Kelly's Journal
Mitral Regurgitation, Joined October 28, 2024
Mitral Regurgitation
Joined October 28, 2024
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I am from: LOUISVILLE, KY -
My surgery date is: January 28, 2025
--I am the mother of two young children, ages 4 and 6. Any wisdom from other parents of young children who have experienced open heart surgery? How to talk to them about this? How to prepare them for the recovery stage, etc?
--I am feeling pretty anxious overall about my upcoming surgery. My mind knows that I just have to do it and be strong, but I am worried about something going wrong especially given that I have young children. How have others conquered their anxiety in the weeks leading up to surgery?
--My mitral valve prolapse is bileaflet with mod-to severe regurgitation from multiple jets. Are there any success stories out there of a successful repair with this type of more complex case?
Thank you so much in advance!
Happy New Year!
I had SVAR a little over a year ago. My children were 17 and 20 at the time and I kept the discussion of surgery with them very basic because I didn't want to stress them out. Post surgery my husband saw me in ICU but had my 17 yr old son wait until I was no longer intubated and awake before he visited(My older son was in college and we decided together he would remain at school and see me later post surgery). I would think that at 4 and 6 the things that will be hardest for them is being away from you until you return home and then making them aware of your arm and weight restrictions post surgery, so those would be good discussions to have.
I was also extremely anxious before surgery and not sleeping. I asked my PCP for help to get me through to the surgery and he prescribed initially a sleeping aid and later an anxiety med that I used "as needed" and was very helpful. Even just knowing I had them if needed and not necessarily taking them gave me some peace of mind.
Wishing you well in your heart journey, my neighbor❤️🩹( I am in NKY near Cincinnati)
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Happy New Year!
I had SVAR a little over a year ago. My children were 17 and 20 at the time and I kept the discussion of surgery with them very basic because I didn't want to stress them out. Post surgery my husband saw me in ICU but had my 17 yr old son wait until I was no longer intubated and awake before he visited(My older son was in college and we decided together he would remain at school and see me later post surgery). I would think that at 4 and 6 the things that will be hardest for them is being away from you until you return home and then making them aware of your arm and weight restrictions post surgery, so those would be good discussions to have.
I was also extremely anxious before surgery and not sleeping. I asked my PCP for help to get me through to the surgery and he prescribed initially a sleeping aid and later an anxiety med that I used "as needed" and was very helpful. Even just knowing I had them if needed and not necessarily taking them gave me some peace of mind.
Wishing you well in your heart journey, my neighbor❤️🩹( I am in NKY near Cincinnati)