you can wait on the surgery.

  You got this Lorraine. Keep the faith and don’t let doubt come in, you will be just fine. Let us know how it w3nt when you are up to it.

Joy Vera  Hi Lorraine. You'll find many success stories here & that may help you feel not so scared. I had my mitral repaired in May along with an aortic replacement & some work on my aorta. Both valves were leaky, like your mitral. I feel like I've mostly recovered & life has returned to normal. I wish you the best with your upcoming surgery.

Susan Lynn  Lorraine - we've all been there - scared crapless is about right for this stage in your journey. You'll go through every emotion, including acceptance, by the time your surgery date arrives. I'm sure you're far better versed about this process because of your occupation, but the rest of us are self-educated. That's what it takes to make informed decisions. Research, multiple consultations, and pages of questions helped me make the choices that were right for my mv repair. You'll also go into your procedure confidently with the knowledge that you did your homework, too. I wish you all the best and assure you, waiting is by far the worst part.

Lorraine Mobley  Thanks everyone! Yes, yesterday was difficult as I had the pre-surgical labwork (about 8 tubes of blood) the urinalysis and the cross and match so lots of reminders of whats to come...I also have been not sleeping well. I am a person who likes to laugh and am known to make others laugh but right now life is just not that funny no matter how hard I try...

Civita Fahey  As they say, ignorance is bliss. and for these things having some knowledge is too much knowledge. but, you need trust in your surgeon and have faith. All will go well. I myself had the same issue and I kept thinking of the 1% but, you will do fine.. they have these surgeries down pat.. There are hundreds of us on this site that have been there and are doing great and you will join us soon. Best of luck.

Barbara Philpott   Lorraine I hear ya'! I retired from hospital nursing 6 mos ago and knowing as much as I do makes my upcoming surgery on Monday (YIKES) a little more stressing. But I do have great trust in my surgeon and his team and make sure that you feel the same . Asks those questions that you think might sound silly... cause to you they aren't. Wishing you the best and most positive experience! By the way, is your surgery being done minimally invasive?

Mike Roskowinski  Welcome Lorraine. There are a lot of us out here that can and will gladly help you. The waiting is the hardest part since you get thoughts rolling through your head. With the surgeons now they are so skilled. This is something they spend everyday doing. You will do great and be ready for recovery. I got mine done in May. I today am back to doing everything I used to. Gym sports and running around with my kids. I just played 5 games of volleyball on Wednesday and golfed 18 holes yesterday. I feel great and you will also

Adam Pick  Lorraine - No need to be scared crapless. However, I can remember being scared crapless too. For that reason, I put together this page to help patients better understand the risks a little bit better. I hope it helps calm your nerves and eases your bowel movements. LOL! You are going to do great. https://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/valve-mortality-surgery-repair-replacement.php

Chuck Segal  Lorraine, I can relate being just 3 weeks out for double valve OHS! I just want to feel better, and acknowledge that my quality of life has slowly worsened over the past year. I'm confident of with team and hospital - and have to put myself in their hands.

Marie Myers  I can also relate. I am a 40 year nurse anesthetist, who has worked in cardiac surgery earlier in my career. Believe me, I was nervous. Like Civita says, try to focus on the positive, and that the vast majority of patients do very well. It is not as bad as my worrying mind had made it out to be. You can do this!

Lorraine Mobley  Thank you All! You have no idea how much your comments are helping me. I am not having minimally invasive, unfortunately I am having sternotomy. I am very blessed to live in Gainesville,FL and have utmost trust in my surgeon who is the Cheif of Cardiovascular Surgery for Shands hospital. I know I am in good hands but I agree that your mind starts to make things out to be worse than they probably will be. I was already releived that the surgeon felt 95% sure he could repair vs replace which hopefully would mean no warfarin for the rest of my life, although even that I could survive, it's just a pain. I am grateful for all of you, just ordered the book from Adam Pick. I have also started to take iron tablets, prenatals in addition to my sertraline and losartan so I can fortify my blood. Trying to eat a more plant based diet as well.

Marie Myers  Don’t fear the sternotomy. I had a full sternotomy, and I have to say it was not anywhere as bad as I thought it would be. Try to do some arm, chest and shoulder stretches while you are waiting for surgery. I found that the shoulder and upper back sore muscles bothered me more than my chest ever did. Could not wait till I was comfy laying on my stomach so I could get a massage!

Nicole DuPont  I agree with Marie. I spent so much time worrying about the sternotomy and surgery, and everything turned out fine, and 6 weeks later I’m back to doing many regular things. The experience wasn’t as bad as I’d thought it would be for sure. The surgical team and ICU staff were so professional and anticipated everything. Try to focus some of that pre-surgery energy instead on how you see your recovery at home. Get set up to sleep comfortably (my recliner is a blessing) and think about your meal plan for when you get home (someone to help with groceries and preparation, etc). You’ll need rides for a few weeks too. Just some ideas for you to focus on instead of getting yourself worked up with worry. It’s not that bad, and you’ll be fine!

Thomas Brusstar  Lorraine, I also had a flail P2 leaflet in my mitral valve. I was diagnosed with the prolapse at age 20, but after "pneumonia" at 53 they finally saw the flail leaflet at 54. So my repair 14 months ago was easy. Full sternotomy, as I wanted the surgeon to have all the access and vision he needed. The scar isn't bad at all. My echo at 13 months shows zero leakage of the mitral valve, so all good. The enlargement of the heart, mostly the dilation of the left atrium, went from outrageous (like my medical terms? 180 ml I think) to just oversized (90) within a few days of surgery, and then it came down by another 15% in the year since surgery, to high 70s. Normal would be in the 40s, I think. So that enlargement looks to be here to stay as a souvenir from my severe regurgitation/ flail era, but the heart function is fine, so I'm lucky. You'll be amazed at your recovery. Being in a medical field, you will just be all the more attuned to the hallmarks of your recovery, and you'll be good at looking for medication side effects. (I definitely was sensitive to sun on the antibiotics, and got a rash all over my neck my first weekend home.) My wife is an M.D., Ph.D., so we had way too much knowledge in my house also! You'll do great.

Lori Gray  Lorraine, as everyone else has expressed, your feelings are completely normal and you will get through this! Put your trust in your surgeon and post op care team, this is their job and that’s what they’re trained to do. I’ve been in your shoes and as others have expressed the sternotomy is not as bad as I had anticipated. I’m an RN, know too much and had open heart in April for mitral valve repair. It was not as bad as I had anticipated! Remember that. The worse thing was post op back pain until the chest tubes were out. Stay on top of the pain medication wise and ask for topical Lidocaine patches, that helped me. Stay as active pre op as possible for more strength post op. Walk, walk , walk post op and you’ll be fine. Cardiac rehab and you’ll be amazed how quickly this will all be behind you and you’ll be back to normal. We’ve all been through this and you’ll get through it too. Have faith and a positive attitude! Lori

Barb Edmonds  Good Luck, Lorraine. I didn't find this site until AFTER my mitral valve replacement surgery. Now I come here to encourage others. I wish you didn't have to wait so long. I was told I needed the surgery and two weeks later it was DONE. I agree with others saying you should stay busy. Accept all offers to go out - or better yet, call your friends and make arrangements to go to your favorite places. I LOVED cardiac rehab. Do not miss even one session. So nice to visit with others who are going through the same thing. The staff was so encouraging. Praying for peace and comfort for you in the coming months.

Fred Karutz  My best advice is to have your daughter make her best mix tape. Tell the doctor and staff in advance that you will be listening to the tape during prep. It was a big help to me and I was able to listen to the music until about 4 mins before anesthesia kicked in