Scared half to death

[Praline]

Hello,
November 4th, I went for my yearly physical. When she listened to my heart, she kind of frowned. She said, " I don't like what I hear."
She explained that she could hear a very irregular beat and she wanted to check it further. She sent me for an EKG right then and there.When she saw the EKG results she explained that it looked like atrial fibrillation and after explaining what that was, she said it could be treated with medication. There was a cardiologist on staff and she had me go talk to him.
He looked at the EKG and said he needed further testing.He sent me for an echocardiogram. The echo showed severe mitral valve regurgitation. He prescribed medication, including coumadin, and said it was very possible I would be looking at surgery. He made an appointment for a TEE. I had the TEE done November 22nd. I was scared but it was nothing to worry about...just a bad sore throat the next day.
When I went back to talk to him, he said the TEE showed the same severe regurgitation as the echo. He strongly recommends surgery before it gets worse and affect my heart.
After that I went to talk to my Primary Care and she said the same thing. I have an appoitment for an angiogram December 27th. That worries me a bit too.
Then I go for a second opinion January 4th. Welcome to the New Year huh...lol But I have a feeling that he will say the same thing. I trust my Primary Care a lot and she seemed convinced that it should be done before I have damage to my heart. I am just scared of the whole thing. Just writing about it now and my heart is literally pounding.
I have so many questions. My cardiologist is very nice and seems to be very knowledgeable. My Primary Care said to trust him. He talked to me for almost an hour trying to explain things and reassure me the last time i wa sot see him for the result of the TEE.. It helped A BIT..lol
Crazy questions?
1 . What are the chances of dying? or having a stroke? ( I plan to ask this when I go for a second opinion).
2. I am SO scared of the actual procedure , but I am also scared about waking up with all those tubes and wires. How much pain is involve in pulling them out? I don't know why that pain worries me because I am not worried about the rest of the pain...makes no sense??? I know they can give me something for that.
I am not really a stranger to major surgery. I donated a kidney to my brother about 22 years ago. That was a breeze. BUT I had a back-up for that one..2 kidneys but only one heart !!!
I am not sure if this post is too long ..I guess i am just long winded.
So here I am in limbo....
Praline

[McCln]

It never hurts, even for major surgery on yourself to get a second or third opinion before anything major is done. It is best because you can get a better picture and feel for what is best for you and your health. And if you feel it not right, get a third till you feel the surgery is the only option available. Yes, it is hard doing surgery, people do heal differently, and it takes time to recover completely. But you are in charge and must do what you feel is best for you. Good luck in January and hope it will all work out. At least, you are getting things checked out and not ignoring the problems. Good luck.

[Karlynn]

Welcome Praline!
Now take a deep, cleansing breath....and again....and again. You have found the perfect place to be with your situation. This is a place where most of us have been there and done that, and if we haven't, then we are either waiting to have it done, or are the significant other of someone who has had it done. We are all in the same boat and know first hand the fears of which you write.

Your doctors are perfectly correct - getting this taken care of before permanent damage is done, is the way to go. The surgery itself is highly perfected and the mortality rate is extremely low.

Your fears of tubes and wires are normal. The vent tube and waking up with it in is one of the most common fears. Some have the vent removed before they are fully conscious and if you are aware, you usually don't have it in too long after that. I don't recall tube and wire removal to be too bad. Others may have different stories, but as you said - there's always pain medication.

Are they talking about doing anything to try and stop the a-fib along with the valve surgery, or are they telling you you'll continue to be on Coumadin for it?

Your biggest decision will be valve choice - tissue or mechanical. Coumadin seems to be the biggest reason people choose tissue, but if you are already on Coumadin and will continue to be, then it's a real toss up as far as choice.

I'll let others welcome you, and weigh in, but let me first tell you about the site www.warfarinfo.com This is a web site run by one of our members who is a coagulation specialist and a pharmacist and know more about Coumadin than most people. You'll find his site, and his participation here, very helpful.

Best wishes.

[Christina]

Praline,

I want to welcome you to our wonderful family of valvers. We've all been where you are today. We were all scared.:eek: :eek: :eek: It wouldn't be normal if you weren't scared. But you've come to the right place, so pull up a chair and get comfy. We will be here to hold your hand, answer any question you may have until you go to surgery. In the mean time familiarize yourself with the surgery, and become educated and informed. The more knowledge you have, the less scared you will be. Surgeons around the world perform these surgeries thousands of times a year so these surgeries are pretty much routine anymore. Most of us do extremely well, but as with any surgery, there is risk involved. It is very important to stay positive, find out as much as you can about your surgeon and cardiologist. Write down questions when you think about it, and have them ready when you have your appointments. Make sure they take the time to answer all of them. Do your homework so to speak and when the day comes to go to surgery, just give it up and let go and let your higher power and the medical team take care of you.
You will do just fine.

Let us hear from you.

[bvdr]

Hi Praline,

Welcome to this site. My valve disease was also discovered because of atrial fib. Many of us know the feeling of being suddenly thrust into the very position you now find yourself. I had my mital valve replacement about 9 months after being diagnosed with mitral stenosis/regurgitation, and some other valve problems from unrecognized rheumatic fever in my youth.

You will hear over and over here that the hardest part is the wait before surgery. Count yourself as very fortunate that you have doctors on your healthcare team who wisely acknowledge that it is better to have your surgery before the heart has permament damage. Your atrial fib reflects that your heart is already negatively reacting, however, the arrhythmia is treatable and sometimes eliminated through some procedures that can be done at the same time of your valve surgery.

Pain is usually not a major issue with valve surgery but there are exceptions. Many mitral valve surgeries now can be done with some less invasive methods and other approaches than the traditonal approach through the sternum. The pain involved with removing tubes is very short-lived and I requested having pain medication before they removed my chest tube and that was honored. The other tubes were not problems at all.

Waking up on a ventilator is a strange experience but again you will find helpful hints on this site and it is not something to dread at all. The ventilator is your friend in need and provides the needed deep breaths and oxygen while you are too out of it to do it yourself.

I know of two other people personally who donated kidneys to siblings and I think it is such a loving gift. I know the procedure is much harder on the donor than the recipient and I think you will find your heart surgery to be much less painful although you can expect to have a few weeks where your energy level is about zip.

There are places to find mortality rates. There is a risk but it is low.

In the meantime, we are here for you and consider yourself a part of this on-line family.

[RCB]

Praline,
It is a tough break, but we are all here to make your journey a little lessfearful.
The important thing that I want to stress is pay close attention to
your left atrium measurement. You don't want it to go over 4.5 cm.
Also (very important), your a-fib should be addressed during your valve surgery. Make sure you have Cox-Maze procedure, it has the highest percent of cure rate. Don't let your surgeon talk you in to something "just as
good". If he can't do the procedure, talk to another surgeon. Good luck, I know you will be fine.:)

[Ross]

We all have been in your shoes, so we know exactly what your feeling.

Death rate-First surgeries are around 3% mortality if you play statistics. It's very low.

Stroke-It's a very real possibility that cannot be ruled out, but there again, very low.

The surgery itself is nothing. You'll be so heavily sedated for most of all the yucky stuff and may or may not have the breathing tube in when you wake up. The other tubes are a nussiance, but necessary. There removal did not bother me, but they have others and will be out of you within 48 hours.

The pain is not as bad as one might imagine. Sure it hurts, but it's not intolerable and if they do their job right and you request more pain meds before the last batch wears off, all the better for you. Honestly, I think you Kidney surgery was probably more painful.

Take a deep breath and rest assured, your amongst friends that will not lie to you and have done it, some of us a couple times now.

Welcome to the forum. ;)

[Praline]

Thank you all for the support. I know I am driving myself crazy with the worry and the fear. When I am at school I am fine, no time to think.

Ross, the kidney surgery was painful, don' t get me wrong, but nothing I couldn't handle. There was no bone involved..just muscle, tendons, etc. And I guess I was on such a high .. just seeing my brother with the white of his eyes white instead of yellow the day after surgery made it all worthwhile. But the nurses thought I was crazy. They gave me morphine for pain and then wanted me to walk. I insisted that I walk first then take the morphine. They said, " You will hurt". My answer was, " I know but you want me to walk, don't you?" I guess as soon as they convinced me that even when I hurt I was not pulling anything apart in there, I was okay. You see, I get happy with one glass of wine and tipsy with 2, so walking on morphine... that would have been hard...lol

[Ross]

My wife near had an nephrectomy last May and I can say with absolute certainty that she was in more pain then I was from heart surgery!!! Honestly, it was terrible for her because of the muscles and tendons. Amazingly, having your breast bone sawed in half really isn't as bad as you think. You have more pain from them stretching your shoulder muscles then actual pain from the sternum. Like I said, yes it hurts, coughing and sneezing my bring tears, but outside of that, it's not all that bad.

[Cris N]

Praline,
As Karlynn said, take a deep breath... I fully understand where you're coming from. I saw my PCP on May 5 & had my mitral valve replacement on the 16th. Quite a whirlwind of tests and confusion. For me, looking back on it, the pain wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. At the time it wasn't pleasant but I got through it and it's now only a memory. I remember that I had pain, but I don't relive the pain. The tubes & wires... happened so quickly there was barely any time for pain :) .

You're lucky that you found this site now. I didn't discover it until after my surgery. Be sure to ask questions as they come up and keep notes of what you want to discuss with your doctors.

Enjoy the holiday season as much as you can, cherish your family & friends, and put your trust in the medical team. They are well trained for this.

Cris

[hensylee]

one good thing --- you found VR with time ahead for us to help assure you that you are going to be fine and don't worry about the tubes. We just had a discussion about them in another thread and most were in agreement that they are the least to worry about. When they come out, it is quick and many don't even feel pain. They are in there for a couple days but you are on pain meds so you won't even pay them much attention. It's the sneezes later that will get your attention!:o

This site was created by Hank for the very purpose of walking with others who have to climb up this mountain like he did. He wanted some info to be on the net for folks like you because he had to references for himself. And the site is being visited and joined every day. Welcome. We are glad you came on board.

[Praline]

I have pretty much resigned myself to surgery. I would be very surprised if the cardiologist I am seeing for a second opinion says I do not need surgery. But then what do I do if he disagrees with my cardiologist?
My cardiologist says that it is not an emergency and I have a window that I can wait but he said that he feels it should be done within a year. He also said that since this problem was just discovered, not knowing how long it has been there , they do not know how fast the regurgitation is progressing. He thinks it has been there for a long time but has nothing to tell for sure. He said that the regurgitation brought on the AFib. The AFib was not there in June when I went to the doctor and she listened to my heart. That makes him feel that problems are starting because of the regurgitation. He said I could wait for summer if I wanted to since I am a teacher.
I do not feel over tired but if I do something like vacuuming, I get out of breath, my heart pounds , and my hands shake.

I think I would just drive myself crazy with all the waiting. Also I flat told him that unless it was a REAL emergency, there was no way to drag me to the hospital during hurricane season!!! People died in the hositals here during Katrina because of lack of electricity to run life -saving devices... extreme heat with no air conditioning, barely any food.., water climbing to the second floor and not being able to get out. NO WAY, Not ME !!!

So I am waiting for what the second opinion will be...

[Ross]

Well the good thing is, it appears it's been caught in time, but your well on your way to permanent damage without it being repaired, so I would suggest doing it as soon as it's reasonably possible.

[wcomer]

Hi Praline and all,

We all have an internal "risk manager" and when you feel fear so strongly please don't dismiss it. Major surgery of any kind--even minor surgery or medication--poses a risk and your risk manager wants you to scope the situation to an even greater degree than you now understand.

The first time I felt pain in my chest and left arm, I felt fear. I was certain it was angina. Thanks to my nutrition education, my first action step was to "first, do no harm (to myself)" and called a holistic practitioner to learn about it, if there was an noninvasive response that could be given, and if it would be safe for me to try.

I learned about what angina is and that a certain vitamin E fraction product existed expressly for correcting the imbalance. The practitioner asked me to lay down and focus on calming myself while he drove to my home with the nutrition product. He recommended I try it, taking 4 tablets every 15 minutes for an hour. If no relief, he would call an ambulance. After the first hour I did feel slightly better. Within 4 hrs I was back to normal.

Medical doctors are forced to take heroic measures with every patient, partly because of their fear of liability exposure if they don't, and because it is simply the way the way the system trains them. They learn nothing about the power of nutrition therapy. Many, many expensive procedures are redundant because of this situation.

So, wherever possible--and in agreement with your "risk manager"--I recommend you get an opinion from a nutrition-oriented practitioner. In medical terms, this field is called orthomolecular medicine. "Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food." There is a website where you can find such an MD in your area.

Best wishes to you all and may we do what we can each do to heal this fractured world that takes its toll on us all.

William

[bvdr]

Hi Praline and all,

We all have an internal "risk manager" and when you feel fear so strongly please don't dismiss it. Major surgery of any kind--even minor surgery or medication--poses a risk and your risk manager wants you to scope the situation to an even greater degree than you now understand.

The first time I felt pain in my chest and left arm, I felt fear. I was certain it was angina. Thanks to my nutrition education, my first action step was to "first, do no harm (to myself)" and called a holistic practitioner to learn about it, if there was an noninvasive response that could be given, and if it would be safe for me to try.

I learned about what angina is and that a certain vitamin E fraction product existed expressly for correcting the imbalance. The practitioner asked me to lay down and focus on calming myself while he drove to my home with the nutrition product. He recommended I try it, taking 4 tablets every 15 minutes for an hour. If no relief, he would call an ambulance. After the first hour I did feel slightly better. Within 4 hrs I was back to normal.

Medical doctors are forced to take heroic measures with every patient, partly because of their fear of liability exposure if they don't, and because it is simply the way the way the system trains them. They learn nothing about the power of nutrition therapy. Many, many expensive procedures are redundant because of this situation.

So, wherever possible--and in agreement with your "risk manager"--I recommend you get an opinion from a nutrition-oriented practitioner. In medical terms, this field is called orthomolecular medicine. "Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food." There is a website where you can find such an MD in your area.

Best wishes to you all and may we do what we can each do to heal this fractured world that takes its toll on us all.

William

I don't understand the post here by William. I would not advise anyone with chest pain to take the route William did. I think it is inappropriate and could cause our members much harm. I do however agree we need to listen to our instincts that some problem needs to be addressed.

William, I hope your symptoms went away and you are doing well.

[Praline]

William,
Thank you for your post. I agree with you that the food we eat has a lot to do with how we feel and our illnesses in many cases. When my cholesteral climbed to 279,( high cholesteral runs in my family), my Primary Care Physician wanted to put me on medication. I asked her to let me try diet. She agreed. That is why I respect her opinion so much now. I read and researched and ...From March to November I brought my cholesteral down to 214, LDL is 82 and ratio is 2.6. my cardiologist said the he is happy with that if i do not have any blockages.I am told that a ratio under 4 is good. I did it without meds. I did not even own a bottle of aspirin before this came up.
On the other hand, I have a great respect for the medical doctors and also surgeons. When my brother went to the doctor with a rare kidney disease and 40% kidney functioning, it was time to do something more than change his diet.In a few months, both his kidneys shut down and he was on dialysis for 18 months and it was not fun.The surgery that gave him my kidney gave him a chance to see his kids grow up and a chance to hold his grandkids. Food would not have been able to do that.
I do not think that food would fix my heart valve. It is too late for that. Maybe way back when if I had consumed the right food or less of the "bad" food but not now.

[BDMc]

Hi Praline, Welcome to this wonderful place! If you weren't scared or anxcious we'd be worried about you. Ross has said a lot of what I was going to. When I was diagnosed with a non functioning aortic valve and aneurysm, I had been checked out a little more than a year before. All my troubles developed rather quickly. My second opinion said to take Lopressor, quit my job, and wait with the less invasive treatment. I chose to get it overwith. My heart had doubled in size, and the wall of my aorta was so thin the surgeon said he could see the blood inside it. Not good things. Within a year my heart was back to normal. My surgeon was practically jumping for joy as he showed me the xrays. Keep doing your homework, and get doctors you are comfortable with. Then decide for yourself how you want to handle it. Fight the fear with knowledge. You are on the right path. Brian

[gadgetman]

AT LEAST IT WAS ONLY "HALF"!!!!!!!:rolleyes:

Welcome aboard. Sounds like things are on the fast track but sometimes that can be a good thing. It leaves you less time to WORRY. Being scared comes with the territory. It sounds like you already have a good team on your side.

As to your questions:

1. - What are the chances you will be run over by a truck, have something fall on you from the sky, etc?:D Risks are involved in just about everything we face daily. However, success rates for what we all are facing or been through are very high. Just put your faith in the good Lord and the surgeon and things will go fine.

2. - Make sure you voice your concerns to the surgeon and hospital staff. They will make every effort to make your stay as comfortable as possible. As one nurse told me, if you are happy, then I'm happy.:D The pain was never as much as I was expecting.

We are here to listen and answer most any question you might come up with. Good luck on your walk and we will be there along with you.

May God Bless,

Danny

[Praline]

Brian,
Small world...That is where the surgery was done when I donated a kidney to my brother 23 years ago. It is a wonderful hospital and we both received excellent care.

[Ross]

Hi Praline and all,

We all have an internal "risk manager" and when you feel fear so strongly please don't dismiss it. Major surgery of any kind--even minor surgery or medication--poses a risk and your risk manager wants you to scope the situation to an even greater degree than you now understand.

The first time I felt pain in my chest and left arm, I felt fear. I was certain it was angina. Thanks to my nutrition education, my first action step was to "first, do no harm (to myself)" and called a holistic practitioner to learn about it, if there was an noninvasive response that could be given, and if it would be safe for me to try.

I learned about what angina is and that a certain vitamin E fraction product existed expressly for correcting the imbalance. The practitioner asked me to lay down and focus on calming myself while he drove to my home with the nutrition product. He recommended I try it, taking 4 tablets every 15 minutes for an hour. If no relief, he would call an ambulance. After the first hour I did feel slightly better. Within 4 hrs I was back to normal.

Medical doctors are forced to take heroic measures with every patient, partly because of their fear of liability exposure if they don't, and because it is simply the way the way the system trains them. They learn nothing about the power of nutrition therapy. Many, many expensive procedures are redundant because of this situation.

So, wherever possible--and in agreement with your "risk manager"--I recommend you get an opinion from a nutrition-oriented practitioner. In medical terms, this field is called orthomolecular medicine. "Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food." There is a website where you can find such an MD in your area.

Best wishes to you all and may we do what we can each do to heal this fractured world that takes its toll on us all.

William
Sir william, you are more then welcome to be part of this group, but as you have no heart problems nor previous surgeries for such a condition, I must ask that you do not post in such a manor. You can be detracting people that are in serious danger of death without intervention. This is not taken lightly by myself as assistant administrator of this site. Herbal or nutritional remedies have there place, but this is not one of them. If your sole purpose of being here is to promote such things, then I would kindly ask you to leave. Consider this a warning.

[gadgetman]

Thanks Ross, our "VR.COM minuteman".

May God Bless,

Danny

[Hank]

If you are basing such a serious methodology of treatment off of some hard facts, then please also post your references for such. We do not allow members to lay out treatment plans in regards to life and death situations.

If you can cite some official studies of information for these claims, then we can discuss those. WE do not want to get into the mode of members saying "hey, try this, I think it might work well enough so that you don't have to call the hospital. This is a bit of a danger zone.

Please either use your sources, or discontinue your postings on this technique.

[MikeHeim]

I just had Mitral Valve Repair 9 days ago, so I remember well all the fears I had going in. My biggest concern (for whatever reason) was the breathing tube that I knew I was going to wake up with. As it turns out, it really wasn't that bad. Check that, actually I really don't know. From what I recall, it was pretty unpleasant, but my entire memory of the event is about ten seconds. You will be EXTREMELY sedated when it is removed. Other than that, my only complaint from that first night was that I couldn't seem to get my head and neck comfortable.

I won't lie to you, the tube removal was unpleasant. To my recollection, I awoke with 11 different tubes/wires in my body, and they were removed in stages during the two days after surgery. Once again, some of them were pretty unpleasant, but here's the good news: none of them hurt after they are removed. That is to say that they hurt coming out, but it goes away immediately after the 1-2 seconds it takes to remove them.

Anyways, keep as positive as you can. The fixes are really straightforward these days, so the best thing you can look forward to is being fixed and on the road to recovery!

[Georgia]

Welcome, Praline!

Have you seen a surgeon? Honestly, if the cardio thinks that surgery is required, I'd bypass the second cardiologist opinion and go directly to a surgeon; maybe with a second surgeon's opinion. It's rare that a cardio would suggest surgery and a surgeon wouldn't - cardio's usually want to wait, surgeons want to fix. You're in the enviable position of having a cardio who wants to get your heart repaired before damage occurs. Feel blessed (check out the posts on these forums by those who can't get a cardiologist to even believe they have problems!).

Even tho you've been given meds to take some of the strain off your heart, you have a mechanical problem that can only be solved by a good surgeon.

Best of luck, and Merry Christmas.

[bvdr]

Welcome, Praline!

Have you seen a surgeon? Honestly, if the cardio thinks that surgery is required, I'd bypass the second cardiologist opinion and go directly to a surgeon; maybe with a second surgeon's opinion. It's rare that a cardio would suggest surgery and a surgeon wouldn't - cardio's usually want to wait, surgeons want to fix. You're in the enviable position of having a cardio who wants to get your heart repaired before damage occurs. Feel blessed (check out the posts on these forums by those who can't get a cardiologist to even believe they have problems!).

Even tho you've been given meds to take some of the strain off your heart, you have a mechanical problem that can only be solved by a good surgeon.

Best of luck, and Merry Christmas.


Good point, Georgia. I heartily agree.

[ALCapshaw2]

Welcome Praline,

It sounds to me like you are getting EXCELLENT Care and Advice from your Doctors. The fact that THEY suggested a second opinion tells me they are being straight with you and want you to be comfortable with your decision. GOOD FOR THEM!

When you have a plumbing problem, you call a plumber. (You don't fertilize the grass to fix a bad pump so don't even think about alternative medicine for your Heart!)

The Heart is a complex plumbing system. The plumber is a CardioThorasic SURGEON.

I just wrote a lengthy list of advice to another new comer on the Pre-surgery Forum that you may find useful.

YES, this is Major Surgery, but we've all been through it and lived to tell about it. I would say that when it came to chest pain, it was more a matter of 'discomfort' than pain and Ross got it right, Muscle Pain from being stretched was WAY more intense, but thankfully can be relieved FASTER and BETTER with Massage.

Best wishes with your tests and consultations.

'AL Capshaw'

[Praline]

Have you ever heard of guided imagery tapes? Are they worth it? Has anyone here used them?
Thank you.
http://www.guidedimageryinc.com/

[eibina]

I have appreciated reading the various comments posted to the various threads. I am learning much from what I read. However, I am curious as to why basically no one posted anything to my questions but have abudantly responded to others. Did I break some kind of protocol? Just curious... I will continue to read what others say.

One thing that I did hear from one of the surgeons that I have been in contact with was that "he and all the other cardiac surgeons that he knows only do tissue tansplants for someone my age." The surgeon was with the Cleveland Clinic and is now at hospital in New Jersey. In that this is one of the decisions that I will need to make prior to having the surgery, the discussion about what type of replacement to have is most interesting.

Again, sorry if I said or did something that is not appropriate for the site.

[Mary]

I have appreciated reading the various comments posted to the various threads. I am learning much from what I read. However, I am curious as to why basically no one posted anything to my questions but have abudantly responded to others. Did I break some kind of protocol? Just curious... I will continue to read what others say.

One thing that I did hear from one of the surgeons that I have been in contact with was that "he and all the other cardiac surgeons that he knows only do tissue tansplants for someone my age." The surgeon was with the Cleveland Clinic and is now at hospital in New Jersey. In that this is one of the decisions that I will need to make prior to having the surgery, the discussion about what type of replacement to have is most interesting.

Again, sorry if I said or did something that is not appropriate for the site.

Check your original thread for my response.:) :)

[Ross]

Have you ever heard of guided imagery tapes? Are they worth it? Has anyone here used them?
Thank you.
http://www.guidedimageryinc.com/
Yes quite a few people have used them and I've never heard anything negative about them. Most hospitals that use them, give them to the patient.

[RCB]

Yes quite a few people have used them and I've never heard anything negative about them. Most hospitals that use them, give them to the patient.

BOO HOO- Nobody listens to me:( :( :(


Check out #3, Ross:
http://www.valvereplacement.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14003

OH the Shame:o

[Praline]

I am having an angiogram done Tuesday morning,December 27th. I was told to skip my warfarin on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. I have been taking warfarin for about 6 weeks.
What can I expect from this procedure? I had an arteriogram done for my kidney surgery over 20 years ago. Similat procedure, right?
They were supposed to send me a packet of information and an appointment confirmation in the mail but I did not get it yet. I talked to the nurse in the cardiology department yesterday to make sure the procedure was still on and find out exactly what time to get there. She was very happy to give me all the info I wanted. She said the pack of info and been mailed last week. I may still get it before the 27th. But an effect of Katrina still going on is the messed- up mail.

[catwoman]

Praline:

Where in Louisiana do you live?
I'll be judging a cat show Saturday, Jan. 21, in Alexandria.

I understand your fears. I was pretty shaken too when I was told I needed surgery. I kept reminding myself that others had been in my shoes and nearly all had survived (I like to think of SURVIVAL rates, not MORTALITY rates).

Life is great today, and I thank God that our hearts can be repaired, even made better.

[sauergk]

Praline,

I too am having surgery set for the summer. Like you, they are not sure how long it's taken to progress to the point it is now. But I had cardiac surgery as an infant...thought I was cured. I feel fine, so it is soooo hard to believe there is something wrong. The only thing I experience from time to time are heart palpitations. But I'm sure they are just from stress...as soon as I begin to breath slowing & tell myself that I am calm, it stops. I've heard all the same things too...not much pain etc etc. And, like you, I have a fear of the tubes...particularly the breathing tube. I have heard that sleeping will be challenging for a while. You may get intermitant sleep & feel very fatigued. And don't push yourself! These are all things I've heard but have yet to experience. Also, I was advised to purchase a bra that opens in the front..sooo much less painful.

I want to wait until summer because I have kids so of course they are off in the summer & the schedule is much more relaxed. I'm okay w/waiting...not really nervous about that...I just fear my heart will have a problem w/that..all psychological.

Wishing you the best! Please post how you are doing!

Have a great holiday! Linda

Scheduled for pulmonary valve replacement; close whole in heart, patch up tricuspid valve & hopefully all this will bring the right side of my heart back down to normal size.

[Praline]

As I said, I am going in for an angiogram Tuesday, December 27. From what I have read, it does not seem to be too bad of a procedure. But reading on this site,a few people found it to be very painful. This surprised me since everything I read everywhere said it should not be too umcomfortable at all. I also read about several people who had trouble with the "plug" put in afterwards.
I have a few more questions that I plan to ask the cardiologist.I have a touch of asthma. Would this affect anything? Is there a risk of damaging the kidneys? Since I only have one kidney, ... Do they just check for blockage with this test? Or will it give more information about the mitral valve?
As for the 2nd opinion, I go to see that cardiologist January 4th. What kind of wuestion should I ask him, besides what will happen if I do not get this surgery?
I also want to thank everyone who has been trying to encourage me and calm me down. I am not sure the calming down is happening yet but it helps to talk to someone who understands what I am feeling.
Thank ya'll so much.

[Praline]

Isn't that interesting, a cat show. My husband used to show dogs.
I live a few minutes from downtown New Orleans, on the westbank of the Mississippi.

[Praline]

Thank you for you post. My cardiologist said he would be okay with me waiting till summer but for no later. I told him, " No, thank you." I am not going to the hospital in New Orleans during hurricane season if I can possibly help it.
My fear is not the breathing tube, it is all those other tubes that are supposed to be so painful to pull out. And don't ask me why I am so worried about that pain because I am not half as worried about the rest of the painful process. Makes no sense,huh lol... But my biggest fear is really the heart-lung machine.
I am going to see someone for a second opinion January 4th. All this just happened so quickly!!! I just found out about the problem at the beginning of November.
After my angiogram Tuesday I will know if the problem is only mitral valve and AFib or if there are any blockages.
Best of luck with your surgery.

[maka]

Praline

Not everyone is the same but, here are my experiences..Mitral valve repaired this last August.
Angiogram...they gave me a shot of Benadryl, the doctor said, you may feel some pain wire going in so I wait and wait...finally I asked him when will you insert the wires, and he said, oh the wires are in already, we are almost finished!...I did not feel anything.
Nor going in or when he pulled the wires out. In addition for other blockeage the doctor can make a better guess whether the valve can be repaired or need to be replaced. My doctor told me 75% chance repair and that was the case. He was able to repair it
I don't even remember the breathing tube and I know it was taken quite soon but did not feel it. The rest of the tubes. The doctor's nurse aid was wonderful. She will tell me, this one is a "little ouch", this one is going to be a medium ouch. When she got to the large tube she told me, l be prepared for a big OUCH!!! well, it was more like a tiny little ouch and I told her so.
I'm not saying I was not uncomfortable but it was not painful. Think positive and don't be scare (easy now to say :D ) I know how you feel, but it'll be better than you now think

[joanne6]

I had the angiogram done in July. Was given conscious sedation and slept through the procedure. Thank heaven for the plug. It is so much easier than the older way with the sandbags for hours. No pain from the plug.
Yes, there are lots of tubes and wires for the surgery but the pain control is good if you ask for the meds. They want you free of pain. Taking out the tubes, etc was virtually pain free. My fear caused my to tense but the only pain I had was several minutes after the chest tube was pulled. I had a muscle spasm.
I did have pain from the actual incision sites and still have some discomfort 4 months later. It is worth it to have my mitral valve fixed.
Everyone is nervous. You wouldn't be human if you weren't scared but you have to try to take care of yourself and be as calm as you possibly can.
We are all here for you.
Joanne

[Praline]

Thank you so much. I am SO happy that I found this site. I just seem to feel a littlle bit better after each message. That does not mean that I am not still scared. Maybe I watch too much medical shows on TV.lol I just LOVE to watch forensic shows and medical too, especially when the problem is very unusual. It fascinates me what can be done in the medical world today, especially when it is not my body that is involved.
My only other real surgery has been donating a kidney to my brother.And that was such a positive experience!! Of course, the focus was not on me.
It was on my brother. I was so busy keeping my finger crossed that he would not reject my kidney that I did not have time to be scared. On a scale of 1-10, I was only a 5..a half match. I don't ever remember being scared until I was in pre-op that morning and I started thinking," I wonder if anyone ever changes their mind this late in the game?". Until that time I don't think I had really thought about the surgery itself. I had just by-passed that part and concentrated on the results.But this time I can't seem to do that.
And it just makes me so sad that he is not here now. He died a year ago in November. He is the one I would have been able to talk to.
Merry Christmas to ya'll.
Praline