Triple bypass, valve replacement give businessman a new lease on life
Gary Scheer knew something wasn’t right in early 2014 when he started having shortness of breath and back pain if he did any manual labor up at his cabin on Mt. Lemmon. The then-74-year-old optician hadn’t had any heart problems since having two stents put in 20 years earlier to restore blood flow to blocked arteries. After his cardiologist ordered a round of testing, he found out in August that other arteries were blocked and that he would need an aortic valve replacement and a triple bypass. “I am convinced that recognizing what was going on – and acting on it – saved me from having a heart attack,” said Scheer, whose father died of a heart attack. His cardiothoracic surgeon, Gulshan Sethi, M.D. recommended audio CDs that walked him through the process of open heart surgery and helped him not only know what to expect, but helped frame each step in a positive way, reminding him he was surrounded by loved ones and a caring team who would help him rebuild.
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His surgery took place on his 54th wedding anniversary to Barbara, a nurse. Afterward, he was thrilled to find out his incision was glued, with no staples or stitches to worry about, and his pain was controlled with nothing stronger than Tylenol. He was up and walking down the hall the second day of recovery and within a month, was enrolled in an exercise program through TMC Cardiac Rehabilitation and attending TMC lectures on nutrition and stress relief. “TMC didn’t miss a lick. The whole staff was first class and very accommodating,” Scheer said. Scheer is now exercising more and watching portion sizes, losing 22 pounds to arrive at a healthy 178. He’s back up on the mountain, too. “It’s great to know I can move around without worry. I feel like I’ve been given a new lease on life.”