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I had a similar situation, Bob. My echo was actually okay (3 inch dilated) but an MRI showed it to be a 5.4. So they elected to perform surgery on me to replace my ascending aorta — and it turned out it was a 6.2 a month after the MRI! My advice would be to pursue this aggressively, because...

That's great! always good to have your natural stuff — they opened mine as an infant in 1986, and it lasted 15 years until I needed a new valve. I'm sure with surgery today, you'll last much longer!

Thanks for all the advice — apparently it's just part of healing, and it's starting to go down a little bit. But it's good to know all the possibilities, and I appreciate it!

So I'm a week and a day out of heart surgery, and I'm starting to feel a bit better. But I've got this swollen abdomen, and for a fit 23-year old, this is very disconcerting! did you all have swollen abdomens? if so, how long did it take to go away? help! thanks!

Yeah, i plan on being here with my parents for the next two weeks at least, if not three. At that point i might go crazy with boredom! i can get groceries delivered after going to the store down the street, and ill pretty much have everything ill need for about a week. i've got some good...

if you can, get a natural valve — they last a bit shorter of a time, but they can replace them via catherization in the future, and mechanical valves, like the one i had until recently, comes with coumadin and complications. you can obviously deal with it and live a happy, healthy life, but...

question, actually — at what point did you really feel like your recovery turned a corner and that you were much better? and did you all get sore backs as a result of being bed ridden? how long did that take to go away?

i'm staying with my parents for two weeks or so. living with just a 23-year old roommate in a third floor walkup in a brownstone in brooklyn would have not been so good. thanks for the good wishes, im glad im back, too!

Hey all, so I've been updating the site, but haven't come back here. Can only mentally handle so much :). I'm four days out of surgery, and home. I'm feeling a lot better, but let me tell you, that was painful! Though, not that I need to tell you, which is what I like about this place - you...

Quick question — I'm physically fit, and a bit worried that all the downtime is going to lead me to gaining weight. What has been your experience with this? Have you gained weight or lost it in the weeks following surgery?

Thanks for the advice — I'll definitely make sure to get more than one benedryl! And I'll be back here asap, but you can also follow my story at my site, http://www.jordansheartsucks.com.

Wow, thanks for the tips on those sites. I will continue to run my site, as I like the design I worked on and the system I run on, but it's great to read all those sites!

Going for my first cath before my surgery next week — what's the recovery time on that? Not that it matters so much, since I'm having surgery the next day, but is it easy to walk after you wake up?

thanks everyone. definitely keep up with it. to be honest, i know so little of the science compared to all of you. i've had this since birth, so i've just kinda grown up with it and said yes to whatever it is they said i had to do (although, not without some grumbling!). do you guys know of...

I have a mitral leak, too, but they say they'll monitor it and nothing else. So I trust them, what else can you do? I say keep living. Don't limit yourself in fear of something you've been told won't happen — otherwise, what's the point of having a heart at all? Amazing to hear your story...

Ah, well there you go. Well, I've had aortic valve replaced, and I'm getting the whole aorta, plus the valve, replaced next Wednesday. I know it's scary to feel like you're counting down to an inevitable, painful procedure. I'm writing about it at http://www.jordansheartsucks.com, and...

Mitral AND Aortic from birth. Just like me. I'm new here, so sorry for asking questions that have already been answered, but when did you get the aortic valve done, and when was the mitral done? I've had the aortic fixed, going on three times now next week, but never the mitral - they say it's...

Thanks for the warm welcome, again, everyone. I'll keep the blog going, and you keep reading. Out of curiosity, for those of you that are avid bikers or runners, how long did it take you to get back to it? That's one of my biggest concerns, which may be stupid, but at 23, I am stupid!

Hey all, So I posted here last month a few times, but kind of fell off with the posting. I guess I've just had a lot on my plate. But as I draw nearer to my surgery, I find the need to talk with people who have experienced it, because no one I know understands what it is I'm going through. So...

Nice job on the weight loss — 40 pounds is impressive! Yeah, I've dealt with the scar whole life. Should have heard the stories I told kids at summer camp about how I got it! So how about I reframe the question this way — within the first month after surgery, did you guys experience weight...