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I had minimally invasive surgery, though mine was a repair rather than a replacement, and I was surprised by how weak I was after the surgery and how long it took me to get back to normal energy levels (around six months). Having your heart cut open and rearranged and being on the bypass machine...

My heart rate was in the 90s and 100s for months after my surgery, but eventually came down to the 60s. My surgeon said the heart is "irritable" after surgery. The process definitely takes patience.

My stepfather got a mechanical mitral valve at age 76 and lived to be 93. He knew that the recommendation for 76-year-olds was biological valves, but felt very strongly that he didn't want to risk a second heart surgery, and his surgery was one-and-done as he had hoped.

Wishing you the best!

Thanks for sharing your experience. This kind of story can be hugely reassuring to people in the waiting room. When I was in the waiting room, I went through several years' worth of forum archives and read all the stories I could find. Happy continued recovery!

I've been enjoying watching the TV series "Harrow," which stars Ioan Gruffudd as a British pathologist working in Brisbane at the (I presume fictional) Queensland Institute of Forensic Medicine. The scenery is lovely and the accents are charming to my American ear.

That sounds like a really useful coping technique.

I found that a shower stool was necessary for a while. Standing while showering took more energy than I had at first. Stairs probably won't be an issue. They made me prove I could climb stairs before discharging me from the hospital.

It's amazing how that works. When you're in the waiting room, all you can do is research and fret. Once things are in motion and you can take action, it's a relief (at least it was for me). With your longtime membership in this forum, I doubt that you could be any better prepared than you are...

I was diagnosed with gum disease in 2007 (despite having brushed and flossed faithfully for my entire adult life to that point). The periodontist recommended that I change from 6-monthly cleanings to 3-monthly cleanings. I alternate between my regular dentist's office and my periodontist's office.

Your higher heart rate may be a temporary effect of the surgery. There was a recent discussion of this here: Tachycardia

An older acquaintance of mine had both hips replaced and did very well. My understanding is that hip replacement is a walk in the park (so to speak) compared to knee replacement.

I like my Fitbit Luxe a lot. It has many convenient features, is easy to use, and looks sleek instead of clunky. It tracks HR but not HR variability or EKG, so it wouldn't be right for everyone.

That sounds about like the location of my numb spot, which extends from my right-side incision up a couple of inches on the underside of my right breast. I don't think it's from a nerve block, but I assume it's nerve damage caused during the surgery. It has lasted for nine years and counting...

Warfarin questions aside, this must be a frightening time for you, Eva. Wishing you peace and good results.

My surgeon said the heart is "irritable" after surgery, so it can take months for the HR to come down. That was my experience too.

My mitral valve surgery was between the ribs, though not robotic. The incision was just under five inches long, in the crease under my right breast, so the scar is essentially invisible now. It took probably a month to heal, though, not "7-10 days." And the holes from my chest tube and drain...

Is the visual distortion that bad for you? It only covers part of my field of vision, starting out small and then growing larger and then vanishing. It interferes with reading the computer screen a bit, but I can still manage.

Optical migraines (the painless kind, aura only) seem common on this board: Migraine aura anyone? I started getting these many years before my heart surgery. At first I got one or two per year. After the surgery the rate has increased to one or two per month. When I get one, I look at the...

What a terrible shock. No one is ever ready to lose a parent, and having it be unexpected is even harder. My sympathies to you and yours.