mark's Journal

I would like to help everyone out here if they are going through an operation that i had, or the complications. I am not a Doctor. But i have 19yrs, of experience on this subject related to My operation. Plus my answers come from the Heart. Now that's funny. That brings me to this, The best medicine you can have & it's free. A Great Sense Of Humor. Maybe i can help you get some of this. I'm telling you this is great stuff Mark

hello everyone it's been a long time since i've been on here. it looks like the last time i posted i wasn't in a great state of mind. That only happens rarely. so it's been 14 yrs. since the surgery. i haven't stopped anything that i used to do Voluntarily. Just a refresher. i had done the bentall process, have a st. judes mechanical valve, on blood thinners for ever. I'm going to use this word again (not the medical word) PUMPHEAD you will find faster results. I am wondering out there if anyone got it from their heart surgery. Me, i got a real serious case of it. There is a lot more info on it now than there was when i had my surgery. No one would believe me. it is still hard for people that are close to you to understand the problem. I love to joke about it alot, get to watch movies over and over again seeing to my wife (did we see this yet). The real bad thing that happened was i was in front of the church i got married in for a funeral. my wife said do you recognize the church? i said no. when she told me i lost it and could not stop crying. It's a crazy medical problem as you seem to loose your short term memory but no one can give you the accurate answer as me are all different inside. Known my neurologist for over 19 yrs. now. this is the most hardist thing i have to live with. The heart operation i take for granted now, don't even care or worry about. Except for the clicking sometimes at night sleeping. Still love to freak people out joking and have them put their head against my chest. You gotta see their faces. So if you have the same situation or are curious about let me know. it is something all of use should know about talk about it. Plus of course live with it. I'm not upset writing and sharing this with everyone out here. I don't need sympathy or anything like that.. i'm just sharing hoping that i could help someone understand if they have it or wasn't explained to them what might happen after the surgery. i have a great sense of humor even if you what to joke about it. Plus have a lot of yrs.behind me having this. everyone have a Merry Christmas.

Listen everyone out there who is having Major Heart Surgery. When you feel good enough. get back to your routine. My situation is that 4 out of 10 get what i got. You gotta understand thou. I had that much blocked in my arteries (calcium build up from the bicuspid valve. now on the fun note, my micro seizures and my TIA's (micro strokes have come back to visit me as a team this time. There is something that needs to be kept o=an eye on in the area of the lower heart.(had a nuculear stress test done. The thing that i hate is my f____ed up hand from the carpel tunnel. Drop everything. I'm up to 4 of 7 cat lives. Shit he isn't ready for me yet. So again i am not hear to scare anyone. I have a great sense of humor & laugh about all this most 95% of the time, until Mr. pump head visits me. Then i look up to my mom in the sky and say (What in the Hell did they do to me. ) That's tough. On a funny note: I love putting peoples ear on my chest & let them hear the clicking. They freak out so bad. You also can hear it if you are sitting next to me, and it is extremely quiet. I hope i made some people feel a little more at ease with all this. Remember i got all the problems that people might get. Meaning a few. So i am the man if your ever worried or need a laugh. Your Hearty friend, Mark Sherwinsky

It's been over 12yrs. know. (sept. 2005). procedure was Aorta Valve Replacement. Went with a mechanical one. My age know just about 61yrs. old. Finally i may have some problems. i had alot of deposits of calcium 2005. got as much as they could. 9hrs. operation time. now there may be more in another area. Let's start here, as a list of things it wil be easier to understand. 1 i have had major personality changes. Still have it. 2 I have pump head in basic terms. Not good. 3 Doctors finally tell the public what it is. i had to dig 2005. 4. if you get it & it the symptoms last more then a year you have it forever. 5 My sex drive is gone. I do not mean i need viagra.that is not for your sex drive. it is for ed. 6 medications for heart will help you loose it. 7 you can only change meds so many times before complications. 8 very simple decession to make here. Die or take the operation. 9 i was not scared of the operation at all joked about it till i went under. also did not know about all the complications. 10 The only thing i wished they told me or my wife is the chance of getting pump head. No one ever believed me, that made me very, very angry. 11 my personality is i am a very funny person love to joke alot, joke about pump head. need to ignore it. but i sneaks up on you when you lest expect it. 12 Pump Head should be called the dr. jeckle & mr. hyde syndrome. it really is the best description. 13 the sex drive is the worst thing for my wife. me also. How in the world could you not think about sex. rather think about mowing the lawn. A lot of stress, wife still can't understand or refuses to believe. if your looking for the person with just about anything you were wondering about. Everyone, i think i am your perfect person to talk to Trust me. I am one of the nicest, funny person, & trueful person you ever want to know. but some people don't like the truth. if you saw me you would never know that i had open heart surgury. Any ways i haven't been on here in a long time.so if you have to get your surgery get it. try to get a sence of humor about it. Other wise you could be 6ft. under.

Thanks everyone for your interest in me. I am most of the time ok. here is some more info on me & experience. i do alot of homework for the last 12 yrs. Basicly all the sights everyone suggested i have been to. My neuroligist who i have known from the beginning keeps thinking i need to go see i phycyistist. (told everyone can't spell for shit anymore.) I laugh as i did in 2005 after heart operation. (they make you). All i saw was real people staring at walls talking to themselves. I truely believe he does not want to talk about the Pump head thing. The micro siezures yes he talks about. New for 2017 siezures have been explained in 3 different updated ways of having them. One of these i have. This is the thing the operation as giving me. (aren't i lucky. I do know the triggers on why i get them. Stress, anxiety.are the big ones. Those 2 items where increase do to the old Pump head thing. So basicly it is a catch 22 thing. I am a real funny guy great sense of humor. So when my dr. jeckel & mr. hyde kicks in it is not good. percentage of good personality is 90% bad personality 10%

Mark here again. Forgot this one. I developed seizures after surgery Only 3 full blown. my older kids had to be there unfortunitly. Now i get micro day seizures. Not a good thing to have. unexplainable. very hard to figure out the triggers when you get one. I actually call this the Dr. Jeckle & Mr. Hyde Syndrome. It is worst then be just plain Bi polar. We all have that once and a while. Mark

Had open heart surgery 2005 september. I got pump head syndrome. Still have it. So here it is basicly: Heart surgery saved my life. (A good thing). Heart surgery destroyed my life. (Not good.) I got pump head real bad most likely top of the list if there was one. I have every possible symptom you can think of. I truely believe that people think i am making it up. My wife sure doesn't. They really screwed me up and i have to live with it. in 2005 they would not even bring that word up for discusion. As you can see i can't even spell right anymore. Sometimes i wonder if it was all worth it. i cry alot and i am a very strong man that really doesn't do that. So i hope you get to read about the syndrome so your family and you may have to deal with it. 12yrs and still have it don't believe everything your told. Me definitly believe. Mark

went on this site last night did not go that deep into my surgery or experience with it. I am not here to scare people, not here for sympathy. You need to get your surgery so get it. Not a real alternative, kinda like a live or death situation. That is reality. So this is now they found my problem & the problem i live with. Being bold & forward on this subject. Even doing more research then most doctors. As i have the experienced all these problems live. Not on a video. Born with a bicuspid arortic valve. Snow skiing with my children wife kept tasting blood but nothing in my mouth just the taste. Went on skiing. A couple years go by. Then one day as i was driving by myself in my truck, the highway turned into a convex road. I lost my driving skills had no idea how i got off the road. Called my wife, was in a complete crying stage and scarred. (i am a very strong man that doesn't show those kind of emotions). Forgot my doctors where monitoring me for years now, so you now. Well that went away after going to er. all they can do is keep an eye on me. Year went by, skiing, working, (Home improvement contractor). Staying physical pushing my buttons going to the gym. Finally my heart doctor in Sept. 2005 says lets do one of those camera scans up thru leg, groin area. They do i t when i wake up from going under, there is now 2 doctors over me. They tell me i am not going any where . I have a 5.2 anurysum in my heart. Believe it or not a walked out of the hospital said i would be back in one week for the operation. They thought i was crazy. I went and finished a job for a nice lady, went to the gym, went to visit my dad at his grave. Told him i will see you tomorrow or wish me luck. Sat in the lawn chair that night with my wife and had a beer. (Pretty crazy). Surgery starts the next day early morning. Suppose to take 4 to 5 hrs. It took 9hrs. Well complication happened. Carpel tunnel syndrome, Cut through thoractic outlet for heart machine said better spot for my age. Remember i do not no any of this as i am asleep. wake up later my right hand is the size of a softball. need a fasciomety 6 incesons on my hand to save it. Ok that was surgery night. Next seizures for the 1st time in my life. In sleep only (3 full ones scarred the hell out of my family.) also more brain damage occurs everytime. ( Doctor's they make me see after surgery.) Heart, Neuroligist, Nerve, Hand, Phyciatrist. (told you i can not spell right anymore, it's tough emotionally. So i have been through all kind of drugs, doctors, test everything. Sometimes you just have to except you got something and except it. I just wish they would have told me before the operation and my family. I still would of got the operation no matter what. So believe it or not maybe i should be on a board with people to help them get through this, or to just give them some one to talk to like i am doing. I been thru alot. it's ok. there secret about pump head is out there finally. just type in Bills Clintons madness on google. Pretty much says it all. After 10 yrs. now, if you are like me. You do know more then your doctors. Believe me. I watch my heart & neroligist write on there computer years now about me all i can think is this is a patient to take some serious notes on. So with all due respect to everyone out here. Advice is what i don't need. Information is what i have for you. Support groups are great for people that need it in the beginning. But me or anyone out there with now almost 11yrs. of experience well. We are that group they want to now about to see what find of problems have developed. Finally all they can do for alot of people they have developed some brain problems is medications. It will turn you into a mellow person no inspiration to do what you want to do. Basicly don't want to do much but relax. Not my kind of life. So i live on with good days bad days. I'll live with that then be heavily medicated the rest of my life. That is know life. I definitly take my life for granted, i listen to me mechanical heart valve everyday. Blood thinners all my life. I get cut all the time it doesn't bother me. Sorry i keep talking about all of this but i know a real lot about this heart experience. I will time & time again fighting my mood swings, memory problems, bad hand, frustions,just will not talk anymore suggestions in increasing drugs. I fight this to get by it is so hard i cry alot visit my mom at her grave, talk to the man up in the sky, what ever. These are the cards i have been delt i will deal with it. I hope all you fellow friends (i hope) do not have any of these problems, but someone has to go thru this . Other wise no one can document this or tell other people what could happen. Remember you also could be dead. Kinda important thought to think about. Long story still left out a lot i hope it helps someone. Thanks. Mark Sherwinsky

please let me know if anyone out here has the pump head syndrome. Do your homework on the computer . you will know if u have the symptoms. I have it so i will live with it the rest of my life if i can. it is either this problem or 10 yrs. ago i wouldn't have a problem in the world. i would have died. Some times u wonder. no matter what i made the right choice.

It has been a while since i have been on this site. A fast history on me. (2005) open heart surgery, Arortic heart valve replacement. Called the bentall process. Was under for 9 yrs. I have Pump Head Syndrome. No one believe me for years until Bill Clinton got it & it went public. Istill have it. The symptoms have not gone away and seem to be getting worst as i am now almost 60yrs. old. It is so hard to lve with. Memory lose is so bad, memories with my children make we so angry inside. I take it out on everyone. Biploar is increditable, Spell like it sounds as u can see. Cry for no reason. I don't call it bi polar i call it the dr. jeckel & mr. hide syndrome. suicide thoughts every so often. There is no help for this but to be more medication. Then you have no life. it's depressing but i move on. Mark