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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...

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'm just shy of two months out, and I just now sneezed without it being painful. Woohoo!! I didn't think I would be this happy about something so minor, but there you go. :thumbup: Speaking of sneezing, if you're just out of surgery and don't want to sneeze, press inward on your upper lip and...

I was diagnosed when I was 10 weeks old, so I've been doing stress tests all of my life. I always scored pretty high (don't recall the METs though), and never felt any symptoms. Well yesterday I had my first post-op stress test; I figured I wouldn't do well, being just six weeks out of surgery...

I keep trying different things to make me sleep through the night, and I think I finally found it: on the couch, with my torso propped up at roughly a 30-35 degree angle. I'm not sure why it works, but if you still can't find a good way to sleep, you might try this.

I chose the OpenPivot, but I was very anxious about the noise. I found a few studies that show a lower volume with the OpenPivot, but I was shocked to find, in recovery, that there no clicking AT ALL, and I still hear no click seven days afterward. I do hear the heavy swoosh sound that most of...

I had my aortic valve replacement (and root graft) five days ago, and was discharged today. I'm glad I got out so quick, but unconsciously I guess figured that since I'm home, I'm all better, and obviously that's not the case. I only slept little bits in the hospital, and unfortunately that's...