I think I had the same as you - bicuspid valve replaced and aortic aneurysm dealt with - 16 weeks ago but as emergency surgery. The heart beat you hear gets a lot less at week 6 and now I rarely hear it. It was like the theme music from Jaws at one point and I thought I would never get used to it. Overall, I feel better than I have for the last couple of years - slow and steady recovery with some setbacks.
I'm 5.5 months out now. Walked 11.04km off road (with flip flops/Thongs. I'm English/Australian) and cycled 8km to and from the Pub today. I've ordered walking shoes from Amazon today! Mrs says about time!
It gets better and better as the days/weeks go by as i've said.
Good luck with your continuing progress. Just keep remembering, it’s not a race. Listen to your body, don’t be afraid of taking it easy. The body is still very busy repairing itself. Onwards and upwards.
Good news, Steve. Walking yourself well worked for me and the timing of my AVR meant
a summer to recover. And rest days are fine - listening to your body is a good and effective thing. One cardiologist told me that the material of bioprosthetic valve was slightly more rigid than the real thing so a slightly louder beat.
My experience was that week 10 was the point at which things began to be the new normal and I started to really feel the benefits of surgery. Two years on and regular tennis and cycling is the order of the day as I approach my 68th birthday. Life is good.
Oh thank you StevepH2012 H2012, that is reassuring - I am due aortic root replacement 7th Sept and it's nice to know that 1 mth in it's possible to be well enough to do a nearly 1/2 hr walk. Reassuring as suggests by a month in I could hope to be back to being relatively independent albeit at a slower pace (this will be the tricky bit for me!!!) and with LOTS of rest
From a glance at your other posts you seem to be well prepared for your op. Assuming that you don't have any other medical conditions to hinder recovery and are reasonably fit/active you should be fine.
We got V pillow but found collection of normal pillows just as effective. We also added a recliner to sitting room furniture that I used for first couple of nights at home.
I do feel for you at the moment - the last few days in the 'waiting room' were v stressful - all I can say is try to put it out of your mind as much as possible. I did this by telling myself that now I've a date there's no point in worrying - much like flying it's out of your control now and in control of the people who do it every day- and try not to look internet too much!
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