Rhiannon, I can relate to you and your husband about fright. My own experience was so much less scary after the procedure. Whatever he imagines, it is not that bad. As for pain, the meds are so good that it was never an issue for me. Other after effects were again much less than I imagined. Perhaps someone he knows personally who has had the procedure can reassure him. I had both an large aneurysm repair and a total arch replacement and by one week, I was not in pain, just sore taken care of by Tylenol. At 4 weeks I started rehab with no discomfort whatsoever. In fact my husband had to remind me not to do certain things like lifting. I can only hope your husband can find a friend who has had the procedure. It sounds much worse than it is. Please take care and if you have specific questions, I will try to answer them.