Not sure what to think, I NEED you guys AGAIN!

[Mike1952]

I'm reading all of the issues everyone has been through, and trying to ready myself for the surgery and months of recovery. I am scheduled for surgery Aug 10th and although the recovery seems very difficult, at least I will be somewhat prepared and not completely surprised by the challenges ahead. The only surgery I've ever had was a tonsilectomy at age six, so this is new territory for me, that's for sure. This forum is a great source of information and comfort to me, I will continue to read it for the next few months, for sure! I did have an angiogram on Friday, and luckily, no other problems were apparent except my leaking aortic valve and a swollen aortic root. (Funny how optimistic you tend to be, grabbing on to whatever good news you have!) Appreciate everyone's participation, most long after their surgeries are over!

 

[Boston Tiger]

The recovery from OHS is a bear because it involves far more than simply having the main incision heal. Your body is also dealing with the healing of your broken sternum, healing of your bruised ribs and other joints that were disrupted during the surgery, and other "minor" incisions where those drainage tubes were inserted through muscles. That's a lot to recover from. As others have said, you just have keep up a good attitude and let things heal over time. You will feel better at 6 months than at 1 month, and somewhere between 1 to 3 years you will start to forget what you have gone through.

One of the best things you can do is come on here to vent, since we all remember how frustration the recovery process can be. But the rewards are worth it!

 

[Greg a]

How are you doing now after a few weeks and how is the pain management going?

 

[Gribur]

Hey all, hows it going? Well things have been quite eventful. I was not feeling well, tired, more dizzy then normal etc. I decided to lay down on the sofa and rest, I needed to get up to grab something and when I did I was all over like i was drunk, my wife told me to go down to the floor and then called an ambulance. I was rushed to our local hospital, The Doc (same one as before) knew something was up as my Hemoglobin numbers kept dropping. I had been the week prior not feeling well and my hemoglobin numbers were lower then when released from hospital after surgery, local doc thought mechanical hemolytic anemia but it was definately not mechanical hemolytic anemia and now at the hospital again the numbers were very low so I was stabilized and then rushed code 4 to a larger hospital an hour away where they could work on me. It turns out that I had at some point developed a duodenal ulcer and with being on the wonderful new drug Warfarin, I had developed major internal bleeding. At one point I was loosing more blood then they could push into me. My family was very close to losing me and I will tell you, It was 10 times scarier then having a valve replaced. I was in the hospital for over a week and I am now out. I just wanted to post this so you guys did not think I was avoiding you LOL and also, if you or your doctor notice any drop in hemoglobin , you may be able to figure it out asap.

Just a couple questions for ya.
I am just wondering, my hemoglobin is going up so i am no longer bleeding but I am still dizzy when getting up from crouching or bending, wondering who has had this and for how long? Also wondering if anybody went through spells where they felt great and then the next day were super tired or had no energy?

 

[Greg a]

Hey all, hows it going? Well things have been quite eventful. I was not feeling well, tired, more dizzy then normal etc. I decided to lay down on the sofa and rest, I needed to get up to grab something and when I did I was all over like i was drunk, my wife told me to go down to the floor and then called an ambulance. I was rushed to our local hospital, The Doc (same one as before) knew something was up as my Hemoglobin numbers kept dropping. I had been the week prior not feeling well and my hemoglobin numbers were lower then when released from hospital after surgery, local doc thought mechanical hemolytic anemia but it was definately not mechanical hemolytic anemia and now at the hospital again the numbers were very low so I was stabilized and then rushed code 4 to a larger hospital an hour away where they could work on me. It turns out that I had at some point developed a duodenal ulcer and with being on the wonderful new drug Warfarin, I had developed major internal bleeding. At one point I was loosing more blood then they could push into me. My family was very close to losing me and I will tell you, It was 10 times scarier then having a valve replaced. I was in the hospital for over a week and I am now out. I just wanted to post this so you guys did not think I was avoiding you LOL and also, if you or your doctor notice any drop in hemoglobin , you may be able to figure it out asap.

Just a couple questions for ya.
I am just wondering, my hemoglobin is going up so i am no longer bleeding but I am still dizzy when getting up from crouching or bending, wondering who has had this and for how long? Also wondering if anybody went through spells where they felt great and then the next day were super tired or had no energy?

sorry to read all of this .....ignore my PM you have addressed most of it here

 

[Rachel]

Hey all, hows it going? Well things have been quite eventful. I was not feeling well, tired, more dizzy then normal etc. I decided to lay down on the sofa and rest, I needed to get up to grab something and when I did I was all over like i was drunk, my wife told me to go down to the floor and then called an ambulance. I was rushed to our local hospital, The Doc (same one as before) knew something was up as my Hemoglobin numbers kept dropping. I had been the week prior not feeling well and my hemoglobin numbers were lower then when released from hospital after surgery, local doc thought mechanical hemolytic anemia but it was definately not mechanical hemolytic anemia and now at the hospital again the numbers were very low so I was stabilized and then rushed code 4 to a larger hospital an hour away where they could work on me. It turns out that I had at some point developed a duodenal ulcer and with being on the wonderful new drug Warfarin, I had developed major internal bleeding. At one point I was loosing more blood then they could push into me. My family was very close to losing me and I will tell you, It was 10 times scarier then having a valve replaced. I was in the hospital for over a week and I am now out. I just wanted to post this so you guys did not think I was avoiding you LOL and also, if you or your doctor notice any drop in hemoglobin , you may be able to figure it out asap.

Just a couple questions for ya.
I am just wondering, my hemoglobin is going up so i am no longer bleeding but I am still dizzy when getting up from crouching or bending, wondering who has had this and for how long? Also wondering if anybody went through spells where they felt great and then the next day were super tired or had no energy?

WOW!!!!

Sounds like you got to hospital in time, so very sorry to hear about the internal bleeding!!!

As far as your questions, I had one really bad dizzy spell three weeks after my surgery (room spinning and tilting), got down on the floor like you did, but mine passed and I didn't have another one. I also would feel great one day and then super tired the next, I just remember sleeping a lot for about 2 months afterwards.

I just hope that you start feeling better soon!

Rachel

 

[RTZdad]

I'm glad to read that you are back home an ok. Looks like you went through quite a scare. I'm thankful that everything turned out ok. Hope from now on, you enjoy some smooth sailing.

Tom

 

[Bill B]

Like Rachel said, WOW!!!! That was a close one. Like I said, surgeons have too great a tolerance for anemia. I mentioned that you needed closer follow-up of this issue a month ago. Too bad it had to become an emergency before they took action. But all's well that ends well, right. Hopefully the ulcer is healing and you will now start rebuilding your red blood cell numbers and have things become more consistently positive!

 

[Guyswell]

Feeling dizzy after standing up from a crouch may not be anything important at all. I've had that for years and my cardiologist explained that it's caused by a temporary drop in blood pressure. In my case, it's not related to anemia. Read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthostatic_hypotension

When this happens to me, I just reach for something to steady myself and wait a few seconds for the dizzyness to go away. I've also been advised that some patients experience these symptoms when getting out of bed. They're advised to briefly sit on the edge of the bed before standing up and walking.

Of course, you should discuss your situation with your cardiologist.