Four weeks ago, today...

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mrichardson

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 2, 2016
Messages
64
Location
Near Dallas, TX
Was my surgery. Still doing well. My left drain tube "hole" is finally healing like it should. I had to put a bandage on it yesterday because the scab fell off. Otherwise, I'm doing very well.

Although I think the muscles in the middle of my chest by my incision are still adjusting, because sometimes when I get up from sleeping, they hurt for a few seconds.
 
Sounds like you're on track. The drains heal, sometimes quickly, sometimes not. As long as the wounds are clean and healthy-looking, just care for them and protect them. Let nature take its course.

Chest muscles are a bit more difficult to judge. They will heal, for all intents and purposes, fairly quickly. But. . . they may feel "funny" and hurt a bit for quite a long time. Before my surgery I was a self-admitted gym rat. I did a lot of different exercises, including push-ups. At the time of my surgery I was doing 3 sets of 60 push-ups daily. After surgery, I could not stand to do even one - for quite a while. It wasn't until almost 6 months after surgery that I was able to tolerate any push-ups, and even then, I had to start all over again with shorter sets. I'm really not back to where I was, but not because of my chest muscles. This time, as I got older (now 68), the bit of arthritis I have in my shoulders has acted up, so I have to do shorter sets of push-ups, and fewer total reps, to avoid pain that can last through the day.

I would say that by 9 to 12 months, my chest muscles were fully recovered. Don't rush it, things take a while but they will return to normal.
 
Sounds like you're on track. Just keep moving and eventually things begin to loosen up. Next thing you know, the pain and stiffness goes away. Hope things continue to go smoothly.

Tom
 

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