Today is 3 weeks post-op. I had my aortic valve replaced and my mitral valve replaced. My mitral valve had 50% blockage. Surgery was 14 hours. The first couple ...Read more
Today is 3 weeks post-op. I had my aortic valve replaced and my mitral valve replaced. My mitral valve had 50% blockage. Surgery was 14 hours. The first couple of days I was wiped out. On the 6th. Day post op I had a permanent pacemaker implanted. After that my heart rhythm wasn’t quite what it should have been. Physiology tried to correct it but decided to wait5 weeks because of a slight chance of a clot. Was discharged from hospital on Friday February 2nd. I’m able to get in and out of bed. I sleep in my bed mostly, sometimes I’ll go down stairs to my recliner. I walk a little more each day. My taste buds aren’t very good right now. I can’t seem to have any liquid quench my thirst. I'll try and update my recovery as I feel better.
J Alexander Lassally Wow 14 hours ! That is quite a long one. Where did you have it. Congrats.
Kathy Ozio Wow! Keep positive! It sounds like you're doing pretty well after all you had done!
Rose Madura Recovery can be tough at times. Hang in there and stay strong. 🪖💪❤️🩹
Marie Myers Glad you are on the recovery side, and that you are walking a little more every day. Take it slow and ... Read more
Marie Myers Glad you are on the recovery side, and that you are walking a little more every day. Take it slow and steady!
John Foreman Slept really good last night. Today I feel better than any other day so far.
John Foreman Slept really good last night. Today I feel better than any other day so far.
My surgery was at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. My surgeon was Dr. Gregory Couper. i have to say my care was top notch. I don’t have any complaint about the whole process and procedure. My follow up appointment is Friday with the surgeons office.
My surgery was scheduled for tomorrow January 18th. Hospital called and said it was postponed. They’ll call me tomorrow to reschedule the surgery. I was ready ...Read more
My surgery was scheduled for tomorrow January 18th. Hospital called and said it was postponed. They’ll call me tomorrow to reschedule the surgery. I was ready both physically and mentally. Now I wait!
Daneen Douglas That sucks! I would be disappointed. It’s maybe a blessing in disguise!
Ana Brusso Not the first time people on this blog get their surgery postponed. Mine was postponed and then done ... Read more
Ana Brusso Not the first time people on this blog get their surgery postponed. Mine was postponed and then done perfectly. Be patient John and try to keep yourself occupied and don’t think too much about it. Sorry you have to wait again. God bless you
Beckie Jess So sorry to hear! I would be upset too! Try to stay positive, we will be praying for your quick resch ... Read more
Beckie Jess So sorry to hear! I would be upset too! Try to stay positive, we will be praying for your quick reschedule and uneventful revovery!
Daneen Douglas Yes! It will go well when it’s supposed to!
Rose Madura So sorry for you, John. I also had a postponement and it threw me for a loop. I cried all day. But I ... Read more
Rose Madura So sorry for you, John. I also had a postponement and it threw me for a loop. I cried all day. But I tried to be thankful that I wasn't the emergency that caused the cancellation. Try to take your mind off it somehow. Me, I watched documentaries about the JFK assassination. 🤷
Paul Lebel Yeah... after all the anticipation. Bummer.
Richard Munson That stinks. Not like its a dentist appointment
Pamela Gregory Sorry to hear about the delay, but as Rose said it sure is nice to know if you were having an emergen ... Read more
Pamela Gregory Sorry to hear about the delay, but as Rose said it sure is nice to know if you were having an emergency that you would be bumped to the head of the line.
Jennifer Fuller That happened to me as well. I was oddly disappointed! The day will arrive soon enough!
Susan Lynn I wouldn't have been thrilled to have mine postponed, but everything happens for a reason. As oth... Read more
Susan Lynn I wouldn't have been thrilled to have mine postponed, but everything happens for a reason. As others have noted, be glad you're not the emergency case that prompted the rescheduling of your surgery. Hang in there!
c w Mine was postponed as well… I found it hard to begrudge anyone — I was very happy for the person ... Read more
c w Mine was postponed as well… I found it hard to begrudge anyone — I was very happy for the person who was getting a new heart. I may have done a lot of displacement activity online shopping that week, though.
John Foreman Thank you all my warrior friends. My wife and I both say thank goodness I’m not the emergency. My w ... Read more
John Foreman Thank you all my warrior friends. My wife and I both say thank goodness I’m not the emergency. My wife and I both didn’t go to work today. We were both just emotionally spent. We went to IKEA to help fill the day. We’ll go to work tomorrow to keep our minds busy. The surgeons office did call this morning and said I am scheduled for my procedure Monday morning. Need to keep myself busy for the weekend.
My update and a few questions. My valve replacements are scheduled for January 18th. Pre-op is January 10th. My dentist has already signed ...Read more
My update and a few questions. My valve replacements are scheduled for January 18th. Pre-op is January 10th. My dentist has already signed off that everything is ok for the surgery. I’ve been walking about 3 1/2 miles 5-6 days a week. I’ve lost 15 pounds so far and I drink way more water than I ever have. I eat way better healthy breakfast and lunches. Dinners are getting healthier but I need to work better at it. Although I have smaller portions. Any advice that can be added from the community? Do members of the community share heart healthy meals ? Thanks for sharing your stories, John
Robert Miller Great job!! There were a bunch of posts with people posting delicious meals. @Adam was contemplating ... Read more
Robert Miller Great job!! There were a bunch of posts with people posting delicious meals. @Adam was contemplating maybe creating a book about meals. I am not sure this will ever happen (it's a lot of work) but you can search to forum. And of course consult with google. I am sure there are many helpful articles including from the Cleveland, Mayo, Stanford, etc. Also check out the learning center https://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/nutrition-tips.php
Learn the top 5 nutritional tips for people living with (or trying to prevent) heart disease from Mandy Hillstrom, professor of nutrition.
Rita Savelis It sounds like you are doing very well John. Congratulations. Eat everything but in moderation. Have ... Read more
Rita Savelis It sounds like you are doing very well John. Congratulations. Eat everything but in moderation. Have regular meals but not snacks. Drink water rather than soda. Best of luck in 2024 and with your heart valve surgery.
Richard Munson Heart healthy meals are the way to go. But i still think the word is moderation. You don’t want to ... Read more
Richard Munson Heart healthy meals are the way to go. But i still think the word is moderation. You don’t want to turn into a head of lettuce either. Maybe healthy lifestyle is the answer. I still enjoy a dis Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos h of coffee ice cream on occasion. But not as often. We walk shadow twice a day now not once. Am i putting myself at greater risk of getting hit by a car. Maybe. Massachusetts drivers are legendary. Good luck but enjoy life.
Marie Myers It was suggested to me to increase my protein intake before and after surgery to aid healing, so I ad ... Read more
Marie Myers It was suggested to me to increase my protein intake before and after surgery to aid healing, so I added whey protein to my smoothies. Sounds like you are doing very well in your prep time. Remember it is a marathon, not a sprint. Keep up the good work!
Deena Z Consistency is important, John as well as what Rita, Richard and Marie said. Consistency meaning th ... Read more
Deena Z Consistency is important, John as well as what Rita, Richard and Marie said. Consistency meaning that you keep what you are doing right now going forward after the surgery.
Grace Mason Sounds like you are making good choices in changes you have made already John. That is great, as is a ... Read more
Grace Mason Sounds like you are making good choices in changes you have made already John. That is great, as is all the advice relayed before. I was also told by my team to increase my protein post surgery to aid in healing.
John Foreman Thanks everyone for the positive comments. I’m sure I’ll be asking more questions the closer I ge ... Read more
John Foreman Thanks everyone for the positive comments. I’m sure I’ll be asking more questions the closer I get to my surgery date. Any advice is always welcomed. Thanks, John
Hey everyone, I’m new to HearthValveSurgery. Thanks for sharing all your stories. Little bit of my back story. Probably 10 years ago during my annual physical ...Read more
Hey everyone, I’m new to HearthValveSurgery. Thanks for sharing all your stories. Little bit of my back story. Probably 10 years ago during my annual physical my doctor heard a heart murmur. I had an echocardiogram to confirm it. My doctor said we’ll keep an eye on it. Fast forward 5 years or so and now I have mild mitral valve stenosis. I continued with yearly echocardiograms. A couple of years ago my cardiologist said I have moderate mitral valve stenosis and that we’ll keep a close eye on it. Up till that point I didn’t have any symptoms. He said if it gets to severe I’ll need surgery. This past September I had pneumonia and while doing test to make sure it wasn’t my heart I was told my stenosis had progressed further. 11 days after being discharged from the hospital I saw my cardiologist for a echo stress test. The results weren’t good. My aortic valve had moderate stenosis and my mitral valve had progressed to severe. I needed to have surgery to replace them. My surgery is scheduled for January. I have one question for now. How common is it to have both valves replaced at the same time? I’m sure I’ll have more questions going forward. Thanks, John
Grace Mason Hi John, I recently had a Ross procedure in September 2023. I had a two valve replacement- aortic ... Read more
Grace Mason Hi John, I recently had a Ross procedure in September 2023. I had a two valve replacement- aortic and pulmonary. I believe the recovery is very similar to a single valve replacement. Others here may have had aortic and mitral replacement and hopefully can chime in. All the best to you ❤️
Rita Savelis It's more common than you think, actually. I had 2 valves (aortic and mitral) replaced 8 years ago at ... Read more
Rita Savelis It's more common than you think, actually. I had 2 valves (aortic and mitral) replaced 8 years ago at age 53 due to stenosis caused by radiation treatment for childhood cancer 35 years previously. Having both valves replaced in one surgery is probably easier than having 2 surgeries years apart. Sorry that you have to go through this.
John Foreman Thank you, Grace and Rita for your comments. John
Upcoming Surgeries
Jon Oletzke
Tricuspid Regurgitation
March 31, 2025
I am from: Melrose
Was discharged from hospital on Friday February 2nd. I’m able to get in and out of bed. I sleep in my bed mostly, sometimes I’ll go down stairs to my recliner. I walk a little more each day. My taste buds aren’t very good right now. I can’t seem to have any liquid quench my thirst.
I'll try and update my recovery as I feel better.
My surgery was a ... Read more
My surgery was at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. My surgeon was Dr. Gregory Couper.
i have to say my care was top notch. I don’t have any complaint about the whole process and procedure. My follow up appointment is Friday with the surgeons office.