Hi, New today

[Gorn35]

Hi all, I'm a 60 year old women, had a stent fitted about 6 weeks ago. I have never smoked, drink moderately and hardly anything now and eat a reasonably good diet. They say my problem is genetic. I had been doing regular exercise and strength training before I returned to my manual job last week, but I have been experiencing severe chest pain after my shifts. I have tried reducing my hours from 8 to 6, but am still getting them, so have had to phone in sick ahead of tonights shift and feel a bit defeated. I guess having a stent fitted wasn't the quick fix I was hoping for :o)

[ellj]

Wise to call in sick, give your body more time.

Do you have a follow up appointment or phone appointment with nurse specialist maybe ?

Depending on how physical your work is you may need to rethink your plans for a few more weeks ?

Failing follow up there is the bhf helpline and very knowledgeable nurses to speak with.

Best wishes

Ellie

[Gorn35 in reply to ellj]

I work night shifts stacking shelves and all the work although not heavy has to be broken down. Was thinking of doing something else, but have been doing that for the last 30 years so a bit old for change and with the current climate who would have me :o)

[Maisie2014]

Six weeks, in my opinion, is not long enough to come to terms with the treatment you have received. Perhaps the stress of going back to work is giving you the pain. What do the cardiac rehabilitation nurses say?

[Gorn35 in reply to Maisie2014]

I had a chest scan last Wednesday so thought I would wait until the results came back for that before I contacted her. She has been very good, but was on holiday last week. I also am waiting for some blood tests to come back before I ring the doctor. I had high liver and acid levels, so they wanted to check them again, but it's around the liver area that is painful, I'm just a bit worried that something else is going on.

[Maisie2014]

Try not to worry. There’s a lot going on. Your body’s getting used to the stent and the new meds and your mind’s getting used to all the changes. Take a minute or two to relax. I know it’s easy to say but we’re all here for you.

[Henry20]

Hi,

Two years ago, I had 2 stents fitted in 2 operations. No heart attack, but I am retired so was able to choose what and what not to do. Yup, I've been there with the genetic thing. I found out from a relative that one form of heart disease or another has wiped out most of one side of my family going back over 100 years. I gave up drinking - seemed the thing to do and I don't regret it and hardly ever miss it. Do talk to medics and BHF nurses, they were very helpful for me when I felt wobbly and had pains.

I really wanted to go to cardiac rehab exercise classes, but had occasional pains in my chest; so the nurse in charge wouldn't let me join. I didn't like that as I saw the classes as a sign things were OK and I was getting better - back to normal. But she was right, totally right and I was wrong. When I did get to the exercises after 8-9 weeks I realised why. I hadn't been fit enough.

So it took me a while to recover and talking to others in the class, I found there was no standard recovery time. It does get better, things will improve and, in my view, exercise is vital to recovery.

I still join a cardiac exercise class (now on Zoom), it keeps me moving. But you need the right type of class, one designed for cardiac patients, not just a bod down the gym. The instructor needs to be trained to cope with us. Not to overdo anything, to exercise at a rate we can cope with; so it should be with your job, I guess.

BTW, I hope you keep your GTN spray with you at ALL times, I still do, its only been used twice and replaced once as the first spray went out of date; but its there, just in case.

All the best, it does get better, but does take time.

Henry

[Gorn35 in reply to Henry20]

Thank you Henry, I seem to have got my arthritis from my mum and heart disease from my brother, but he had other things going on like diabetes and so I try to be aware of what I eat. I have been doing some of the heart foundation exercises, you can find them on you tube and have been doing some low impact aerobic DVD's. I was offered to join a class, but it's a bit out of the way. I think it must be the constant stretching and bending that did it for me. I do take the spray with me and I used it last week for the first time, was a bit nervous about using it as I tend to have low blood pressure anyway. I think I feeling guilty about not going in to work, I had flu in January and it was the first time I had off in more then 10 years and now I seem to be always off. Thank you to everyone for their advice, I guess I just need to be more patient. It gave me a bit of a shock to be honest yesterday with pain all day and was too scared to move, but have just a slight pain today so will take things easy.

[JennyRx]

6 weeks seems quite early post stent. I’m 9 weeks post stent although they did manage to do a dissection so was told to be careful for longer. The cardiac rehab nurse says it takes a while for your heart to get used to the new improved blood flow provided by the stenting which makes sense.

If you’re getting any problems call your GP or you should have a discharge letter with a number to call as well.

[45sue]

If you have been put on a high dose of Atorvastatin ( 80mg as is the norm) this can affect your liver. The liver symptoms shown by your blood tests should mean this should be addressed immediately by reducing the dose or changing to another statin so make sure they keep an eye on it.

[Auiron]

Basically, always follow medical advice and keep in touch with Specialist or Doctor. Always follow this NHS advice and remember the outcome varies from patent to patient. Also, if we have a bad cut on our arm we can view the recovery easily - the same slow recovery goes on hidden away.

Recovery - Coronary angioplasty and stent insertion

nhs.uk/conditions/coronary-...

[JennyRx in reply to Auiron]

I second that about the less obvious internal damage of stenting etc. You can’t see when the damage is healed. So it’s easy to overdo it.

[Mikedabike]

Hi and welcome to the forum. I’m by no means an expert, but I would say that it’s a case of a little to much too soon. I was guilty of it myself after my AVR. I felt so fantastic, even while still on the ward before being discharged. Thankfully the nursing staff kept me in check and made me realise what my body had been through. Everyone heals and recovers at different rates. I found the cardiac rehab classes to be incredibly useful and informative. I know at the moment the only resource appears to be online, but I would take your time ensuring you a fitter before returning to work. I appreciate how difficult it can be when holding down a full time job though. Good luck with your progress.