One Month 1 week Post Op Now

[Guest]

You guys were right. I'm at the 5th week now and feeling much better. Just like I was told by so many of you. I'm still feeling A-fib when I lay down, but it doesn't last as long as it did. I'm on sleeping meds now because the ticking of my valve makes it hard for me to get to sleep. I did end up buying a clock with white noise (i prefer the rain and thunder sounds). Hoping by the time I get back to work I wil be off the sleeping meds. I realize my life will never be the same as before I got sick, but I'm looking forward to my new life. Whatever that turns out to be.

 

[malibu82]

Glad to hear you are feeling so much better! Sounds like you have got a great outlook on life too

 

[nngbwh]

That is great to hear. You'll get used to the ticking sound.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

Glad to hear you are feeling and doing better 5 weeks after surgery.
You will probably continue to improve, but perhaps a bit more slowly,
for several months, especially if you get into an exercise program.
If your insurance will cover Cardiac Rehabilitation, many of our members
found that to be helpful. Any of your Doctors can prescribe rehab.
The intensity of your heartbeat may also decline as your heart 'remodels'
to it's 'new reality'.

Out of curiosity what valve did you receive?

'AL Capshaw'

 

[Kathy McCain]

Great to here you are doing well! You sound very positive, and ready to start life with your new valve!

Take care

 

[Guest]

My valve is a ATS Medical Valve 29mm. New Reality, interesting. Guess thats what my life if now.

 

[Mentu]

TM, it is good to hear your report. I have come to think of heart surgery as a kind of beneficial earthquake. In the months that follow, there are "aftershocks" but with time these seem to fade. My tissue valve does not make any noise but the powerful heartbeat I felt after surgery took some getting used to until it began to ease off. The drugs also introduce another element into the soup. For example, the beta-blocker I was given helped a good deal at first but after several months it drove my blood pressure so low that it became a real problem. You are still in the early phase of recovery and should see more change in the next few months. I hope your experience is similar to my own and you begin to notice things establishing a new and more comfortable equilibrium. Al mentioned Cardiac Rehab. I found it to be extremely helpful in getting me back into the habit of exercise and I found the nurse physiologists that coordinated the program to be an excellent source of information. It was nice, too, to have a peer group with whom I could talk about the experience much as we do here in VR.

Larry