New to forum

[Margaret]

I posted yesterday but in the wrong area. Hope this is correct. I am new to the forum.
having surgery for replacement of Mitral valve also repair to Tricuspid and Aortic valves.
Have seen the Cardiac surgeon once and seeing him again in a few weeks. he has suggested that the surgery be done as soon as possible, that will be discussed when I see him again.
At times I am ok with this and other times scared just thinking about it.
I have read some really good interesting information in this forum which helps to calm the nerves a little.
Margaret.

 

[Cooker]

Margaret,
Welcome to the zoo!! You have come to the right place!! This is scary stuff!!! We were alll scared but we all came through it!!!

Again, welcome and best of luck!!!

 

[Karlynn]

Welcome Margaret! I'm glad you found us. You are among many people here who owe their lives to valve surgery. Jump right in!

 

[DebbyA]

Welcome, Margaret. Wasn't it a relief to find this site?

"OK with it" and "scared" at the same time seems to be the norm for those of us facing surgery. Some mornings I wake up and a wave of disbelief washes over me.
I also have just seen the surgeon, and retired early, but only have an aortic valve to replace.

Debby

 

[Bina]

Margaret, welcome to the group!
I used to feel like throwing up whenever my cardio wanted to discuss surgery....I was just so scared.
Well, I did it and am still here to talk about it.
Don't be shy on this list, we talk about everything!!
Hey, are you a "pegger"? I'm in eastern Ontario.

 

[Superbob]

Margaret -- welcome! It is normal to be scared -- we all were, and we are all normal (well, except maybe for Cooker ) Seriously, you are in the right place, and if you have any questions, you will find friendly folks here willing to share their experiences.

 

[Phyllis]

Welcome, Margaret. If you haven't already, you might want to read through the valve choice threads before seeing the surgeon again. Also there are good threads on questions to ask the surgeon- just use the search above and put in "questions for surgeon". Scared is normal, but as you can see on this forum there are many happy survivors. Be sure to let us know when you get your date and we will put you on the calendar. Best wishes,
Phyllis

 

[Freddie]

Hooray Another Canadian and from the West.

Welcome to the group Margaret, you have found the best information available to you regarding your upcoming surgeries. These people really know their stuff, so ask away any question you have. It doesn't matter how silly you think it might be, you'll get an answer.
I'm in Toon town. Do you live were Golden Boy stands proud?

 

[Ross]

Take your shoes off, kick back, and relax while your here. Your part of a family now. If you post in the wrong spot, I'll move it whereever it needs to go. No big deal.

 

[marie]

Welcome to the forum. I am waiting aortic valve replacement and mitral valve repair and it will be sooner rather than later. Anyway I know the feelings you're going through. Same as you some days I am OK with it and some days I don't want to get out of bed.
Again welcome
Earline

 

[cherbam]

Hi Margaret,
I had the same valves done (hat trick) but all of my were replaced. Looking back at my surgery I remember being scared (normal) but it is sooooooo worth it with the way I feel now. My surgery was 9 hours and I had a great recovery no issues at all, and thankfully still feeling great. You are going to be fine

 

[susieq14]

Hello Margaret,

and welcome to VR.com!

As others before have said, you will find lots of very helpful information, great advice and encouragement and most of all good friends here! I'm in the "waiting room" and have never met with a surgeon yet but I can only imagine that I will have the same mixed emotions that you are experiencing. I think it is only natural.

As for your next visit make sure you make a list of questions to ask him and if possible bring someone along to hear the answers.

Take Care!
Susie

 

[WayneGM]

Hey Margaret. Welcome (again) to VR.com. Glad you started your own thread to introduce yourself. You'll meet more members that way.

I see you've met Freddie from Sask, a fellow Canuck westerner....hmmmm, some might claim you're an "easterner".....truthfully, who were you cheering for during the Grey Cup? lol (actually I never did congratulate Freddie on the RR's win).

Anyway, on a serious note, being scared is normal. However, my experience was OHS wasn't nearly as bad as it sounded. I feared the worse and was quite surprised on how "not so bad" it was. I hope your experience goes as well. Best wishes and good luck.

 

[maka]

Hi
I found the days before the operation were the worse ones. I'm not sure scare is the right away, but by gosh....everything went through my mind and then one day I was calm and knew that it was all right. The operation was not as bad as I had expected, but you'll need time to recuperate
Everything will be fine

 

[Praline]

Welcome!!!! And on the topic of being scared...scared that was my first name, middle name , and last name all wrapped up in one 2 years ago this time. I don't know what I would have done if I had not found this site... Probably just skipped the surgery and gone crazy from fright.
But 2 years later, I am fine. I will be 67 next birthday and still teaching first grade. Open heart surgery did not slow me down any.... Oh, I take that back... I did move pretty slowly for the first few months after surgery.
You will be fine. It is very scary but the great people on this site will help keep you grounded.
Keep us posted.

 

[njean]

Welcome to the forum Margaret! You have found the "Mother Lode" of information from valve surgery survivors! We've all been there, some of us more than once & are still here to talk about it. Hopefully the information you find here will help lessen the fears & anxieties that you have right now. I await the possibility of another surgery to re-replace my 31 yr. old Mitral valve, so I too have the same fears & worries! But we'll get through this together with the help of others like us!

In the meantime, I'll be including you in my prayers too! Take care!

 

[Debbie]

welcome margaret

welcome margaret

Welcome to our site, so glad you joined! You will find ALOT of great information here, just keep reading and you'll find answers to most of your questions. Take care Debbie

 

[Curtsmum]

Hi Margaret,
glad you found the forum, you will get lots of help here,best of luck with everything.

 

[hensylee]

welcome, Margaret. Hank created this site just for you! We are glad to have you aboard. Blessins........

 

[Susan BAV]

Welcome to the site; glad you found it. I remember how happy I was when I found this site too. Hope all goes well with your surgery. Take care and post again.