John Watson - Heart Valve Journal

Soggy Rodent I remember feeling completely traumatized trying to sit at the edge of my hospital bed. I had a chest ... Read more

Michael Neverisky I remember many tubes and wires... it took a small team of assistants to schlep the hardware so I cou ... Read more

Lilly Black You are taking me back where I don't want to go! I hope it gets easier for you, John! it is very diff ... Read more

Rita Savelis It's hard, I hear you. I remember no appetite, I remember how much energy and effort it took to move ... Read more

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2603 days ago

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I showed up to the hospital at a bright and early 5am. I had to shower the night before and the morning of with a special soap that really dried my skin out. ...Read more

I showed up to the hospital at a bright and early 5am. I had to shower the night before and the morning of with a special soap that really dried my skin out. I waited in the lobby for about 20 minutes before being called up to the 4th floor. I was the first person checked in and got a private prep room. A nurse, Betty, arrived and started a full body shave from neck to ankle. Surprise! I was not expecting that. Another nurse, Shana, entered and started talking me through the morning and what to expect. She gave me a few shots and took some blood. She also applied this jelly like substance to the inside of my nose. We went over all of the paperwork one last time. They called a wheelchair for me and whisked me to the pre op area. This was a large room divided by curtains. The anesthesiologist stopped by introduced himself and confirmed the surgery I was having. I then met my surgery nurse and gave her my wife's contact information so she could update them with how the surgery was going. A short time later she returned to take me back. I kissed my wife and took a deep breath. The operating room was very large and crowded, probably 15 people total. Lots of lights and tools. I wished my surgeons good luck and told them I would see them after surgery, as the anesthesiologist delivered his cocktail. Blackness. My wife received a call about 45 mins later letting her know I was all prepped for surgery and they were beginning now. 8:15am Another call a while later let her know they were putting me on bypass. 2 hours later I was off bypass. The surgery took a little longer than expected. My bicuspid valve's flaps were large and needed trimming. When they closed my heart I had the usual trace leak, but when my chest was fully closed it removed all leaking. What fortune! The surgeons visited my anxious family and told them about how well the surgery went and to go get some lunch while I was in recovery. 1pm Total surgery time was about 5 hours. It would be another 45 mins in ICU recovery before my family could see me. I remember coming to already forcing against my restraints. The breathing tube was the most uncomfortable thing I have ever experienced. It did not hurt. I just felt every reflex and fiber in my body telling me to remove this obstruction from my throat. Once I was fully concious they changed the breathing apparatus to operate in a completely assistive role. The respiratory doctor was caught up in a more serious case. She had to be present to remove the tube. I was stuck focusing solely on my breathing for 2 hours. My wife and mother held my hands and soothed me. I wanted nothing more than to speak to the nurse in the room to make sure everything was going well. I caught myself drifting into pleasant thoughts a couple times only to be interrupted with a command to keep breathing. The doctor made her way to my room and the tube was finally removed in a mix of coughing, gasping and a surprising amount of liquid. 5pm The rest of this day was a blur into and out of consciousness. I was still on some strong sedatives and pain killers. I did my first breathing treatment and scored over 2000, due to the strong medicine I was still on. My wife stayed the night with me, as she did every night.