Suddenly out of waiting room - facing MV repair in two weeks

[Zoltania]

Hello everyone,

I've been reading the forums for months and thinking I might never need surgery, but learning all I could just in case. The posters here, especially the long-timers like Steve E. and Pellicle, are wonderful and I really appreciate their efforts.

Suddenly my MVP with regurgitation has worsened and I found out today that I need surgery (repair) in the next couple of weeks. This will be at Kaiser in Santa Clara, CA. I'm a 53-year-old woman who is otherwise in excellent health (I play clarinet and tuba and lift weights, or at least I did until six weeks or so ago). I live alone but my sister can come and stay with me for a couple of weeks, and my out-of-town boyfriend will also come up.

So what do I do now? I am slightly relieved to have the uncertainty over, but I am deeply freaked out. What kind of preparation should I do with two weeks' notice, and what do I need to know?

Thanks in advance... I'm already grateful that this forum is here.

Claudia Z.

 

[pellicle]

Hi

...I've been reading the forums for months and thinking I might never need surgery, but learning all I could just in case...Suddenly my MVP with regurgitation has worsened and I found out today that I need surgery (repair) in the next couple of weeks....
So what do I do now? I am slightly relieved to have the uncertainty over, but I am deeply freaked out. What kind of preparation should I do with two weeks' notice, and what do I need to know?

well I guess "welcome" ... firstly don't panic. As you've probably read from some pre / post surgery members they have gone from anxious to "hey it wasn't so bad" ... that's how it will be for you too

I think your preparations (helpers) are good and that within 3 weeks of the surgery will be probably chomping at the bit to get going. Just make sure you follow the advice (no lifting, no driving yadda yadda) and remember small steps forward, no steps backwards.

I would also take something with you to the hospital to help get you moving (I know, I always bang on about this, but I hate the laxatives they give you at the hospital). Getting "gummed up" after surgery (after ICU and back on the ward) is common. I've always found KimChi works well ... and I love Korean food anyway (more so than hospital food).

Take in some reading materials and perhaps a tablet / laptop so you can post here and get onto social medial (if you do) to keep in touch with friends and family.

I also play some nature sounds as a break from music, but I usually want something to elevate the background sounds in my room from the hospital sounds around me.

 

[Vincent63]

Claudia, good luck with the procedure ... You are really fortunate, as I was, to find this forum before your big day. The advice on here is unbelievable. I am 3 weeks post op for my AV replacement and feel really good. My advice is don't feel pressured to do anything in particular but go with the flow, take the advice of the medical staff and listen to your body. Whatever concerns you have afterwards put a post here and you will get great advice. There will be great days and tough days .. But the tough days get better. I worried about sleeping as many folks said they needed a recliner for weeks afterwards ... I went to my own bed on day one and whilst I had a couple of difficult nights recently I stayed in my own bed ... All this just means that we are all different but you can be certain whatever challenge you have many of your friends on here will have had this as well. We will all be cheering for you.

 

[Zoltania]

Vincent63, that's good to know about being able to sleep in your bed. I've been thinking about buying or renting a recliner but don't even know yet what kind of incision I'm likely to have. My consultation with the surgeon is tomorrow (Wednesday) and I'm having an angiogram on Thursday. Thanks to the forum, I have a good list of questions ready for the surgeon.

Pellicle, I probably won't take my laptop because it's my work laptop and is quite heavy. I don't think I would even be allowed to lift it after the surgery. But I'll take my tablet, and maybe I'll figure out how to fumble-finger a post if I'm feeling up to it.

Thanks for the cheering-on; it really helps.

Claudia Z.

 

[pellicle]

Thanks for the cheering-on; it really helps.

'welcome ... here are some birds in nature which I record as a hobby

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pr7krw9k9xi9tay/Girraween-001.mp3?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/2aw2iafuo5yuzz9/whipbirds-section-a.mp3?dl=0

and a mate having a go at "Conducting"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nnu_AMV0yfc

 

[AZ Don]

I used a recliner but some people have mentioned that they used pillows to avoid sleeping flat. If you have a minimally invasive incision then it probably won't be an issue at all.

 

[Zoltania]

Things have moved even more quickly than I expected. I am going in for an angiogram tomorrow (Thursday). They will keep me in the hospital overnight and do the surgery on Friday at noon. My surgeon thinks he will be able to use the minimally invasive ("port access") incision, though he won't know for sure until after the angiogram. He expects to be able to do a repair rather than replacement. If I need a replacement, I would choose a mechanical valve, based on my age and on all the positive information here on the forum about living with Coumadin.

Thanks again to all!

Claudia Z.

 

[pellicle]

Things have moved even more quickly than I expected. I am going in for an angiogram tomorrow (Thursday).

best wishes

 

[ejc61]

Things have moved even more quickly than I expected. I am going in for an angiogram tomorrow (Thursday). They will keep me in the hospital overnight and do the surgery on Friday at noon. My surgeon thinks he will be able to use the minimally invasive ("port access") incision, though he won't know for sure until after the angiogram. He expects to be able to do a repair rather than replacement. If I need a replacement, I would choose a mechanical valve, based on my age and on all the positive information here on the forum about living with Coumadin.

Thanks again to all!

Claudia Z.

Hello Claudia, My case was somewhat similar in that both surgeons I spoke with thought minimally invasive incision was most likely. And it was. Actually my plan B was mechanical as well and I was 47 at the time. My cardiologist said it was fine to engage in my hobbies, cycling, skiing, even with coumadin as that was also a big concern for me. I just wear a helmet. As far as post op in the hospital and at home, walk as much as capable, i.e. small little doses. Not by yourself though. This gets all the bad surgery stuff out of your system. I came home 3 days later 9 lbs heavier. Talk about gas. It's important to use your spirometer to help the lungs from surgery. I slept in the guest bed a bit elevated with pillows. You will be sore so take your pain meds as prescribed. I didn't find ICU recovery as bad as I thought or heard. I'll certainly be a bit weird and you will be feeling very thirsty. You might want one of your visitors bring an old fashion book of "mind games" or something similar to keep your thought process active. You've probably feel a bit of "pump head" for a good month so having someone ask you questions will help. Maybe more than just reading. My wife is an old school nurse. Just start to relax and think good thoughts.

 

[Midpack]

Good luck! I wish you the best

 

[Zoltania]

Hi all,

I have successfully come out the other side. I had mitral valve repair surgery via port access on Friday August 7, at Kaiser Hospital in Santa Clara, CA, by surgeon Robert Gordon. I was discharged yesterday (Tuesday) and am doing extremely well. My boyfriend and my sister are staying with me for a while, and then my brother is coming out, so I won't be alone for over two weeks yet, plus I have many offers of help from my friends, so I'm surrounded by love and support.

I owe you all a post-surgery writeup, but it would be nice to go into details, and I'm still needing to manage and pace my energies, so I may not get around to that for a while yet, but I wanted to let you all know that I'm OK and well. The knowledge I got in advance from the forum was a big help in many ways, and I love knowing that you folks are out there caring what I write. Back again soon...

Claudia Z.

 

[harrietW]

Claudia Z
That is wonderful news !! Congratulations! !! Glad to know you are well enough. They let you go pretty quickly you must be so relieved. Looking forward to hearing more.
Sending prayers

 

[pellicle]

Hey

glad you came though with no complications (well ... as it is normally)

I owe you all a post-surgery writeup, but it would be nice to go into details

actually, when you're writing it up, keep in your mind "for those in the waiting room". I reckon that its them who benefit most from these write ups.

more stories of what happened can only help to bring people out of the darkness of anxiety and into the light.

Best Wishes for an uneventful recovery

 

[Seaton]

Brilliant news, Claudia. Great to hear you’re doing well in recovery.

And looking forward to your write-up when you’re up to it. As the wise and magnanimous pellicle suggests, these post op write-ups really help those of us ruminating in the Waiting Room (me!). May your light shine on our darkness. ;-)

 

[ejc61]

Great news Claudia.

 

[honeybunny]

Thanks so much for letting us know! Sending my best for a speedy recovery~