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T

TXpoison

Wow, what a week. It is hard to believe one week ago I was headed to Dallas to go out to dinner, watch a movie and try and get some sleep before the surgery.

First of all, thanks for all of your prayers, thoughts and responses to my wife's thread. They really mean a lot.

My surgery was one of the first for the day. I went in for pre-op about 6:00 and into the operating room around 7:15. I was in surgery about 6 hours. Fortunately when I woke up the tube was already out. All I remember about ICU is how dry my mouth was and screaming (literally) for ice or water. Apparently when I woke up the first time I was thrashing around quite a bit, so they had to "reboot" and knocked me out for a while longer. I went to a private room Tuesday morning and I don't remember too much about that day. Wednesday started off good but I quickly turned pale and lost any energy I had. I was close to being given extra blood but it was decided not to do it. Thursday and Friday I made steady progress and got to come home yesterday.

Dr. Ryan was able to do the Ross Procedure liked we had hoped for. He said all the tissue looked really good and I was a perfect candidate for the Ross. He said the old aortic valve was in bad shape and it was definitely time for it to come out. The echo and chest echo later in the week showed everything to be working okay. I had a little bit of a "rub" and was given some steroids. Apparently the steroids caused me to have some grey spots in my vision that are still around. Dr. Ryan said as I am weaned off of the steroids, the spots should go away.

As soon as I got home I put the valves to a test. I watched my Texas Tech Red Raiders beat Oklahoma on the last play of the game. That last drive was unbelievable as any of you who may have watched it can attest to.

Well I guess that's all for know. It sure doesn't take long to get worn out from doing what seems to be just a little effort.

I will try to update later. Thanks again.
 
Ken,

Welcome home. It sounds like everything went great for you. You will find things tire you pretty easily for the first couple of weeks so don't be surprised.

Hope things continue to go well.
 
Congratulations, Ken, welcome home.

Continue to take care of yourself - all you need to do at this point is walk, breathe and nap. Mostly everything else can wait. Don't be disappointed if you have a good day then a bad one; recovery isn't a nice straight line - more like a bunch of fits and starts. You sound great and I'm glad you're home for Thanksgiving.
 
Glad to hear your doing well and are home. There will be alot of good days and alot of bad days before you get it all back to normal. Keep us updated and have a wonderful Thanksgiving! The Baldstuart Family:) :) :) :)
 
So good to read that you are home and wishing you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving and an uneventful recovery.
 
Great To Hear!

Great To Hear!

Ken, I'm impressed that you can write such a coherrant post so soon! It took me a week just to be able to watch TV! Be sure to give yourself the time it takes to recover! Stay in touch. Brian:D
 
Ken,
Glad you got the Ross like you wanted. Hope you sail through your recovery. I remember the afternoon I woke up after surgery and that I would do anything to get some water, but was only allowed a few ice chips. Just keep doing your stretch and breathing exercizes and take it easy.;)
-Doug
 
Ken,
You sound good to me.
I don't remember wanting to watch any TV for a long time after I got home, and I doubt that I could have stayed awake long enough to watch a football game.:p :p
 
Ken, you sound like you are doing great. I wasn't tracking too good after my surgery. My fingers just didn't want to hit the keys right and my spelling was really bad, of course it's not much better now and it's been over a year since I had my AVR. It also hurt to sit at the computer very long. As far as reading a book, forget it, I couldn't comprehend anything at all, and I'm a very fast reader. It took me about two weeks for my brain to start working normal again.

Keep up the good work but take it easy and don't do too much. You will regret it the next day. Rest, sleep, breathe, walk, rest, sleep, breathe and walk. The other side of the mountain is great isn't it? You have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Be sure and let us know how you are progressing.
 
Ken,

Welcome home. Glad everthing went well.

As an Aggie dad, I cheer for my son's beloved A&M and anyone playing against Oklahoma.:D Way to go Red Raiders.

Thanksgiving may have new meaning for you. Have a great holiday.
 
Ken,

Great to hear it all went well. I was over at Presby yesterday and saw Dr. Ryan for my 2 year follow up. Everything looked good. I checked to see if you were there but I was fairly sure you would be checked out. Take it easy for a while and do those breathing exercises as much as possible. They really help get you going. This will be a memorable Thansgiving for you and your family. Enjoy it!

If you need anything from here at work don't hesitate to ask.

Regards,

Jim
 

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