Susan's Journal

My surgery was scheduled for 1130 today. Got a call cancelling it at 900! My surgeon had had an emergency case a 300 a.m. and an inpatient case of someone he was taking back to surgery this afternoon. Disappointed but thankful I am not one of the emergencies.

My surgery date is almost here. I need to stay calm and get things ready. Obviously, writing this at 12:30 at night, sleep isn't that easy. That is when my mind just races.

My surgery is on March 3. I feel ready to get this done and get back to my life feeling healthy again. The thing that is tearing me up is saying bye to my husband, son and daughter when they take me to surgery. I think I'm going to just lose it and probably scare them.

Got my surgery date today, March 3. Two more weeks to go. The cardiac cath last week has been rough afterwards, pain at the site in the groin, but found out today I could use heat on it for 15 minutes at a time. I have been having some slight chest pain all day too. Figure that must be from the bad valve. I will be glad to get this all behind me. Even thought every night when I go to bed my mind starts wandering!

Hello all, i have been hanging out here and reading your stories, read Adam's book. In September of 2013 I found out that my heart murmur I had had since birth was in fact a bicuspid aortic valve with severe aortic stenosis. I was really not having much in the way of symptoms other than if I walked too fast I would get some chest tightness. But never figured it would be cardiac related! That happened to "other people"! Well sure found out I was wrong about that! When I was sent for my stress echo we got as far as the first echo and the tech went and got the cardiologist on call in the department and in he came. After looking at the screen he tells me "you will need open heart surgery one of these days." Yeah, okay, WHAT??? They called off the stress portion of the test and sent me on my way and I was to make an appointment soon to see him for other testing. Got that done and over with and had a year return appointment as I was not having any other symptoms. So last year in September I had become more symptomatic as far as really being done in after walking steps or long distances. The echo had shown my opening I think they said was now 0.68 down from 1.25 the previous year. It was time to get ready to look into the surgery. I wanted to wait until the first of the year to get going on things. Unfortunately in the meantime I found out I had a tear in a tendon in my right elbow and surgery on that the end of January and just got cleared after 2 weeks to proceed with the cardiac stuff. So, tomorrow is my cardiac cath, report to the hospital at 8 a.m. for a 10 a.m. procedure. I'm not really nervous, as the office said I would get sedation like you get for a colonoscopy. That works for me! Beings I work in the medical field I would love to watch but just don't think I can, so out I will go! Then hoping to see the surgeon soon after and get the surgery scheduled. I will be at OSF St. Francis Hospital in Peoria and I have great faith in them, my doctors and surgeon, and working in the medical field I pretty much understand all that will happen. And reading this site has helped tremendously also. So I thought I would get my journal started and start making friends here to correspond with and help support them and hopefully support me too. I am having such trouble going to sleep at night! Immediately my mind goes to this stuff and just whirls! Has anyone else had this problem? I am going to look up any bible verses to say to myself to help comfort myself and not let the bad thoughts in. I know I have seen some of you post verses here too. So "Hello" from me here in the Midwest in Peoria. Blessings to all of you as you go about your journeys. Susan