Dustin has made it to the other side

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Dustin

Dustin

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 16, 2005
Messages
169
Location
Holland
Dear valvers,

I'm dropping you a line to say I'm doing OK after the AVR that took place on July 24th. I came home on the 1st and I'm trying to get my strenght back. It's almost 2 weeks post-op and I'm feeling kinda weak and tired because I still can't sleep through the night. Is this normal? Other than that I'm doing fine. I'm walking outside the house now and then and I'm trying to walk the stairs each day, which is really hard and pushes my heart rate. The rest of the day is filled with an endless supply of movies :D

I'll keep you updated on my progress,

Best wishes and many hugs,
 
Welcome back and to your new life. Sleeping a problem-Yeap, that's normal. Probably will be for a long time to come, so nap when you feel you can.
 
So glad to hear!!

So glad to hear!!

Hey Dustin! I wasn't aware when you were scheduled after the postponement. I am so glad it is done and over with! My best wishes for continued healing!!
 
Reviews?

Reviews?

Welcome back Dustin! Regular sleep patterns may take quite awhile to return. Sounds like your doing the right things. How about some reviews of those movies? Take care, Brian
 
All sounds normal, Dustin. Sleep will be elusive, but keep up the walking and enjoy being home!
 
Congratulations!! You're here!! That's excellent. You sound exactly right......weak but somehow energized; the incentive to heal is strong so keep up the walking, that's great! Don't forget to be using your breathing spirometer regularly...that will help with your healing and energy level, too. Lungs are very important!

Don't worry about the sleeping thing. I'm strange, I think, in that I never had any trouble sleeping...I think I must own more pillows than anybody! :p I just kept piling them all around me until I felt like I was floating and poof! off I'd go to sleep. I didn't sleep lying down for almost 3 months. Do you have a recliner to try sleeping in? Mine was very helpful.

Good luck. Keep up the great work and you'll be hard to keep up with in no time!!

:D :D Welcome back!! Marguerite
 
Dustin,

Way to go! Glad to hear you are recovering well. Yep, sleep can be elusive. Maybe if some of those movies are boring, you can doze off during those. :D
Naps are helpful. Keep up that walking, too.
 
Walk, sleep, eat, and breath. Those are the only "jobs" that a newly home valver should concentrate on. As Ross said, nap when you feel like it because a good full nights sleep is probably not possible right now.

Keep track of your heart rate when walking and going up stairs. Depending on how high it gets you may want to call your doctor about it. Sometimes people need to be put on a simple beta blocker to keep their heart rate down.
 
Justin,
Welcome home. Yes, the stairs are difficult after OHS. Is there some way you can stay on one floor or do you have stairs just to enter your home? If you can avoid stairs for the first couple of weeks (as long as you are doing your other walking) you will be more comfortable.
Sleeping will come eventually but don't be surprised if your sleep patterns change permanently (or at least for a while).
Enjoy those movies.
 
Welcome to the other side of the mountain. Glad your doing Ok....Like Gina said, you might want to avoid the stairs for a bit longer...I made good use of my pain meds at nite and still napped during the day or whenever I felt I needed one. Its a rough road ahead to gain back all your strength. That and not everyone recovers the same so don't let some of the stories of people who recovered quicker, get you down.

JohnnyV
 
Hi Dustin-

Congratulations and welcome home. All sounds pretty much par for the course from my vantage point as Joe's caregiver. Things will gradually smooth out. Be patient with yourself and celebrate all small triumphs. You've been through a heck of an operation!
 
Welcome Home, Dustin..Sounds like a normal recovery..Take one day at a time at this stage..I just hung around the house the first few weeks.:p Walking a little ouside..People like you are so lucky your found VR.Com before your surgery..I had not..and didn't know when I would ever feel better. Asked my surgeon at 3 week checkup..He said, give it 10 more weeks.Asked my Cardio the next day (same 3 week checkup)He took a look at my post-op meds and discontined all of them.:) Except my coumadin.I started to feel better much sooner...:D Be sure and take your meds with you for your 3 week appointments.Some of them may drag you down if you don't need to take them anymore.I was looking at my discharge papers a few weeks ago..got them out of the dust.:p ( 4 years now for me)and one was a med my sister takes for Acid Reflux..never had that, ever...She says, it makes her have bad dreams....so, you probably need to review them with your Cardio.....Take care and come back with any post-op questions.That's what we are here for:) Bonnie
 
Great to hear from you

Great to hear from you

Hi Dustin -
Thanks so much for posting to let us know that your surgery went well and you are home. At 2 weeks post-op I saw my cardiologist and he said that everybody he has ever seen at two weeks after valve surgery has felt tired and weak. He mentioned the usual causes, but another one I don't think I've seen mentioned on this site is borderline anemia from having your red blood cells 'roughed up' going through the bypass machine. Also that your body is in an anabolic healing phase (healing the wounds from surgery) which takes a lot of energy, and that lasts for at least a month. I've at 5+ weeks post op and I am doing a little more every day, but I still can't believe how easily I get tired.

Regarding sleeping, have you tried Restoril/Temazipan? I split the 7.5 mg capsules in half and take half at the beginning of the night and the other half when I would wake up during the night. I take as few medications as possible, but that one made a big difference for me. Also, even after I was able to cut way back on pain meds during the day I still took them at night to help me sleep. But, like others have said, if you can't get a full night's sleep just make sure that you are resting/sleeping a lot during the day - that is what your body needs to heal (of course along with walking, breathing,
eating, and smiling!).

Like the others I was waiting to hear about when your surgery was rescheduled to, and here you have already gone and made it safely over to this side of the mountain - congratulations, and sending you prayers for continued steady progress.

Take care,
Liz
 
Dustin,
I was wondering about you yesterday, so I'm glad to see from your thread that you're home.
It takes a little time, but you will feel better, bit by bit, each and every day.
Glad you're home!:)
 
Congratulations and welcome to this side! Sleep problems are the norm including night sweats, weird dreams, and also the hard to get comfortable problem. It will get better except in the rare instances. Keep the walking up for it will really help you get your strength back! Don't push the stairs too much though.
 
Dustin:

Good to hear that your surgery went well. Sounds like you're on normal recovery schedule.

Yeah, I saw an endless stream of movies too. I spent 2 weeks with my parents after I left the hospital, and my sister lined up a bunch of movies to keep me occupied. Since her daughter's wedding was 3 months off, every other movie she brought over was wedding related: The Wedding Planner, The Wedding Singer, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Father of the Bride, etc., etc. LOL!!!

If you haven't seen them and can locate a copy, watch Dress Code (1999, with Shirley MacLaine) and To Wong Foo With Love From Julie Newmar (I think that's the name), with Wesley Snipes & Patrick Swayze. You'll need a heart pillow to help out with the laughing.
 
adamsmom said:
Hey Dustin! I wasn't aware when you were scheduled after the postponement. I am so glad it is done and over with! My best wishes for continued healing!!
Click to expand...

The initial surgery was sheduled on the 18th but got canceled due to a nasal congestion. However, my local doctor could not find any evidence of an infection, so he phoned the hospital and the surgery was back on a week later. It went really fast.
 
Heya Dustin. Glad to hear you're home & improving. I am too - it will take some time, I think. More time than I thought but slow & steady wins the race....

I've been watching movies too, out the wazoo. Been fun, though, because we've not rented many movies over the past year so it's fun to catch up.

My wife got me an iPod for my birthday (which occured while I was still in hosp.) so I've been having fun getting to understand it and buying songs & adding them. I felt kinda funny because in hospital I wanted NOTHING to do with music or CD's. Only just now am I getting back into listening - and I'm a *musician*! Odd.

I've run a 99 degree fever most nights so sleep for me has been on & off, and night sweats have been the norm, too. It does seem to be improving, though.

Again glad to hear you're home & doing ok!

Chris
"musician2k"
 
"van Harte Beterschap"

"van Harte Beterschap"

Dustin...Glad you made it to the other side of the mountain so we say in the USA :) I sincerely hope that you'll have an uneventful recovery. Keep us posted..
Rest, and walk, walk, walk..
 
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