Mike's Posts

Hello All... I had OHS in May of 2019 to replace a monocuspid valve and aneurysm. I now have a mechanical valve and a replaced ascending aorta. Our state has opened the gyms but they are requiring a mask at all times when working out. I heard that this is bad for blood pressure and on your body. I would really like to get back to my routine pre-surgery since my healing from OHS was long and then Covid hit and the gyms have been closed off and on the past year. Thanks in advance.

Hello All.... Its been a little while since I have posted or visited the site. Things have been going great for me as I enjoyed a nice summer this year, unlike last year, playing golf, sand volleyball and coaching my daughters softball team. This site is great a place to get advice and get questions answered. Recently when I have some hard coughs or sneezes (once in a while) I can feel it hurt a little on my sternum from where the surgery was. I am not sure if this is something that maybe got sore do to so much more activity this year. I have been back to the gym now for a few months and was playing golf two to three times a week. Also the weather got really cold up here recently so I am wondering if that had anything to do with this. Let me know if this is common or if anyone else has experienced this.

One year ago today I entered the Mayo Clinic bright and early for an operation that changed my life. On February 12th 2019 I went to the doctor for a random echo on my heart. I felt very confident that I was a healthy guy that worked out often only thing I liked to do was have a few beers every so often. When I got the news back that I had a bicuspid valve and an aneurysm at 5.3cm my life changed. How could it be? I have no symptoms. Play sports and workout 5 days a week. I guess genetics don't care about what you do but more where you came from. After that I would be seeing doctors and having multiple appointments to get better understanding what was going on. Within 1 month of my diagnosis I was sitting with a surgeon Dr. Pochettino and having him tell me that we need to have an operation to fix this soon. Come to find out I had a monocuspid valve which made it more dangerous for me to have this aneurysm. So I said lets wait till after summer and then I will get it done. He told me that would not be wise and I should get it done in May or sooner. So within one month of my echo I went from thinking everything is good to finding out I need to have OHS or I might not be around much longer. I was told to stop doing all the things I loved to do. Sports, weightlifting, and even biking to be safe. If I wanted to do any of these it would need to be at a very little minimal level. Then May 6th came along. Alarm clock went off at 3am (like that was necessary) to make sure that I was up and doing my final preparations for what was coming up. The walk from the hotel to the clinic was cold and dark. But full of confidence. Full of faith and strength that everything is going to be better after today and I can get back to living the life I was. The procedure went well and everything looked good. While in ICU on the 2nd day I developed C-Diff. At this point I could not eat and was full of fluids. My colon was 2.5 times the size that it should be. They kept me in ICU for 6 days till I was a little better and able to be moved to a regular room. In there daily I met with my surgeon and the general surgeons who had talked about removing my colon due to the C-Diff. Tell me about a test of your faith during this situation. Then also during this time I had two situations where my chambers were not talking to each other and I went through heart block. Now the talks of getting a pacemaker installed started. It was at this point I thought about just giving up but then I said to myself that is not me. Not the type to give up. I prayed and researched. Finally 2 days after talking to the doctors and them allowing me to choose my on diet my C-Diff cleared up. Everything was getting better. Since my INR was high I had to stay in the hospital a lot longer since they needed to install a pacemaker. 22 days later I was walking out the hospital door ready to start the new road to recovery. The days and weeks went by great after getting home. I was walking further and further on a daily basis. Starting cardio rehab and getting in some light lifting. Then I started back to the gym on the days I didn't have cardio rehab. Soon I was back out to playing volleyball and golf. Hence a little sore but was more careful and doing. 13 weeks later I was back in the gym and getting my routine back in place. Weeks and months went bye and I was getting stronger and not feeling any pain. 4 months after I went back to the Mayo to get some checks on my pacemaker and was told that everything was looking great and I can get it removed if I wanted to. He could not guarantee no heart block again but was confident it can be removed. I choose to keep it well as a backup plan and it really wasn't going to affect my life. Today I sit here, well in quarantine, back to work and back to life. Nothing is stopping me now. I ride 10 miles on the bike a day since the gym has been closed. I built a little gym in my basement to keep lifting weights. Golf is starting again and I am back out there. Life is great (besides Covid-19). To all of you that are going to have surgery soon have faith and strength and never let that go. Even when it gets tough keep strong in it. Be thankful for all your nurses, doctors, and surgeons that work on the front lines and help people on a daily. I had a rough time in the hospital and I made a lot of work for the nurses but they were always so happy and polite to me. While I felt bad for making things harder for them with things that I could not prevent (no thanks to C-Diff). There is lots of life to live after you get through all this and it can be a long happy life. Today I stand here one year removed and a happy person strong in my heart and faith. Keep rocking all you heart warriors and to the many I have talked to over the past year that helped me with information, guidance, reading material and even my seat belt cover (Thanks Rob) you guys have meant the world to me during this time. Keep ticking and God Bless!