QUESTIONS for the ladies who have been through heart surgery!

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malibu82

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 5, 2010
Messages
478
Location
Libertyville Illinois
Hey ladies!

Just curious, I keep forgetting to ask the nurse and it's probably better to hear it from you all since you have been through it yourselves......

BRA's. Should I even bother packing any? Am I going to be able to wear one? What the heck do I do? Sports bra?

HAIR. Should I even bother to pack hair stuff, like shampoo/conditioner? Can you brush your own hair? I didn't even think of that. It seems like it would be painful. My hair is long and I always have tangles in it. Greatttttttttttttttttt.

CLOTHES. What kind should I pack? What will I be wearing there and weeks following?

Anything else you think would be helpful to know please tell me!

Thanks :)
 
In answer to some of your questions,

If I were you, I wouldn't bother packing a bra. You will be very tender in & around that area so the less binding the better! If you absolutely have to have some support, pack one of those nightbras......they work okay & are not as binding as regular or sport bras.

I have always had short hair so that was not too much of an issue for me. After I was given the okay to shower, with the nurse's assistance, they helped me with shampooing & rinsing out my hair. I took my hairdryer & hairbrush but I was so sore I couldn't use them the first few times, so I would let my hair air dry. If your hubby, relative or friend is accompanying you, then perhaps they can help dry your hair with the dryer. I would recommend you take your favorite shampoo & for that matter, other toiletries that you might pack to go on a trip, like lip balm, deorderant, etc.

Take very loose fitting clothes with you to wear when you are discharged. You may want to take a pair of pajamas with you but you probably won't be able to wear them until all the catheters are removed. Make sure the top opens in the front..... nothing you have to slip over your head......YIKES!

Take your laptop if you have one & a book if you feel like reading once you're in your room. But believe me, the first few days, you won't be up to doing much of anything. Remember to do your breathing exercises to remove the phlegm & walk as often as you can.

Wishing you the very best with your surgery!

Godspeed!
 
Hi Malibu,

Hair: I brought elastics and wore my hair in two braids after open heart surgery. My hair is past shoulder length and from all the sweating post-op I was happy to get it 'out of the way'. My sister was kind enough to wash my hair with a no rinse shampoo (I purchased) about 4 days post op as well. :). This can be a bit tricky, but she is a nurse and is used to doing this kind of thing.
Bra: I did bring a bra with clasps for front closure and it was made of a very soft material-wick-away (no cups, no wires and no embroidery etc). My sister found it at Walmart of all places and it only cost $12. I did wear it towards the end of my hospital stay. I was told by the charge nurse that if I can wear this type of bra, it would lessen the pulling on the incision from the breasts. However, everyone is different!
Clothes: I brought my own PJ's that I changed into later on...made me feel more like myself. However, it was a two piece (top with capri bottoms), the top was short sleeved button up the front (cotton and light). I also brought some comfy cushiony sandals that I wore for my daily walks.

I would also check the sticky thread on what to bring to the hospital. It is most helpful.

Hope this helps. All the best,
 
I agree with the two responses above.

I sweated a lot after my surgery. It was July in Atlanta which is about an average of 90 degrees. My hair was very long at the time and I wish I had gotten it cut before my surgery. It was very tangled and annoying and in my way. One of the nurses in ICU braided it for me and I could have kissed her for it. I kept it in two braids for the rest of my hospital stay. As soon as the took out my drainage tubes I took a shower. The first time a nurse helped but after that I was able to pretty much do it myself. It felt sooooooo good to shower and wash my hair, I did that daily after I was able to.

Regarding a bra, I did not wear a bra in the hospital at all. What I did wear for the weeks after the surgery was a camisole (with built in bra) that was a couple of sizes too big for me. It was loose fitting but gave me some support and didn't interfear with my healing scar. After that I bought a few (cheap) bras without underwire to wear and then after that I went back to my regular bras.

I pretty much wore the hospital gown until the last day or so (I was in the hospital for 7 days). I also brought some loose fitting PJs (a couple of sizes larger than my normal size in fun styles) with button top and a pocket in the top for the halter monitor. You definately want loose fitting (I had a lot of swelling from fulid retention).

I brought slippers but mostly wore the non-skid socks they gave me.

One thing I do recall was I was very, very sweaty. I had my husband bring a clip-on fan that I had on me pretty much the whole time. I highly recommend this.

I wish you much luck and a speedy recovery.

Liz G
 
If someone is going with you to the hospital don't bring anything, you won't need anything for 24 hours. Who ever goes with you, they can take your street clothes home with them. Once you get moved to a room, your friend/family came bring up a small bag of items. Brush, tooth brush, underwear, and socks

As for myself, I use their shampoo and let it air dry (didn't have any help) and wore capri bottoms and their night gowns. Wore a sweatshirts and sweat pants to come home in and continued to wear sweats for many weeks after coming home. I have an over size sweat shirt that was rather easy to get on. As for a bra - didn't wear one until maybe the scabs were gone (I only have a couple of speed bumps, so wearing a bra wasn't a big deal)

SLIPPERS - you'll need something on your feet for those walks down the hallway.

P.S. I've sent a you PM.
 
malibu82 said:
Hey ladies!

Just curious, I keep forgetting to ask the nurse and it's probably better to hear it from you all since you have been through it yourselves......

BRA's. Should I even bother packing any? Am I going to be able to wear one? What the heck do I do? Sports bra?

HAIR. Should I even bother to pack hair stuff, like shampoo/conditioner? Can you brush your own hair? I didn't even think of that. It seems like it would be painful. My hair is long and I always have tangles in it. Greatttttttttttttttttt.

CLOTHES. What kind should I pack? What will I be wearing there and weeks following?

Anything else you think would be helpful to know please tell me!

Thanks :)
Click to expand...
About everything's been covered. I had sturdy and familiar flip-flops next to my bed that I could slip my feet into and out of without leaning over. I wore two hospital gowns. One with the opening in the back and one reversed as a robe.

Post-op sweating is unpleasant and common, plus they cover the hospital mattresses with plastic. Good for avoiding other's germs but icky to lay on. Lots of sweating going on. Leading to more icky hair issues.

Hair: I will need this surgery again and I've worn my thick hair long for decades but I lost so much, a tremendous amount, of hair through the early months post-op -- I was shocked and depressed over it but it did all grow back -- that I'm hoping to have the nerve to cut my hair much shorter before the next time, because it had to all grow back in anyway and the long hair was some trouble for me for a few post-op weeks.

Personally, I couldn't concentrate on any reading materials that I'd brought. The rehab people will be after you to walk nearly every waking moment anyway. Pacing up and down those long hospital corridors and around the nurse's station over and over again. Lots of fun.

By the way, my surgeon's office gave me a packet of info that covered some questions like this. Maybe you could ask yours if they have a packet like that. Best wishes :)
 
I did wear a bra into the hospital, but when I tried to put it on afterwards, I just found it too uncomfortable. I was a little worried since I had to fly home, but I just layered a couple of shirts and was fine. I wasn't allowed to shower until I was about 6 days post op b/c I had to keep my chest tubes in longer than most, so I couldn't wait to wash my hair. I did take my hair dryer and was able to brush it and dry it by myself. For longer hair, I definitely think wearing it in braids would be the way to go. I stayed in the hospital gown the whole time just because I found it more convenient...it had a pocket to slide the heart monitor in and since I kept my chest tubes in for so long, I also kept my catheter in which definitely made the gown a must. For discharge, I would just recommend really loose, comfortable clothing.
 
I forgot to mention perhaps you may want to take mascara, lip liner, lip stick & some blush with you.

After spending 13-14 days in the hospital, I was ready to make myself look & feel better & the mascara, blush & lip colour definitely made a difference!

Hopefully you won't be in the hospital that long though! :)
 
Thank you all so much for the information. My AVR is scheduled for May 25th and i have had the same questions. Not big busted but cant imagine a bra on!! I do have a few camis and will wear one home. I am hoping for cool weather but that is not always the case in Arkansas in late May. I will get a new valve 2 days before my 57th birthday. What a gift.

LU
 
The only clothes I brought with me were what I was wearing.

As for hair, well, mine felt like an oil slick for a week; it felt so yucky. A nurse in ICU did wash it and that felt so good, but only lasted for a day or so. Before you're able to shower, if no one offers, ask if you can get your hair washed. They had this shower cap thing-y that was put on my head. It was warm and when the nurse rubbed it, it sudsed up the hair. There was no need to rinse, and though I couldn't say it gave me a really a good-hair day, I did feel clean; that in itself made me feel better. You should be able to shower either the day before you go home or the day that you do as they usually like to see how you do afterwards. So if you want to bring some shampoo, that's great, if you forget, no doubt they'll be able to supply you with some.

As for a bra, I was given one a few days after surgery. It's a stretchy number with a velcro-closing in the front, very handy. Style wise, not much to it, kind of like something from Montegomery Ward circa 1959. I didn't have a sternotomoy, but I would think it would be comfy even if you did. It was nice to wear home. I've heard quite a few hospitals provide these. You might ask about this when you go in for you pre-op stuff.

Lip balm -- a very good thing to have with you.
 
Another thing I HAD to do was have my legs shaved. I can't stand to have hairy legs. So, I told my husband before we even left for the hospital that it was going to be his job to shave them as soon as possible. I took some baby lotion to the hospital (good to have for those much needed shoulder rubs) and a razor and as soon as I was settled in my bed out of ICU (48 hours after surgery), I had my husband break out that baby lotion and shave my legs right in the bed. That felt like heaven!
 
Great info all around. Just to add a few things. I took a pair of my husband's boxer shorts to wear under the hospital gown. You can also put one gown on like a robe and be covered in back when you are walking around. My hair got disgusting (it's fine and shoulder length). Some women said there were beauticians on staff to come and wash hair; I never found any in my hospital -- and they're spendy. Nurses gave me some cap filled with no-rinse shampoo and it was somewhat refreshing. I would definitely consider putting your hair in braids -- good idea.

I had my family bring me several extra pillows from home. Squishy and old (if you want to throw them away) or just cheapies. I found that propping myself up with several pillows was much more comfortable in those hard beds.

I bought a surgical bra from a very lovely company and cannot find it online now!! I am very large-breasted and simply knew that I needed something. I passed it along -- don't know where it's gone. Had velcro in the front. I managed to use it by wearing one of my husband's (sorry) "wife-beater" undershirts underneath. Those cottony-soft-ribbed t-shirts are wonderful. A camisole is also a perfect idea.

I took along my iPod and a deck of cards and spent most of my time playing solitaire or just zoning out to my music. had a photo of my family with me at all times -- that's the most important thing to put into your suitcase!! ;o)

Good luck and Godspeed!!!

Marguerite
 
Malibu and Fromlu, you've gotten a lot of great info (and Lily I am so glad you mentioned hair loss, maybe I can stop freaking out about my continuing to thin hair!) but one thing that can make a difference on the bra is how much support you need. If you are small-busted, it may be a non-issue.

I realized that my surgeon did something very clever, that I did not fully notice and appreciate until a few weeks after surgery when I decided to try wearing a bra again, but the sternotomy incision is not equidistant from both breasts, i.e., is not exactly centered. He made the incision slightly off center, very close to the inner edge of my right breast. The reason I think this is clever is, if a bra has any stitching or lumpiness right in the middle between the cups, having the incision just a tad off center means the incision will not be touched by that feature of the bra. I do not know if that was on purpose or chance, but if on purpose, what a great idea! You might want to ask your surgeon if that is a normal feature of sternotomies on women, or if I just got lucky. (I know I am lucky, that AVR saved my life!) Edited to add, Fromlu that is a great Birthday present you are getting; I got mine a few months after my 58th Birthday.
 
thank you everyone for all of your information. it's very helpful in planning and packing. i feel better now that i know what to expect :) jeanie, i know exactly what you mean about bras having that extra lump or detail right in the middle, so that was great your surgeon angled your incision. i wonder if it was for that purpose or not?
 
My first surgery, I got a small infection from bra rubbing on my incision. I need support and am uncomfortable going braless so was thrilled to find lightweight, fully stretch, no hook or underwire bra from Barely There. I buy them on line at OneHanesPlace.com or in Macy's. They are moderate priced and I saved them after I healed from the first surgery and was glad I did when I learned, four years later, I needed a second surgery.

I found I needed very little with me in the hospital. Lip balm was high on my list of comfort items, a brush, comb, toothbrush and paste, open back slippers I could slide into, pencil and paper to jot down questions for doctors/nurses, cellphone and charger. I brought a book but couldn't read and didn't even want tv. I rested whenever left alone to do so. I brought a robe but never used it. I much preferred using two hospital gowns.

My nurse helped me shower the first time and stayed with me for subsequent showers. My hair is short so merely combed it and let air dry.

Anything you really need will be supplied by the hospital if you didn't bring your own.
 
I didn't wear a bra in the hospital, and only ordered them after I'd been home for a week or so. I found some comfy cotton ones that hook in the front. I couldn't have reached around to hook them in the back. As for hair, I'm six months out, and I think I'm still losing more hair than I used to. Fortunately, my hair is very thick and so it doesn't look like I'm missing any. Unfortunately, my hair is very thick and I leave lots of it around the house and in my car. I too got the shampoo-in-a-bag or whatever it was in the ICU; didn't get another shampoo until I took my first shower about four or five days post-op. My hair looked great when I arrived at the hospital; after surgery, it looked pretty awful, but I didn't care very much. Another piece of advice: I wore a lovely lime green linen shirt home from the hospital. My husband said it matched my complexion. Not a good color after such a big surgery!
 
I had a pulmonary mechanical valve replacement (2nd OHS) in Aug 2009. I didn't worry so much about a bra, and it was maybe three weeks after the surgery before I wore one. One thing that did help when I was in the hospital is I bought some dry shampoo from Sephora (can't remember the brand name). But you can spray it in your hair and it sort of sucks up the grease. It was probably 8 days after the surgery that I was able to take a shower - sitting down with a chair in the tub - and whoever said their hair felt like a grease slick is reading my mind. I did take cat baths with just a washcloth in the hospital, but I was so tender around the incision site, everything just ached.

Another good tip was to bring (or have someone in your family) bring body lotion and lip balm. Once I was out of ICU, my skin felt very dry. I had to take lasix since i was retaining fluid, but my skin felt swollen the lotion made it feel better (not too much is needed, just a little bit). And my lips were just gross and chapped, even though they took the breathing tube out the same day after the surgery.

Oh, one more quick note: I also asked my family to bring clean socks with them. My feet got cold and clean socks helped a lot. One thing that also helped is I changed my socks maybe 1-2x a day. I don't know if anyone else felt "grimy" after the surgery, but it was so refreshing to have soft fuzzy socks.

Good luck and prayers sent!
 
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