Even at 84 years of age, and having undergone triple bypass surgery in 2005, I had always been active. But about three years ago I started having breathing difficulties on the stairs and when walking. Sleep was also becoming almost impossible – within about 10 seconds of falling asleep, I’d feel like I was drowning or suffocating.

I assumed that this was a result of my age, until I was in hospital for an unrelated incident. “While I was there, one of my daughters asked about my symptoms and my treating doctor invited a cardiologist to have a look,”. He explained that I had a heart condition called aortic stenosis, which required treatment as soon as possible. I didn’t realise the danger I was in. And, because of my previous bypass surgery, replacing the diseased heart valve with an artificial one would have been too risky.

The cardiologist said that I’d be an ideal candidate for a minimally-invasive procedure called transcatheter aortic valve implantation, or TAVI, which I’d never heard of. I agreed, on the condition that my wife and children were OK with the decision.

TAVI involves inserting the replacement valve via the femoral artery through a small incision in the groin and then balloon-inflating it into place without having to remove the faulty valve. I felt only slight discomfort and wasn’t distressed at all. I think I was on the table for about an hour and by the next day, I was walking the hospital corridor without no loss of breath.

The day I received TAVI my life was transformed. There are no other words for it. I could sleep again and I got back my appetite. I no longer had the fear that I’d suffered from before and I now exercise regularly again and travel around Ireland frequently with my wife. I feel like I’ve made a miraculous recovery.