Anatomy of a Leader with Maria Hvorostovsky

This episode is sponsored by CP+R, Maria’s cardiac rehabilitation provider: https://www.cpandr.co.uk/ 

Heart surgery may repair the heart, but recovery also means rebuilding strength, confidence and trust in your body.

CP+R cardiac nurse Angela Hartley joins Maria Hvorostovsky (one of the patients she supported after mitral valve repair0  to explain when cardiac rehabilitation should begin, how to exercise safely after surgery and why recovery is emotional as well as physical.

They discuss palpitations, breathlessness and women’s heart symptoms; post-surgery fatigue, pain and medication side effects; safe heart-rate zones; bisoprolol; blood pressure; alcohol; and why it can take months to feel physically recovered and even longer to stop thinking about the surgery.

ABOUT ANGELA HARTLEY

Angela Hartley is Head of Nursing at CP+R and an experienced cardiac nurse, cardiac rehabilitation exercise specialist, personal trainer and nutritional therapist.

Having trained in Australia and worked in cardiac nursing at the Royal Brompton Hospital, she now helps people regain fitness, confidence and trust in their bodies following heart attacks, heart surgery and other cardiac diagnoses.

CP+R: https://www.cpandr.co.uk/ 
IG: https://www.instagram.com/healthyhearties/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@angelahealthyhearties 

FOLLOW MARIA HVOROSTOVSKY

IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvo/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@maria.hvo/
Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/

Artwork and video by: https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not replace personalised medical advice. 

Speak to your doctor, cardiologist or cardiac rehabilitation team about your own health and recovery.

This episode is personal.

Maria Hvorostovsky sits down with the man who repaired her heart - Mr Toufan Bahrami, one of the world's leading cardiac surgeons and the only surgeon in the UK performing fully endoscopic mitral valve repair. With over 4,000 procedures and multiple world firsts, he is the surgeon other surgeons refer their patients to.

What starts as a conversation about heart surgery becomes a masterclass in elite performance, calm under pressure, and what it truly means to lead in the highest-stakes environment imaginable.

This episode is sponsored by CP+R - London's leading cardiac rehabilitation and performance recovery centre, supporting patients before and after heart surgery https://www.cpandr.co.uk/

Find Mr Toufan Bahrami
HCA Healthcare http://bit.ly/4uHMxPs
Guy’s And St Thomas’ Specialist Care https://bit.ly/43BUsC2
London Mitral Clinic https://bit.ly/4dRfbq7

Follow host Maria Hvorostovsky:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/
Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/

Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

You have 23 seconds before your doctor interrupts you — what do you say?

If you’ve ever felt dismissed, rushed, or unsure how to explain your symptoms, this episode will change the way you speak so you’re actually heard.

In this episode of Anatomy of a Leader, Maria Hvorostovsky sits down with Penny Parkes, author of How to Talk So Your Doctor Will Listen, to explore how patients can communicate clearly, prepare for appointments, describe symptoms, ask better questions, and advocate for themselves in a medical system that often doesn’t listen.

Penny shares what she learned after decades as a patient navigating complex conditions, medical trauma, near-death experiences, and the reality of medical misogyny — offering practical tools for anyone who wants to feel more confident, prepared, and taken seriously by their doctor.

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About Penny Parkes
Penny Parkes is an author, health journalist, and long-term patient living with multiple rare and complex conditions. Her book How to Talk So Your Doctor Will Listen: Helping Your Doctor to Help You shares practical tools to help patients communicate effectively, advocate for themselves, and get better care.

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@how2talktoyourdoctor
IG: https://www.instagram.com/how2talktoyourdoctor/

BUY Penny's book - https://amzn.to/4tPfU1r

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Follow host Maria Hvorostovsky:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/
Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/

Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

Two heart surgeons looked at the same heart and gave me opposite advice. One said plan surgery. The other said wait.

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:

👉 Do I operate now — or can I safely wait?

This is Part 2 of my heart story.

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.

If you’ve been diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse, mitral regurgitation, or told you “might need surgery,” this episode is for you.

In this episode:
• What severe mitral valve prolapse actually means
• Why two top surgeons gave completely opposite advice
• The difference between repair vs replacement
• Why “minimally invasive” doesn’t always mean what you think
• The exact criteria I used to shortlist surgeons
• How many surgeries is “enough”?
• Why bedside manner mattered less to me than technical mastery
• The red and green flags I noticed
• What finally made my decision clearI’m not a doctor.

This is not medical advice. This is my lived experience navigating high-stakes medical decisions as someone who researches leaders for a living.

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.

Follow Maria Hvorostovsky:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/
Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/

Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

If this helped you, subscribe and share it with someone navigating a diagnosis.

I never thought heart disease would be part of my story.

At 42, in the best shape of my life, I was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse and severe regurgitation. What started as a strange episode during a workout turned into months of fear, waiting, uncertainty, and eventually heart surgery.

This is Part 1 of My Heart Story. In this episode of Anatomy of a Leader, I share what it was really like to be diagnosed with a heart condition at 42 — from early symptoms and medical tests to the emotional impact of living with uncertainty while raising young children and running a business.

This is the beginning of a deeper series about fear, vulnerability, healing, and what happens when your body forces you to slow down and listen.

This is not medical advice. This is my real story — shared in the hope that it helps someone feel less alone, recognise symptoms earlier, or feel brave enough to get checked.

In this episode I talk about:
– Mitral valve prolapse diagnosis
– Heart palpitations and symptoms
– ECG and echocardiogram experience
– Waiting for cardiology appointments
– Anxiety and fear after diagnosis
– Exercising with a heart condition
– Women’s heart health being underdiagnosed
– Why “being strong” can make illness lonelier

Follow Maria Hvorostovsky:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/anatomyofaleader/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/mariahvorostovsky/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariahvo/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariahvorostovsky/
Website: https://www.anatomyofaleader.com/

Artwork and video by https://www.londonbeautyphotographer.com/

💗 Follow for honest conversations about leadership, health, emotions and real life.