Weak voice

My husband had a quadruple heart bypass 8 weeks ago. He is making a steady recovery and can now walk up and down gentle hills for 45 minutes each day. However he is often very tired and has to have a couple of naps lying on his bed each day. What we both find strange is that his voice has changed since his operation and now sounds very weak and quiet, especially when he is tired. Has anyone else experienced this and will it improve in time?

[080311]

Hi, having heart surgery is a major op and you are on the table for some little while, anaesthetic takes some time to get out of our system. The exercises we were given huffing and puffing moving our neck from side to side in hospital helps with getting our lungs working properly again. He is doing really well with his recovery, and as he gets stronger the improvement will continue. He is doing the right thing listening to his body when he feels tired he as a nap, as his stamina improves these will become less frequent. I didn’t have the voice problem so can’t really say, though would think it will improve as his strength comes back.

I wish you both the very best in the weeks and months to come, onwards and upwards! Stay safe Pauline

[Hidden in reply to 080311]

Thank you so much for replying- I think we will both have to have patience....

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

As said it is early days yet. The surgery is massively invasive and most people get one or two issues. After my quadruple in 2018 I experienced anemia, an electrolyte imbalance (gained 9kg of fluid) and problems with my right hand. The problems with my right hand were caused by the ulnar nerve that probably got nipped where it passes through the shoulder. Symptoms included a limited range of movement, weakness and coldness. It took over six months to fully resolve. The lead singer of Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham, lost his voice totally afterwards. He was doing a solo tour this year which is currently postponed so no one can judge how well his voice has recovered. It sounds that overall your husband is doing well...

[Hidden in reply to MichaelJH]

Thanks Michael, I am learning all the time about the different side effects. Just hoping to get back to some degree of normality soon. As you say, early days, and I must remember that. Thank you.

[Ianc2]

Bear in mind that when they are doing the operation they stick tubes in all over the place and your body does take a while to work out ' What just happened to me'. Sounds like your husband is doing very well. By now his breast bone should be knitting together nicely and his mobility will slowly improve. At 3 months he should be feeling a lot stronger and it will probably be worth checking if any sort of rehab provision is available. If everything is still locked down you may be able to access it on line.

By six months his strength will start to return and he should notice a continuing steady improvement but it does take time. Summer is coming!

[Hidden in reply to Ianc2]

Thank you, I must remember it’s only 2 months since his operation....