Michael's Journal

Judy Shaw  That's great news, Michael. Hard to believe it's been 6 weeks! Happy to hear your recovery has went well.

Rose Madura  Great post! So happy you are doing so well so quickly. A few months ago I tried some sit ups and lunges. The pain in my sternum was horrible afterwards. This was after about 9 or 10 months. So I stopped. I would think swimming would be rough - but maybe if you take it a little bit at a time and try not to overdue it.

Valerie Herndon-Vitarella  My surgery was one day before yours and I am doing well also. Certain swimming strokes might be okay, but I know I was told no raquetball or kayak paddling until 8-12 weeks.

Penelope Bodek  Wonderful news, Michael! Duke is a great place. Did you have a heart catheterization done the day before? If so, what Dr did you have? I have a heart catheterization on 7/25 and surgery on 7/26.

Susan Lynn  Glad to hear you're doing so well! That's amazing progress for three weeks. Continued success, Michael!

Willie Radl  Great news Michael, glad to hear things are going well. Out of curiosity does the bovine valve sound different than your native valve did or can you not even hear it?

Michael Eichhorn  Hey Willie, thank you. I have no sound changes with the new valve. Has the mechanical quieted down at all?

Natalia Margulis  2-3 miles after 2weeks it sounds great. Good luck and very fast recovery. I am waiting my surgery ASAP.

Joey Hardee  Awesome news! So glad to read the update and glad it is going well. I was curious about something as well....were you having any pre-surgery symptoms that you have noticed have improved?

Willie Radl  Michael, I'm glad to hear your valve doesn't have a noise. My mechanical has quieted down a LOT!! I can still hear it ticking away at night when I lay down but hardly notice it during the day which is a relief. I remember the first few days in the hospital I thought I was going to go nuts!! I hope you are enjoying your time at home and getting the R&R you need. Best wishes to you for a smooth recovery.

Michael Eichhorn  I had no symptoms before Joey. I am hoping after cardio rehab that I have another gear with having proper blood flow now.

Kim Carpenter  Great news! I haven’t been on the site in a while, busy with end of school year ! I’m so glad your recovery has gone well! Thank goodness for friends and family! Sounds like they are taking good care of you! Keep up the good work and remember to rest too!!!!

Chris Purvis  Dang man you walked a mile??!! Now that’s getting after it at its finest! #NetflixBinge. Your exactly where I want to be...ready for my old parts to get out of me quickly.

Rose Madura  Hi Michael. Glad you are home and doing so well! I think it's best to try to stay ahead of the pain. When I was in the hospital, I started to cut back on opioids and switched to Tylenol. I then weaned off the opioids altogether. When I took them, and closed my eyes, I had visions of huge monster nurses. LOL! So I got off them as soon as I could. But you shoiild feel minimal pain so stay ahead of it.

Marie Myers  Listen to your body. If you need oxy, take oxy. They did help me get a better night's sleep in the early days. You will find that your need for them will gradually go down. Glad to hear all is going well! Lots of resting in the early days...

Susan Roberts  Hi Michael. Glad you are making good progress. Go with what works for the pain meds, your body needs to rest an you can wean off later!. Glad you got your appetite back.. I am not quite there yet. Don't know about you but it's been great to sleep in my own bed without those 330am wake up calls!

Anna Jones  Glad you are home and it sounds like you are doing really well. Sending the usual prayers and well wishes for an easy recovery.

Carolyn Newell  Hi Michael, I too tried to do the same with the Tylenol for the first few days at home and then decided to go with 1/2 an oxy at night. Plus my surgical nurse got mad at me and said stop trying to be super women as I think you already are. So nice :). I found I could sleep better with it. I also took zofran with it bc it made me nauseous. Take all the time you need to heal....there are no "speedy recoveries" with open heart surgery. Happy to hear you're doing so well but try not to overdo or you will pay the price the next day. At least, that's what I've found to be true in my case.

Willie Radl  Awesome, thats great news. Take care of the pain and just focus on healing. I felt like it took 3 solid weeks before my sternum had fused back together. Now at 7 weeks it feels almost normal.

Kelly Stoll  Congratulations and welcome home. I have been able to maintain on just Tylenol but I also had severe nausea with the other options. The pain is barely noticeable now, 4 weeks out. I still take it though before cardio rehab as one of the nurses suggested it and I am sure it helps. Great work and continue to take it one day at a time. You sound like you are already off to a positive start.

Joey Hardee  Praying for Michael and for you all that will care for him during recovery. I'm sure it will go well.

Kim Carpenter  Thoughts and prayers with you ! Wishing him a speedy recovery ! He’ll be back on his feet in no time !

Susan Lynn  Good luck, Michael! You're going to do great! I look forward to reading your good news. We'll be here waiting for you!

Adam Pick  Yes, Happy Mother's Day everybody!!!! Thoughts are with you Michael!!! Glad to hear this website has been helpful for you on your journey to a healthy heart!

Kim Carpenter  Wishing you luck and strength in your heart journey ! You will do great like the rest of us ! Stay strong and let family take care of you!

Marie Myers  I had my bicuspid AV, dilated root, and 4.8 cm ascending aortic aneurysm replaced just over a year ago. I had a hard time deciding the valve choice, eventually deciding on the tissue valve. At age 63, I am hoping to be TAVR next time around. If you are younger, I would definitely consider the Ony-X valve due to it's lower anticoagulantion requirement.
While it was a big surgery, I have to say it is very doable. I was back at work part time in 8 weeks.
Wishing you all the best in your heart journey. You are at a very good place for your care.

Felix Cherny  Michael! 4 weeks ago I had my Aortic root replaced (Dacron Graft procedure) + mechanical aortal valve + mechanical mitral valve. St. Jude is approved for double valve replacement, On-X is NOT approved for double valve replacement. The surgery lasted 5hr, they fully opened me up! But guess what, I’m alive and on the way to recovery. The medical science today is so advanced today, it’s more mind boggling now then sending a man on the Moon was 50 years ago. You will be alright, just let the professionals take care of you! God bless!

Shannon Gray  Thought of you and your family yesterday. Prayers that it was a positive and supportive day for you. Email any time you have any questions. These next few week of waiting can be the hardest, so we are here for you.

Willie Radl  Michael, just had my BAV replaced with the on-x valve less than 2 weeks ago. Didn't need aorta replaced. I feel great and other than a little chest pain when I cough and poorer cardio, I feel completely normal. The mechanical does have a tick you will notice, at first it was very loud and noticeable but I have gotten used to it where it doesn't bother me (but can still hear it when I'm sitting still). I think any of the mechanical valves are probably very similar but the ON-x is approved for lower INR which I think is the biggest advantage, it also has the pannus guards but I'm not sure if there is enough history with the valve to really know if they work. Best of luck to you, you'll get through it with no problems!!

Gerald Poulton  Hi MIchael, my surgeon and cardiologist were pushing me to get the mechanical valve as well. I did a lot of research and there are some good articles posted on my journal if you care to read them. I just didn't think my live style was conducive to warfarin and I didnt want to roll the dice on how my body would react to it either. I just wanted to get the operation done with and know that after I would be me again. Now at 9 months post op I am doing great and better than before because I don't have a defective valve anymore. I was also fortunate to have an internal medicine specialist who is in his 40's and said he would not get the mechanical because of the warfarin. He told me about people in the hospital that had internal bleeding because of warfarin. Giving them blood in one arm and Heparin in the other. I know that different people react differently to warfarin but I just didn't want to take that chance. It is a big decision but the way I figure, I am the one that has to live with the consequences of my decision, not the surgeon. Anyways, all the best to you and I hope your surgery and recovery goes as good as mine has.

Anna Jones  Hi Michael, I am in the same boat. I will be traveling to Houston for my surgery. I spoke with 2 surgeons and both told me that A-fib happens about 50% of the time; it is the heart's reaction to the stress of the surgery.

I was also told that the A-fib should start while I am in the hospital and that I would not be released from the hospital until it was under control.

There are other things that can happen too, like pericarditis and endocarditis.

Options that you have are:

1. You, your wife, travel to Duke. You have a relative stay with the children. You rent an AirBnb for about a month until you are released from your surgeon's care and can travel back home. There are cardiologists at Duke who will care for you if any problems arise, and you will be close to your surgeon if you need him.

2. You travel to Duke and you ask for a referral to a nursing/rehab facility so that you will have the care of trained staff and Physical Therapists and Respiratory Therapists, and any other kind of therapist you need right there. They will be able to get you readmitted to the hospital in the event you need it. You would have to check to see if your insurance will cover this. This is the option I am trying to arrange.

3. You and your spouse travel home as soon as you are permitted by the surgeon. In this option you have your cardiologist who is familiar with your case nearby but you will be going to a local hospital (where they do have surgeons) in the event you need additional surgical care. Your surgeon would be a phone call away and could act in an advisory capacity.

Sending best wishes.

Sandy Laine  You have to do what is right for you. I did not feel comfortable with the way the 1.5 hour distant hospital did the surgery I needed, after the consult at Duke I felt it was well worth the extra drive time. We had the airbnb for a week, so we stayed there the night after I was discharged, and I did call back to talk to the surgeon's office the next morning. We also called a few times from home - they told me I could go to the local hospital for IV fluids if I felt it necessary when my blood pressure was low. The surgeon told me that (serious) complications after surgery for someone in/with my condition were 'basically unheard of' - so I felt comfortable.
Many people on here travel much farther - my other consideration was Cleveland Clinic - but not meeting the surgeon until the day before AND the additional travel time caused me to not proceed with that idea.
Good Luck!

Deb Lewis   I traveled for surgery. My local cardiologist assured me that coordinated care between out of town hospitals and local cardiologists is clear and routine.

Penelope Bodek  They have many excellent Dr's at Duke. My surgeon is Chad Hughes. I haven't had my surgery yet, but my friend has and his surgeon was Hughes. He's the best. We traveled from Florida for his surgery. You will figure out how to make the distance work.

Felix Cherny  Michael! I had complications developed on the 6th day after the surgery. Thanks God I still stayed in the hospital , as here in Europe they are required to keep you for at least 8 days. I had an emergency surgery that saved my life. I thought I had a mild breathing problem, but it was an internal bleeding. So, my advise! Rent a hotel for a week nearby your hospital, and just stay there! The extra money is worth it. If something happens, you can go right in where you came from and don’t have to explain anything. I read with awe that people fly on the 4-5 day after the surgery. Too much risk! Stay close to your surgeon!