Shelley's Journal

Terrie Syvertsen  Shelley-Saying a prayer for you as you make your way into and through your surgery today and hoping your day is one where you are confident that you will be starting your recovery very soon! You have the hearts and good wishes along with many prayers for all to go well from us here in your community, Heart Sister......

Steven A Husted  DEAR LORD TAKE CARE OF SHELLEY AND BRING HER THRU HER SURGERY AND RECOVERY AND HELP HER TO HEAL WELL GIVE HER WHAT SHE NEEDS TO MAKE IT THRU THIS OPERATION AMEN

susan kotansky  My thoughts are with you for quick recovery. You have a whole community right here supporting you with love.

Terry Shermeister   Shelly I had mitral valve repair on May 14th. My heart function was within normal limits. I was asymptomatic as you are. My daily routine was swim 1/2 mile, bike 15 miles, yoga for 30 minutes. Two days before surgery I went for a 1/2 mile swim, and the day before I biked. I had a resting HR of 48--50 as a workout warrior. All the research that I did was that it's best to have the surgery before becoming symptomatic. My surgeon said that my fitness level would contribute to a good outcome.

Going on five months post-op, I do everything that I did before the surgery. Today for instance I walked for 90 minutes, and swam for 3/4 of a mile. I notice no issues, nothing different. My repair included repairing ruptured chordae with Kevlar threads, sectioning of the posterior MV leaflet, and putting an Edwards Ring to strengthen and stabilize the valve opening. I relate to your fear and anxiousness. I was too. My surgeon was incredible, I had my procedure in Madison Wisconsin at UW Hospitals and Clinics.

I had the discussion about the less invasive procedure, and my surgeon indicated that there is better access and the extent of my repair would allow for a better outcome. There was minimal discomfort. I followed the prescribed recovery procedure and it went as well as one could expect. I remember after being home for a week, and going for a walk and I could literally not make it around the block. One week later, I walked one mile. I've used this experience to live a healthier life style, better eating, etc.

Hope this was helpful.

Jean Raber  Shelley, I think that AVR patients generally have more severe symptoms than those of us looking at MVR. I see many MVR patients on here saying they feel fine pre-op.

I asked my cardiologist about this, and he said that I may not feel better after MVR unless my symptoms (SOB, fatigue, and headaches) are being caused by MVP (I have a weird blood cancer and COPD, which are also likely culprits for these symptoms). My cardiologist has been pretty honest about where I will likely be post-op (I should regain about 90 percent of my current functionality). But underscore that THAT IS JUST ME, and everyone is different.

So I may not feel better after the MVR. But, if I am able to have it despite the other problems, what I won't be is dead because the MV failed.

I think most people on here who are in pretty good shape to begin with and are younger will recover fully. I find myself keeping track of those who are about my age just to get a bead on how long recovery might take and what it will eventually look like. I have also stopped assuming that my recovery from MVR will look anything like my mother's AVR, which she had in her 80s.

God, that was a long blah blah, and I don't blame you if you lost interest halfway through. But I do understand where you're coming from: I don't feel that bad, so why should I have OHS?

Ginger Marine  Shelly, I didn't think I felt all that bad, but now I know I was running on low octane for quite a while! I hope that you will feel so much better you will be surprised at yourself, as well! Best wishes!

Steven A Husted  i do feel a little better after ohs but it is hard to tell how much better because of my being over weight my belly still gets in the way ha ha but i do think i can do a little more after surgery

Rita Savelis  Let your doctors know you'd like to wait if it's possible. You'll have to follow their advice because some paitents don't have symptoms even though their valves really need fixing.

Jean Raber  Rita, that's good advice. Pretty much what I told my cardiologist, who seemed to get the message and was willing to wait as long as I agreed to frequent monitoring.

Rita Savelis  It's also a "myth" that one will automatically "feel better". It's individual and depends on how one's symptoms were to begin with. Feeling "better", whatever that really means, can take a long time. It's individual and relative.

Patrick Kennedy  Shelley, I'm 43 and in pretty good shape. I didn't have symptoms except some afib issues. I had a VSD repaired when I was an infant. Back in May I had my mitral valve repaired. I had the same concerns you are having. The advice I got was get it done while it's still "fixable" and while I'm still heathy. My recovery was much smoother than I expected and I'm glad to be on the other side of it. I'm back to 100%. Still on a beta blocker and blood thinner because of some continued afib concerns. (Although I haven't had a sustained afib episode in a couple months.) I won't pretend to have the knowledge needed to offer advice I'll leave that to the pros. Just wanted to let you know your not alone. All the best. This site is a great resource for people's experience.

Natalee LaJeunesse  I am having the same feelings. I had some symptoms early on, which is what prompted me to see my doctor, but I feel pretty much 100% except for the occasional light-headedness. I still teach school full time and chase my kids around to all their activities. I still wonder if I am doing the right thing, but my doctors assure me that it is best to fix it now before the symptoms get worse. It took some convincing on their part!

Michael Meyer  Shelley:

If you have not done it and your insurance allows it I would highly recommend getting a second opinion. Both surgeons I spoke with confirmed the need for a repair. I was of course symptomatic with MVP, but you you do not want to damage your heart (enlargement, etc)

As I am sure you are aware from this site and more recent research that "watch and wait" is no longer an appropriate response for cardiologists and surgeons. Having repair surgery is a big deal, but very important.

You might consider MVR via robotic, it is less invasive, but requires you to be very healthy. Cleveland Clinic has an excellent program with Dr. Gillinov and Dr. Suri. You can look them up on this site. Take care of yourself.

Christine Oliva  Shelley good luck tomorrow and the rest of journey. We will keep our fingers and toes crossed for you. It does get better, it really does, pain, appetite, sleep, sense of comfort and even a sense of accomplishment and desire to keep on ticking following. Be good to yourself and blessings to you and your family.

gary storm  Hi Shelley, I had mvp repair July 20th at age 64. I felt ok most of time...just tiredness.Watchful waiting moved into window B...red flags up for surgery due to changes in vertical dimensions. ..which would lead to congestive heart failure. Then surgery is after the fact. ..damage is done. Trust God. ...He saw you this far...and He will see you through the surgery. We will be praying for you.

Shelley Martindelcampo  Thanks everyone for your comments, suggestions, and guidance. Im ready to get the surgery started in the morning.

Gerald Schaffer  I was worried about the vent tube also and asked about that on a Facebook page and most people said they had no recollection of the vent tube and those that did said it wasn't anything to worry about. The only issue was you can't talk while its in.

Judith Collins  Don't worry about vent. They will have you sedated and you won't remember much about it. I am almost 3 weeks post op and feeling great

Michael Donohoe  I know exactly what you are going through, but so far for me me, getting educated on the procedure and more so, how to handle my recovery is calming me down. I have diagnosed anxiety and ADD, so that makes it a lot of fun. I have read this site for tips and ideas, and have prepared a place in my house to live in if I have to (my bedroom). I am adding a recliner, a power strip, I added an AC unit and taking back my TV so I am close to my wife at night and can be in one spot during the day. I figure it will take me up to a week to want to start going up and down stairs (which is my fear), WE as a collective whole can get through this, the doctors are capable and the biggest thing is to give it the time it needs to find peace and new health. God bless.

Kelly Weisgarber  I totally understand. I worry about all that too. I'm still in the watch period... I hope after talking with the surgeon you can relax.

Wiliam Height  Like said above, keep busy and stay in the moment. Prepare for your recovery but don't dwell on the surgery. Meditate and use positive imagery especially the vent--it is your lifeline, so welcome it.

Shelley Martindelcampo  Each day I get closer to my surgery date (Nov. 12, 2015). I'm nervous, scared, but somehow calm and am getting to the point to just want it over and done with. I'm beginning to worry more about my husband and family. I know this will be a hard thing for them to do; to keep me comfortable. I'm worried about having too many family members around wanting to help me. I'm thinking I need to order Adam's book in the hopes it will bring me some educational peace. Thanks!

Sophia Ridley  Hi Shelley, I am having a MV repair,
open surgery on 16th Nov. I have now started noticing symptoms which I had blamed on other things (little out of puff, tiredness, dizziness). It's just little reminders that make me glad that it's going to be fixed. I'm also holding onto the fact that the surgeon said that until I'm better, I won't realise how much it affected me. I'm oddly quite excited to see what normal is!

I'm strangely calm of the op itself - I have a fabulous surgeon in the UK's leading heart hospital - it's recovery that concerns me, so it's "Project Op"... I'm talking to everyone I can and learning loads, this site is truly inspiring and reading Adam's book has been v informative (and also emotional). We're all doing this together, and that thought has given me so much strength.

Emily Rowley 
Before visiting my Surgeon I had wrote down all these questions, took it with me but when meeting her I didn't get all of them answered. I felt abit rushed because she had so many other patients waiting!
Some new questions arose, which I bought up with my Cardiologist and GP. It's a good idea to keep a booklet of all your cardiac papers like I have :)

I wish you all the best, Emily.