"AVR Surgery and ongoing care"

My husband was on the waiting list for AVR surgery which,at the time of the episode, was expected to be in 4-6 weeks time. We knew that his post-op full recovery would take at least 3 months and that during that time he would be restricted on driving, heavy lifting and any work requiring strenuous output. What we did  not know was that he should not have been doing any such work whilst awaiting the procedure.....

We were working on landscaping our garden, moving shrubs and laying paving slabs to create a new sunny sitting area ready for him once his operation was done. We had worked on and off throughout the late morning and during the afternoon stopped for a cuppa and then decided to continue for another hour as the weather was so good. It was during this time that my husband started feeling dizzy, heart racing and sat down. We stopped work, went inside and it was then that he discovered that his heart was beating very fast. I called our GP and he called an ambulance which took him to the Borders General Hospital for observation.

He was admitted to Ward 6 where he stayed until his AVR operation was eventually performed at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary a week later.