First time posting

[Blackcatsooty]

Hello fellow hearties. I am so lucky. I got a private operation during lockdown and am now safely home. I have a replacement valve. What i stuggle with is the rehab. Everything is closed so i have to do my own rehab. I do the trunk exercises, but now realize i should do them throughout the day. I have been doing all six in one session. I am walking and managed a mile. Very slowly, but i managed. I dont have anyone to walk with, so i just muttered to myself. Then gout flared up so no walking for a week. When the gout eases i guess i just start up again. So i will be doing rehab week four whereas i am week six since the operation. Thank you for lisrening.

[Shar28]

Hello and welcome to the forum. It’s great you’re on the other side of your surgery. But please take the rehab steady - it’s easy to overdo it and set yourself back. The weeks are just a guideline, so don’t feel pressurised to do keep up with the week numbers, whether it’s gout throwing a spanner in the works or whether you’re just not ready to move that far forward.

All the best.

[Blackcatsooty in reply to Shar28]

Thank you shar

I so much appreciate a few logical words. Being in hospital without visitors and now home without any rehab nor follow up is all a bit overwhelming.

But i do like the notion that i now have a new valve and the probability of a decent few years ahead

[080311]

Hi, Blackcatsooty

Welcome to the forum, glad to read your doing ok after your replacement valve.

Try to take it easy, baby steps listen to your body rest when it tells you too. As you say about no cardio rehab it makes things harder but hopefully things will get moving soon. I found it invaluable as much for my mental health as getting my stamina back. Being around people who have been through the same experiences as you is such a help.

There are plenty of us here that have been through the same as you and if you need to talk someone will be along to listen.

Welcome to the mended heart road we are all travelling on.

Stay safe best wishes Pauline

[Blackcatsooty in reply to 080311]

Thank you Pauline. I have heard about depression post op. I am determined not to tumble into depression if i can avoid it So much has gone in my favour And above all, i am alive to enjoy my good fortune.

[080311 in reply to Blackcatsooty]

I am nearly 4 years down the road from my op and I am grateful every day to the medical team that gave me my life back. Enjoy your mended heart.

Stay safe best wishes Pauline

[Alisbabas]

Hello and glad you are well!

What valve did you get replaced.

Take care x

[Blackcatsooty in reply to Alisbabas]

Aortic valve. Or what was left of it !

[Charlie0007]

Hi Blackcatsooty and welcome.

From what you have said It sounds like you get gout on a regular basis. I used to suffer with this too, until my GP put me on Alopurinol, not sure of spelling, since I have been on this I have never had a flare up of gout a d have been on it for quite a number of years now. I have also had heart issues for 4 years now and it's ok with the meds I am on.

All the best

Charlie

[Blackcatsooty in reply to Charlie0007]

Thank you Charlie. It was a 50/50 decision to have tablets held in case of a gout flare as opposed to permanent tablets . My tendency is to avoid all medication whenever reasonable. But now I am taking so much medicine that I dont know whats what ! I used to take ibuprofen which seemed to ease the agony quite well, but right now I am told not to take that kind of painkiller and stick with paracetomol.

I am also taking medication to prevent a further stroke, as I had the first stroke in December 2015.

I will have Alopurinol in mind. I love the idea of 4 years without a flare. I guess I average one flare every two or three years. This flare is playing havoc with my attempts at rehab. I am six weeks post op and have not yet finished week 4 rehab.

Its so nice to talk to other people who have had the surgery, so many thanks.

Colin

[Ianc2]

If you are in week 6 it might be worth taking it easy for another fortnight to give you breast bone a chance to fully knit together. The exercises that I remember were done in sets of 15 with a 10 second break in between, but they didn't start until about 8-10 weeks after the operation.

From a sitting position - stand up and then sit down. nice and simple. discover your leg muscles again, and you can do it anywhere.

Stand at the foot of the stairs and step up with both feet and then back down again.

When you are happy that your bones are knitted together you can move onto press ups against the nearest window cill

2 cans of beans in your hands and lift your arms.

Kneel down and stand up.

These exercises were all done to music 'Petticoats and Popsicles' 3 times a week.

Before we started there was a beep test , which involved seeing how many times you can walk backwards and forward along a set distance, inside a set time. The aim was to provide a baseline to measure your progress.

As you improve you can move onto more interesting exercises, but you won't be able to get your walking poles out just yet. Have a look on google - I think some hospitals have put recovery exercises up on line.

Glad to hear you are walking. I measured my progress in lamp posts and driveways and did it every day, slowly extending my range and stopping if I felt that I was pushing it too much and allowed myself some recovery time.

Determination and perseverance are the watchwords. Be careful with the walking though, it can be addictive and you might find yourself walking through the Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland in the shadow of the Eiger, or sitting in a cable car in Austria as you zoom up to the top of a mountain so you can go for a ridge walk from one mountain hut to another, have a truly impressive meringue and a radler (shandy) - and zoom back down again for a coffee and a cake in the late afternoon.

I had my valves done when I was 69. I was out walking around my local town boundaries and i was talking to an old miner about walks around the area . Fitness came up and I said that I had had my heart done. "You will be good for another 30 years", he said and off we went,

[Blackcatsooty in reply to Ianc2]

Thank you lanc2. That makes a lot of sense. I will indeed do weeks 5 and 6 even though I am time wise in week 7, That will ensure things can knit together. I will also search for online rehab. I have been registered for rehab, but I suspect this will be some weeks. The NHS have only just started up again so they will not have rehab patients for a while, Just me ! I am the odd one out. My hospital was two hours drive away and that was along roads without traffic. It would be 3 or 4 hours now many have returned to work. I am East of London on the Essex/Suffolk borders. I have been offered Guildford !

Still, I am happy to be alive .

Colin

[MydogBrandy]

Hello and welcome, I find this site wonderful, it’s like having a long list of new friends. Stay safe and good luck for a speedy recovery x

[Blackcatsooty in reply to MydogBrandy]

Thank you. Other hearties experiences are worth their weight n gold

[MydogBrandy in reply to Blackcatsooty]

Too try, I’ve had an ablation after svt episodes for 18 years and my Colin had three heart attacks and ended up with a stent fitted, both in opposite beds on cardiac ward at one point. They then found cancer on a kidney so took that out, now treating a lesion on his lung although appointments cancelled due to the virus. Also had his appointments cancelled for cancer spots on his head.... rough times.

Hey do you get gout much! My son had an ankle replacement many years ago and has since suffered with gout in his other foot. Just wondered how you treat it. Also can you get it in your hands because his knuckles have swollen .?

[Blackcatsooty in reply to MydogBrandy]

You either have gout or you do not. It stays in the blood for life. What we want to do is avoid flare ups, when the uric acid forms crystals that lodge in the joints, and hurt a lot. You can have the crystals form in any joint, but by far the most common is the toes, eg at the furthest extremity of our bodies.

You can get medication, to take every day, and reduce or avoid any flare ups. Or you can have tablets handy to take as soon as a flare up occurs. I do the latter, as I am inclined to get gout flare perhaps every 2 or even 3 years. When the flare happens, like it is now, I swear I will take the everyday medicine, When the flare subsides I then think I will settle for the wait and see tablets.

Boy it hurts, so sympathy for your son.

Colin

[MydogBrandy in reply to Blackcatsooty]

Thanks so much, yes he gets it about every 3 months, he says it’s agony.

[Blackcatsooty in reply to MydogBrandy]

I think he should be on the permanent medication. Yes it is very painful, and there is also infection and fever. These latter two symptoms are often ignored because the extreme pain over rides everything.

am trying to rid myself of the current flare and include cider vinegar, I like vinegar, but this stuff is so disgusting it must be doing me some good.

[MydogBrandy in reply to Blackcatsooty]

Yes he takes cider vinegar, he says the same about it

[45sue]

If you have any other physical condition, such as a proneness to gout, rehab exercises need to be adapted to what your body can tolerate. This means you need an individual assessment rather than try to follow a set programme. I had a flare up of sciatica as a result of an attempt at one size fits all rehab exercises and have done much better after transferring to gym on prescription which was more individualised. Pity you will have to wait for an assessment now but you can only listen to your body meanwhile.

[TMeditation]

Hope you are continuing to recover. I had my aortic valve replaced a year ago in London, privately, and took rehab at Guildford as it was nearer where I lived. They were great there but it sounds like a bit of a journey for you I would think! Do take it easy on your way back to full recovery. They told me it would take a year and I didn’t believe them - they were right though!! I noticed a significant difference in my recovery the closer I got to the magic 12 month target. Take care with your gout and I know it will have slowed your recovery down at the moment but do still try to do a little something to keep you in the game. It’s incredible how easy it is to do nothing at this time., after all you have every excuse! It amazes me how quickly our muscles forget what it is they are supposed to do when we are sitting around. Take care - you sound really positive, I’m sure you will come out of this a better person.

[Blackcatsooty in reply to TMeditation]

Thank you TMed. I live near Clacton, deepest rural Essex. The secretary at the London hospital did suggest that, as I wouldn't travel to London, I could go to Guildford. Nice place that it is, Guildford is indeed a bit of a journey !

Obviously geography wasn't her strongest subject.

Is the traffic still somewhat ott at the a3/a31 junction ?

I cant recall its common name. I keep thinking devils punch bowl but I am sure thats the Hindhead region. We liked to stay at East Wittering and so that journey was frequent. What a difference the tunnel made. But we dont see the big stone dogs any more.

Gosh, we always were down there for the last two weeks in June. It seems another lifetime.

Colin

[TMeditation in reply to Blackcatsooty]

They have made a tunnel through Hindhead to solve the traffic problem there - only took them about 35 years! Whereabouts in London did you have your avr done - I was at the Royal Brompton. Sue

[Blackcatsooty in reply to TMeditation]

I was due to have Royal Brompton, but it was closed whilst I awaited my surgery. ie Brompton was given over to Corona patients. I got in to the Cromwell, which appeared to be the last hope for me. Very good staff, brilliant surgeon (he would do Brompton or Cromwell or even better Harefield) but I await the final bill with trepidation. I am not covered by BUPA..

Cromwell is on the A4, where it singles, between Knightsbridge and Olympia. Not that far from Royal Brompton. I was at the back, overlooking the Mews and it was quiet and peaceful.

[Handel]

Hello Colin. Just to wish you all the best for a full recovery. xxx

[Ianc2]

The BHF have quite a bit of information available, If you go on google and type in 'heart rehabilitation BHF' you should be able to pick up some useful information.

[Carpbait]

Hi, welcome to the forum, pleased you are on the other side of the op, as you I suffer with gout had it 3 times now, had my HA & stroke 2019 followed printed recovery booklet week by week, after reaching week 4 I tackled cutting the lawn as I was deemed fit enough to return to work, got a roasting from my cardiac nurse for going overboard, it would appear the recovery program is so different for all us Heartie survivors, stay safe and keep preserving, you will get there in the end.

Regards John

[Blackcatsooty]

I am six weeks post op but have only done four weeks of rehab. Gout has stopped play. No way would I mow the lawn yet. I am itching to get the little flymo out and just do the worse bits, but this would be asking to damage the surgeons good works.

I dont have a cardiac nurse nor anyone else, because nothing is running. So perhaps I am being extra careful.

I too had a stroke and was still getting stroke fatigue, but in fact it was aortic stegnosis and I didnt realize. I will be very interested to see whether the SF has gone or is it just lurking under cover of the cardiac rehab ?

I must say that the recovery for cardiac stuff is so much easier than the stroke rehab. The most noticeable bit is that cardiac recovery is day to day whereas it took weeks to see any difference with stroke.

Thank you for your words of wisdom, I will indeed plod on carefully.

Colin