Hi Guys
Its Lancashirelad here. Firstly i must apologise for my incoherence because the drugs and the bypass machine have affected my memory quite a bit. I just returned a week ago today from hospital. Sorry i have not posted a reply till now but i have been feeling extremely tired, and i have found it quite difficult settling back into home. Going from the highly monitored and controlled environment to home has made me a bit unsure and insecure but i am improving as time goes on. The last three weeks has been a complete blur and i am still coming to terms with my whole ordeal. I am overwhelmed by all the help i have recieved from the nurses, surgeons and doctors. They were incedible and i owe them my life. Following my proceedure on 2nd (6 hrs) i sustained a lot of post op bleeding so i was rushed back into theatre 9 hrs later for a further 3 hrs. However i was out of ITU by 11am the same day. It is down to my ITU nurse, my surgeon and all the staff that i am sitting here typing and i could not think of the words to say in gratitude. I had a 20% chance of a ROSS proceedure but i got it thanks to the incredible skill of my world class surgeon Mr Brawn. He was incredible yet so modest, when i shaked his hand and tried to thank him he just shrugged his shoulders and said no problem. He never left me from 9:30am till 3 am the nect morning. He was fantastic with my family because he kept talking to them and trying to cheer them up and generally helping them through the emotional ordeal. My cardiologist Dr Sara Thorne was fantastic as well. When she came an visited me it really cheered me up. Besides being very helpful and reassuring, she has such a good bedside manner as well as being rather attractive as well. Both Sara Thorne and mr brawn knew of my terrible anxiety, so all along they went out of there ways to reassure me and cheer me up. .I only found out 4 days later about what had gone on, and it was quite a shock. I could not believe i had got the ross, i am so lucky because i dont need to take warfarin at all. It has made me think about life in a different context, i have been given bad luck with my condition but such good fortune to have a) probable the best team in the country and b)the ross and a second go at life. I am going to treasure this gift by looking after myself and also i intend to help others in my position by sharing my experiences and advice. Jonathan was great help to me pre op, because no one can really help u unless they have been through the ordeal. I consider him a true friend even though i have only just met him. He is a very kind and helpful person, and i hope to do the same for others. I am also finding it difficult to thank my parents and freinds for all they support. They must have gone through hell. Despite that words cannot describe how grateful i am. We live 4 hrs from the hospital where i had my op, but despite that my folks travelled back and forth without hesitation and cared for all my needs, all i can really do for them is get better. Following my ops i had a few complications which nagged my recovery, inparticular a pericardial infusion. They had to carry out a tricky proceedure to fit a drain which tapped off 1 pint of blood. It made me feel a lot better but it was incredibly painful, even more so than the chest drains. Despite all the probs i had i am still very fortunate compared to many others and from now on i am not looking back and remaining positive. When i first got to the ward i had some post waiting. On opening it i found a card from all the GUCHs that jonathan knew + a printout from this forum. I was so overwhelmed by it i could not believe it, i actually became quite emotional. I would like to thank everyone for there msgs and best wishes, it was so incredible. I never even imagined such an incredible response. Just knowing that i had all that support from people who were in the same boat as me really aided my recovery and helped me to remain positive throughout. But after coming through it i see myself as a better person but i still remain a manic worrier, who worries about every little twinge, but i will always remain a worrier because i know too much. Ignorance is bliss i tell u. Throughout my time in hospital i always worried about everything too much because i know too much medical stuff but some knowledge is useful to have. I can not thank you enough, and i would really like to remain in touch with you all in the future. Anyway i have babbled on enough so i will be off. I look forward to speaking to you all and hopefully meeting you in the future.
Kindest regards, best wishes and good health to you all
SIMON
Now aged 20 (10th OCT)- could anyone possibly ask for a better birthday present - Despite feeling awful as they tried with various drug combos to bring pulse rate and BP down - really messed me up - spent my birthday with a BP of 65 compared to normal of 120 . But hey beggers cant be choosers
