5 months yeaterday!

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Posted by Frank Collyer on October 15, 2001 at 22:35:59:

I found this site while sitting in the Guesthouse at the Cleveland Clinic back on 5/11/01. I was out there for Mitral Valve Repair & Maze Procedure, and was just a bit fretful, needless to say. I had the double problem for about three years, and it had gotten to the point that it interfered in a big way with hiking & skiing, which I dearly love. People on this Board were very reassuring and informative, and I thank all of them for their support!

Four days after the surgery, which was immediately successful, my wife drove me home to Rockland County, New York. I was so weak that the 150 foot walk to the Men's Room at the Rest Areas on I-80 at the (obligatory) hourly breaks were exhausting, and on one, I had to stop & sit down! I started walking the day after I got home and kept increasing my distance, and a week later, I could walk a mile. 2 months to the day after the surgery, I hiked 8 miles and about 1000 vertical feet in Harriman Park. The healing that took the longest was my breastbone, which gave me discomfort until late August. Since then I have cut, split & stacked about 2 cords of firewood. Not bad for a geezer of 60 who had open heart surgery so recently! I hike a lot, and am looking forward to a lot of skiing this winter.

I was - and still am - amazed by the difference the surgery made. I was really scared of the entire idea in the beginning and it tokk some time to screw my courage up to make the appointment to go to the CC. Now, I can't imagine living in such a restricted way physically, and needing all that medication. If anyone visiting this list has *any* qualms or questions, email me, or phone me up at 845-947-3050 and I will convince you that you really do want to go through with the operation!

Again, thanks to all on this list for your support back in May, and to all you trepidatious visitors contemplating the procedure, take the advice proffered onj this list and go have it done!

Best-
Frank Collyer
Stony Point, NY
pensmith@aol.com

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