Therese's Journal

Marie Myers  I needed a shower seat for the first week because I was so exhausted. The other thing that I loved was my rented electric recliner. I had it for a month, and I slept and napped in it for the 4 weeks I had it. It made it easy for me to get up and down myself. I know some people felt that they did not need it, but I couldn’t lay flat for several weeks, so sleeping in my bed was out for me. 

Rose Madura  Shower chair, lots of pillows for sleeping recliner because I'd sleep for a little while in bed then sleep more in recliner.  Travel pillow for sleeping in the recliner and at the hospital.  Heart hugger (I felt it was much better than a pillow). Try to move high things in the kitchen that you use a lot down lower temporarily.

Bailey L  Ditto on the electric recliner. A wedge pillow was also helpful.

Coloring books and good colored pencils were wonderful too!

Pamela Gregory  Definitely a shower chair, I feel like the electric recliner was a huge help for sleeping, wedge pillow. In the hospital: definitely a pillow from home, a comfy blanket, button up the front pjs, and slippers.

Donna Casaletto  For Hospital - baby wipes,  spill proof water bottle chapstick, zippered sweatshirt ( room temps vary cool to warm) leave the pj’s home lol stayed in hospital attire the whole 6 days I was there. Sample size Shampoo/ conditioner-my hospital had only the body wash that was also used for shampoo. 
For home - Recliner chair, shower chair, long handle bath brush, comfy button down pjs, favorite sweatpants, mederma,  coconut, or vitamin E oil once you get the ok to use something on your incision. Netflix etc, favorite books! 

Klara Čičić  Sleeping pills for some of those uncomfortable and painful nights saved the day (or should I say night). Lots of pillows. And painkillers ofcourse. 😁

Janet Roberson  I had a lot of back pain post-op and found a heating pad very useful. Walking a bit more day by day and using the Spriometer has helped me feel a bit stronger, although I get winded on the stairs. I bought loose fitting clothing that either snaps or buttons up the front since I can't raise my arms and put on t-shirts. A bra that closes in the front is better, too. Loose boxer shorts are comfy. 

Janet Roberson  Like Marie, I found the electric recliner a necessity. I couldn't get in and out of bed without a lot of pain. The recliner allowed me to sleep.

Annette Sterzel  Are they talking replacement? I had stenosis and lots of calcification on my mitral valve and a leaky tricuspid valve. If I can help you let me know

Therese Doyle  They are planning on a repair - I meet with CV surgeon this week - cardiologist in office and who did TEE both told me Repair

Klara Čičić  Hi Therese, I would encourage you to educate yourself as much as possible. Most useful videos are on this website. Reading other people's stories also helped me alot. It is good they a planning to do repair, hopefully it will be a successful one! What you want is an experienced surgeon in MV repair with high surgical volume. Good luck. 

Jim Moody  My wife's surgeon intended to repair but said he wouldn't really know until he got in there whether possible. He ended up replacing. It was my wife's first procedure and we were ill prepared for it. Good to ask and research before giving consent for surgery of any kind. 

Richard Munson  They told me the same thing but did finally repair. Good thing, we never discussed what kind of valve.

Janet Roberson  My cardiologist and surgeon both said that repair is the desired outcome. Other factors determine what kind of repair. I had a battery of tests done and am fortunate that my arteries are clear and that no other issues have been discovered. So, I'm having minimally invasive repair. I hope. Nothing is certain until the surgical team is in there! From all of the reading I have done I knew I wanted my surgeon to be at a Mitral Valve Repair Reference Center. The Centers have high success rates and follow protocols most likely to provide the best outcomes. The American Heart Association identifies these Centers on their website. Best of luck!

Deena Z  I'd be happy to speak with you, if you send your email or phone number and a good time.  I had MV repair and ended up having a tricuspid valve ring put-in as well so that I would not need to have surgery for that valve in the future

Ashley Darga  By approaches do you mean incision and access point or the actual technique used to repair the valve? My cardiologist and the surgeons I've spoken to all stressed the importance of choosing a surgeon who performs a high volume of mitral valve repairs. Each surgeon has their own preference for the type of incision they do, and it can also depend on if you need other procedures done at the same time.