Sleeping difficult after Cabg x 4

[Paul244]

I am 7 weeks post Cabg x 4 and I cannot get a good nights sleep, I lay for hours not being able to get off, pins and needles in my hands and having to keep moving my legs, Dr has prescribed amytriptaline and mitrazapine yet none of it works, this started two weeks ago and it’s affecting my mood and I’m getting very depressed

[Hidden]

Hello

It is very common to have our sleep patterns disturbed after a Bypass usually it is aches and pains that stop us sleeping or the shock of what has happened and what we have been through

Pins and needles on your hands and aching legs I have not come across before

Have you asked your Doctor what is causing this as that would be a question I would want answering

I would make another appointment as you need your sleep and especially at this stage after your op and you will get down and depressed which you do not need to be dealing with so get back to them and ask why is this happening , tell them how you are feeling and that you need help as what you are taking is no longer helping

Your sleep will come good again and let us know how you get on x

[Callista in reply to Hidden]

I get pins and needles in my ankles especially at night. I keep mentioning it to various doctors but they aren’t interested in helping and simply ignore it. It was especially bad when I was hospitalised with fluid on the lungs. A furosemide drip solved it that time but it was a side issue. I have had it for at least 2 years and it drives me mad.

[Hidden in reply to Callista]

Hello

I would keep mentioning it to the Doctors till one does listen

Not sure if you still have Consultant appointments as you could let them know to

Tell your Doctor how concerned you are

Also do you have a Rehab Nurse you could contact them and ask as well

I do hope you manage to get someone to listen to you

Let us know how you get on x

[MountainGoat52]

I found that my sleep pattern was disturbed after my bypass, mainly because I was not able to sleep on my side which is my natural position. Laying on my back made it more difficult to get off to sleep and stay sleep and I would awaken many times each night. Eventually after a couple of months I was able to lie on my right side, but not on my left which took a while longer. Even now 4 years post op I occasionally get aches when I lie on my left side and I have to use padding on my car seat belt to cushion the muscles in my chest.

As for pins and needles, I did experience this lying on my back and still do if I get into that position. I think it is down to trapped blood vessels limiting the supply to my arms and hands. Shifting position usually takes it away, but of course that was not easy in the early part of my recovery.

Not being able to get sufficient sleep is very wearing, so do refer the issue back to your GP and hopefully an answer will be found.

[Rogo23]

Hello Paul and welcome.This is so simaler to what I had, cabgx4 and couldn't get comfortable. I actually found the best solution for me was to sleep in a armchair.It does pass and I still remember the first night that I managed to get five hours sleep in my bed before I woke up with some discomfort, at which point my trusty arm chair and blanket becond.

If when you go to bed you manage to get to sleep for a while and then wake up, don't bother trying to get back to sleep straight away, actually get out of bed and spend some time away from the bedroom, trying and failing to drop off set's up a pattern in your subconscious.

It becomes a habit and it's hard to break, so remove yourself from the bedroom and do something that you find relaxing for a while, I used to watch fractals on you tube, it slowed down my thoughts and relaxed me.

But the pain and discomfort do pass with time, by week 10 I was back in bed and on my stomach catching zzzzz,s and now I have absolutely no problems apart from the odd sleepless night, but that is not really uncommon among Hart surgery recipients, and in my case it's only every couple of months.

Just remember it's all too easy to turn the bedroom into somewhere you don't feel happy in if you can't sleep get out of the bed, and if it is really bothering you call your doctor and get some sleep in a bottle.

But time is the best solution.

Seven weeks the scar is still shiny and new give it a chance.

Oh and use bio oil that really helps with the healing process.

Best wishes and a thumbs up, dan