debster913
Well-known member
Hi, all--
Or, rather, I guess I could say I had my 30-year warranty extended for an unlimited time, because this valve repair better last me 'til I'm 100!!!
I can't believe it's June 16 already, and it's been a year since my mitral valve repair. In fact, as I type this, I was in surgery at this time a year ago. Amazing. The surgeon was right when he said it would take me about a year to feel like myself again. At the time I thought, nah, I'll be up and running before September, go back to work, and I'll back where I was before surgery (just not the symptomatic part )! I don't know if it's because school ends next week, or if I am really starting to hit my stride now, or both, but I feel really awesome. I feel better each day, so guess how I'll feel on anniversary #2!
Of course, I couldn't have made it through this first year without all of you, even though I had a pretty eventful few months following surgery. My hubster and I were just talking about that this morning, that almost every month I had little "bumps in the road", and here they are:
June 16, 2006: Surgery
July: Echo #1 (awesome results!)
September: Back-to-work visit with the cardio
October: Almost passed out in the shower; put on ProAmatine and ended up in the hospital that Friday with SOB. Had echo #2 that showed my valve was still excellent.
November: Started Betapace, along with "fun" side effects
December: Feeling chest pains and mega-PVCs, had stress echo (#3). Still excellent!
January: My right foot went cold. Blamed it on the weather.
February: Angioplasty to open up my femoral artery (scar tissue buildup)
March: Swollen foot from angioplasty; everything was fine. A week later, had chest pressure that turned out to be a respiratory infection.
Whew! It's been a crazy year, and I'm so glad that everything has been fine so far. My mother had even reminded me that I'd had an "interesting" first year after my birth, so all these post-surgery "events" were just part of the first year of my new life, which is an interesting way of looking at it. I hadn't thought much of it when she'd said it, but it does make sense. Of course, when my cardio had told me to expect weird little symptoms because my heart would still be making adjustments that first year, it made more sense.
Really, though, I'm just glad to have had my surgery when I did, and that I feel like a new person more and more each day. As I wrote in my cardio's thank-you note last summer, "The first thirty years of my life were limited by my valve, but now I can look forward to my next thirty years (and more!) with renewed confidence and endless possibilities!"
Thanks to all of you for your support this past year. I look forward to posting on my 5th and 10th, and heck, even my 50th anniversaries!
Debi (debster 913)
Or, rather, I guess I could say I had my 30-year warranty extended for an unlimited time, because this valve repair better last me 'til I'm 100!!!
I can't believe it's June 16 already, and it's been a year since my mitral valve repair. In fact, as I type this, I was in surgery at this time a year ago. Amazing. The surgeon was right when he said it would take me about a year to feel like myself again. At the time I thought, nah, I'll be up and running before September, go back to work, and I'll back where I was before surgery (just not the symptomatic part
)! I don't know if it's because school ends next week, or if I am really starting to hit my stride now, or both, but I feel really awesome. I feel better each day, so guess how I'll feel on anniversary #2!Of course, I couldn't have made it through this first year without all of you, even though I had a pretty eventful few months following surgery. My hubster and I were just talking about that this morning, that almost every month I had little "bumps in the road", and here they are:
June 16, 2006: Surgery
July: Echo #1 (awesome results!)
September: Back-to-work visit with the cardio
October: Almost passed out in the shower; put on ProAmatine and ended up in the hospital that Friday with SOB. Had echo #2 that showed my valve was still excellent.
November: Started Betapace, along with "fun" side effects
December: Feeling chest pains and mega-PVCs, had stress echo (#3). Still excellent!
January: My right foot went cold. Blamed it on the weather.
February: Angioplasty to open up my femoral artery (scar tissue buildup)
March: Swollen foot from angioplasty; everything was fine. A week later, had chest pressure that turned out to be a respiratory infection.
Whew!
It's been a crazy year, and I'm so glad that everything has been fine so far. My mother had even reminded me that I'd had an "interesting" first year after my birth, so all these post-surgery "events" were just part of the first year of my new life, which is an interesting way of looking at it. I hadn't thought much of it when she'd said it, but it does make sense. Of course, when my cardio had told me to expect weird little symptoms because my heart would still be making adjustments that first year, it made more sense.Really, though, I'm just glad to have had my surgery when I did, and that I feel like a new person more and more each day. As I wrote in my cardio's thank-you note last summer, "The first thirty years of my life were limited by my valve, but now I can look forward to my next thirty years (and more!) with renewed confidence and endless possibilities!"
Thanks to all of you for your support this past year. I look forward to posting on my 5th and 10th, and heck, even my 50th anniversaries!
Debi (debster 913)
