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The first surgeon I consulted said he just did his seventh replacement job on an older lady. Apparently her body chemistry calcified tissue valves quickly even though she was around 70 years old.

Matt, I hope our "senior statesman" chimes in to reassure you. He was about 30 when he got a mechanical valve in 1967 (!) and obviously has been on coumadin ever since. Do your homework if you're going to pursue the Ross Procedure - it seems they're wonderful with just the right surgeon and the...

You might want to try talk therapy for your anxiety. While meds are great, it's even better if you can address the root cause and get rid of it. As for "what if my heart doesn't restart on its own" they will give it a little electrical nudge to put it in line. It's not unusual and they did it...

Of course the diet & exercise advice is good. However, there isn't any reason why you can't ask your doctor why it says "abnormal diastolic function." Maybe it's not unusual for your case, but you deserve peace of mind. (Am I the only one who thinks his LV size is a bit large/above normal?)...

FWIW, I traveled from California to Philadelphia for surgery. I planned to stay in the area for two weeks following surgery, which turned out to be a good thing since I got re-admitted a day and a half after getting out - and then stayed another 3 days (a-fib complication - it's pretty common)...

I was diagnosed with a murmur when I was four and didn't find out for sure it was bicuspid until I was 46 and got a TEE after my doctor said it was time to get it fixed. It was only in the last 5-10 years that I even saw "probable BAV" on one of my reports. No doctor mentioned that part...

Hi Jim, I'm just getting caught up on your saga. I'm so glad you're doing much better now and the a-fib resolved on its own. Hopefully it will stay that way! Your poor heart has been through a lot. Best wishes for an uneventful recovery from here on out! (I also sympathize with the long...

That sternal lock looks pretty cool. Sounds like they really wanted to get you into a trial of some sort ;-) I hope it makes your recovery more comfortable. I'm guessing that you'll figure out if you got this new thing or wires before the year is up. At least in my case I can feel where the...

Congratulations! I'm glad you're doing all right. I hope those migraines leave you in peace to heal now. Thanks for posting to let us know you're on the mend. The first week after my surgery I didn't care about anything outside of my room. My husband had to prod me to even call my mother...

YES! I had a bump where the line was for about 6-8 weeks after surgery. Over time it went away and now I don't even see a scar there. My skin is fair and very prone to scarring, so that's kind of amazing. Just give it time and it will heal. It's not red or sore, right? When I was...

Two rather practical things: 1. When I woke from surgery the only pain I had (and it was significant) was in my shoulder. Morphine didn't make it go away. The nurse put a hot pack under it for a couple hours and the pain went away, never to return. Too bad I refused it until the second day...

I'd definitely put that panic on hold. As others have said, it may not develop into anything more - and worrying won't help anyway. As for the zippers, well, they aren't weird. They add character. ;-) Plus sometimes they aren't a bad reminder to cherish what you have.

Well, hopefully they're putting the finishing touches on Chris now and he'll wake up in a couple hours... looks like they started late since he was posting just three hours ago. (At least when I got put on hold, I was already drugged up and didn't know about it!)

Two months and shoveling doesn't make your sternum sore? Wow. Getting back to normal is a wonderful thing, even if that involves snow. ;-) Congratulations.

Congratulations on a smooth recovery! You're doing exceptionally well. I imagine your young age is helping, but I was lucky at twice your age too. It's also good to hear you're able to taper off the Metoprolol.

I've already said it, but good luck Chris! I hope you get Travis in CICU Friday afternoon and not the mean lady I had for the nights. ;-) See you on the other side.

I was pretty convinced I was symptomatic before surgery, but seven months post-op I can definitively say I was not. (I'm truly not a morning person and simply need more sleep.) I never had shortness of breath or any of the "classic" symptoms. My EF was borderline pre-op. Nothing much to see...

test? checking...

Ummm, want to share the link? :-)

Welcome John and Murby! John, I'm glad you found all of us and can get whatever support you need. There's always someone around to answer questions or help calm your nerves. I'll echo what has already been said about the energy that can be wasted on worry. 98% of the time there's no cause to...