semi-normal life ?

[Polcat]

A week till pre tests and week and a half later- surgery. Working two more weeks and off 4 days before surgery. Been too busy to get really nervous,YET! I know with out my surgery my health will go down hill, I don't have any real symtoms, and feel better than I had a while back, taking diltiazem and warfarin. I know this is major surgery and it will take a long time to adjust and recuperate. Does anybody ever get back to a semi-normal life after surgery? Thanks Gordie

 

[Shine_on_Syd]

Gordie, I felt so good after surgery I went back to work for 1/2 days after 4 weeks and full time after 6. I was actually doing my evening teaching job two weeks post op.
Life not only is normal for me, it is better than before. I feel so much better and live a very active life. Yes life is rich and rewarding and if you are like me you will feel so much better.
I have a lot of gratitude that God (and a great surgeon/staff) pulled me through. My surgeon said that going in with a positive attitude and being studied up as knowing what to expect helped my recovery.
It?s not a exactly a Sunday school picnic but it is really not all that bad. You even get a little spoiled with the great care the nurses do of doting on you.
The more you know ahead of time as to what to expect the less anxious you will be. The doctor's staff will tell you everything to expect.
Are you getting a mechanical valve?

 

[Ross]

At first you'll feel like you've been been hit by a train, but like Syd said, in 4 to 6 weeks you'll be feeling pretty darn good. Many have returned to better then normal status. You'll be surprised.

 

[Shine_on_Syd]

helpful source for preperation

helpful source for preperation

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/openheartsurgerywhattoexpect/ct079101.pdf

 

[Sherry]

Gordie,
I agree with the gentlemen. You'll be good as new within six weeks (just my experience -- it may be a few more or a few less depending). The only thing that tends to be a hassle is managing the Coumadin, especially is you don't have a home testing unit. You will become "best" friends with your Coumadin nurse Best of luck to you. We'll be looking for your return on the boards to see how everything went.

 

[EVELYN]

Hi Gordie

To answer your question, ABSOLUTELY!!!! My husband is right back to normal and was about 6-8 weeks post op. In June his surgery will be two years old, and he's about 20 years younger. Keep plugging till you're over that mountain.

Evelyn

 

[SJJ]

Gordie,
More likely than not, you're gonna feel pretty normal by 6 weeks out, and I mean normal like you never had surgery, with the exception that you'll feel more energized than you were before. I did have symptoms, but not the type that I was aware of on a daily basis and I thought I had lots of energy, especially compared to my peers. Turns out my stenosis was taking more of a toll on me than I realized. I'm 54, but I feel more like I did when I was 34, certainly not like a "heart patient". Can't wait to see your posts a few weeks from now when you're reassuring someone else as they approach their surgery. Stay busy until the big event, you won't know 'til afterwards that your expectations were worse than the reality.
Sue

 

[SJJ]

Evelyn,
You posted your message while I was composing mine. Interesting that we both perceived the surgery to make one feel 20 years younger.....now if I could only figure out how to look 34 without going under the knife-enough of that already!
Sue

 

[Abbanabba]

Let me just say Sue, you look pretty fantastic for someone with the life-experience you have under your belt!!

Cheers
Anna : )

 

[Gemma]

Gordie,
My boyfriend Jim is now 5 months post-op. The day after his operation he said he could already feel that his heart was working properly. I asked him about 2 1/2 months back how he felt compared to before surgery, and he said he felt about the same. I asked him the same question yesterday, and he says now he feels much, much, much better. The only thing stopping him feeling 100% is that his arms are still a little weak, but once he's regained his strength he'll be like a new man Forget "semi-normal" - you'll be living life to the FULL in no time

 

[catwoman]

Gordie:

Yesterday someone told me I looked 1,000 percent better than I did this time last year. (She had seen me 2 weeks before my surgery 6/24/04.)

Sue and Evelyn:

"Twenty years" must be the rule. My husband says I look 20 years younger. I'm almost 5 years younger, so guess I look 25 years younger than him.

 

[Marge]

Strange -- I felt that I was living a "normal" life before surgery and I feel like I'm living a "normal" life now.

I was pretty much asymptomatic before surgery. I wasn't dragging around, I wasn't short of breath, my activities weren't limited. I suppose if I had been a very athletic person, wanting to run marathons, or even semi-marathons, I would have known something was amiss. As it was, I didn't notice. I was in Northern New Mexico in July of last year, hiking as usual (even in the heat and at the altitude) and noticed nothing wrong. By September I was being told by my primary physician that I had a "murmur," and tests showed a 3+ mitral valve leakage and an EF of 30 %! And I still felt fine.

Now I keep looking for the things other people have described -- where they say they just didn't realize how much their heart problems had affected their daily lives, and now they are so much better -- but I can't find anything like that. I guess two things happened: (1) I had compensated a lot before the surgery; and (2) my PCP caught my valve problem before it had impacted my daily life very much -- for which I am very grateful. So now, at close to three months after surgery, I feel great. I don't think I look any younger -- wish I could say I did, but I don't. *Sigh.*

 

[SJJ]

Gordie:

Yesterday someone told me I looked 1,000 percent better than I did this time last year. (She had seen me 2 weeks before my surgery 6/24/04.)

Sue and Evelyn:

"Twenty years" must be the rule. My husband says I look 20 years younger. I'm almost 5 years younger, so guess I look 25 years younger than him.

Marsha,
Not one single soul has told me I looked 20 years younger, not even my husband. Could you get your husband to explain to my husband that it would be very politic if he were to say so. If not, I'll have to settle for just feeling younger and he'll have to settle for.......let's just say "less".
Sue

 

[Raverlaw]

Gordie,

If you've seen some of my other posts, you know that I had no idea what a toll the aortic stenosis was taking on me. I'm 11 weeks post AVR, and other than being on coumadin (warfarin) I feel "normal" in all respects except one - I can DO SO MUCH MORE than I ever could before. My new stamina and ability makes me feel at least 20 years younger (I'm 49) - and as a result I'm exercising and losing some excess weight that built up over the years. I've dropped 13 pounds since the surgery, and people are starting to comment that I "look great." Sue - no one's told me I look younger, either , but I'll settle for "great" at this age

Was it the new valve that did this? No - it was exercising outdoors, which has made me have more energy, a better attitude, better skin color and lose some weight. Having a new heart gave me incentive to change my dietary habits for the better (gotta take care of this expensive investment), which helps everything else, too. The valve merely made it all possible, which is a huge side effect from what was essentially a life-saving procedure.

Not all side effects are bad!

Go into your surgery with a good attitude and look forward to the time, very soon after surgery, that you will feel better than you ever have before. As Tom Hosack says "Never better!" It will happen!

Happy Monday everyone!

 

[SJJ]

Sue - no one's told me I look younger, either , but I'll settle for "great" at this age

Bill,
49! Are you REALLY 49! You don't look a day over 29, I swear it! Sue

 

[Birky]

surgery

surgery

I have been told that I look so much better than I did prior to the surgery. The 2 years prior were tough and I thought most of it was from stress since we were having some marital problems. I did have symptoms but had compensated for them for a long time. I contributed part of it being in the fabulous fifties but now I feel like the fabulous 30 or 40s. What a difference the surgery has made. I am doing things that I haven't done for 10 years without much effort like washing walls etc. I am dealing with the extra 12 lbs that I gained with the surgery(quit smoking). I won't go back to smoking so I will have to work on the weight. Can't have it all I guess. I am on Coumadin so I have to go get a test monthly since my insurance will not pay for the machine. Hope to get one down the road. The sternum still bothers me at times. Got a really sore spot. If it keeps up, I will call the surgeon again and have him look at it. I think it is a wire by the way it feels. I am so thankful for my great Drs. and the knowledge they have. I will admit that it does make a change in your life, but that is not always a bad thing.

 

[Raverlaw]

Sue,

I wish we had an emoticon for a kiss, 'cause I'd send you one right now for that comment! Wait, was that a flirting wink or a tongue-in-cheek wink?

I firmly believe that you are as old as you feel. From your posts and picture, I can tell that you don't act your age, either.

 

[Guest]

Does anybody ever get back to a semi-normal life after surgery?

*raises eyebrow*

Ah, but, what is normal?

I know some of my "car buddies" who get exhausted just by reading the cruises I plan to attend. Yet, I know others who do a ton more than I do...and that makes me feel exhausted.

Gordie, while you have received some wonderful responses in this thread, I hope you keep in mind that Your Mileage May Vary . Each one of us faces a different set of circumstances that can literally "make us" or "break us". Luckily, most (if not all) of us have the ability to keep those circumstances in line enough to keep going...and living to life to the fullest!

Good luck!

Cort, "Mr Road Trip"/"The Uniter", 30swm w/pig valve & pacemaker
member & newsletter editor, Faith COB, Batavia IL
"Mr MC"'s Family...& train & models = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort/
K's BL = http://forums.demonsoftware.com/index.php?showforum=15
Spotting MCs = http://www.chevyasylum.com/mcspotter/main.html
MC's Future = http://www.projectmonte.com/petition/

 

[Chip]

Hi Gordie..
I am 2 1/2 years post op and have never looked back. You have to trust in God and go in with a positive attitude. Have fun with the nurses and get well. After 4 weeks or so you won't believe how great you feel...
Couple of things that helped me...
1. Write a note to your significant other and slip it to the ICU nurses several days before your surgery. You will want to give it to your significant other when they first visit you in the ICU. Make it a special something that will tell your better half that you are OK. (Remember you will likely still have the vent in and cant talk and they will be stressed to the max) My wife and I like our latte's so my note said "Latte please". She cracked up laughing and her stress was gone.
2. After you get out of ICU you will be on a monitoring floor. The nurses tend to want to wake you up every two hours to check this or that. I finally made a deal with my nurses that said up until 9pm you could do with me what you please. After 9pm that is my time and please do not wake me up. I also told them that since I would wake up on my own every 3 hours or so, I would ring the nurse call button and that would tell them I was awake and they could come in and check whatever they liked. It worked like a charm, I got some much needed sleep and they got their tests done.
3. Buy yourself 3 or 4 oversized Hawaiian shirts for cardiac rehab. They are extremely comfortable, easy to get in/out of and they have a big pocket to hold the heart monitor when you are working out. (you won't feel like wearing a pull over shirt for a while)
Hope his helps...See you on the other side and keep the positive attitude!!
Chip

 

[surfsparky]

"so my note said "Latte please". She cracked up laughing and her stress was gone."

It was great to hear your story about the latte Chip. I'll have to remember the note thing if there's a next time. Humour is a great way to deal with highly stressful situations. Bill Cosby said, "If you can find humour in anything, you can survive it". So true. When I checked into hospital the day before surgery, the nurse said to my wife and I, "now do you understand the type of surgery you having?". To which my wife replied, "sure, it's just day surgery isn't it? I'll be taking him home straight after?" The nurse's look was priceless and it was a great laugh. I must admit though, the nurse enjoyed getting me back by giving me some hard jabs with the pre op needles!

Chris