Ross's Journal

Good day Heart Warriors! It is now week 2 after my MV Repair surgery / mini sternotomy (Post OP- Day #10), and here is my current progress a) I am now able to clock 2km walk in average daily, based on my Apple watch. I try to walk 0.75m twice a day, and climb 3 floors of staircase - very slowly but surely. b) Daily activities - can prepare simple breakfast (or cook sunny side up eggs), wash dishes (just very light, i cant do long yet), take a bath (i still ask my partner to scrub my back) otherwise i can do it but this is very tiring, change clothes, etc c) I still have a high resting heart rate - around 78-80bpm vs 50-55 bpm preOP. I will have to ask my cardiologist about this - is this normal? d) Sleep wise - getting better but still not same as pre-OP, i still cannot sleep by my side. I tried but it is not comfortable, although i find it not painful e) Pain Meds - i stop taking pain killers like codeine, but once in a while, i pop on Paracetamol for mild pain f) Once in a while I am getting back pain, maybe because of my sleep - preOP i used to sleep by my side. I would like to request my surgeon to refer me to Cardiac Rehab for basic muscle exercises... I am really happy that I can notice my recovery day by day. I still remember coming on this group last month VERY afraid and anxious to undergo OHS surgery - thankful to many of you who assured me that the waiting time is really the worst!! In addition, it was rough 1-2 days post-OP, and 1-2 days after getting discharged - but once you get through of this - it will already be smooth sailing.

Hello heart warriors. I just had my surgery yesterday and it is MV repair- mini sternotomy. Happy it was successful. I walked already with the help of my PT along the hallway of the ICU unit, was able to sit down as well. Bit groggy this morning but getting better. Food still tastes bland but managed to eat bits of it. Hopefully can get better day by day.

My MV repair surgery is confirmed - 16 Aug. My surgeon told me there's 80-90% chance of repair, if not would be a replacement. So I chose a mechanical valve due to my age (41). My last day at work before the ops is today, so I have 10 more days to prepare for surgery, to be stronger mentally, emotionally and physically. The closer the date gets, the more anxious that I become. I am thinking to do meditation every day, alternate days of walking and swimming, and eat "healthier" food - doctor recommended less saltier food. However, sometimes I am getting anxious during sleep, so sometimes the quality of my sleep is not that good. Are there any tips you could share to me prior and for the first 5 days post-ops? Thanks so much in advance.

I just got cleared by the dentist and my angiogram also has no blockage. I am now going for consultation with my cardio surgeon regarding the repair and mini sternotomy. I am all for surgery but still quite anxious on the post-ops pain that I may be experiencing! I just had 7 laps of swim today, did 10km hike over the weekend - I am afraid it would take time before I could do this again after the ops... not to mention the pain as my tolerance to pain is quite low....

Hi, i am a new member. Feeling anxious as my heart valve surgery is coming in the next few weeks. Hope this group can give me more insights about the surgery.