Search results

Hey FGMA As JKM said, we are lucky to have two such high quality hospitals in our area. I don't think you can go wrong with either. I went to the Brigham and had Dr. Prem Shekar for my mitral repair. One of our family friends is in medical sales and he checked around with some of his...

Shannon, My bet is that you are going to be considered a star in the cardiac ward, since you are young and going in there in good shape, even though you have had to cut back on exercise since November. My best advice for you is to go back and read some of GymGuy's posts from a few years ago...

The mitral valve was my problem. When I hit 50, my wife insisted that I start visiting the doctor once a year rather than every five years. At that visit, the my primary physician said "wow, you have a loud murmur that wasn't there before". A batter of echos and one visit to a cardiologist later...

Hey John, You are going to be in great hands at the Brigham. The staff there is great and the rooms are very nice. You will be amazed at how quickly the nurses will have you up out of your bed and into the nice chair in the room. The one bit of advice I have is to order your food before you are...

Oh no. I know her kindness will be missed on here.

Best of luck. I have virtually no memory of my tube and its removal, other than a vague recollection of wondering why the nurse was yelling at me to breathe. Maybe the experience will give you the inspiration to come up with a new camp song! (My daughter is a counselor up at a camp in NH)

You're almost there! Soon, you will be actively involved in the recovery, which is so much better than that L O N G wait leading up to surgery. Hope you have as few bumps in the road as possible!

Weight loss wasn't my problem. I remember keeping track of my weight on a regular basis when I was recuperating at home, and I was pretty stable then. My problems arose in the year after surgery, when I didn't realize that weight gain was one of the side effects of my medication. Now I'm dealing...

Sheryl, I'm about 4 years removed from my visit with the cardiologist where I was told that surgery was needed to fix my failed mitral valve. You have found the perfect place to ask questions, since the people on here have been there/done that. One of the neat things about the site is that...

There's a reason why so many here keep saying that the wait is the most difficult part of the process. I think we all will never forget the torture we put ourselves through during those long days leading up to our surgeries. The thing is that so many of people come on here after surgery and say...

Oh, do I remember the shock of being told "it's time" when I was in for my check-up. I was told I needed my repair within 6 months, and ended up getting it in month four. If I had to do it over again, I would choose to go in as soon as I could rather than waiting. I don't know how much of the...

Wow -- congrats on hitting 45. Is there anyway to set up a sticky for this, since it can ease the fears of newly diagnosed individuals when they hear about this type of longevity.

The walks themselves will help with the posture problem. Just remember not to push things to hard, because your body will remind you that it is in recovery if you do!

It's great to hear that you are feeling well enough for swimming. As others have said, it's a great way to exercise, especially when it's too hot out for many other activities.

Lots and lots of pillows will make anything work. I built a nest in the recliner for the first week or so home, before finally moving upstairs to the bed. Lying flat was really difficult for me (203cm & now 110kg -- was 100kg before going in), but my wife picked up some pillow wedges that helped...

I think the minimally invasive option depends on the surgeon you go with. The first guy I got an opinion from had done about 250 surgeries in his career, and he said that he always went for the full sternotomy. My second opinion was from a surgeon at one of the leading heart hospitals in Boston...

Best of luck when you head back to work. Take it easy those first few days, if you can, since I was worn out pretty quickly. If you push yourself too hard your body will let you know the next day! I found that everyone at my office was very understanding, although their concerns that I was...

The recovery from OHS is a bear because it involves far more than simply having the main incision heal. Your body is also dealing with the healing of your broken sternum, healing of your bruised ribs and other joints that were disrupted during the surgery, and other "minor" incisions where those...

I had my mini-stern in June 2010 and traveled to Brazil in November that year. I had no problems getting around Sao Paulo other than the normal ones (that is the worst city for traffic I've ever visited). The only difficulty I had was when I needed to stow my bag in the plane on the way back --...

Let your surgical team know that you have concerns about this and they can work with you. I have the gag reflex problem at the dentist, but barely recall my breathing tube and it's removal.