STEPHEN's Posts

I agree with Richard. It's proof positive that you are a heart warrior 🪖 and in my opinion, we are all strong because we went through something we didn't want to have to go through. We overcame our fears and had surgery. I realize that we all have different feelings about OHS. For me, it added years to my life. I don't regret it at all. Stay strong Stephen!👍

For me personally I was proud of my scars. I had robotic surgery so now after 4 years the scars are barely visible. That disappoints me to a certain extent. I did read your story and I see that you went through a lot more than most of us and perhaps remembering the trauma of what happened might be difficult for you. For many of us we had a certain degree of control of when to have surgery and get prepared for it. You on the other hand had an emergency situation that left you no time to come to terms of what needed to be done. The best I can offer is to treat this as a chapter in your life that you overcame and you are a stronger person for that.

Hello, Stephen. I agree with the others that our scars are symbols of our strength in overcoming. However, if you have not ever checked with a dermatologist, you may want to do that. My sternotomy was three years ago this month, and my scar is mostly completely faded - but there is one spot that sort of hardened. There is a name for that, which I cannot recall. My dermatologist, at my annual skin check, told me that she could inject something into it that would possibly help reduce it. I've not done it because it doesn't really bother me that much, but perhaps you could ask a dermatologist about your scar. Whatever you decide, just know that you overcame so much, and you scar is a reminder of how resilient you are!

It has been 7 years for me, so the scar is the new normal. Mine thickened at the bottom as well. Keloid scaring. I often joke the person stitching me up said why am I doing such a good job? this guy is probably going to die anyway. So he slapped the rest together..lol