Back to work???

[kevin21]

Hi All!!

Concensus from what I've read here is that there is no consensus on how long after aortic valve replacement you can get back to work.

I've got a blossoming home building business and of course I need to have AVR here soon.

I really need to be back in about 3 weeks (at least office duty and some minor looking around at the sites) but I'm getting pretty discouraged about the liklihood of this happening.

I'm 34, asymtomatic for the most part (today I put a front load washer and dryer up on pedistals myself, then did 2-3 hours of cleaning and moving stuff in my garage) but I know that has maybe little effect on life after a beatdown in the hospital

Health comes first but with no $$ it's hard to heal.

 

[Greg a]

Hi All!!

Concensus from what I've read here is that there is no consensus on how long after aortic valve replacement you can get back to work.

I've got a blossoming home building business and of course I need to have AVR here soon.

I really need to be back in about 3 weeks (at least office duty and some minor looking around at the sites) but I'm getting pretty discouraged about the liklihood of this happening.

I'm 34, asymtomatic for the most part (today I put a front load washer and dryer up on pedistals myself, then did 2-3 hours of cleaning and moving stuff in my garage) but I know that has maybe little effect on life after a beatdown in the hospital

Health comes first but with no $$ it's hard to heal.

Page 50 outlines suggested guideline

http://www.smgh.ca/_uploads/PageContent/documents/Heart_Surgery.pdf

BUT you MUST talk this over with your cardio .....YOUR STERNUM must have at least eight weeks to fully heal

 

[ALCapshaw2]

The usual guideline is the have a 5 pound Lifting / Pulling / Pushing Limit for 6? weeks when the sternum will be healed to about 80% of it's final strength. It takes another 6 weeks to reach 100%.

The usual recommendation for returning to non-physical type of work (i.e. a desk job) is 6 weeks with NO complications. Any 'bumps in the road' will add to that delay in returning to work.

We've have a Very Few members who were younger / in great shape / more driven, who returned to non-physically demanding jobs in just a few weeks.

'AL Capshaw'

 

[jake]

Kevin:

Interesting post, I’m in your wheel house directly on this issue so I will pipe up.

I am post-op 11 weeks almost to the day. I had about 4” of my ascending aorta repaired so you’re pretty much in for the same ride. I am an auto mechanic, welder, and fabricator. My job is very labor intensive, only problem is, there is no office work for me. I teach during the day so I can always make the kids do the grunt work, but it’s a stress-fest being pulled in every damn direction. I’m only 45 years old and a very physical and love to work and play hard!

When I went in for surgery, the Doctor told me I won’t even want to go back to work before 12 to 14 weeks. I laughed and said “watch me.” Well here I am at 11 weeks and I’m going back this Friday. The only reason I am going back that early is because I can’t hold my sub any longer. Shop class in a High School is a pretty brutal assignment let alone for a sub. If not for the loss of this very good sub, I would gladly be happy to stay out for another 2-3 weeks. I really have no choice.

Truthfully, I am a little bit reluctant to return, but in my mind, I don’t see myself being any less reluctant in two or three weeks from now. It’s just that whole idea of being a little bit afraid that I will struggle to keep up when I return.

Pain wise, it really does not hurt that much any more. Energy wise, I am only about 75% at best. I am still on a 15 lb lifting restriction so strength wise, im at like a 10% by virtue of the restrictions. Mentally, I’m just not feeling that tough right about now but that too will change once I get back.

It will all get better when I get back into my groove, but it’s just like that trip into the hospital to get the surgery. It was a lot scarier when I did it that it is looking back at it. I will let you know how its going in a few weeks once I have been back on the job, but take my word for it, your going want to take the time you need to get yourself right after this is all over. Play it as it comes to you and be ready to take all the time the surgeon tells you’re going to need.

Two things that they kept telling me that was 100% right on the money:

1) Young people hurt a lot more than older folk’s do and 2) younger folks tend to bounce back quicker than older folks do. Well for me, it initially hurt like hell, and I am feeling pretty good at 11 weeks out. I just had the stomach flu and threw up for like 24 straight hours last weekend. Two days later, I am just fine! When I got out of the hospital, a cough made me feel like I was going to blow my guts out on the table.

We are all differant but I think most will agree. Most of us wanted back to our regular lives ASAP and were banking on a fast recovery. I had about as eventless of a recovery as a person could have and at 11 weeks, Im not quite looking forward to going back just yet. If you can get the time, take it!

 

[Lionheart]

Kevin,
Your ability to return to physical or even mental type work is really going to depend on whether or not you hit any bumps along the way. Many have recovered quickly and easily from the surgery but some suffer from little problems that set recovery back a few days or weeks.

The main thing is not to rush the recovery phase because trying to get back to work and stuff too soon can backfire and set you back for even longer. That doesn't mean that you are going to be sitting around for this time period. Recovery means rehab and healing. You will need to devote a lot of time to both.

I imagine part of your business is mental and you may find that the surgery will make you a bit foggy on your thinking and it may take a while before you are fully engaged and functional.
I hope I'm not discouraging you but you need to be realistic in what to expect. Overall I would expect a short recovery for you, but plan ahead and be prepared for a longer recovery period so that you are not mentally or emotionally stressed if it happens.
Best
John

 

[carolinemc]

Most conses here says 6 to 8 weeks after surgery with doctor checking you back to work. Even when you do back, you want to be limited on what you can do. The sternum generally takes a year to fully heal, but for work, like I said, 6 to 8 weeks. And lifting weight. pulling and pushing is to be limited till doctor says you can do more. And if you work a keyboard, take breaks and be sure to slowly stretch out, one tends to bend over the keyboard and you have to slowly straighten up, I did, plenty of times. Just do not rush your body, it will heal with time. Just give yourself time, after surgery to heal. You will do fine. Just do not rush anything, please promise.

 

[Mentu]

Hi, Kevin, you are right that returning to work really depends upon how one is progressing in one's recovery. As half of a small business, I absolutely appreciate your position. Still, I think it is short sighted to trade your future health for a return to work before you are ready. My surgeon said I could start driving at 5 weeks. I started Cardiac Rehab at 6 weeks and returned to work at 7 weeks. How you progress will be unique to you and depends upon a number of factors. You absolutely need those first 3 weeks after surgery during which the incisions in your heart and chest should heal; nothing should be allowed to interfere with that. During that time, your body will also shed the drugs you were given while hospitalized; you do not want to be making decisions until your mind is clear. Your sternum will not be healed until about 12 weeks. During that time, you must avoid the lifting, pushing, pulling that can damage your sternum and leave you with permanent debility. Healing once takes less time than healing twice, Kevin.

That said, by the end of three weeks you should be getting back some of your stamina if you have been resting, eating, and walking. You might consider arranging to do some work from home. By the fourth week, if you need to be in the office, you may find that you can do so for part of the day but you are still going to find that any exercise leaves you very tired. Exercise during recovery is a good thing but working to exhaustion every day during those early weeks is likely to be counter productive and prolong your recovery. If you are going to return to work as soon as you can, you will need to be very careful to listen to what your body is telling you and to adjust your level of activity accordingly.

Larry

 

[kevin21]

I appreciate the advice from everyone. Just to clarify, I'm just the owner/ superintendent I don't actually do physical work besides walking and checking on things.

That crack about lifting the washer and dryer was just to show the level of activity I do with the severe leakage.

I'm just needing to be back to work as soon as I can. I've got 5 houses to start/ build in the next 3-4 months and people will be expecting them to move along. Hopefully they will be understanding of the situation and hopefully I will have a super that will be looking over the work and keep it under control. This 6-8 weeks stuff isn't going to fly. This is big money on the line but I know I need to take care of my health or it is all for not. 5-6 years of this level of building and I'm going to retire.

 

[Lynlw]

I appreciate the advice from everyone. Just to clarify, I'm just the owner/ superintendent I don't actually do physical work besides walking and checking on things.

That crack about lifting the washer and dryer was just to show the level of activity I do with the severe leakage.

I'm just needing to be back to work as soon as I can. I've got 5 houses to start/ build in the next 3-4 months and people will be expecting them to move along. Hopefully they will be understanding of the situation and hopefully I will have a super that will be looking over the work and keep it under control. This 6-8 weeks stuff isn't going to fly. This is big money on the line but I know I need to take care of my health or it is all for not. 5-6 years of this level of building and I'm going to retire.

IF you really just need to walk around and check out things..One thingI would consider is is there someone that could drive you? Most times you won't be cleared to drive until 6-8 weeks and (If you do drive before then and have any problems, insurance companies might not cover you and you could be found at fault)
Would it be possible to do that just a couple hours a day in the beginning?
One of the problems with doing anything before you are supposed to is you can easily cause a set back, and you could end up out of work even longer, than if you just followed the guidelines.

 

[tobagotwo]

Insurance companies are fine with six to eight weeks for non-physically-strenuous jobs. Since they don't like to pay without very good reason, that seems to be a pretty good marker. And the driving issue is very real.

You would not want to find out that your inability to turn fully around to look behind, to whip your body around, or to really crank that wheel had caused injury to someone. On a practical npote, your insurance might very well not cover you in such a situation, without a note from your doctor saying you are clear to drive again.

I suggest you start haf-days, as you may be surprised how quickly it wears you out.

It can be done sooner, and there are people here who have, but the payback would have to be substantial to make it worth it.

Best wishes,

 

[kevin21]

Insurance companies are fine with six to eight weeks for non-physically-strenuous jobs. Since they don't like to pay without very good reason, that seems to be a pretty good marker. And the driving issue is very real.

You would not want to find out that your inability to turn fully around to look behind, to whip your body around, or to really crank that wheel had caused injury to someone. On a practical npote, your insurance might very well not cover you in such a situation, without a note from your doctor saying you are clear to drive again.

I suggest you start haf-days, as you may be surprised how quickly it wears you out.

It can be done sooner, and there are people here who have, but the payback would have to be substantial to make it worth it.

Best wishes,

My rip on the houses is over $200k so I'm needing to bust butt and get going again.

I need some builder help or a smoooooth recovery.

 

[BackDoc]

It all depends on the individual. I was back in my office seeing patients 3x a week, 4 hours a day by week 4. Each of the next two weeks I just increased by an hour a day. By week 8 I was working a full week. The best advice I can give to anyone is: sit down and daily envision yourself as you want to be, not as you are or think you might be. Also, make sure you get out of the house and in public a few times each week following your surgery. My wife and I would go out to lunch a few days each week--it really helps mentally to see other people, whether you know them or not.

 

[ski girl]

Hi Kevin-

I might be able to give you a bit of hope! I took the week after surgery off work (obviously, I was in the hospital) but honestly I was bored during week 2 and got onto my emails, I got tired quickly and was religious about naps but my brain was functioning fine so I could yap on the phone and type on the computer no worries.

Week three I was freakin' bored and came in to work half time, some days a bit more, some a bit less, depending how tired I was. I wasn't in any pain and I have an office job, and could take the bus to and from work. By week four I was back essentially full-time although still very much in tune with my body and leaving when I needed to if I felt tired.

I think if I had stayed at home and off work for the recommended six weeks I would have felt miserable and really sorry for myself and it would not have helped with my recovery. I'm 40 years old, was very fit going in to the operation and close on asymptomatic. From what I've read on here I bounced back VERY quickly (I did end up back in the hospital several times with a heart rate 150bpm so it wasn't a perfect recovery), but you may too - your body will tell you when it needs to rest and as long as you listen to it and follow all the physical recommendations you should be fine to go back to desk work as soon as your brain gets over the anesthetic fuzz! Not that I'm a doctor though

Best of luck!!