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My story...
My name is Ann & I'm 65. I
was a teacher... now I'm
retired. I've been married for
45 years to my best friend
Perry. We have two
grown-married sons & three
grandkids. I have known about
my condition all my life. When
I was born in 1940 there was
nothing the Dr.'s could do, so
they advised my parents to
take me home & love me until I
died, which they predicted
would be before I turned 1.
Over the years I didn't
have the energy my siblings
displayed, & sometimes I would
spend a month or more in bed
because I was just that sick.
After our second son was born
the symptoms worsened... & my
heart seemed to go downhill
from there. Still all the Dr.
could prescribe was bed rest.
I sure got a lot of that.
My Dad had one of the first
bypass surgeries in our state.
He agreed to do that so the
Dr.'s could learn something
that might save a younger
person's life.
Little did Daddy know, one
life that would be saced by
the skills those Dr.'s learned
would be mine.
My symptoms at the end were
advanced pain,
breathlessness... & decreased
ability to do physical things.
I learned to adapt by slowing
down, resting a lot, &
listening to my body.
I did go to College, have a
career in Education, but
several years before surgery I
had to quit working... because
I wasn't able to keep up with
the children, & of course pre-schoolers
have a lot of germs to
"share."
Preparing for surgery meant
a lot of prayer, &
researching.
valvereplacement.com was a God
send for me. It gave me the
real deal (from the patient's
perspective) information on
what I would be facing.
I got a St. Jude mechanical
valve & artificial aorta. I
didn't react well to
medication so I asked to be
given only Tylenol, & that was
sufficient for me. (I have a
high pain threshold.)
Of course I have to take
Coumadin but it's no big deal.
I task through... (treat it
like brushing my teeth & etc.
just something I have to do.)
The hospital where I had my
valve replaced was
Presbyterian in Albuquerque,
NM. The pre-op was terrific. I
react oddly to anesthetic...
(have woken up while under
anesthetic) so I talked to the
Dr. who would be keeping me
asleep, & I think talking to a
Dr.
about concerns can help
ease a person's mind. I went
to sleep so easily, woke so
wide awake, & with no adverse
anesthetic effects.
The surgery took three
hours, although we were told
to expect six hours.
My first few days home were
as could be expected...
I had some discomfort (not
really pain), it was no fun
not being able to drive, I had
to adjust to the fact others
can hear my valve... & that
made me self-conscious at
first.
I wake up every day,
thanking God for my life. Most
of the time I can't hear my
valve... when I do, it's a
signal to me, my blood is
probably getting too thick...
but still it's a "...song of
life..."
The hardest thing to
accomplish was adjusting my
potassium levels. Once we got
that under control it's been a
lot better. I also had another
problem that caused me to have
an erratic heart beat. Once
that was conquered... it was
terrific.
My scar is so light as to
be almost non existant.
It's only about 8 inches
long, & looks like a tiny
white line. At first it felt
like my breastbone had been
nailed to a board, it was so
stiff, but now it's very
flexible.
I go to "Curves" (a workout
place for ladies, & it's fun.)
I swim laps, & do everything I
ever did, & more.
That mountain is still
waiting for me... but since
it's about 4 miles (uphill) I
want to be sure I am ready to
climb it. High altitude
doesn't bother me any more...
so I can go to the
mountains...
I haven't had heart pain
for the entire time since the
surgery... & thank God for
that. I spent 20 years of my
life with chest pain. Not to
have that is just incredible
for me.
My husband has been
incredibly supportative. He
asked everyone he knew to pray
for me, & my surgeon told
me... "Lady, someone up there
is looking after you."
He sure is, & I thank Him
every day of my life.
Ann
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