I had open heart surgery 4 weeks ago. Recovery has been great. I am walking 5 miles a day and will be visiting my cardiologist in two weeks. I am on lift restrictions for another month. This post may seem like an ego trip but my reason for doing so is to help lessen anxiety for upcoming open heart surgery. I am 73 years old and look forward to resuming full activity.
Hi lou, I'm terry i had my triple bypass march 26 of this year.u are a inspiration I'm only 52 and I'm scared that i may have another one...thanks for sharing lou.
Thanks for the Video. I came here because I’m honestly scared to have surgery. I’ve never had any type of surgery. I pray things go well, not just for me but anyone having to deal with major surgery. Lord give me the strength to overcome this, My kids need their Dad, And I’d do anything to watch them grow, Amen 🙏
I hope your surgery/recovery went well if you got it by now! I said a prayer for you and your family too. My dad is about to have a tipple bypass and I will be caring for him afterward. I just want to make sure he is comfortable and loved.
I had a triple bypass two weeks ago . I'm 68 .. Had very few symptoms . Ironically I had lost weight , got fit cycling and swimming . This was what highlighted a problem . It was a shock to be told I needed the operation ... but the care and skill here in France is second to none . I hope you had the surgery . A bit breathless , the pain levels even directly after the surgery was 50% of what I imagined . Like you , I had never had any major surgery . Don't be scared . My daughter who is a nurse regularly looks after men in their nineties who have bypass scars .... from 20 -30 years before !
I’m 69 and had a six way bypass last year. This would have been a wonderful video to have been able to watch back then. To everyone watching, remember to not get in a hurry but always move forward. Challenge yourself within limits. Don’t tread water., you need to keep moving forward. Be the turtle not the hare. Slow and steady will win this race. A very nice job on the video, thank you.
Hello! I have a question for you. My dad had a 4 way bypass in April (so it’s been about 4 months since surgery). He is experiencing muscle pain on his arms and shoulders, which makes sense since those are the muscles that get the most work and also close to the sternum. Everything seems to be healing fine, but the pain radiating his shoulders and arms have been giving him a lot of trouble and discomfort, even disrupting sleep because of pain. Have you experienced this? I know I have to be patient and not expect my dad to fully recover in just 4 months, but it would be great insight and relief if pains like that are just temporary and not permanent. How was your healing process. You say it’s been a year, do you feel more confident in your range of motion? Do you experience muscle aches and pain? Anyway, please let me know, I’d appreciate it so much. I hate seeing my dad have to suffer and I don’t really see a lot of videos detailing the healing process and what to expect. Or for how long it takes to heal, etc. thank you for your time. I hope to hear from you, and congrats on conquering such a traumatic surgery. Wow, 6 way even. That’s incredible.
@@daturagirl hello, I’m sorry that your father is in pain and not sleeping. I’m not sure what I can tell you that’s, “normal” only what’s normal for me. A little background about me. I was 190 and 5’9” before surgery plus according to my wife, I slouched. 2weeks after surgery I was 178 and 5’8”. Ok, maybe I didn’t shrink but I felt like it. It was difficult to stand up straight and your shoulders feel pulled in. The surgery seems to pull both shoulders forward. Because of that feeling you find yourself forcing your shoulders back and bending back at the waist to gain your height back. These things combined to give me some uncomfortable times. Unlike your father my inability to sleep longer than 90 minutes at a time we’re due to my cholesterol medicine. Eventually, about 7 months, I got use to the medicine and was able to sleep well again. Never did I have shoulder or arm pain to keep me awake. Eventually I realized it was the constant effort I was using trying to get my shoulders back that was causing my shoulder pain. Once I let my shoulders rest and focused on bending correctly at the waist the pain stopped. I have two friends who also had OHS and the next time I see them all see what they have to say. For the most part, after 6 months I thought I was back to normal but it’s now been almost 3 years and I’m not sure when I officially got back to normal but I’m guessing a year to a year and a half. I hope this makes sense. Wes
@@wschield608 I really appreciate your reply and insight. Thank you! And I’m so glad that you feel better and can sleep now and just feel overall better quality of life post surgery. And you figured out a way to deal with posture and pain. This gives me a lot of hope. Also thank you for taking the time to ask around too. My dad also got veins pulled from his leg too. From what I see, I should see pain cease around 6 months (I know it’s different from person to person, but I like to hear general time frames) and hope for everything to possibly heal in about a year-ish. Thank you again! And I also wish you continual great health and happiness.
@@daturagirl I actually sent one more reply that involved an article my wife found. It appears to be a relatively common symptom post surgery. It’s a very involved article but if you’re interested I’ll forward you the link. Thanks for your kind words and thoughts. My best to your father.
Just spent my first night back home following three- bypass surgery April 5.... my main problem after surgery was that one of the graphs used for by- pass kept leaking... it seems to have stopped, as I write... also, my feet are heavily swollen from the knees down... it sort of raises an additional load on your emotions...I watched this video before going to the hospital and saved it to watch “AC”( after surgery)... it’s been a tremendous help to wash my fears away, as well as the praying sessions with my wife.. God bless you all, everywhere !!!- Carlos from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
God bless you and hope you are well! Thanks for sharing some of your experience. My father is about to have this surg and I will be caring for him after. We will be praying and reading the Bible frequently
I’m 38 and I had emergency open heart surgery about 2 weeks ago to remove a rare, benign tumor the size of a golf ball from my left atrium called a myxoma. It was by far the scariest and most painful experience of my life. I get emotional daily, as I realize how close I came to leaving my two children. The healing process has been painful and I know it will take time.
Glad you are recovering well ❤ Question: how can I helped someone who's coming home from a quadruple bypass in a couple days. Her husband will be there but I'm sure he will be stressed and tired, and is only off 2 weeks so probably only one more week of her recovery. How can I help I'm very close by? Ideas on what she may want or need after coming home? Thank you!
This really shows the efforts and hardships that come with post-surgery healing. It's amazing to see the advancements taking place in the industry to ensure that patients are being taken care of in a proper fashion.
Thank you so much for this video. It helped me understand all my questions regarding my surgery some ideas I did not get from my care team in the hospital. Great video.
I'm 69 and had bypass surgery 4 months ago. It wasn't too painful afterward and I was just taking Tylenol for pain almost right away. I didn't want narcotics if I didn't have to. The biggest thing for me has been a complete loss of memory from the time I arrived in the ER to a couple of days post op. I was told I had a heart attack in the ER, that I spoke to doctors and gave my verbal consent for procedures and the surgery, but I have no memory of any of that. Also, my recovery for the first month or 6 weeks was slow. I was very fatigued, but I went to cardiac rehab, which helped rebuild my strength and I'm now feeling myself again. Give it time. There's no right or wrong way to recover. Listen to your body and work on building strength every day.
Thank you for sharing. My dad also had his surgery in April as well. It was a 4 way bypass. Could you please give us an update of your healing process? My dad is a strong man, but the muscle pain on his arms and shoulders have been very painful, and sometimes it will disrupt his sleep. Are you experiencing something similar? It would be very good to know that my dad is not alone in having a hard time recovering from this gruesome surgery. I just want solace to know that these muscle pains aren’t something that he has to deal with for the rest of his life. I hope it’s just temporary. You are one of the few people that actually expressed a similar situation to my dads. I hope to hear your response to ease some worry from me. Congrats on your recovery. Thank you.
My surgery went well, but I was in EXCRUCIATING PAIN until about 7 weeks. Then that week it just changed to what you would normally expect. At 12 weeks I'm close to 'normal ' , as in how I was doing before . Very salt sensitive now.
I just had a six way bypass at the age of 52 in May of 2024. Been home a couple of days and would like to add a couple of points. 1. You will have a lot of edema, especially in the leg where they harvested the vein. Take your Lasix! When that edema starts going away you will pee, A LOT. Have a plan to deal with that such as keeping a clear path to the bathroom or a pee bottle on hand. 2. Use your cough buddy bear or similar, even if it hurts. It's there mostly to keep your breastplate stable. 3. There's a lot of gunk in your lungs. If you can arrange it, try to lay down so that your legs and butt are higher than your head. Let gravity help drain you out. Practice taking in deep breaths till you hesr the crackle in your lungs. Then exhale forcefully without the cough part. An hour of this is worth ten hours of sitting upright. Having a bed you can tilt is perfect. You don't need much, just about five degrees negative inversion. Have a bucket, cup, rag or whatever to spit into. You'll probably make a mess of yourself. Don't worry, that's easy to clean later.
Thank You so much for the video. When I was discharged I received no help at all I went home alone and didn't receive any type of therapy.I wish I had found this in January when I got home.
I had a Left atrial myxloma. I was about released when my Dr recognized the spots in my brain. Praise God he found it. Rare and only happens in women over 40 years old. 24 days ago
Thank you so much for this video I am having a triple heart by-pass April 26th am still nervous about it but you made me feel a little bit better, Thank you again.
@@Paddy984 I am home finally Thank you after being in the hospital for 9 days! surgery was a sucess that was the good part, recovery was and is slow but I am doing a lot better than the doctors and nurses ever thought, still very sore but managing and home therapy helps out as does support among friends and family there the most valuable at this point. Thank you again.
@@Paddy984 Thank you for the message and pray everything goes well as my surgery did I know its a difficult decision and yes I was one saying over and over again NO but if it helps me live another 25-30 years then its a good thing but I only recommend as a last resort trust me you will agree with me and everyone else too that has gone through this type of procedure. The good news is I am healing remarkably well and fast Thank God. I have a life to live and want to live it full speed ahead.
Hi all, 28f, 164cm, 76kg. I recently had an asd repair via open heart surgery 3 weeks ago. Just finished antibiotic course last sunday on the 18 feb and I have been having random mild fever on 20/21/22/23 feb at 37.7-37.9 usually in the late evenings with upper bodyaches and having a dull headache pattern at the base of my head which i never had in a really long time since 13 feb. Its been lingering. Ate paracetamol and naproxen/anarex and it does go away but fever came back again. For headache doctor tried tramadol and caffergot. Tramadol didnt work for me as i feel super lightheaded and headache didnt go away. Caffergot did work but it comes back again after few hours. Is this the side effect of surgery or I need to do try other meds? I spent so much on doctors and went ANE last time for a bleed on the incision and i dont want to go again for something i can treat at home if its nothing too concern.
mine was mid April, 4 bypass, mine went bad, had multiple other surgeries as a result. spend 65 days in hospital and 4 surgery. icu with drug induced coma 18 days. then cicu 52 total days. lucky I'm home and alive. by the way have 2 anyerisum in belly to now
Just had this done a bout a month ago. Pain wasn’t bad. Now I’m in a lot of pain in my shoulders, chest, neck, shoulder blades. I have RA, Diabetes, Systemic lupus. I wish this pain would go away and that I can find a better way to sleep and and sit to stand would be great. The lil pillow trick doesn’t work for me. I’m 44 years old. And Coronary Artery Disease runs in my family.
How do you feel now? Just had triple bypass and I hate the daily pains. Any tips? How long until your chest pain got better? My back and chest pains are so bad
Do yoga, very slow yoga. Plus, the diaphragm is a muscle and it can get tight and cramped too, which pulls on all the chest muscles , so also do several rounds of slow deep breathing throught the day and night. Make sure you're eating well and take a good multi vitamin minimum.
That is going to be difficult for me. I do not and have not been able to sleep on my back for more than 47 years. Always slept on my side or stomach. Also, luckily for me, I have a small dog that is elderly, that wants to go for walks
After my open heart surgery I went into a deep depression and didn’t exercise or eat right. Why don’t they talk about the psychological implications of the surgery?
My dad had open heart sergery CABG yesterday now he is admitted in ICU He is a sugar patient can you plz suggest me how to take care after he came at home..
One thing for sure, you cant use your arms after that surgery and have to sleep on your back for 4 weeks. So he'll need help with cooking and just about anything you use your arms for. They usually send you to rehab for a couple of weeks after the hospital but you still need alot of help for 2 months. It takes bone 6 to 8 weeks to heal. Not to mention everything else. The older you are, the longer it takes.
I had my aortic valve and another valve replaced on Dec 2 nd they also fixed a aneurism,It was just very sore for a week ,it’s really not that bad I couldn’t drive for 2 weeks but I’m good now ,you will feel much better after a month ! Walk as much as you can forget that rehab crap ,this is my 2 nd aortic valve replacement !
@@randywest9652 Wow great info. I am having same surgery next Wednesday. Ascending and Decending as well as bypass. I'm 42 with two girls I raise alone.
@@jasonkemp2853 this is my 2 nd time for aortic valve surgery open heart ,the first valve lasted eleven years and the surgery was really hard for me this time it wasn’t that bad they have improved on it over the last 10 years ,the first week was tough,then i was better every day ,only complaint was hospital food sucks :
Im hours away from my surgery, im terrified. Everyone tells me that ill be fine because of my age (34) but I don't want it....😪😪. I'll get through this but its bs...😭😭😭
@@shellynoble9466 Hello Ma'am, surgery went smooth, recovery was hard. I'm on day 4 in the stepdown unit and feeling much better. I wouldn't wish this on anyone but if you have to do it, keep a strong positive mental attitude. Lucky for me, my sense of humor has been keeping me going. I'm so grateful for your kind words and everything. I hope you are okay as well 😁😊
@@Kusv583 Amalgamation of different problems, COVID cause heart weakness, narrow veins, bad diet/plaque build up, severe untreated stress, etc. It was a whole bunch of things. I'm doing great, good days and bad days, trying to eat better and exercise more, it's hard with the price of everything. Trying to do better day by day.
The pain was EXCRUCIATING for 7 weeks for me! And the heart doctors kept trying to tell me I should only be on tylenol. THEY'RE INSANE. It's all about that opioid epidemic baloney and claim they cant write a script over 5 days. Which means you have to drag yourself into the office every week and beg. I hate them for it. I suffered like a dog and was bounced around from doc to doc when I could barely stand to ride in a car more than 10 minutes. You might not have much trouble with pain, but don't let them tell you it will be over quickly . They have to give you pain meds in the hospital because they cant have a bunch of screaming patients, but after you're discharged you're on your own. I only had one follow up with the surgeon and was discharged. Everyone else acted clueless as to my care. It was a nightmare in the twilight zone
@@deborahdean8867 I believe you. I had quadruple bypass Oct.2022. The pain was unbearable. I suffered for two months. I finally got a pain management doctor and to help me. The pain meds they prescribed me b fore were low dose pain meds. But the drug Lyrica helped calm down the nerve pain and spasms I was having. It’s 3 months since my operation and I’m feeling great. I’m not taking Lyrica anymore.
@@carmelasilvestri4207 good to hear. I think women have more pain with this surgery than men, but these doctors know that too. I'd never do it again, I'd doe instead, and all because of post OP pain control.....which is simple. They used to give people 6 to 8 weeks of pain medicine for broken bones and it should be the same here. People should get a promise for pain medicine before surgery. ( mine was an emergency though).
I’m so glad to hear that your recovery is getting better. Could you please update us on how it’s like now? My dad had a 4 way bypass and his recovery has been pretty rough. I have faith and hope, but hate to see my dad in pain. He had muscle pains on his arms and shoulders that even disrupts sleep. Did you have a similar experience? How is it now? I just don’t want that pain to be permanent. Please let us know. Thank you.
@@daturagirlHope your dad is doing better now! Quick question: how many weeks did it take for his coughing to go away, or at least not be so painful? My mom is approaching week 5 of post-op and it's extremely painful for her to cough, plus she has trouble lying down without coughing straightaway 😣
@@hellocharlieebarleyhey! it’s been about a year since my dad’s surgery. I can safely & proudly say that things have gotten SO MUCH BETTER. my dad’s cough lasted about 4 months post surgery. He practiced his breathing exercises with the spirometer. Usually they give you one post-op. I highly recommend your mom using it multiple times a day to increase airflow and manage the cough. It’s really rough though and it can be frustrating to the point she might want to give up using the spirometer, but she really has to use it everyday. One of the biggest post-op issues is the weakening of the lungs, think of it as a muscle that must be exercised everyday. The pain will be great, but with persistence and patience she can beat this thing. Be a good support for her and send her messages of hope and encouragement. This is a really brutal surgery that takes time for the body to heal and recover. I hope all is good and your mom can do it! My dad is in much better state now and he has even returned to work! (Although I kinda don’t want him to work, he should retire). The only thing is that brain has a hard to time to ignore the actual wound on the chest. The feeling of the metal is palpable by touching, but I can assure you pain does subside and with time your mom can get back to a normal life (of course she needs to remain healthy and take it easy)
You should do great because of your age. Just make sure you are thoroughly informed. Plan on going to rehab when they discharge you from the hospital. It helps alot.
@@deborahdean8867 also I have a problem where if I have local anaesthetics I can still feel everything that goes on and still feel the pain and whenever i get sedated for surgery I can always remember what happened for example when I was sedated to get my wisdom teeth taken out I woke up screaming because I remember everything they did and could point out which teeth they removed and in which order
@@haydnw869 well, theyll knock you out and keep you out until you're in ICU. I dont think you'll remember anything of the surgery. And they should give you whatever pain medicine you need when in the hospital
