Recovery

[pdm]

I had an aortic aneurism and had the aortic valve and part of the aorta replaced. I am 46 years old and was in good health. I have finished my physical therapy but still feel very fatigued most of the time. My surgery was about 4 months ago. What type of recovery time should I expect to get back to 80-90% of what I was before the surgery?

 

[Phyllis]

Welcome to the forum! Everyone's recovery is different, but many say it takes a full year to complete recovery. Have you been going to a cardiac rehab group or in lieu of that have you been walking daily?

 

[pdm]

Yes, I have gone to cardiac rehab for three months (just finished), three times a week and walk on the off days also. I plan to continue to work out 5 or 6 times a week at a health club. My INR tests come back fine as well as my blood panels.

 

[mntbiker]

Being back to 80-90% of your pre surgery level is rather subjective. What were your activities presurgery? What are your activities now? What are your expectations and what are you doing to achieve them?

Details man details!



You will get back, but as Phyllis stated it does take about a year for a full recovery.

 

[JimL]

Welcome, PDM. I could write the same thing you wrote to describe my surgery some years ago: same age, same time of year for surgery, same basic surgery. Some say it takes a year to recover; others say two years. It was about this same time after surgery that I was in the hospital visiting a friend, and one of the nurses I had had (I called her Susie Sunshine because of her wonderful smile) said it was her 37th birthday. I realized then, as I was approaching my 47th birthday, that I felt only 37 years old. That could be a mark of recovery.
One year after surgery, almost to the day, I started a second job which I had to keep for 9 months; by the following summer (well over a year after surgery) I was on my way downhill. That could be a mark that recovery wasn't yet complete.
Now, over 5 years after surgery, I'm still here at VRcom every day, probably because the surgery changed my whole life. I suppose that is a mark that I still haven't fully recovered from surgery, and probably never will.
I wouldn't say that I am now 80-90% of what I was before surgery. In some respects I'll never be there again. In other respects, such as general physical health, I feel over 150% of what I was even several years before surgery.

 

[WayneGM]

Hi PDM, and welcome to the VR community. As already mentioned, "recovery" is kind of subjective and seems to be different for everybody. In my case, I'm going into my 14th month post-op and I'd say I'm hovering at the 80% - 90% mark....90% most days, but the occasional 80% day. It took about a year to get there, but I seem to be holding there as I can't say I've felt I've been progressing lately. Perhaps once the good weather comes and I can get outdoors more. I'm pretty much doing 100% of my daily physical activities. However, generally speaking I don't have the stamina I used to. I can't walk/run as fast, or lift as much as I used to, and I need more sleep. Also my incision still bothers me (itchy and touch sensitive).

 

[Susan BAV]

Hi and welcome to the site; glad you found it -

Are you having any A-fib or any other heart rhythm problems? That can bring fatigue. How about allergies? It's that time of year and they can cause fatigue. Too many meds can, of course, also. Have you talked with your cardio about it? Perhaps he can make an adjustment to anything you might be taking.

I think by five months post-op I was feeling really well (not perfect, but so much better than pre-op); but I was pretty ill before the valve replacement. Some here weren't feeling so ill before the surgery so I think it might take awhile to feel better after such an assault on your body, if a patient wasn't feeling badly before. But it was the reverse for me. That said, however, I had a very strenuous stress test about 10 months post-op and I think it set my recovery back somewhat for a few months.

You may notice feeling better month by month, rather than week by week. Take care and post again.

 

[Marguerite53]

Hello and welcome.

Yep. Everyone is different. It's as if the whole ordeal takes some things with you and throws them away forever, and then adds some things to you that you are thrilled to have gained. The best way to handle the change is with patience. You are in recovery. It will take as long as it takes. While it is happening, look around you and respect a new way to approach things, if necessary, to achieve what you seek.

I am close to a year out. Maybe it's the springtime, but I suddenly feel almost jubilant. My energy at age 53 (not really all the stamina I'd remembered 10 years ago when my 3 children were running circles around me) is back. But not every day.

During the last year, I felt like I was best at about 4-6 months out and then I kind of fell into a tired zone. I think many of us weave in and out of these zones for whatever reason....maybe it's the cold winter affecting us a little more harshly, or pollen season, or the holiday stress, or going back to work stress. We definitely have to view our selves a bit more gently for awhile.

At this point, I think in a year's time from now I will be better than I ever was. Ever. If you'd asked me about that 6 months ago I wouldn't have been so sure.

One day you will wake up and say, a-ha!! This is where I've wanted to be!! You'll get there....you just may change your mind about where "there" is by the time you reach it. So many things do not matter in the same way once you have arrived at the understanding that being here at all takes precedence over everything.

Marguerite

 

[Tom F.]

Recovery differs from person to person. My surgery was at age 49. If I recall, it was a good nine months before I began to feel 100%.

 

[CathyK.]

I am 44 and 7 weeks post-op, back to work, can't sleep at night, on meds for a-fib for awhile but feel pretty good. I asked to go back to work and came back at 5 weeks out. I can't say that I feel 80 to 90 percent but I do think I have more energy now than I had before surgery. Everyone is different so just let your body do its thing. Patience my dear, patience.

 

[ruth]

Listen to these folks here, everyone is different.

Marguerite is right about the first year's journey and states it so poetically. We're all very lucky to be here at all and there will be ups/downs, etc. Sometimes I liken it to watching my boys grow up, I see them every day so it looks like there's no change. Others go a month and say 'my goodness he's grown 2 inches!'. It's hard to see what is so gradual.

Be patient yet be wary. Go see your PCP if you have concerns about fatigue. It might be something and it might not even be heart related (gasp!). I know I tend to think EVERYTHING is heart related these days but I've also had the flu & bronchitis since surgery and they knocked me down. I'm always fatigued by tree pollen (aka now). It's hard to separate it all.

I wish you all the best,
Ruth

 

[kodi]

Like everyone else has said, we're each different. I told my friend the other day we're an experiment of one, probably something I read on this forum. I personally am very blessed. I was in good physical condition prior to surgery. I'll be six months on April 5 and except for running I'm 90-95% back to normal. My running is coming along slowly (I ran a 1/2 marathon on Saturday)...it's in a separate post. My biggest problems is I'm still depending on lasix because of water retention but have cut back on it and if I overexert myself during the day, I tend to get a lot tirder (is that a word?) late in the afternoon. BTW, I'm 69.