Dawn Strefling - Heart Valve Journal

My Journal

2839 days ago

Barbara Wood, Sue Sanchez Grela, Darlene Smith and 1 other reacted to this

Cardiac cath tomorrow and then MV repair on Friday the 17th. My mom and sister are coming in to help with the kids (11 and 18). They will stay in a hotel ...Read more

Cardiac cath tomorrow and then MV repair on Friday the 17th. My mom and sister are coming in to help with the kids (11 and 18). They will stay in a hotel so my husband doesn't have to play host while I am inpatient. Going to spend a lazy day today and go out for a nice family meal tonight. Tomorrow it all starts.

wen li my mom is doing the same in 2 weeks. Take it easy. For the best?

Dawn Strefling Thanks, Wen Li!

Phyllis Petersen Sounds like a great plan! Prayers ascending for a successful surgery and uneventful recovery.

Dawn Streflingposted a journal

2843 days ago

Barbara Wood reacted to this

My TEE Test confirmed a severely damaged mitral valve and surgery is coming in 1-2 weeks. Cardiac cath first, then MV repair the next day. They are 80 % sure ...Read more

My TEE Test confirmed a severely damaged mitral valve and surgery is coming in 1-2 weeks. Cardiac cath first, then MV repair the next day. They are 80 % sure they can repair it. If they have to replace, they will use a biologic so I don't have to deal with blood thinners. On page 77 of The Patient's Guide To Heart Valve Surgery by Adam Pick...

Kind of a whirlwind session like mine then. I think this kind of bing bang boom here we go thing is b ... Read more

Kind of a whirlwind session like mine then. I think this kind of bing bang boom here we go thing is best sometimes. Feels overwhelming but at least we are not playing the Hurry Up and Wait game like some folks are. I think that has got to be worse. Glad to here your starting to get the ball rolling. Take Care Dawn.

Cathy Zuber Hi Dawn..glad you got thru the TEE ok! I'm still playing a waiting game for the docs to sign for me ... Read more

Cathy Zuber Hi Dawn..glad you got thru the TEE ok! I'm still playing a waiting game for the docs to sign for me to have the angiogram...so my actual valve surgery will be in mid-March, or early April. The waiting game is not good. Yes, it's all happening at once..I think that's better. Me..if they have to replace the valve, they'll go with a mechanical valve. I'd rather mess with Coumadin ( again!!!). Than have to have the valve repaired or replaced again. I'm 66. Keep us posted. By the way..I crochet, too!!!!!! Cathy

Sue Bissonette I go in Monday Feb.13th for the TEE. They want to take a closer look at the mitral valve and confirm ... Read more

Sue Bissonette I go in Monday Feb.13th for the TEE. They want to take a closer look at the mitral valve and confirm that it is severe regurgitation. My anxiety level from all the unknowns and even what is known is sky high.

Dawn Strefling Sue: I completely understand. There was a great sense of calm that washed over me when they said "T ... Read more

Dawn Strefling Sue: I completely understand. There was a great sense of calm that washed over me when they said "This is what it is. This is what we'll do". The TEE only took 10-15 minutes and I had lovely nurses right beside me and my cardiologist made me feel like we were all in this together to see what the heck is going on.

Phyllis Petersen My initial tests were so drawn out due to scheduling. It would have been even longer if my cardiologi ... Read more

Phyllis Petersen My initial tests were so drawn out due to scheduling. It would have been even longer if my cardiologist hadn't gotten involved to push things along, including fitting me in on his lunch hour. It's probably better when you can get it all moving more quickly. It sounds like you have confidence in your decisions and that's a huge weight off your mind. Praying that everything goes smoothly and you'll be repaired and recovering soon.

Sue Bissonette Dawn, Wow! Only 10-15:minutes? Mine is at 11:00 but I wont see the valve expert and a cardiothorasic ... Read more

Sue Bissonette Dawn, Wow! Only 10-15:minutes? Mine is at 11:00 but I wont see the valve expert and a cardiothorasic surgeon until 3pm thats a long wait. Glad things are moving along for you.

Dawn Strefling Sue: They would not let me leave for 2 hours until the throat-numbing goo wore off, so your timing i ... Read more

Dawn Strefling Sue: They would not let me leave for 2 hours until the throat-numbing goo wore off, so your timing is about right. Don't want to meet the surgeon with mouth that wont co-operate! Haha! I think I have been fortunate that my cardiologist really pushed me along in this process. He didn't make me come in for an appointment every time we needed to talk about the next step. He called my cell phone and said "Let's do this next, the quicker the better".

Sue Bissonette Good to know about the throat goo! LOL!

Dawn Streflingposted a journal

2846 days ago

Barbara Wood reacted to this

I was told that I had MVP as a teen. I fainted if I stood too long. I had poor endurance. I was the only patient that my doctor told to add salt to my food. ...Read more

I was told that I had MVP as a teen. I fainted if I stood too long. I had poor endurance. I was the only patient that my doctor told to add salt to my food. I saw the word "marfanoid" on the medical notes. I went through years of prophylactic antibiotics for dental procedures. Until one day, in the late 90's, I was told that I no longer met the criteria for MVP. I had another child and 3 more surgeries with no mention of the mitral valve at all. None. Then at age 51, a few months ago, my PCP says "Why do I hear a murmur?". I waited until the new insurance year so that I could use my HSA card and things have moved so fast. I had EKG, Holter, echo, resting and treadmill nuclear stress tests performed in my physician's office within about 2 weeks. Very busy. I couldn't finish the treadmill test. I was just too light headed and felt so much pressure in my right upper chest. So they finished the test chemically. Obviously, I "failed" that one. The technician said that my doctor would call if he wanted to discuss anything between now and my appointment which was one month away. I got a call the next day. "Blah blah blah mitral valve prolapse, blah, blah, blah, test at the hospital, blah-blah, heart valve repair surgery". *Record scratch* So now I am scheduled for TEE on Friday 2-10-17 and I am in a fog, or is it a fugue? Where am I? How did I get here?

Barbara Wood I hear you Dawn...it can come as a shock, but you'll make peace with it. (The TEE is not bad at all) ... Read more

Barbara Wood I hear you Dawn...it can come as a shock, but you'll make peace with it. (The TEE is not bad at all) Best wishes going forward:)

Phyllis Petersen I knew about my MVP for years, but was still shocked when I went for cardiac clearance for knee surge ... Read more

Phyllis Petersen I knew about my MVP for years, but was still shocked when I went for cardiac clearance for knee surgery to find out it had become severe and needed repair. The TEE will give them a much better idea of how bad the valve is and what they're facing. It's amazing the variety of tests that we all have. After my echo, I was told I needed the TEE and didn't have any other tests until planning surgery. Then I had a CTA and MRA of the heart. The pre-surgical testing was everything under the sun! I had my repair almost 4 months ago. I'm not quite back to where I was before the valve got so bad (I still tire more easily), but I can't believe how far I've progressed since surgery. This site will give both information and a great community of support to help you through this.

Sophia Ridley I found out MVP as young adult, got told that there was nothing to worry about ever... my echos durin ... Read more

Sophia Ridley I found out MVP as young adult, got told that there was nothing to worry about ever... my echos during pregnancies were not shared with me, that showed it was by now moderate... and then I got chest pain in June 2015 which kick started the process (TEE, Cath scan etc) for a repair in Nov that year. It's a rollercoaster!

You are in a very good place here on this website. Everyone will know what you're going through and will be with you every step.

Dawn Streflingposted an update

2846 days ago

1 person reacted to this

First post!!! I have MVP with regurgitation and "significant ventricle enlargement". Going for TEE on Friday. Scared outta my mind.

Ada Maris Hi Dawn, I'm about to have Mitral valve repair surgery next Monday! Surreal, right? You're doing the ... Read more

Ada Maris Hi Dawn, I'm about to have Mitral valve repair surgery next Monday! Surreal, right? You're doing the right thing, joining this forum and getting all the info you can. Good luck to both of us!

Cathy Zuber Hi Dawn...the TEE wasn't as bad as I thought. You are in a "twilight stage" when they do the test. ... Read more

Cathy Zuber Hi Dawn...the TEE wasn't as bad as I thought. You are in a "twilight stage" when they do the test. Nurses told me that drinking shots of tequila would also have numbed my throat instead of the anesthetic!! Hey..you will get an answer to your worries about heart valve, etc. . Actually, I was having a TEE before an ablation for AFIB, and that's when they said my MVP had turned into a severe leak. No ablation for me....waiting on dates for valve surgery. Take a deep breath..you can do this!! Cathy

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