Linda Griffin - Heart Valve Journal

My Journal

1793 days ago

Since mitral valve repair which was October, 2018, I have had 85 silent (acephalgic) migraines. No pain, just auras. I had an average of 6 to 10 per year ...Read more

Since mitral valve repair which was October, 2018, I have had 85 silent (acephalgic) migraines. No pain, just auras. I had an average of 6 to 10 per year starting in 2006 but after the surgery have significantly increased. I know that visual disturbances can be due to the heart/lung machine. The surgeon told me to drink more water, my cardiologist has never heard of this (although many have posted these on the Internet) and my primary care physician referred me to a neurologist. I was told to take magnesium, B2 and CoQ10. This has not produced any changes. I have also kept a food journal which doesn't seem to show any triggers. Has anyone experienced these or have any advice?

Marie Myers Yup. I had dozens of optical migraines per day for months after my heart surgery. None were accompani ... Read more

Marie Myers Yup. I had dozens of optical migraines per day for months after my heart surgery. None were accompanied by the miserable headaches and nausea that I had as a teenager, though. Luckily for me, the number of the auras gradually decreased in the weeks and months after surgery. Now I am back to my “normal” 2-3 a year. Incidentally, I do take magnesium 400 mg at night, and 100 of CoQ 10 every morning..Hope yours go away!

Karin Georgeson I had this happen after my cardiac cath in November. I have had migraine with aura for 17 years, but ... Read more

Karin Georgeson I had this happen after my cardiac cath in November. I have had migraine with aura for 17 years, but I know my triggers and keep them under control. I have had very few migraines this past year. Zero actually, until the procedure. The same day I had two aura migraines, and multiple over the next week. Then they stopped again. I've never had so many in one day. My husband asked a nurse friend and she said that happened to her as well. Hopefully yours will slow down and stop soon. I bet I will have the same thing happen after my surgery in January. Everyone is so different, but if it helps, for migraine with aura I take a zrtec allergy pill every day, multivitamin, vitamin B complex, coQ10, and a DHA fish oil. I hope they stop for you soon.

Thomas Brusstar I definitely have more after my mitral valve repair. Some people say hydrating with mineral solution ... Read more

Thomas Brusstar I definitely have more after my mitral valve repair. Some people say hydrating with mineral solutions/ electrolytes helps. I think I've discovered that too much caffeine is correlated with my visual disturbances (rarely any headache afterwards). So I kind of do both the electrolyte hydration when exercising, and I've cut down on coffee, and I have to say that seems to be helping. Had one this morning while driving, but not serious. I had 2 cups of coffee on an empty stomach then drove 3 hours into the morning sun. I know bright light triggers some people. I stopped and got some early lunch and I'm good. So right now hydration and limited caffeine are my plan. Hope that gives you some things to try.

Linda Griffin Ive never heard of taking Zyrtec for the auras. Did you find this to be helpful? What triggers to y ... Read more

Linda Griffin Ive never heard of taking Zyrtec for the auras. Did you find this to be helpful? What triggers to you have?

Meredith Bray I find that mine are triggered by a combination of over tired, under-caffeinated, and flashed of inte ... Read more

Meredith Bray I find that mine are triggered by a combination of over tired, under-caffeinated, and flashed of intensely bright light such as a windshield or chrome flash. I used to get them several times a week along with dizzy spells/vertigo, and they dropped off dramatically after surgery. I get less than one a month now, and they are short-lived but exhausting. A little bit of chocolate or coffee and my head down/eyes closed for a few minutes and I'm good to go in about 10 minutes.

I hope you find a solution soon!

Meredith
Clearwater, FL

Marie Myers Stress is a huge trigger, hence the association with heart surgery.

Linda Griffinposted an update

2050 days ago

I had successful minimally invasive mitral valve repair in October 2018. I completed cardiac rehab and feel great. Ive been on blood thinners because I had ...Read more

I had successful minimally invasive mitral valve repair in October 2018. I completed cardiac rehab and feel great. Ive been on blood thinners because I had an A Fib event in October. I wore an event device which showed AFib and tachycardia lasting seconds. Im taking Metoprolol and coumidan but dont have to see the doctor until January. Any experience or thoughts on this?

Marie Myers My guess is that an event lasting seconds is not a problem. If you feel arrhythmias lasting longer, l ... Read more

Marie Myers My guess is that an event lasting seconds is not a problem. If you feel arrhythmias lasting longer, like 30 minutes, I would want to see a doc sooner. Also, if you have any symptoms like dizziness/fainting, chest pain. I would seek medical help ASAP.

Catie B Linda, I'm glad you're doing well. We're all different, and certainly, if you have concerns and quest ... Read more

Catie B Linda, I'm glad you're doing well. We're all different, and certainly, if you have concerns and questions, call your cardiologist's office and ask questions. I fought a few rounds with post-op afib, which stopped after a few weeks. Was on warfarin just over three months and it was stopped after they had me wear a Holter-monitor type device for a couple of days and no concerning rhythm issues were found. We had to tweak my dose of Metoprolol and eventually that was stopped, as well.

Linda Griffin Thank you. I appreciate your responses and help. I have no symptoms at all and feeling energetic. R ... Read more

Linda Griffin Thank you. I appreciate your responses and help. I have no symptoms at all and feeling energetic. Rejoining my health club this week to continue my exercise plan.

Catie B Hope things continue to go very well for you, Linda!

Linda Griffinposted an update

2169 days ago

I had minimally invasive mitral valve repair 8 weeks ago. Im still experiencing pains of short duration in my back ribs and chest around the incision, around ...Read more

I had minimally invasive mitral valve repair 8 weeks ago. Im still experiencing pains of short duration in my back ribs and chest around the incision, around the chest tube areas and the thigh where the heart lung machine was connected. One of the nurses told me this can last for months. I cant take any pain pills or herbs because Im on blood thinners. Anyone else experience this?

Rita Savelis Yes. It can take some time to recover. 8 weeks is still early. You can take tylenol when on anticoagu ... Read more

Rita Savelis Yes. It can take some time to recover. 8 weeks is still early. You can take tylenol when on anticoagulants (just not aspirin) and there are other pain meds doctors can prescribe.

Linda Griffinposted an update

2178 days ago

Has anyone gotten relief from post surgery visual disturbances from chiropractic?

Linda Griffinposted an update

2183 days ago

I had mitral valve repair 7 weeks ago. I have had 15 ocular migraines since the surgery, no pain just auras and they last 20 minutes. I have had a history ...Read more

I had mitral valve repair 7 weeks ago. I have had 15 ocular migraines since the surgery, no pain just auras and they last 20 minutes. I have had a history of these prior to the surgery but never this many. I understand that these can be common after heart valve surgery. Has anyone had this experience and how long did it take for them to stop? Thank you.

Thomas Brusstar I had my MV repaired about 4 months ago, and I've been having more auras, too. No pain, just auras t ... Read more

Thomas Brusstar I had my MV repaired about 4 months ago, and I've been having more auras, too. No pain, just auras that also last like 5-10 minutes. I was hoping it was the thinners or something, but they still show up. Before surgery it was 1-2 per year, now 1-2 per month I'd say. I think they are less frequent now than a few months ago, but they are still more frequent than before the surgery. Not sure there's anything to do. The visual disturbance is freaky, but at least there isn't a headache after (as some people obviously get).

Carmel Robertson Hi Linda. I had a ocular migraine every day for 5 months after my mitral valve repair. Now down to ... Read more

Carmel Robertson Hi Linda. I had a ocular migraine every day for 5 months after my mitral valve repair. Now down to one to two a week. Am 9 months out from surgery. I think these migraines actually become less frequent as you recover.

Linda Griffin Thank you Thomas and Carmel. Encouraging messages!