@pittsburghdad Thanks for all the support on this site. You're right, the month after my diagnosis was tough. The "why me", the fear of dissction and depression wouldn't seem to go away. Time passed and it become a fact of life, and I am more comfortable with it now (although I do have my moments). I plan to obtain a second opinion with the Stanford Aortic Disease Center just for clarification on a few things-my cardiologist said this is common but I'm not sure I believe him -he was very low key about it-maybe bedside manner. It's reassuring to know I'm not alone in this, and I really appreciate the support.