This is my first post to the group and I'd be so grateful for any support.
I'm looking after my 61 year old husband as he struggles through his post cardiac surgery (valve and root replacement) and wondering if anyone has any helpful suggestions. He had his surgery 19 days ago but unfortunately developed a chest infection that has been diagnosed as a hospital acquired pneumonia. He was acutely unwell and required cardioversion for fast AF and is now home, but recovery is slow and he is extremely tired.
If anyone has any words of encouragement I'd be so glad to hear them.
With my kindest regards to all.
Written by
1chooselife
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Sorry to hear of your husbands issues. It is a long and intrusive operation. Recovery is protracted but he will get there. After six weeks he should be invited to a cardiac rehab class, this will introduce him to others in similar circumstances, exercise and chats about healthy eating and drinking.
The tiredness is normal, let him nap, little and often and encourage him to take walks to boost the energy, start off slowly and gradually build up. Hopefully the weather will start to turn and you can get out and about easily.
Many of us were in exactly the same position, others here will be along with their recommendations as well as their own experiences.
Sorry to hear your husband is so poorly. I had aortic valve replacement in January. Was poorly straight after with eight days on ventilator.
My recovery seemed to go well when I got home but then it was discovered I had a fractured rib and six weeks post op developed pleurisy.
Two weeks after that I started cardiac rehab.
I am now feeling much better.
I am 72 and really did not think I would ever feel right again.
Persuade your husband to go out. Take him to lunch or morning coffee. He is a man so probably won't want to shop. My friends visiting and taking me out really helped.
Small goals, mine were walk my dog and drive again.
I read a lot and did jigsaws and played solitaire
Does he like puzzle books?
Unfortunately weather is bad which doesn't help.
I was told fifteen week recovery and I am thirteen weeks now so he is really early in the recovery process.
He will feel better but it is a slow progress. He is very early in the recovery process.
I really sympathise but there is no miracle recovery, it does take weeks, but if he takes it easy and does a little more every day, has plenty of rest, and gets out in the fresh air he will feel better and stronger week on week. I'm now 4 months post AVR and life is almost back to normal. I still have a cat nap in the afternoon, but I can now walk 4 miles, I'm back at work part time, and enjoying my hobby of singing (I'm 66). So tell him to keep positive, listen to his body, don't become complacent and overdo it, because he'll regret it. Best of luck to you both. Margaret x
Sorry to hear of your problems, it is both frustrating and a strain.
However, you can both get past this blip by having targets and determination.
I had an AVR and pre-emotive double by-pass back on Oct 2015.
I found the first few weeks really hard - tiredness and chest wound pain were the hard bits.
I did find that walking daily - lampost targeting was a great help
Although I soon realised not to over do things and listen to my body. Got caught having to walk back home with the wind blowing directly into me - had to turn my back to take a breath then take a few steps and repeat!
The cardio physio classes really helped and after the ten weeks I really had my confidence back
I did contract fluid on the lung and suffered a step back with that (took time for me to realise what I had)
Once that was sorted I really did get back on track and achieved my next goal of driving again and swimming again with no problems
The only frustration I had that there was no support after the ten week physio group and I didn’t know about this site then either.
I had helped another charity -
Prostate cancer - and their support group is second to none
Something that the likes of BHF and Chest Heart and strike could learn from
Hope things improve and remember if in doubt ask the experts.
No such thing as a stupid question just ineffiencient answers!
I love the idea of lamp post targeting and we'll play this new strategy today. Coughing is a real issue, and any exercise provokes it. Pneumonia, surgery and a cocktail of drugs have completely annihilated my husband's appetite and energy and I am trying to support him with everything that I can think of!
I’m recovering from a artery and valve replacement in the summer and a valve repair a few weeks ago and expected to have the valve repaired a few more times. I’m very tired/ unusual tired where I wake up properly in the evening and getting pains. My bloke is realising we have a different schedule at the mo but we are both off work. I fink it helps that he’s a doctor.
I’m 59 and had my second AVR last November, having previously had an AVR and root wrap. As others have said, it is completely normal to be tired to start with, especially if he is having trouble sleeping at night - it is so difficult to get comfy. Using pillows as a support or a v- shaped cushion might help if he is having trouble at night, especially if lying flat is causing coughing. Taking naps during the day is a good idea, otherwise he could get overtired which is counter productive as can then cause anxiety about not sleeping. It also takes a surprisingly long time for all the anaesthetic to get out of your system.
Try to gradually increase the walking, I struggled with this because of the weather and still get breathless, mainly in the cold.
Take the painkillers, if he’s out of pain he will be more willing to move around. Especially important is the dose at bedtime, as it hopefully helps with getting to sleep - hard to sleep if you’re in pain, and again in the morning so that he can get moving.
Recovering from heart surgery is a lesson in patience - something I’m not very good at! He needs to remember he has had major surgery and it will take a while to recover, but he will get there. I was back at work after 12 weeks, but I am secretary so not physically strenuous work.
Thank you for your reply. I appreciate it enormously. Yes, you're right: you're saying everything that others are saying. I don't think either of us was fully prepared for the impact of the surgery on memory, cognitive skills, tiredness and appetite and I confess to having been very alarmed. The hospital acquired pneumonia requiring cardioversion could not have been foreseen and this has really walloped Nick's recovery - and my nerves!
We're just trying to get through each day and night at the moment without me turning into a jelly, and being thankful for any sign of improvement!!!!
You’ll be surprised how quickly the nags start to improve. My memory and concentration were rubbish to start with, pointless trying to read cos I couldn’t remember what I’d just read, couldn’t remember people’s names etc etc. The pneumonia will have set things back as well. I ended up having to have a pacemaker a week after my op due to heart block, so that didn’t help.
Be prepared for good and bad days, I know some days I just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry my eyes out, but things do get better and fairly quickly too.
One big thing to remember is that there are lots of us on here who’ve had open heart surgery, so ask any questions you or Nick have, no matter how small you think they are, no point worrying about something if we can help.
lamp posts and driveways. Get a diary so you can measure your progress, nice and easy does it - you have to give your breastbone time to knit together and form a strong joint about 8-10 weeks, at which point you should get an invite to join a rehab group. You will probably get to know your neighbours a lot better as well
I got through quite a few books, the cough declined as my lungs cleared out all the fluids that were left behind. Going out to garden centres as all the new plants are coming through is good, cakes and tea pretty good too.
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