exercises for post bypass surgery

[Lydia_1]

my uncle is doing brill since his bypass surgery, 6 weeks on he’s walking up the stairs and trying to exercise using a pedal bike. He has seen the cardiac nurse but exercise booklet think has been delayed due to postal strike. Any tips would be helpful? Also the district nurse discussed his stomach issues might be caused by vagus nerve as nothing showed on scans, never heard of this before

[Chappychap]

This is typical of the discharge booklets that hospitals give to open heart surgery patients, they're all pretty similar (the booklets, not the patients!).

lhch.nhs.uk/media/1099/card...

Exercise forms a really big part of the life style changes that heart patients need to embrace, along with weight loss, healthy eating, zero nicotine, restricted alcohol, good sleep patterns, stress management, etc.

But exercise proper really gets discussed during the Cardio Rehab course that the hospital should be arranging for your uncle. Before cardio rehab the "exercise" regime I was told to follow was five rounds per day of breathing/coughing exercises, plus a daily walk that built up to a mile a day after about six weeks. Believe me, that felt like quite enough at the time!

Good luck!

[Hidden]

Dear Lydia_1

Hello to you and your Uncle, I was wondering how your recovery journey was going and its good to hear that you both are moving forward.

Just encourage him to move as much as he can, wrap up warm and go for a good walk, have him cover his mouth as I found that a mask/scarf helped to pre-heat the air before it reaches the lungs.

There are a lot of on-line exercises for him but all of them need to be passed by his heart team first, hopefully he will be put on a re-hab program in the new year.

But please never underestimate the power on the body and mind of a good walk.

Sorry to hear that he is suffering from tummy problems and your nurse could well be right about that nerve, it should settle down in time.

I wish you both a very happy Christmas and I am really pleased that your dear Uncle is here to enjoy it with you all.

Written with love

[Lydia_1 in reply to Hidden]

thank you for your kind words, he had discomfort in the chest bone last night, I assume that’s the bone trying to heal back together from what I’ve read.

[Hidden in reply to Lydia_1]

That sounds about right for the pain in the chest area, unfortunately that can take time to heal, but heal it will,

Keep taking care of each other

[Cee-Cee1]

I'm not going to offer any advice Lydia, but it sounds as if your wee uncle is doing great and trying hard helped by all your amazing help and encouragement. I really just wanted to say how lucky he is to have such a wonderful, caring niece. You're an absolute star! 😀 (I live alone and have no children of my own but my family and nephews and nieces were an absolute godsend after my triple bypass in February this year and I'm sure your uncle adores you just as much as I adore my lot even if I don't tell them often enough!) Carol xox

[Lydia_1 in reply to Cee-Cee1]

thank you, he’s really important to me. He’s lived with us our whole life. He has mild learning difficulties after I lost my father he was a huge support

[Cee-Cee1 in reply to Lydia_1]

He sounds like an amazing Uncle Lydia and you're both so lucky to have each other. xx

[DanniC88]

Hi there. Glad your uncle is doing well. A relative of mine had a triple heart bypass about 6 weeks ago too. He keeps being sick when coughing. Can I ask what stomach issues he was suffering from?

[Lydia_1 in reply to DanniC88]

he had stomach issues before going in. He gets pain after he eats and feeling sick. He had scans in hospital, apart from one down throat and found nothibg

[CyclingTime]

Gradually do longer walks outside, I was walking about 30-35 miles a week I think at around that point.. ref the bike I hope it's an indoor one you should not do outdoors until after 12 weeks due to pressure on your chest.

Week 6 is normally when the cardiac rehab team assess you and give you an exercise booklet. That involves some light aerobics with a HRM attached and some gentle rubber band exercises. You need those from the rehab team, push them as I did the exercises and feel great

[Lydia_1 in reply to CyclingTime]

it’s a pedal at the end of the bed, nothing major. He’s walking on the landing which is small back and for. Building his muscle strength back

[Andian]

There are several exercise sessions on YouTube by BHS for various conditions to look at. The only thing is it is better to be assessed first as to what is suitable for you or yours at your stage of recovery. Good luck