Recent content by jmstallard

Yeah, that was the worst. I'd sleep for an hour or two, then be up the rest of the night, just sitting there staring at the walls. Once I got home it started to improve, but it took probably another week before I was sleeping through the night.

I'm nine months post and I still have a tiny semi-numb spot at the lower right edge of the incision. I don't even notice it anymore unless I poke around trying to find it.

Mine has been popping more lately (9 months post), but only in certain circumstances. For example, if I'm laying down reading, and I have to move because my arms/neck/hands are getting a little stiff, there's a short little ache in those joints as I reposition them, and I get the same thing now...

The very first thing I did when I got home from the hospital was take a shower. Well...technically it was more like a sponge bath standing up, but close enough. Anyway, every time I walk in that bathroom now and catch the smell of the silicone tub sealant, I instantly think of my...

Congratulations! Those first few weeks were rough for me too, although it sounds like my pain wasn't as bad. Just grin and bear it for a little longer. I didn't have an appetite either, so they told me to eat anything I wanted, no matter how bad, until I got my appetite back, then start eating...

I got my dental checkup and found out I needed three fillings replaced. However...she then discovered that one of the teeth was actually dead (weird, cause there were no symptoms), so I had to schedule a root canal. After that was done, the dentist then discovered that a second one was dead, so...

Audio will be sufficient.

Which valve did you get? I chose the Open Pivot partially because studies showed that it was quieter than the St. Jude. For the first month, I never heard mine, but I think that was because I was still getting over that pounding heart thing. How thin/muscular are you?

I just discovered that, if I open my mouth and slowly breath in or out, it works like a resonator, and I can hear my valve. Normally I can only hear it when it's absolutely quiet. Weird... :cool2:

I've been on Warfarin for four months now, and it's been a non-issue. I've cut myself several times, and I haven't noticed much difference in the clotting times. Granted, they were small cuts, but two were on my head, which tends to bleed a lot, and even those weren't a big deal. I'm part of a...

I'm on both of those meds -- 5mg warfarin, 20mg atorvastatin -- and it hasn't affected my INR. I quickly settled into my 5mg of warfarin and my INR hovers around 2.3. I'd rather not be on a statin, but unfortunately I have familial hyperlipidemia.

I'm coming off Metoprolol next week actually (four months post-op). I know what it's like to be up at all hours. The first two weeks after my surgery, I could only sleep maybe three hours a night. The pounding sucks, but it will go away. At about three months, I only occassionaly felt it if I...

Other than those awkward, horn-dog teenager years (...how silly we acted back then), I've always had a fairly low sex drive, and that hasn't changed even though I have a new valve. My Cardiologist didn't think it was linked to my condition. I came to the conclusion that some people just...

Yeah, I'm late as well. So what's the word? Don't you just love that breathing tube? :)

I wonder if, when they spread the ribcage open, one side actuates more than the other, and that's what causes the asymmetric soreness..? Other than that wild guess, I have no clue, and my surgeon didn't feel like volunteering the answer when I mentioned this to him.