Here’s to at least another 20 years or more or I want my money back 😆

[Zerohere]

Hi all,

Hope I find everyone happy if not quite healthy unless you’ve had successful surgery or other medical intervention to correct your condition.

Well if you read my last post you were reading about me enjoying a glass or two of something when I come out the other side of this journey.

Now let’s begin hospital journey, I came in last Thursday as planned to the university of hospital of wales, admitted and prepped for surgery Friday afternoon, told I could have a replacement mitral valve made of cow tissue, then told I could have a artificial one.

Now before we get there skip to Friday afternoon, taken down to theatre and greeted by very nice person on the anaesthetic team who greeted me with good morning sir, to which I quipped I hope your not the surgeon to which her and colleague began to laugh.

Now move on 10 plus hours ( skip this part if your not into operations or what could go wrong) on opening me up they find my oxygen levels are at 8 and should be at 13 apparently they now test me to find out what has happened.

It appears a d they suspect I have a cold virus however I’m expressing no outer lying symptoms, the test proves positive so now they decide to operate hence the 10 hours plus becoming reality, I didn’t get a cow part or artificial valve it was repaired ( yeah so as I understand it no warfarin for me )

And then a triple bypass which has been successful, so at this stage I’m a happy man, don’t know much about what’s going and don’t come around till Saturday morning sometime.

However now on the HDU and in quarantine, this is the hard bit still in here hoping to be transferred to the ward today, I’ve had nebuliser after nebuliser, pumped full of every drug and laxative they can find, cannulas in, cannulas out, blood in one arm out the other, a pacemaker fitted and removed, one doctor couldn’t get a cannula in to my arms, I joked with her that she wouldn’t be much good in the North Sea drilling for oil.

I regard myself as fit and healthy but and not a small guy, a mans man however I’ve had a little weep and got slightly emotional.

So let’s look at the positives I’ve been given a new lease of life to look forward to, and lease our lives we do.

I still intend to live to the full, I will have those several drinks to celebrate and hopefully get those extra years in.

And to the team of consultants, surgeons, anaesthetists, scrub nurses, team leaders , ward sisters, nurses at the UHOW a big thank you.

And if it doesn’t work out can I have my money back or at least a partial refund on my NI contributions

[Traveldreams]

well done! Now to a steady recovery.

[Thesnowman51]

Terrific, sounds like they did you proud, now the road to recovery. Not too many celebratory drinks, you’re supposed to be on a healthy life style now!

[Petitlady]

It’s good to get the other side of the difficult bits! I suddenly found I needed OHS 4 months after getting state pension and bus pass. I was determined that having paid in for years I was going to get some use out of them! Two years on I’m hoping I’ll see in my eighties. So far so good!

[Stentsandrun]

I don't think a "glass or 2" is going to make very much, if any, difference to your recovery or future heart health TBH. Could possibly even be of benefit in some ways, seems to me alcohol is blamed for everything from an ingrown toenail to hair loss these days.

[Bingo88]

Hope you recover well and get back home and enjoying life again soon. Brian

[cappachina]

Well done nut don't rush to get well slow and steady are the words to keep in your mind

[PadThaiNoodles]

Well done! It doesn't take long to get pretty sick of those nebulizers, does it? I rolled my eyes so badly at one point that the nurse said "OK, maybe we'll skip it this one time".