Penny's Guestbook

Penny, Thanks for the encouraging words. I too have spent this past week trying to put things in order. I got one big thing done a day. Scary how organized one can be when necessary. Now with the surgery just 3 days away, nervous, excited, scared and really can't wait for it to be over. Are you planning anything special for Wednesday? Me I plan to get my toes done...in pink. And eat my favorite dinner with my 2 daughters and 2 of my 10 grandchildren. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Take care.

Sounds like you're as ready as you can be! Since you've said your pain tolerance is high, you'll do very well. My tolerance is very low due to another medical issue so pain control was quite difficult. Dr. Harmon worked so hard to make me comfortable! I loved everything about Sequoia, even the low sodium food was delicious. Take care & post when you feel up to it!

Great attitude, Penny! Isn't it great how quickly Dr. Castro moves?? I also chose the mini sternotomy---my incision is only 3.5" & looks great at a little over two months post op. Take care!

So happy you're going to see Dr. Castro, Penny! He's beyond wonderful, as is his entre team. I know you worked at Sequoia years ago, so you'll be surprised by the absolutely gorgeous remodel/addition they've done. The CSU is completely new & the rooms are HUGE. I hope you'll be able to schedule your surgery soon so you'll be able to lift the new baby as soon as possible! When's your consultation?

Hi Penny, I had MV repair by Dr. Castro 12/26/14 and cannot say enough great things about him, Sequoia or Dr. Harmon. I know you live quite a distance away (I lived in Yuba City & Chico for many years), so I'm familiar with Oroville. I now live up on the north coast in Fortuna, which is a 5.5 hr drive to Sequoia. Totally worth it! There's only one cardiac surgeon in Humboldt Co. & he does things the old way with a 10" incision & more valve replacements than I was comfortable with. Dr. Castro looked at my echo & said he was confident he'd be able to repair my mitral valve, NOT replace it, with a mini sternotomy. That's exactly what he did! I have only a 3.5" scar & came home on my 6th day, New Year's Eve. From reading your story I know your family situation is quite difficult with a lot of responsibility resting on your shoulders. If I was closer, I'd try to help somehow! I hope you'll have adequate support when you get home because recuperation definitely has it's rough spots. Seven wks out & I still have occasional pain, usually from doing too much, but not always. By the way, I'm 50 years old & only found out about my severe mitral regurg. in August. I met Dr. Castro in mid November & was instantly put at ease about him being the one to touch my heart. Not one second thought about my choice. He worked a miracle to assemble his team during Christmas week so I could have everything done in 2014 for insurance purposes. I'll forever be indebted to him & Dr. Harmon, who assisted during my surgery & was the on call doc during the first couple of days. He kept me in ICU an extra night because I had some difficulty & could not have been kinder or more compassionate to me. Well, I've rambled on long enough here Penny. I hope you can get your surgery done soon so you can have it behind you, like I do now. Take care & have a wonderful Sunday, Jenni Miller