Arnold Schwarzenegger says he feels 'fantastic' as he recovers from heart surgery

Francesca Gariano
Updated ·2 min read
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Arnold Schwarzenegger says he is feeling “fantastic” after undergoing heart surgery recently to replace his aortic valve.

The 73-year-old “Terminator” star revealed the news across his social media channels Friday with a message that he was doing well.

"Thanks to the team at the Cleveland Clinic, I have a new aortic valve to go along with my new pulmonary valve from my last surgery,” he wrote on Twitter. “I feel fantastic and have already been walking the streets of Cleveland enjoying your amazing statues. Thank you to every doc and nurse on my team!”

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Schwarzenegger added a few photos to his message. One shows him giving a thumbs up in his hospital bed while the remaining three photos depict the former governor of California touring the streets of downtown Cleveland in Ohio, including a shot in front of the Cuyahoga County Courthouse, a statue of Jesse Owens in Fort Huntington Park, and the statue of Abraham Lincoln next to the Board of Education building.

He shared the same message on his Instagram, receiving an outpouring of love from family and friends following the successful surgery.

“❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️PLEASE DONT GO WORKOUT TODAY!!” his 27-year-old son, Patrick, commented.

His daughter, Katherine, 30, chimed in with support for her father, commenting with a series of heart and praying emojis.

Schwarzenegger's youngest son, Joseph Baena, 23, also wrote, "Love you, dad! How are you already hitting a lat spread???"

“Alles gute!!!!” ski champion Lindsey Vonn added, German for "all the best."

This latest surgery accompanied Schwarzenegger's open-heart surgery back in March 2018. The actor’s spokesperson Daniel Ketchell released a statement at the time, explaining that he underwent a planned surgery in order to replace a pulmonic valve that was originally replaced due to a congenital heart defect in 1997 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

The statement said the valve from 1997 was “never meant to be permanent, and has outlived its life expectancy” which is why he chose to replace it.

The valve was successfully replaced during surgery, leading to one perfect response by Schwarzenegger to show he was in good spirits: “I’m back.”