Two Surgeons. Opposite Advice | Mitral Valve Prolapse at 42 (Pt 2)

<p>Two heart surgeons looked at the same heart and gave me opposite advice. One said plan surgery. The other said wait.</p><p><br></p><p>At 42, in the best shape of my life, I was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse with severe regurgitation. And suddenly I had to answer a question I never expected to face:</p><p><br></p><p>👉 Do I operate now — or can I safely wait?</p><p><br></p><p>This is Part 2 of my heart story.</p><p><br></p><p>In this episode, I break down exactly how I chose my heart surgeon in London, what criteria I used, and what I learned navigating the NHS, private healthcare, and multiple surgical opinions.</p><p><br></p><p>If you’ve been diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse, mitral regurgitation, or told you “might need surgery,” this episode is for you. </p><p><br></p><p>In this episode:</p><p>• What severe mitral valve prolapse actually means</p><p>• Why two top surgeons gave completely opposite advice</p><p>• The difference between repair vs replacement</p><p>• Why “minimally invasive” doesn’t always mean what you think</p><p>• The exact criteria I used to shortlist surgeons</p><p>• How many surgeries is “enough”?</p><p>• Why bedside manner mattered less to me than technical mastery</p><p>• The red and green flags I noticed</p><p>• What finally made my decision clearI’m not a doctor. </p><p><br></p><p>This is not medical advice. This is my lived experience navigating high-stakes medical decisions as someone who researches leaders for a living.</p><p><br></p><p>I’m a headhunter. I assess excellence for a living. Choosing a heart surgeon felt like the most important search of my life. And what I discovered about expertise, confidence, ego, craft, and decision-making surprised me.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>Follow Maria Hvorostovsky:</p><p>IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/</p><p>IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/</p><p>LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/</p><p>TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/</p><p>Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/</p><p><br></p><p>Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/</p><p><br></p><p>If this helped you, subscribe and share it with someone navigating a diagnosis.</p>