Don't sweat the small stuff
Don't sweat the small stuff
OK, you have a serious problem which in a different time or even today in a different place would mean your death at an early age. BUT! You live in the right time and place and will sail through surgery and into your recovery. For me and many others, Ovie, this was our first serious illness. Once past this, you have a lot more perspective as to what is worth worrying over and what isn't worth your time. Surgery sets you on a path to a new future - a new lease on life in the truest meaning of that phrase. It will change your life. What direction your life then takes is up to you. Quiting smoking forever is the single best thing you can do for yourself to prepare for surgery and for your new life to come.
You spoke of worrying about heart sensations after surgery. Some of this is normal because it will feel different. As an adult, I had never been able to find the pulse in my wrist easily. Since the AVR, it is strong and steady and takes less than a second to find. As our energy level declines before surgery, some of us found ourselves becoming more sedentary. After surgery, part of recovery is discoverying your new self with a fully functional heart.
Ovie, I would very strongly encourage you to attend Cardiac Rehab after your surgery. It usually begins about 6 weeks Post-Op. It is certainly true that there is no exercise that one does in Cardiac Rehab that one cannot do on one's own....but there is another big...BUT...many people don't. Besides getting you into the habit of regular exercise, Cardiac Rehab will rebuild your confidence in your body. I think that may be its most important result. You wear a monitor during exercise which the nurse-physiologists use to watch your heart function. This gives you the assurance that on the one hand they are not going to let you hurt yourself while on the other hand reassuring you that you can safely increase the intensity of your workouts without fear. Just as you find some comfort here in VR, you will also find companionship in the group that attends your Cardiac Rehab along with you. Most of them will have had the experience of open heart surgery. Some will be younger, perhaps, many will be older and all of them will know first hand what you have been through and how you are feeling as you recover. By the time you complete Cardiac Rehab, you will know first hand what your body can do and that you can trust it once again; that is a wonderful feeling and a good foundation for your new future.
I've shared this already but why should I stop there. Here is one of the bright spots in my own new future. As an adult, I've never felt able to have dog. Now, meet BEDE who is 12 weeks old today.
View attachment 9007
Larry
Don't sweat the small stuff
OK, you have a serious problem which in a different time or even today in a different place would mean your death at an early age. BUT! You live in the right time and place and will sail through surgery and into your recovery. For me and many others, Ovie, this was our first serious illness. Once past this, you have a lot more perspective as to what is worth worrying over and what isn't worth your time. Surgery sets you on a path to a new future - a new lease on life in the truest meaning of that phrase. It will change your life. What direction your life then takes is up to you. Quiting smoking forever is the single best thing you can do for yourself to prepare for surgery and for your new life to come.
You spoke of worrying about heart sensations after surgery. Some of this is normal because it will feel different. As an adult, I had never been able to find the pulse in my wrist easily. Since the AVR, it is strong and steady and takes less than a second to find. As our energy level declines before surgery, some of us found ourselves becoming more sedentary. After surgery, part of recovery is discoverying your new self with a fully functional heart.
Ovie, I would very strongly encourage you to attend Cardiac Rehab after your surgery. It usually begins about 6 weeks Post-Op. It is certainly true that there is no exercise that one does in Cardiac Rehab that one cannot do on one's own....but there is another big...BUT...many people don't. Besides getting you into the habit of regular exercise, Cardiac Rehab will rebuild your confidence in your body. I think that may be its most important result. You wear a monitor during exercise which the nurse-physiologists use to watch your heart function. This gives you the assurance that on the one hand they are not going to let you hurt yourself while on the other hand reassuring you that you can safely increase the intensity of your workouts without fear. Just as you find some comfort here in VR, you will also find companionship in the group that attends your Cardiac Rehab along with you. Most of them will have had the experience of open heart surgery. Some will be younger, perhaps, many will be older and all of them will know first hand what you have been through and how you are feeling as you recover. By the time you complete Cardiac Rehab, you will know first hand what your body can do and that you can trust it once again; that is a wonderful feeling and a good foundation for your new future.
I've shared this already but why should I stop there. Here is one of the bright spots in my own new future. As an adult, I've never felt able to have dog. Now, meet BEDE who is 12 weeks old today.
View attachment 9007
Larry
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