Yvonne's Posts

Oh dear Yvonne I am so so sorry!! It must be so frustrating. When was the last full cardiac assessment? (cardiologist appointment, heart ultrasound, 24h heart rhythm monitor etc...)... They must find the reason of excess fluid and explain it to you so that you stop worrying and at least know what is wrong. It is the hardest when you don't understand what is wrong with you... Don't give up asking questions. I felt it on my skin - if you don't advocate for yourself noone will... ask for second opinion... Please hang in there and don't despeir! I am thinking of you ❤️

Thank you Klara! I appreciate you...I have been to cardiologist, was just on 10 day heart monitor where they found I have sinus tachycardia but deemed me normal. I even changed cardiologists (they're in same practice though) and still, it's as if nobody listens to me. I keep saying something is wrong with me. I can't accept that this is how my life will be now. Even when I had only .5 opening in aortic valve I felt wayyyyyy better than I do now. I had more energy. It's like this surgery flipped a switch and everything fell apart...thanks for being so kind to me and for writing back. I hope all is well with you. ❤️

Yvonne, it's takes months to recovery from cardiac surgery, so you are still in the recovery stage. Give it time. You just went through major surgery. It took me 14 months to fully get better. I felt a lot better at six months. Is the weight gain at all related to fluid build-up?

Yvonne, I feel the exact way. I felt way better before surgery but now at 18 weeks or so post surgery I am finally getting my energy back. I have PTSD symptoms but I can feel your frustration. I also gained around 5 lbs but when I look in the mirror it looks/ feels like way more. I like the advice that was given. Ask your doctors if they can do, or have recently done, more blood work including thyroid. I have elevated liver enzymes post surgery and anemia which contributes to my fatigue. I also daydream that I had waited until the very last moment for this surgery and didn’t have it.

Deena, I wish I knew but my Primary Dr. never mentioned for me to discontinue Tylenol. I took around 2,000 mg per day for 6 weeks to help with the pain. I had an ultrasound of my liver and kidneys and they look fine. I never drank much, but I still don’t feel comfortable drinking. My liver enzymes were retested and they’re still slightly elevated. I notice the diagnosis of non alcoholic fatty liver on my chart recently tho. I do need to eat better, I’m unsure if that contributes, but I live off Mac and cheese and protein bars the last 4 month following the surgery (very low appetite). Hope you’re feeling better from your surgery

Hi Yvonne. If it was me, i would go see another doctor. If you have to, find a GP that is good with heart issues. Maybe they could get you to a different cardiologist. My family doc is also very smart with the heart, and one other GP, i have for a back up. I also have another Cardiologist for a back up. Have they got you on any meds for fast heart?

Oh girls...it breaks my heart to hear you regret going to surgery. If I can give you some silverlining - when I was leaving Germany I asked my surgeon, what he thinks about the timing of my surgery? And he said "I think the time window was catched, but if it were done 1-2 years before, that would've been better". I guess because of damage the faulty valve has done to the heart (enlargement of left atrium, dilation of left ventricle., Afibs..). Man doesn't know which one is worse 🤣 to do it too early or too late... Both sucks. Tylenol and poor diet could really be the reason for slightly elevated LFTs, Danielle, I hope it improves. Yvonne, please please be strong and if you possibly can ask for another opinion. And if necessary another... I hope it really is just time and eventually it will get better, but patient's instinct is sometimes the best guider and it is often ignored by doctors, until eventually it was proven to be right. We are here to encourage you and listen to you! Keep us posted!

Thanks Klara - at some point this week I need to go back to the drawing board and meal prep - for pain I need to use more of the cream the gave me for my shoulders and drink more water for the headaches. There is always a solution. It is a great reminder of what complications could have happened if I’d waited. Hope you’re healing well 💕

It can take a long time to heal emotionally from heart surgery. I grieved the loss of my formerly state of health (which meant having no major surgery). I was always very active, and it took some 9 months before I was back out playing tennis. Since I didn’t have any symptoms before my surgery, it was hard to accept the fact that I even needed surgery in the first place. So feeling lousy for weeks after surgery was hard to accept. With time, you can heal both physically and emotionally. Start paying close attention to your diet, even journaling everything you eat if necessary. Increase your walking , even if it is 10 minutes twice a day. Got to start somewhere! Godspeed in your recovery! Let us know how you get along.

Hi Yvonne, welcome back. All these feelings you are having is normal. When I was about 7 weeks post-op I felt like I hit a plateau and couldn't really tell if I was still progressing. I am also gaining weight and have put on 20lbs since surgery. I still don't have an answer for it. The only self diagnosis I can come up with is that I quit smoking in January and I am getting older. I can't help but wonder if it's common after OHS or just that my metabolism is slowing down. I will say that once I started cardiac rehab everything began to change. I am now just short of 4 months post-op and feel great. At rehab they will monitor your heart while you exercise and they will push you according to how you are doing. It has been really clear to me that I am progressing and getting stronger every day. This is all great for my mental strength and well being. It helps to have appointments for rehab because it holds you accountable to show up for yourself. Hang in there and stay positive because what you are feeling right now is only temporary. Get yourself scheduled to start rehab and don't be so hard on yourself. And, trust me that getting your surgery behind you and your valve fixed is a huge accomplishment. The hard part is over. Please continue to reach out with any questions because you are not alone. Chances are that one or more of us know exactly how you are feeling. God Bless you!! 🙏

Can you speak to your doctor about the possibility of depression? Many of those symptoms can be related to post surgical depression. Starting cardiac rehab will help to motivate you into getting moving again, and the increased activity can slow the weight gain and improve your mental outlook. Keep us posted!

Hi Yvonne, I understand the feelings you are having. Please hanging in there. Like one of my doctors told me once - "believe me, you will get better!" I had my surgery in February and re-admitted back to the hospital twice for a-fib and pleural effusion respectively. I was in hospital for 22 days in total. I had very minor symptoms before the surgery but felt much worse afterwards, having not only zero energy but constant shortness of breath. I went to doctors offices on walker and wheelchair for two months when most people already started driving and doing cardiac rehab by that time. I was warned to not compare what you can do today against that of yesterday, but do it week by week. In my case, "month by month" comparison is more appropriate. But things do get better! I was able to clean around the house for five hours with a couple of breaks in between yesterday. I changed from no prescription drug before surgery to 5-6 after surgery plus another 3 from over the counter. A couple of them are temporary (from three months to one year). I had to adjust dosage and switch to a different medicine a couple times. Everyone's recovery journey is different, but one thing for sure is that you are not alone and you will get better. Be patient and stay positive. You can do it!

Betablockers (like metrapolol) slow your system down. This can make some (like me) feel depressed. You have been through a lot and you expected a lot. But one doesn't feel necessarily better after surgery, just different. There is so much to get used to. Everyone worries about pre-surgery, but post-surgery was very hard for me. There are so many side effects and after-effects. When you look at this site it can appear as if everyone is okay and doing so well after surgery. I think that is not always true, but there is a competition to post a smiling selfie and be okay. I was not okay after surgery and fell into a depression months after getting physically better. It's important to talk about it and to be honest. Talking to a therapist can help. Meds can help. But the day after I went off of betablockers (at my request) I immediately felt better. Coincidence? Perhaps. (This was a year after OHS). It's still so very very early for you and all of your feelings are so valid and so singular. I felt lousy after surgery and had to find others who felt the same way - otherwise I felt even more like an alien in a world where one is supposed to feel great after major major surgery. Take care. Keep expressing yourself. Be vocal with doctors about how you are feeling.

metoprolol is known to make people feel tired...it can also lower your blood pressure and that can cause fatigue, make you unfocused if it gets too low, I've had to stop metoprolol twice since my surgery in Feb because of my BP being too low. I've taken metoprolol in the past too and I just feel "blah" on it. I struggled with fatigue and some depression after surgery. I'm learning that heart surgery is WAY harder on your body than other surgeries and it takes your body a long time to full recover. I just kept reminding myself that it should be temporary.

Hello Yvonne - welcome back. I too had been gone for a bit. I just update my husband’s story. Do you mind me asking if you had a full open heart? How is moving around? Pain level? Jim had a mini cut last time, but this next time going in it will be a full open. So glad you are home and healing.