The Ross' Journey

[AngelaR]

I have posted on the valve selection and pre surgery forum and as I navigate around this wonderful website I keep finding more and more information.

My husband, Ray who is 32, will be having his insufficient bicuspid aortic valve replaced with an On-X mechanical valve 1 May at VCU in Richmond, VA, by Dr. Derek Brinster.

Ray also wants to be considered for the low/no coumadin clinical trial study that is currently going on.

We start the Plavix and Aspirin load on Tuesday the 8th. And he goes in for the blood work to see if he is sensitive to this treatment on the 14th. We won't know until 3 months post op which group he will be in; the control or the PLAVIX/aspirin.

We have two little girls. Sydney who is 8 and Rachel who is 6. Sydney is taking this the hardest. She is very fearful of her dad having surgery. She is very attune to others and their feelings. My little bleeding heart =) I don't think Rachel fully grasps what is going to take place.

I was feeling very positive about this whole operation and the recovery. Staying positive. I figured I had done my reserach on valves and doctors now I just have to leave it up to fate as to how this all plays out. The last two days I am starting to get aggitated. I am still positive that he will be fine, but let's face it his recovery will be lengthy and everything is going to change.

I'm usually pretty good about change. I can roll with whatever I am dealt. Ray and I have had our fair share of hard times and have always been just fine because we our there for each other. We have good communication and really trust each other.

I've been trying to be the positive one telling Ray everything will be fine and this is just one more bump in the road that we will get through. I guess he is not handling this as well because I think he feels I am coming across nonchalant about it. Which of course isn't my intention. His sister is freaking out, our daughter is freaking out, I was just trying to be the solid foundation for everyone. I thought my calmness would calm them, instead he is thinking I don't care.

Just shows you how key communication is, especially in dire times.

So the last few days I have been feeling sorry for myself. Wondering why Ray's valve couldn't have hung in there another 10 years. I feel some how cheated. All these new obstacles that we are going to have to face and the new worries. Drugs, testing, scars, he's so young. I know stupid, right. Then I read Laura's post and I see all the heartache she has and I feel ashamed.

As everyone has already told us the waiting for the surgery is hard. Different emotions different days. I think of the worst like if something bad were to happen during the surgery and how our family will function without Ray. Or if it's not a success and he has a heart block or a stroke and just isn't well after the surgery. How we will survive with those difficulties.

I told myself right from the begining not to what if. And here I am doing that.

I'm just feeling stressed today. I try not to do that. No point in stressing what you can't control. I guess that will come and go.

It does help to talk to all of you that have gone through this or are waiting like us. So I am very appreciative of Hank for creating this website.

I hope you are all having a good day.

[WayneGM]

It's an emotional roller coaster ride, that's for sure....and it's normal. However, it sounds like you are for the most part "positive". Slipping into "negative" territory is human, but you sound like a strong person and I'm sure you'll deal with this fine. Valve replacement/repair is fairly routine as far a OHS goes. In fact, I was very surprised at just how routine as I watched the hospital staff in action at the hospital. Hang in there. Best wishes and good luck to both of you.

[ctyguy]

Everything you guys are feeling is normal. Emotions run high prior to surgery. I had several major pity parties over my surgery prior to it. The bottom line is Ray was dealt some lemons so its time to make lemon-aide. Like you said, you can't control what you can't control. OHS is scary but look at the statistics, less than 2% mortality rate for valve replacement. And who do you think make up the lions share of those 2% ? The 31 yr old patients who are in shape otherwise ? Doubt it, probably folks that are older with other health issues besides the bum valve. With any surgery there is risk, that is why its so important to find a surgeon you have faith in, more importantly that Ray has faith in.

Up until a few days before my procedure I was a basket case but when I actually got to the hospital a calmness came over me because I knew I was doing what was necessary. When I was wheeled into the operating room they hadn't given me any sedatives yet and I was fine, I KNEW I was going to make it through the surgery. Ray will also. You can't predict the future all you can do is make the most educated decision possible and run with it. You guys have done that. You might not realize it right now but I bet when you get to the hospital you will both have a positive mindset.

You said that recovery will be lengthy and everything is going to change. Im 1 day shy of 5 weeks post-op, my procedure was on 2/29/08. Today I talked to my cardiologist and I was cleared to go back to work, no restrictions. I start back on Tuesday of next week. Im not completely healed, I can't do heavy lifting but Im pretty much pain free, not taking any pain killers for over a week now, walking on the treadmill daily and even working up a sweat. The only reason Im not trying to run at this point is because I haven't started Cardio rehab yet, thats in just under 2 weeks. But I bet Im running in 3 weeks tops, lifting weights again in another 7 weeks (12 weeks post-op). Other than having to take meds daily (not that big of a deal) nothing else in my life has changed other than Im probably taking things in much more than before, not taking things for granted. Oh yeah, Im 10 years older than Ray. I would expect his recovery to be comparable to mine if not faster.

Venting is good, helps you gain perspective. Just keep your chin up and tell Ray to email me or others on here any questions you may have. I'll be happy to give you my cell number if Ray wants to talk to someone who has been through it, I had a family friend who I spoke with and it did me a world of good.

Hang in there...your both gonna be great !

[terryj]

My husband was 51 when he had his bicuspid valve replaced. 2 months later we took our 34th Wedding anniversary trip. He drove over 450 miles we just stopped and made sure he got out and walked at each rest stop. He is 58 now and he fishes,works as a Maintenance Mechanic,built out pool fence and deck and cuts our firewood with a chainsaw. You will be amazed at how how quick your husband will be back to doing all the normal things. My husband has the ATS valve and takes coumadin everyday. He has never had any problems with excessive bleeding. The first year after his surgery he got hit in the mouth with a steel pipe and had stitches he did not bleed anymore than anyone else would have. I was a basket case before his surgery. I could not stand the thought of losing him. But he just had his cardio check up this week and everything is good.

[Bryan B]

Angela,

Sometimes I think it is harder being the family member than it is to be the patient. The waiting was probably harder on me than my family, although I didn't have a wife and kids when I had my surgery. But once I walked through the hospital doors on the morning of the surgery and got my "happy place" shot in pre-op, from that point on I was just along for the ride. I think my family had it tougher after that.

I kind of knew this but it really hit home this week. My mom had a mastectomy on Tuesday morning and I was worried sick about her. She is 76 and has asthma like symptoms and chronic coughing spells (which they finally figured out was from chronic sinusitis). I was concerned about how she would handle the anesthesia and how much pain she would be in after the surgery if/when she had a bad coughing spell. Well she did wonderful. The lymph nodes were tested and came back negative for cancer, the surgery went great, and she was home the next morning feeling great and in no pain. I'm sure she had fears and "what if's" going into the surgery, but it took its toll on me as well since I had the "what if's" too.

It just shows that when a loved one has surgery it is definitely a family affair.

[Lynlw]

Hi Angela, My husband doesn't have the heart problems, but my son has had a few surgeries, the worries aren't the same, but I understand the trying to stay calm and positive and how hard it is when the what ifs keep getting in your thoughts. This is a really good place to vent. It might not be any of my business and feel free to say so, but I was wonderring how/why you guys (I'm assuming it was a joint disicion) decided to get involved with the clinical trials? AS for the surgery, as everyone has said for first time surgeries the odds are incrediably good , so that's a good thing to focus on, as for complications, Justin's had a of different complications with some of his surgeries (he's had 5) but ended up fine, so even if Ray hits a bump, remeber to post here and usually you will find someone else that has dealt with that. It always helped me to know of others that went thru something similar and are doing fine.The weeks before the surgery are really stressfull, but try to rest up, because for the family member the first couple days post op can be rough, having a loved one in ICU, so please remeber to take care of yourself, rest eat ect. Will you be able to stay with Ray most of the time? that is one thing I really recomend if at all possible. Some Hospitals (not all) even have chairs that fold out or cots, so you might want to ask about that before the surgery. Good luck with everything Lyn Sorry if my spelling is off I just realized I'm getting tired

[PairoDocs]

Of the two choices, which are emergent surgery without preparation and scheduled surgery with preparation, I'm still not sure which one wins in the stress department. Either way, you do what you have to do.We have two small children as well (ages 4 and 7), and even though it was an emergency, it was helpful to keep things as normal as possible. For instance, my mother-in-law (MIL) flew out to help take care of the kids. Even the day of surgery, the older one attended school. I did all the laundry the night before his transfer and matched up outfits in a pile so my MIL wouldn't have to hunt. I put easy-to-prepare items in a box (so what if they get mac-and-cheese a few more times than normal?) and put it in the kitchen. They did have to forgo a few extra-curricular activities, but with a few phone calls, people from church picked them all up and drove them to their Nativity play, so they got to do something they had been practicing for months. I left a list of phone numbers and the daily routine. Lest you all think I'm super-organized, well... I'm not, but doing these things helped keep me from hysterics. I knew that if I didn't arrange for animal care, my husband's recovery would be impeded by worry and would be affected by coming home to a pile of dead or sick chickens and other animals. I did have to go out and buy chicken feed, etc. Needless to say, I didn't get a lot of sleep, but I wouldn't have in any case.
We never did mince words with the kids. When they asked if Daddy would be OK, I had to say "I hope so". I encouraged them to pray for their dad, and it made them feel that they were doing something important( which they were). I knew that if something did happen and I had told them everything would be OK...well, they would never trust me again and my credibility would be shot. They got to speak with their dad as soon as he moved out of the ICU to the medical floor. I stayed with my husband in a cot on the cardiac unit and we managed very well.
The kids are having some problems with acting out, and they both want to have their daddy's attention even more than usual. As a matter of fact, they pester the daylights out of him, but this is to be expected.
Don't be ashamed of your fears. Ask your doctor for something if you can't sleep. I worry more if someone is very laissez-faire than a worry wart. Do make sure you have your wills updated and advanced directives, etc done. I think one needs to be reasonable, after all. I still cry (a lot) but try not to do it in front of the kids. I DO let my husband see it, however, because he needs to see it, if you know what I mean. I also spoke to my sister for about 50 miles of the trip to Boise from here, and cried the whole time. Her calm voice actually steadied me quite a bit, so even though it is not usually my style, I did lean on her for support. I'll probably need some counseling over this whole thing, but maybe between the support group and his continued recovery, I can make it without.
We'll be praying for you both.
Take care of yourselves in the meanwhile.

Spring-like in Idaho,
Laura

[AngelaR]

Good Morning, Everyone,

Scott, Wayne and Terry thank you for your kind words. And Scott I will let Ray know he can talk to someone who has been through this. I don't think he is ready at this point. Probably post surgery.

Oaktree - thank you for that link. We aren't fighting and we aren't not getting along, we are just having a hard time finding the right words. We both know that the other isn't going anywhere. Believe it or not, we've been through more emotional situations than preparing for OHS. It's just that we are so used to talking about things and when you have a hard time finding words plus our schedules have been busy lately too so we haven't seen a lot of each other. Phone calls just aren't the same as real time.

Lyn, I could imagine that it being your son would be worse than your spouse. Your strength is awesome. I couldn't imagine if one of the girls was going through this. We had a luekemia (sp?) scare when Rachel was 2. Quite possibly THE worst few days of our lives. I wish you and your son nothing but the best. =) It was Ray's decision to participate in the clinical trial study. Mostly because of his profession.

Bryan, I am glad to hear your mom did so well after her surgery. It is scary to realize our parents aren't invincible. It's funny because I only see my dad a few times a year. Everytime I see him I am kind of shocked at how grey he is or how much older he looks. In my mind he is that same 36 year old dad. Tall, muscular, great dark curly hair and stylish goatee with a killer smile. Now the goatee and hair is all grey and he appears to have shrunk a bit. Of course my 5'10" 185lb. dad next to my 6'1" 250lbs husband is quite the stark contrast ;-)

Laura, I am glad we have the time to prepare. That does make some things easier. Sometimes worrying about all that stuff is stressful too, though. I hope you continue to have a speedy recovery and everything is "OK" =)

Well last night Ray was supposed to have his physcial fitness assessment for SWAT and they wouldn't let him take it. So he was very upset and threatening not to have this surgery done until later. I think he was just saying that in the heat of the moment. Again this was a phone conversation and I felt bad because I couldn't talk to him long and he was extremely upset. It didn't make much sense. He couldn't take the fitness test but he was allowed to train and participate in all the drills. I guess this will be the first of the many stupid games we will go through with this.

The girls God Mom aka Suebee (Susan, Sydney got Susie confused when she was little and it just stuck) is going to come and get the girls the night before Ray's surgery and keep them for a few days. After talking to a few folks and hearing about the shocking condition that Ray will appear in after the surgery I thought it best they don't see him for a few days. He will be in and out anyways, I will have her bring them back down on Saturday or Sunday when he is more lucid and can appreciate that they are there. I thought they should be involved in this whole process but now I am starting to see the impact that this is having on Sydney. She is very worried about mortality now and she doesn't need to be stressing about the what-if's. I think she knows enough right now, maybe even too much.

Well today is a new day. I was feeling better last night until Ray called. Then I got frustrated again. More unknown's. But I guess life is basically unknown, it's just more of a reality when you face something like this.

I do know one thing, we will be OK. Happiness is ultimately a choice and something we can control. Making the best of any circumstance. I just need to get some coffee and I'll be happy =)

[AngelaR]

Oh no, Oaktree, I wasn't taking it defensively =) I appreciated it. I just was clarifying =)

[CHDDoug]

As others have said, waiting is the hardest part. I'm going to have to agree with Bryan B in that it's more challenging for family members than it is for the actual patient. I thought recovering from OHS was actually a piece of cake...though I know that there are complications and anything can happen, but the surgery is pretty routine nowadays. Once your husband gets through the first week, it's pretty much rest, take your pain meds as necessary, walk, eat and sleep. It's really no more than that. And by the way, I'm 33 years of age (nearly 8 weeks post op), so very close to your husbands age. Recovery at our age is alot quicker and better than when you're in your 60's and up. I think what you are feeling is normal, but I would encourage you to look on the bright side of the numbers. Your husband is at very low risk of anything major happening to him during surgery. Is it possible...sure...but again, not likely. I'm a 'glass half full' kinda guy and truly believe that the attitude that you and your husband take into surgery will help/hinder the outcome and speediness of recovery. Stay positive and believe that everything will be just fine! And I'm sure it will.

Take care and keep us posted.

[Lynlw]

Angela, Thank you, sometimes I don't feel very strong, but you know you do what you need to. Justin has had both planned and emergency heart surgeries and I can agree they both are stressfull in completely different ways. I didn't say anything, but I'm glad you decided not to take the little girls to the hospital the first couple days, it can be tough for an adult seeing someone they love right after surgery,and it is kind of stressful. IF you want I have some pics of Justin after his last surgery, feel free to email me, just put VR.com in the subject. I think that is good he is willing to be in the trial, I don't know if I could be brave enough to be in that one, I understand the Police, my Dad is a retired Pa State Trooper, IF I can help with anything from the family side just pm or email me, I don't check here as often anymore. I would be sure to echo take a sweatshirt or something for you, they keep those CCUs freezing. and take lots of dollars/quarters for vending machines. Lyn
ps I really recomend setting up a web page, it makes it so much nicer to update then having to remeber calling everyone or them calling just when you family mmember falls asleep. my sig goes to one of the free sites for medical updates.

[AngelaR]

Good Morning.

Ray started his PLAVIX and aspirin load yesterday. He had to take 4 pills yesterday and they really upset his stomach. Hoping that it was only because he had to take 4 and that it evens itself out. He said he felt like someone was wringing his gut and it just felt heavy.

We go Monday for the bloodwork.

Everything seems to be going pretty good. No new events. Just waiting.

[AngelaR]

We went for our pre-op stuff yesterday. Also did the blood work for the FDA study.

They did an EKG, Chest X-Ray, lots of paperwork, blood work and a lot of waiting.

They went over everything I can expect on the day of the surgery. The waiting room and getting me and Ray's sister, Tracy, a room at the hospitality house for the night Ray is in ICU.

My dad is coming down the night before the surgery and he is going to stay with our girls until Saturday. So this works out good, I won't have to take our dog somewhere with him coming down so that is one less thing to worry about.

So we are still waiting......about 2 weeks out now.

[dick0236]

To AngelaR...Your husband, Ray, should do very well. He is young and that should help him recover quickly. I am a BIG believer in getting heart related issues corrected before problems crop up. I had mine done before I had experienced any serious symptons and I believe that is one of the reasons that I have done very well over the years. I can't speak about modern surgery except to say that doctors have been doing it a long, long time and their results show how successfully people are returned to normal, productive life.

It is normal to be concerned. You are fortunate to have found this Forum. You and Ray can get most of your questions answered by folks who have "been there, done that". :D :D

[AngelaR]

Good Morning,

I am sitting in the waiting room. We had to be here at 0530 and they wheeled him away from us at 0830. They started the surgery at 1005 and we are now just waiting. None of us got much sleep last night so we are tired.

Ray did very good in the pre-op room. He really didn't get upset until about 8, and they gave him some medicine shortly afterwards.

It is very surreal for the day to finally be here and just sitting here waiting. I am very thankful to be getting this over with.

Luckily, my brother-in-law has wireless and a laptop so I am cruising the internet. You were all right (spouses and significant others) that your attention span is gone. Yesterday at work was difficult. Just antsy.

I'll keep you all posted. And thank you again for walking us through this!

[Freddie]

Angela thanks for posting.
As the day goes on, my prayers and best wishes will be going out to you and Ray.
Don't forget to look after yourself.

[marie]

You are all in my thoughts and prayers. Thanks for the update and take care
Earline

[ctyguy]

Hang in there...within a few hours he will be in recovery mode. All the best to both of you.

[terryj]

Thanks for the update. I was also the spouse in the waiting room. Its rough but you will get through it. Just remember to eat and get some rest yourself.

[PairoDocs]

I hope that you are (were)not by yourself in the waiting room. I was prepared to wait there by myself since it was emergent and far away from home, but St Luke's in Boise has wonderful staff and volunteers. The pastor stayed with me for awhile, then the volunteer regaled me with tales of Minnesota (sort of like an elderly Garrison Keillor). I ran into several people from neighboring towns who knew people that I knew. A nurse that I had known at home was on staff at St. Luke's and made a special effort to spend time with me in the waiting room. A friend had her aunt (who was up there with her hubby at the VA clinic) stop by to check on me. I received updates regularly-when my husband was on bypass, when he was off, etc. The time actually passed fairly quickly, even though it was 3&1/2 hours in the OR and another 30 minutes or so to get him arranged in the ICU. These people seemed to be sent by God to help me keep vigil. When the surgeon came out to speak with me, he was very gentle and soft-spoken. We did not have a choice of surgeons due to the emergent nature of Chris' surgery, but I would chose him again. And (to this day I'm not sure why), the surgeon hugged me in the waiting room, and told me that Chris' heart started as soon as he had been warmed up and taken off bypass, no electricity needed. He also told me that Chris' heart was in excellent shape except for the mitral valve, which was now repaired and had gradient down to 4! He told me that he felt my husband would do very well, and...he was right. I felt that I could trust him. It was hard not to place him on a pedestal, as a matter of fact. My husband felt the same. We even told him, before discharge, that he was indeed a "healer". He seemed surprised and gratified. We never got to see him again after discharge, as my husband's care was turned back over to the local cardiologist.

If I had any advice for anyone who is going to be in that waiting room...it's to bring someone with to stay with you, even if it's only to sit there with you. Don't be afraid to reach out; no one will think you're out of line.

Peaches and Nectarines Blooming in Idaho,
-Laura

[PairoDocs]

Oh, I almost forgot the most important thing, at least for me-lots of prayer.

Springtime in Idaho,
-Laura

[AngelaR]

Hello everyone! Thank you for your kind words.

We came home yesterday. Ray is doing phenomenal!

The surgery itself only took about an hour and 45 minutes. They took the tube out of his throat about 3 hours later. The first night in ICU was rough for him. He was in a lot of pain. But after that he got up the very next morning and was in a chair when they let us back into ICU. Then was up and walking a few hours after that. He stopped taking the narcotics on Saturday. He has extreme shoulder pain and has been taking flexiril for that. His INR was still only at 1.1 so he is taking Lovenox shots until he gets that up. Hopefully he can quit worrying about INR's altogether in a few months.

The ON-X team came to see me while I was in the waiting room. They were doing training with the hospital so I got to talk with them.

I will sit down and write a play for play on how everything went for those that are still waiting to have one more positive experience to hold onto while they are in the holding pattern. I just don't have much time right now.

Ray is already walking 30 minutes on the treadmill in the morning and at night. We've had people here non-stop today. His sister and brother were at the hospital the whole time with us and my dad was with our daughters.

Everything went really smooth and fast and the staff at VCU was amazing. They were very efficient and nice. Nothing but rave reviews from us for them =)

OK, I will be back while Ray is napping to tell you all more. I have some great pictures too.

Thank you for all your pep talks and just listening to me rant as we waited. You all have been amazing as well.

[Ross]

Outstanding!!!!

Now, don't let him over do it, which already, he seems to be doing too much too fast. No need for backsliding here.

[Freddie]

WOW!!!
1 hour and 45 minutes - thats amazing.

But I do have to ask........he's NOT doing 30 minutes on the treadmill at one time is he????? I thought that doing 10 minutes of walking 3 to 5 times a day was sufficient.

Oh how it does sound he is doing too much to fast.

Please slow down Ray and take care.......both of you.

[ctyguy]

Great to hear that Ray is doing so well ! I had a rough first night in the stepdown unit when the reduced my meds but by noon the next day I was doing pretty well. I was on the treadmill pretty quickly also and ended up with a bout of pericardial effussion when I was at 2 weeks post-op, not sure if there was a relationship there but I would caution to not push too hard, wear a heart monitor, and slow down when his body tells him to.

Hopefully Ray has a very boring and uneventful recovery !

[Phyllis]

So happy to read this. Best wishes to you and Ray for an uneventful recovery and we will look forward to the pictures.

[Karlynn]

Great news! And here's someone else telling you to tell him not to overdo it. There are some things that only time will allow to recover and willpower has nothing to do with those things. If he does too much, his body will throw him down.

Walk, sleep, eat and breathe - those are his only jobs. If all the visitors are wearing him out - kick 'em out!

You are Nurse Ratchett for the first couple of weeks!

[PairoDocs]

Glad to hear Ray is doing well. Chris and I made sure that he increased his activity in steps, always while wearing the monitor. He did run up and down the steps prior to discharge, though... what is it about men needing to be studly, anyway? The physical therapist was sure impressed, though.

Cloudy in Idaho,
-Laura

[AngelaR]

Hello All.

Still not a lot of time to sit down and type, just wanted to let you all know we are still doing great. Ray's INR is still only 1.3 so he has to increase his coumadin to 5mg and continue to take the lovenox shots. (ugh) His poor belly looks like a warzone from those shots. They really bruise him up.

His incision looks fantastic. about 2 inches at the top still need to heal up better but the rest of it looks sealed, so hopefully that will stay that way. His drainage holes look like black obyss'. ick. I can't believe they didn't put a stitch or two in there.

His walking is going good. The muscle pain in his shoulder is starting to ease up. He walks outside a good bit and then does his 30 minutes on the treadmill at night. He has trouble sleeping at night, but I hear everyone has that. He takes some pretty good naps during the day so he thinks that might be a contribute and he limited his naps today. we will see if that helps tonight. He is sleeping in the recliner, too hard to lay flat still. Hopefully that will go away soon, I miss him =)

He gets a sharp pain now and then like a flutter. Nothing that lasts. It did it every few hours on Wednesday. Wednesday he was in a good bit of pain and just really tired. It happened once today. Was told that as long as it wasn't constant or happened more than a few times it was normal healing.

We go back next Friday for his post op check up and go back Wednesday to get his INR read again.

All and all we are just enjoying our time off together and taking it easy. I will post some pics soon. I just have to get the darn things off my camera!

Thank you for everyone's support and "two cents". He isn't pushing himself and he is listening to his body. All is good, we are just going to continue to rest and relax.

[AngelaR]

I guess I can only upload one in a reply? Here is Ray's incision on 5/3

[AngelaR]

Ray's Incision on 5/15

WE also saw the surgeon on Friday (5/16) Everything is going perfect. He got the OK to run and he ran last night for the first time. He did 4 minutes, then 3 and then 2. Just felt winded. He goes back to work on the 27th. He got the promotion he put in for so he is a detective with a gang unit now.

He started a cardio rehab program. He does his 30 minutes either on a bike or elliptical there and then does 30 minutes on the treadmill at home.

He sweats a ton!

HIs INR is still only 1.3 so he goes tomorrow for another test.

We find out 1 August which control group he will be in for the study. I will keep you all posted on that.

Otherwise this experience was nothing that I anticipated and hope that it continues that way.

Thank you again for all your help. I'll be back in August to let you know how we are doing with the study and just in general.

[Freddie]

Did he have a female Doctor???
That incision looks so clean neat and tiny. He won't have much a scar......lucky guy.

Best wishes for a continue uneventful recovery.

Oh yea....thanks for sharing.....got any more pic's???

[AngelaR]

One more, he decided to shave his head! ha ha.

[AngelaR]

Did he have a female Doctor???
That incision looks so clean neat and tiny. He won't have much a scar......lucky guy.

Best wishes for a continue uneventful recovery.

Oh yea....thanks for sharing.....got any more pic's???

Ha ha, no he didn't. That is too funny! Dr. Brinster is a man, however, the Doctor that is on resident with him, Dr. Dash is the one who sewed him up and that was his only concern when we saw Dr. Dash on Friday. Let me see your incision! Then he said yep, ha ha, patting himself on the back =)

He did do a fantastic job. I didn't even know it was sewn. I could have sworn it was glued!

Yes, I have more pics. Give me a sec and I'll post some others.

[AngelaR]

Scariest one for me! But he still looked GOOD. I was preparing for him to look grey and just "dead".

[AngelaR]

Here he is feeling good. Playing basketball. So happy he can lift his arms =)

[AngelaR]

With his girls. This is when he got moved to his room. If you notice Sydney (pink shirt) has her ER bracelete on her right hand :eek: Trying to kill her poor mother =0

[AngelaR]

And one of the two of us. Ray was gained 20lbs of water weight and here he is at almost 270lbs!!! All belly =) And me just worn out. :p

[AngelaR]

oops...here it is.

[sknydave]

Glad everything is going well! Looking at your photos makes me wish I had taken photos.. Even though it's not the happiest memory, it's still a major event in your life.

[Robert]

Hang in there big guy ;) Its amazing how much strength we gain when we having the love and support of our family and friends to see us through to better days :) I know exactly what he's going through at the moment and I found that laughter and keeping your mind off things was the best medicine of all! Thankyou for sharing your experiences with us :D

[ALCapshaw2]

And one of the two of us. Ray was gained 20lbs of water weight and here he is at almost 270lbs!!! All belly =) And me just worn out. :p

Did his Doctor put him on a diuretic to drain off some of that fluid?

If not, WHY NOT ?

[AngelaR]

Did his Doctor put him on a diuretic to drain off some of that fluid?

If not, WHY NOT ?


Yes, they did have him on Lasik for about 2 days, he stopped taking that when he got released on Monday (5 May). That picture is 2 days post op, so he was still pretty bloated. by Monday (5 May) he had peed it all out.

If you look at the one of him playing basketball you will see that it's all gone. I think he topped at 270 and he is down to 232. He went in at 248.

VCU took very good care of us. No complaints. They were right on top of everything. If we asked for something we had it within minutes.

[DebbyA]

Angela and Ray,

I just caught up with this thread. It looks like things are going well on all fronts.
You must be so relieved.

Great pictures!

[AngelaR]

Hi Debby!

Everything is going very well (knock on wood).

Everyone keeps asking how he is doing and I'm afraid to say how good for fear karma will bite us in the butt!!

His incision is looking SO great. It is all healed up it is now just that bright pink. Which I saw so many people struggling with theirs to heal, I'm worried it healed too fast! His drainage tubes still have scabs but they do look good. I will post an up close pic of his incision tomorrow or tonight.

He is still having trouble sleeping at night. But he never slept well at night. Too many years on the midnight shift I think. But he takes a 2 hour nap during the day to make up for it.

Still struggling to get INR, but that will come (hopefully sooner than later)!

Thanks for checking in on us!

[Karlynn]

Angela - thanks for all the pics. I enjoyed looking at them. I saw the one of him on the vent and my first thought was "Isn't it amazing what they can do today!"

Tell him to watch that b-ballin'. His sternum is still healing. But the look on his face is great! And I think he looks good with his head shaved!

What is his INR now. Since he seems to be pretty active already, they may need to be a bit more aggressive in increasing his dose.

Best wishes for a continued smooth recovery.

[AngelaR]

Hi Karlynn,

I know, I keep telling him to becareful. He'll either be lucky or he'll learn. I'm just here for the ride ;-)

His INR is STILL at 1.3. They have him at 10mg then 5, we should hear back today if that got him up or not. What a pain in the butt!!

I can't wait until we get our own machine if he stays on the coumadin. Back and forth between the lab and calling the docs.

[AngelaR]

Finally got the call back and he is at 1.7 now. He is supposed to be between 1.8 - 2.2 so we are almost there!!!

[Karlynn]

Good news! Did they leave his does the same or change it?

[AngelaR]

He's doing 7mg and 5mg for two days and then another test. But it will be more like 4 days, as he won't make it to the lab until Saturday, then it will take however long to get the results back. I think he should be right around where he needs to be with this. The 10mg made him sick, upset his stomach and gave him diarreah so I hope he doesn't have to go that high again.

[Karlynn]

Angela, I'm not understanding why they lowered his dose when he's not quite in range yet? It sent off a little warning bell for me. I'm also not quite understanding just how they are dosing him. It's sounds like they are giving him 2 days of dosing instructions at a time, testing him and then changing it again. This is a recipe for a swinging INR. It looks like they are just guessing and going "Well, lets try this and see what happens."

It takes 3 days for a dose of Coumadin to show up in the INR. Testing anymore frequently than 4 days is not going to let you know how effective the dosing will be. If someone is terribly low and they test a few days after a dosage change - it should only be to see if the INR is on it's way up. Dosing should be done by adjusting the weekly total, anywhere from 10 - 20%.

If you feel it was the Coumadin that made his stomach upset and gave him diahrea make sure he's not taking it on an empty stomach. If he's an active guy, I'm not going to be surprised if he ends up on 10 or more a day. It probably wasn't the amount that made it upset, but an empty stomach. I take my dose at bedtime and if I haven't eaten in a few hours it can sometimes make my stomach a tad irritated. He may want to take his dose with breakfast or dinner.

Take a look at this source. http://www.aafp.org/afp/990201ap/635.html About 1/2 way down it begins to explain dosage calculations. I would highly recommend educating yourselves on Coumadin management, because it's the best way to see if what the managers are doing is correct.

Next time ask them:
What is his weekly total?
How are you suggesting he divide this up throughout the week?
What percent increase/decrease is this of the weekly total?
and maybe you need to ask -
Why are you decreasing his dose when he's not in-range.

If they tell you - we don't have his weekly total yet because we haven't gotten him in range - This will tell you that they don't really know how to manage Coumadin.

[AngelaR]

Thank you I will check out that article.

We are actually going to be switching our management to someone local as we are having such a hard time between the lab and getting the results. The turn around has been 3 days and about 10 phone calls the last one is where I loose my mind on the poor soul that answers the phone. If I have to hear it's protcol to leave a message and the nurse call you back one more time....

He took 10mg last Thur and Friday and then took 5mg Sat and Sun got blood taken Monday. We got the results yesterday (again after threatening the poor guy who answers the phone, I know he cringes when I say it's Angela Ross calling....)

Everytime we call we talk to a differnt NP, so that is probably why they are bouncing him around. When this NP saw he was taking 10 she was like that's way too high. But I thought well it only got him to 1.7.

Like I said we will just follow these instructions and go back Tuesday, cause I am not going to the lab on a holiday weekend. He is still taking the lovenox so he is "safe" until we get his INR up. Hopefully, our local management will be better. By the time we get this all straightened up he will either be switching to the plavix and aspirin or getting a home monitoring machine. Either way that will be one monkey off our back.

He takes his coumadin at bedtime and then he woke up with diarreah. It only happened when they took him from 3 to 5 and then from 5 to 10. I think it is just his body adjusting because when he took the 10 again the second night he was fine the next day.

I think you are right, I think he will have to take a high dosage. Even though he is a big guy, he has an incredible metabolism. His resting bmr is like 1750 cals. Heck, that's about what I eat a day!!

I am so looking forward to this weekend. This is my first week back to work since being off and I am dreading every second of the day. Is it Friday yet!!

[Karlynn]

Just an FYI - all INR's should be received STAT. Same day or not at all. People that live in the boonies sometimes have to put up with more than 24 hours. But dosing him on what is really an old INR, by the time they get around to it, is pointless.

An NP that is telling you 10 is too high when she has a patient who's INR is below range knows nothing about Coumadin management. So she lowers his dose, even though his INR is still too low, and expects that to bring him into range. What does she think is magically going to happen? (Her statement drives me crazy - I'd love to have her number so I could call her. :rolleyes:) There is no such thing as "too much" when your INR is in range. Right now I take 13/day. My body is in no greater jeopardy than someone who takes 3/day.

Angela, I'm so sorry you're having to deal with managers that don't know what they're managing. People who are new to Coumadin shouldn't be expected to know how to manage it, which is why it's so dangerous that so many medical people in the US don't know either, because we count on them to know.

I hope my comments aren't making you feel stupid. They aren't meant to at all. I just want to help you get the correct information. The way your husband's INR is being managed right now borders on malpractice. I'm glad he has the On-X, or I'd be a lot more worried for him.

Please get another manager ASAP and look for these things:
-INR results are same day. Dosing instructions are the same day
-They give you a dosage adjustment based on a weekly dosage total - which is arrived at by increasing or decreasing the weekly total by 10-20%. The then divide the weekly by 7 to come up with his daily. Sometimes the daily isn't the exact same each day because it needs to be adjusted to arrive at the weekly total.
-they do not decrease dosing when INR is below range or in range
-they do not worry about the amount of warfarin he's on, as long as he's in range.

Best wishes!!

[Ross]

Now why don't I find this surprising? :rolleyes:

[SHEEPDOG]

I was not too sure about the Coumadin to begin with, then I read this and some of the other horror stories. I do find more positive than negative on VR about Coumadin. It would seem they would have it down by now. Are there that many variables that it is that uncertain? Do Docs regulate this or NP's or ?
Hope it all works out soon. Is the lower INR # the only thing that the on-x has going for it? also, with the study, how long has it been going? Have they had any failures with the plavix/baby asprin?

Good luck and Ill keep a close eye on your posts.
Us "Sheepdogs" need to keep the pack together!
SHEEPDOG 1

[Ross]

I was not too sure about the Coumadin to begin with, then I read this and some of the other horror stories. I do find more positive than negative on VR about Coumadin. It would seem they would have it down by now. Are there that many variables that it is that uncertain? Do Docs regulate this or NP's or ?
Hope it all works out soon. Is the lower INR # the only thing that the on-x has going for it? also, with the study, how long has it been going? Have they had any failures with the plavix/baby asprin?

Good luck and Ill keep a close eye on your posts.
Us "Sheepdogs" need to keep the pack together!
SHEEPDOG 1

Sheepdog the largest single factor that make Coumadin dangerous is that the U.S. Medical system has never gotten on the same page about how it works or how to dose it. You'd think by now, it would old knowledge, but what we have instead is old knowledge never once considering new knowledge. Very few Coumadin managers know what their doing. Even fewer Doctors do.

If you want the no bull story of Coumadin and want to put fears, hearsay, and myths to bed, go to this link and begin reading. You should do it anyway when considering valves. http://www.warfarinfo.com/warfarinfo.com2.htm

The website is run by Al Lodwick who is an certified pharmacist and anticoagulation expert. He taught us and we try to teach others. He says we taught him, but reading through his site, you'll see what I mean.

[AngelaR]

No, your comments did not make me feel stupid. I can blatantly see that this isn't the RIGHT thing to be doing. But we are, or should say were victims of the circumstances. I mean honestly I can only call and leave so many messages. Surprisinly enough I do have other things to do then call their office 5-6 times a day. :rolleyes: And then I have to finally be a b*tch to get them to respond, by the time it's all said and done with I need blood pressure medication.

When the nurse told him that 10 was high he gave me this terrified look and I had to explain to him YET AGAIN that his dosage will depend on how he metabolizes the medicine to get his INR up. But I know he kind of thinks well THEY should know best and that I might just be saying stuff to make him feel better. I have little to no faith in doctors, pharmacies or the medical community in general. This whole process with Ray has given me a little faith back in surgeons, but it solidified the fact that most doctors and nurses don't have enough time after they get their degrees to further their research and stay on top of the game.

I had the one nurse when we were in the hospital tell Ray to stay hydrated he should only drink 4 of those little pitchers they give you a day. No more. Or it would "hurt" him. Then the other one who came on after her said drink little water but drink lots of liquids. I asked her what she meant and she said well nothing that has sugar in it like juice but gatorade is good. I told her gatorade has high fructose corn syrup in it and she asked me what that was. I think my jaw hit the floor.

We had someone come in and start him on the plavix/aspirin regime. I was like uh, why is he taking this now. They didn't know. So I told them to go find out. Imagine this, it was a mistake. hmmm, go figure. Then they were trying to give him some cholesterol pill and I was like why. Big surprise, we don't know we just always give them to the heart patients. I was like there is nothing wrong with his cholesterol, go find out why he was prescribed this, guess what? They took that off the list of pills to give him. It was just unbelievable that I had to ask them everytime they came to give him something what it was and they didn't even know. I know they thought I was a huge pain in the butt.

Then they kept coming in to check his vitals. I asked how often they were going to do this because they kept waking him up throughout the night. We were getting up every 45 minutes or so and the nurse says we do it every 4 hours. Well I told her they were coming in every hour and a half. So they would come in before the 4 hours and I would kick them out. How the heck is he supposed to rest when they are coming in and out with nonsense all night long. I understood the periodic checks but they weren't even following their own system. It was like they were bored in the middle of the night and were finding stuff to do.

They were all very friendly and very helpful, don't get me wrong on that, but their knowledge was lacking.

Ray didn't want the narcotics, he just wasn't in that much pain. His shoulder was killing him but he was managing that with the motrin they were giving him (this was pre-coumadin). It was almost like they were street pushers. The one nurse demanded he take it. Trying to convince him that the pain was going to get worse and that he should take the meds before it got to that point because if it got to that point the meds wouldn't be able to manage the pain. Of course this is post op day 3 and he hasn't had anything since post op day 1. :rolleyes:

OK, now I've just gone and ranted up a storm.

Anyways, we go to this new coumadin clinic on Tuesday. Hopefully we have better luck. And no we don't live in the boonies by any stretch of the matter. We are 29 miles from the nations capitol!!!

Sheepdog let me go look up where those studies are so you can read them first hand. I think you'll probably have better luck in the valve selection section of this forum. Choosing a valve really is just personal preference and what you think is best for YOU. Ray was nervous about taking coumadin at first but the more we researched the more comfortable we are if he has to stay on it. However, his choice to be in the study is if you don't have to check your INR frequently and worry about redosage then that's one less thing to worry about.

We went and saw Indiana Jones last night. It was very good. We all enjoyed it. We watched the other 3 to buff up our memories while we were off together. I actually had never seen the 3rd one. And it's FRIDAY!!! Holdiay weekend to boot!! :D

[Ross]

Angela I hope this new clinic has a clue. First off, I know it's an On-x valve but it's near impossible to maintain a very very narrow range of 1.8 to 2.2. You'll be lucky to hit it once a year. 1.5 to 2.5 would be more like it. Bottom line, if you have troubles, we'll help you out and as you learn, help someone else out. Checking his INR every 3 days and changing doses is doing nothing but chasing tails. They need to set him up on one dose and leave it be for full 7 days, then test to see where your at and where to go from there. As it is, he may be put in range, but what dose did it? They aren't going to know.

[AngelaR]

Thanks, Ross. We are just staying patient. We can only control ourselves so the best decision we are making is switching to this new clinic. It was obvious after the 4th results we were getting no where with this one and just getting frustrated. Plus it was honestly upsetting me having to call and be all snarky just to get an answer. I'd get all wound up and then have a hard time getting unwound! How fair is that!

I think as long as he is between 1.8 - 2.8 we will be good. I'm not going to fret it. He has been taking just a solid 8mg and through out their 8 one day 5 the next advice. We will see on Tuesday where he is with that and go from there with this new clinic. He will have been on 8 for a solid 6 days by the time we go Tuesday. So we should have a pretty good idea of where he is and what needs to be done about it.

As it is right now we are in no position to offer any advice or counseling on this. We are still too new! =) My best advice to someone who just gets diagnosed or learns they need surgery is to take everything with a grain of salt, prepare for the worst and hope for the best. I've seen so many different scenarios on these boards. Everyone is very different in how they choose their valve, the surgeon, the cardiologist, their recovery, and other illness', etc. The best decisions is the one you choose at the moment and then you stay flexible to changes on the fly. Always remembering you can never control a situation or other people, you can only control yourself and how you react to it.

That's about all the wisdom I have on this subject....heck, any subject for that matter!!

You all have a good day and fantastic weekend!

[Ross]

So long as you understand that it's not what you two are doing, but what they are doing to you. If this next place doesn't seem any better, you may have to grab the bull by the horns and learn to self dose. It's amazingly simple and you'll laugh because they fought for weeks to get it right and it took you two weeks tops. The hard part right now is finding his stable dose and remembering that as his activity level increases, his INR will go down, requiring a small upwards tweak in his dose. Make sure he's getting his share of greens too. Don't let anyone pull that diet garbage on you.

[Karlynn]

Angela - thanks for your rant on his hospital stay. - Seriously. We tell people all that time that they should have someone with them in the hospital as much as possible - and your description of how you kept watch is a perfect example! So you are already helping others.

And you area already taking the bull by the horns by ignoring their instructions and doing 8 every day. I'll be curious to see what his INR is on Tuesday. I hope this new clinic is in the know on management.

I really think that the statistics of stroke and bleeds for mechanical valves would be even lower if we had across the board competancy in Coumadin management. When I read or hear stories like yours I stop and wonder just what they're doing to the other people they manage. Who have they allowed to stroke out? I really think they should be required to take proficiency tests in order to manage Coumadin. Sadly - many probably have never done more than learn from the person next to them who's equally incompetant. Al Lodwick's seminars should be a requirement.

Good work - I think you're officially in the running for the Nancy - Warrior Spouse award.

[AngelaR]

Well thank you. I'm a big momma bear when it comes to my family. They are all I have.

I don't think I told this story yet. it's funny now but at the time I thought my whole world was falling apart.

My dad was with the girls. Well Friday, the day after surgery, they told us Ray would move out of ICU. So we decided to have my dad bring the girls down. It's an hour and a half drive from our house. Well when my dad got down there Ray was still in ICU at 3:00 pm. So we begged the nurses to let Ray walk out of ICU to see the girls. They were desperately needing to see that their dad was OK and we weren't just lying to them.

Well in all the hussel my dad just fed them breakfast and they hadn't had lunch and it was 3:00. Well Ray comes walking out with the oxygen in his nose pushing that buggy with that ugly green hospital gown on and Sydney who is a huge daddy's girl, takes one look at him and turns white. Well he is trying to talk to her and assure her he is OK. Well she is reading the card she got him to him and she stops reading. I was stooped beside her and I looked at her and she had this really blank stare. I kept saying Sydney, Sydney, baby what's wrong. Then her eyes dialated and she started to crumble. I picked her up and her eyes were still open. I started crying and freaking out. She was only out a mere seconds. She wakes up and wants to know why I'm crying and then she throws up. She kept saying I'm OK, I'm OK then she went to go down again. So the nurses told us to take her to the ER.

So I rushed her down there, leaving poor Ray not able to do anything. I felt so bad for him. But luckily it was just a combination of not eating and stress. She just had a fainting spell. They did an echo on her, an EKG, tested her sugar even did throat cultures cause her throat looked red, which was just from throwing up. She was fine and driving me insane in the ER within 15 minutes of getting down there.

I told her no more drama! We're at our limit.

I was wondering the same thing about other patients. It really seemed to me like this was their first time or something. Like they were just winging it. I thought hell I can wing it too, I'm PAYING you to know this. WTH!

There is no way I would have let him or anyone else in my family go into the hospital alone. His sister was with us the whole time as well, but she was even looking at me crazy when I was asking about the cholesterol medicine. She was like well if they give it to everyone. I told her that wasn't a good enough answer. My husband isn't everyone. Especially when I come on here and I see people suffering from valve damage BECAUSE of drugs.

Well look at that....don't encourage me to rant! ha ha! But I definitely agree with you, Karlynn. You should take someone with you that can be there the whole time that isn't shy to ask questions (tactfully) about their procedures. Not to mention when you aren't feeling good, or on pain meds you may not be in the right frame of mind to ask questions or even remember stuff that may be important when you get home. Not to mention the moral boost having someone that loves you there to pamper you and keep your spirits up.

[Karlynn]

What a story! Now we know what her hospital bracelet is for. BTW - your daughters are beautiful!

I don't understand giving cholesterol meds to everyone. Why don't they just make them over-the-counter so the whole country can take them?;)

I was raised by parents who thought doctors were gods and we shouldn't question what they tell you. It took me 2 doctors (both well respected in their area) to almost kill me (literally) to get the gumption to start questioning. So rock on sister!!!

[AngelaR]

How awful for you!! I'm so glad they didn't "knock you off" with their well respected practices

Thank you - Ray and I do make cute babies ;) (we're done though....shhh...don't tell him, he still thinks we are going to try for a boy "later")

Ray is adopted, so I wouldn't mind re-paying the favor. But my body is DONE stretching to unusual forms and proportions!

[AngelaR]

Incision picture. This was taken on Saturday (I think, whatever the 25th was!)

It's completely healed up, it's just red. No scab or openness (is that a word?) to it. His drainage holes are looking good too.

He went back to work today. He called earlier and he said he is fine. (Imagine I'm nervous....hmmm, he goes back to work 26 days after surgrey and wonders why I'M mother henning.)

He is working evening hours now vice the midnight shift he was working. So that is good. That makes me feel better knowing he isn't pushing himself to stay awake all night long.

[AngelaR]

I'm not sure if you can post links in here so I will give this a try and if it doesn't work I will just type it out.

This article made me REALLY appreciative that Ray and all of you have the option of benefiting from modern technology. I couldn't imagine how hard it would be to deal with our situation if we weren't able to "fix" Ray's heart. I'm so thankful that we had the option.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24859306/

[andrewg]

Angela,

Glad to hear everything is working out well for your husband.

Back to work in 26 days! Wow! He must be progressing well.

He should be a good candidate for the Plavix/aspirin group.

I just reached my 9th month on the Plavix regimin, and go in for an echo June 12.

So far, for myself, everything seems fine.

The only difference I notice is when the black flies up here bite, the wound takes a bit longer to clot over...

[AngelaR]

Hi Andrew!

Yes, he is doing great. We ran for 22:30 minutes on Monday night. Average pace was 11:34. He was disappointed!!! Crazy man!!!!

Anyways, his INR is 2.4...woot woot!! He is at 5 mg now. We are pretty much self dosing just getting the results from our PCP. I'm tired of fussing with idiots.

Karlynn you were right, he just had to let it get into his system and then we adjusted from there. He got up to 3.0 on 49mg (7 days) so we took him down to 6 and he was at 2.8 so we took him down again and he is now at 5. He'll go again next week and we'll hope that he has maintained the 2.4 or close to it.

[Ross]

Hi Andrew!

Yes, he is doing great. We ran for 22:30 minutes on Monday night. Average pace was 11:34. He was disappointed!!! Crazy man!!!!

Anyways, his INR is 2.4...woot woot!! He is at 5 mg now. We are pretty much self dosing just getting the results from our PCP. I'm tired of fussing with idiots.

Karlynn you were right, he just had to let it get into his system and then we adjusted from there. He got up to 3.0 on 49mg (7 days) so we took him down to 6 and he was at 2.8 so we took him down again and he is now at 5. He'll go again next week and we'll hope that he has maintained the 2.4 or close to it.

It's never going to stay at 2.4 and if they expect it too, they don't understand Coumadin. Expect it to go from 1.9 to 3.1. That's the best you'll get it.

[AngelaR]

I expect it to "swing" a bit as he doesn't eat the same thing everyday and his activity level varies day to day. As long as he isn't too high, I'm happy =)

I'm just happy he is finally able to stop taking the lovenox shots, as I am sure you can relate. :D

[ctyguy]

Ray was a bit behind me in his procedure and it sounds like he is going great ! In regards to his INR its gonna bounce around some. I'm at 14 weeks post-op now and my INR has been trending a bit lower every time it gets tested. I was staying in the 2.0 to 3.0 range but dropped to 1.7 on Monday. I was taking 34mg a week and now they bumped me to 38mg a week with 2 extra mgs on Monday and 4 extra mgs on Tuesday to get me back in range. I will go back next week and retest yet again.

Basically what they told me is that as you get stronger and more active and as you heal your body will metabolize the coumadin faster, hence you will need your dosage adjusted upwards. I thought on Monday that my INR would have been up a good bit because I went to a party on Friday night, to a golf outing on Saturday, and BBQ'd on Sunday. I had 5 beers Friday, 4 on Sat, and 4 more on Sunday. So I had more than a 12-pack over the weekend and it didn't seem to phase me. Go figure.

[Karlynn]

Good news! Sounds like you have learned a lot! You're much much farther ahead than I was post surgery.

For some reason people get the impression that there's something wrong if you're having to adjust your Coumadin dose from time to time. Some people are freaks of nature (:D) and are on the same dose for years. But many of us just take it for granted that dosage adjustments are part and parcel of taking Coumadin. It's not a big deal if we test and find we need to increase or decrease our dose - it's why we test! We don't test to know if we need to adjust our eating and activity level to fit our dose. It's the opposite.

Looks like you already know that having to adjust his dosage is a sign that he's just livin' his life.

[AngelaR]

Thanks for all your great advice Karlynn. The only reason we are so far ahead now is because of all of you who went before us and shared your experiences, your lessons learned :D

Just wanted to post that Ray is still doing fantastic. He has some big date planned for us on Saturday. It's a big secret he won't tell me where we are going only that I have to wear a dress.....hmmmmmm.

He did some kettle bell training yesterday with his unit and smoked all the other guys. Which made them all feel like saps as the guy who just had heart surgery is showing them up :p

I'll take some pics this weekend and you can all see this horrible beard he has now. Ick. He keeps shaving his head and his beard is growing longer and longer. I can only imagine how he is going to look all dressed up in a tie on Saturday with a shaved head and mountain man beard :rolleyes:

All is well and we are definitely enjoying being "over the mountain" =)

[AngelaR]

OK, well we found out today that Ray will be in the low dose coumadin side of the study. So he has decided not to do the study. Reasoning for this is driving back and forth to Richmond. We are just going to get a machine from the VA and continue to do our own monitoring and dosage adjustments. He has been steady between 1.9 and 2.1. A spike or drop here and there.

We have it all under control though.

Well he is back to doing just about everything he did prior to the surgery even benching. He isn't as strong as he was but he is still very strong. We are just continuing to train for the 1/2 marathon at the end of August.

This has been a very uneventful run for us. Which I am very appreciative, I know many aren't as lucky.

Hope you are all doing well and I wish you luck.

[Phyllis]

Glad things are going so well for you and best wishes in the marathon.

[Karlynn]

Good report! Thanks for updating us.

[gf1962]

Angela,

I had my valve aortic replaced in 2002. About one month after my 40th B-day. This was after I contracted an infection which attacked my already weakend Bicuspid valve and put me into a coma for 49 days. I know the roller coaster you are on my family and children have been through it too. But trust me when I say it is better to do this surgery before it becomes an emergency proceedure.

Good luck

[AngelaR]

Good Morning, All.

Just a quick update. Ray won't actually be 12 weeks post-op until this Thursday (7/24) but we had our 12 week post op echo yesterday and everything is good to go. No problems. I'll try and take another picture of his incision to post, but you almost can't see it in places, it healed up very nicely. I think the scars that will be the most noticeable will be the drainage tubes holes.

He's doing really good and has no problems. He isn't very good at taking his coumadin. He has a hard time remembering....even when I set it out :rolleyes:

Other than that nothing too new to report. We are just cruising through this thing called life =)

Hope you are all doing well too. Take care.

[AngelaR]

Tried to change my avitar but it wouldn't work. A more up to date pic. I think I told you all about the dreaded beard he has grown. :p

[Cooker]

Great report ... glad all is going well ... Keep your foot in his backside about taking his coumadin ... :D