Cardiac Rehab & Status Update

Eight Weeks ago today my heart was stopped for 8+ hours while my body temperature was reduced to 34F. Wow, amazing what technology can do and still be alive.

I started Cardiac rehabilitation two weeks ago (six weeks post surgery), the earliest open heart patients are allowed to start, and I’ve been loving it. The specialized program is a 1.5 hour workout three times a week for 12 weeks. Two weeks down and ten more to go!

The facility I’m at is for cardiac patients only. It’s kind of weird to be in a gym where everyone except the therapist have had their chest cracked open. While they’ve had younger patients, I haven’t seen anyone else under 60. So far rehab has been very basic. Upon arrive I don a portable ekg, stretch, and begin simple cardio activities. Walking on the treadmill, ride a stationary bike, use the bicycle for the hands, and a cross fit machine which is like using a steeper while sitting down. Thus far no resistance is being used. The goal is simply to go the duration. Eventually they will integrate resistance and some weight training as well. The therapy is as much diagnostic as it is rehabilitative as all heart functions are recorded to detect if there are any other issues.

In the two weeks, I’ve seen reasonable progress. I’ve gained mobility, and the chest circle of pain has shrunk, while I’ve been able to apply myself a little more each visit.

Chest Scar - Far less than many would imagine. No stitches...Lasered and glued.

Chest Scar – Far less than many would imagine. No stitches…Lasered and glued. The lower scars are from drainage chest tubes.

No more radial artery or pulse in my left arm.  It's now in my chest.

No more radial artery or pulse in my left arm. It’s now in my chest.

Where I stand today/Overall Status update

Overall since surgery, I’ve gained a tremendous amount of autonomy but still have good and bad days. I’m very mobile and have started going out for limited 1-2 hour stints. I started driving in the past week, a huge sense of freedom. However, after today’s doctor’s visit they are still keeping the most encumbering restriction in place for at least another month. No lifting, pushing, or pulling more than a couple of pounds. In general while I’ve seen improvements, I feel like my progress has platued/stalled. I’m still taking pain meds daily and if I didn’t I don’t think this experience would be bearable. The musculoskeletal structure of my chest hurts almost constantly sometimes more than others. The sensation is odd as the skin surface is numb while the underlying tissues ache/hurt and are painfully touch sensitive. The only time I’m able to get pain-free is after laying in bed for several hours. While the target area of pain has reduced from the entire chest to three-quarters of the chest, its intensity hasn’t changed. The Oxycodone used to knock the pain out, however due to my extended usage I’ve built a tolerance to it. Now it merely takes the edge off the aching. My endurance is still what’s limited. 2-3 hours being vertical, standing or sitting straight up and then I need to rest. Everyone whose seen me, sees me during these windows and I “look great” and do great on the surface. My daily routine consists of managing the active intervals with rest. Working an hour in the morning, take an hour break, go to rehab, come home rest, and work for an hour or two. If I wasn’t self-employed and working out of my house, I don’t know what I would have done. In the evenings, watch TV from bed or on the good days go out for a short bit.

I saw my doctor today and my progress is fairly typical. While some are off meds at my stage others have problems for 3-4 months and the more chronic cases can last up to a year. At this point he thinks it could easily be another month or two of healing before I’m off pain meds. Once that subsides, the lifting restrictions will be dropped and I’ll be free to resume normal life. Happy to be here, yet getting frustrated with pace of progress.

Posted in Health | 2 Comments

Sternotomy

I found these recent x-ray’s interesting of the closure of my sternotomy (cracking of the chest/sternum for my open heart procedure)

The stainless steel wires, which to me look like bread ties, will stay in my chest permanently as the bone grows around them.   I wonder if I’ll set off the TSA alarms at the airport?

For those adept at reading x-rays these show a pleural effusion, which is a fluid buildup around the lungs.  I’m told more on my left side than right.  It’s fairly typical at this stage of my recovery.

Sternotomy

Wired Shut – click image to enlarge to see wires

(note the images incorrectly state a triple bypass when it was a quadruple)

Sternotomy-sideview

Posted in Health | 4 Comments

Healing Progress

It’s been 4 weeks since I underwent the chest knife and I’ve now been home recuperating almost 3 weeks. Thank you to everyone who has stopped by to chat, bring me a meal, and help out around the house. Your support is humbling and much appreciated. This journey would have been far more difficult without such a fantastic family of friends.

The first couple weeks at home were comprised of mostly just taking pain meds and reclining in the lazy boy keeping myself as immobile as possible. I was successful in obtaining better meds (Oxycodone and Oxycotin) by visiting my primary care doctor after the hospital fiasco. I have had home healthcare with at home nursing visits and physical therapy in home. The PT has been comprised of very simple exercises below the waist while keeping my heart rate very low. No more than 90 beats per min allowed. I go for a short walk each day and presently I’m up to one lap around the block. The only exercises I do from the waist up are breathing with an aspirometer to increase my lung volume, which has improved dramatically.

My restrictions for 8 weeks, ie christmas time, 1. Not allowed to put my arms behind my back. 2. Not allowed to raise my elbows above my shoulders, and 3. I’m not allowed to lift, push, or pull more than a few pounds. I’m also not allowed to drive until I’m off the pain meds. The weight restriction is the most inconvenient as it prevents me from taking the trash out to picking up a laundry basket. First month down and thanks to everyone’s help everything has been taken care of to date.

I’ve had significant improvement and am fairly mobile around the house, but my endurance is very limited. It’s very difficult to get pain free even with the meds, as I think I’m building a resistance to them. I’ve been out of the house 3 times, 2 of which were doc visit’s both of which whipped me out. Being vertical for more than and hour or two at a time is simply overdoing it. I did go out last night to the yacht club for an hour and was delighted to see many of you. An hour was the perfect amount of time.

I started working part time last week and am spending 1-2 hours at my desk before crashing for a few hours to try anther hour or two later in the day. It’s amazing how I can sit reclining in a chair fairly comfortable, but sitting up straight in a desk chair brings significant chest pain after an hour or more. I’m gradually working into more time and am anxious to put in a full day.

In two more weeks, First week of December, I’m to start cardiovascular rehab at a heart rehab lab. I’m not sure all what’s involved, other than I know it’s controlled and monitored gradual increase in heart rate while monitoring my heart’s vitals.

Your continued support for the next month until I can take care of myself is much appreciated. I hope to be going out more in the coming month as my endurance gradually grows. My door is open and anyone is welcome to drop in and say high at anytime. Just let yourself in. If you want to bring me a meal, call ahead or schedule from my previous post.

Lastly, I’ve been sleeping in a recliner as laying flat yet alone getting in and out of bed was insanely painful, until the last few days. I’ve progressed to my bed, which is a step in the right direction, however every morning I’ve been waking up with extreme back pain. I think since I can’t move around, lay on my side or tummy, and am forced to remain supine on my back all night is leading to the morning tension. I hope this subsides soon.

Posted in Health | 1 Comment

My Availability

Many of you have asked about helping me out, bringing me lunch and/or dinner, and offered all kinds of assistance. Several of you have already done so and several of you are already scheduled over the next few days. For those of you that have inquired or desire to, I’ve put together a booking calendar of when I’m available/someone else has not already committed. I’ve put two rough times a day into each day 12:00 & 5:00 They are not set in stone times, merely for picking and showing my availability on a selected day. I do not need to fill every single day/time slot. The next week or two are more important than further out.

These times are only for those wanting to cook, bring lunch/dinner etc. Everyone is welcome anytime to just come hang out. Would love to see you.

Note when you are here, I may ask you to take the trash out, throw a load of laundry in or other odd task I’m limited in doing.

GO TO

https://www.findingflattop.com/schedule

To Book Lunch or dinner with me when I’m available.

I have zero diet restrictions. Other than common sense heart healthy meals. Which means,

Low Sodium
Low Cholesterol
Low Fat

As for food, I eat almost anything. The only thing I hate is Tomato’s. If it smells or taste like a fresh tomato, I don’t eat it.

Forget the sweets. Keep them at home, I don’t need them.

Posted in Travel | Comments Off on My Availability

Home Again

I am humbled, and want to thank everyone for the outpouring support. I have many long days ahead and will continue to need I’m not sure what support long term. Thank you to everyone who read my last post and didn’t directly pester me to find out more. I know everyone is anxious to know more but I had enough I was dealing with.

As I’m sure you know, yesterday I was released to go home six days after having a quad open heart bypass. The doc’s sent me home with a dizzying 14 prescriptons. Only one of them to manage pain. Turns out I was prescribed only the most mild of narcotics. 5mg of Hydrocodone. They had me on 10 times that while inpatient to manage the chest pain. Anyway last night my heart started racing, beating inside my chest creating the feeling I’d just ran a marathon while resting. Worry set in as a weird pressure feeling radiated out from the center of my chest. Complete different symptoms from what I had the first time, and I’m still at an early stage of complications. Concerned, I phoned the doc and was advised if it remained sustained to go in, and hence why I did a round about back to the ER.

I was quickly admitted for the night, monitored, and medicated. The biggest concern, was I having a heart attack, was eliminated. Then the waiting game of more test and multiple doc visit’s which took all day to finally get an answer. I was informed by the cardiologist this evening that I was fine but the rapid pounding heart, and associated pain is because the home pain meds were not strong enough to elevate my chest pain and my heart rate has escalated dramatically as a result, but still within a safe level. Seems simple to me, send me home with something else. Nope, not an option. After a long slimy dance of half truths and blatant lies around the reason why the doc wasn’t willing to prescribe anything stronger which escalated into a hostile exchange, the Doc cornered finally came clean. Having prescribed a sizable opiate prescription the day before to me they were under no circumstances willing to re-write a stronger script out of fear of restrictions which have been put in place on docs over pill shoppers which have plagued the indsutry. Can you Fing believe it??? I was being treated like I was a pill shopper coming to the hospital having my chest cut open so I could become an addict or worse go broker them on the street. I confronted them with, the option you’re giving me then, is “go home and self-medicate myself, by taking more than prescribed so that I can at least sleep, or take Oxy which I fortunately still have several left from my previous hip surgery” The tense environment got worse and I was immediately told I was being sent home, that I needed to get a ride and a wheelchair would be coming soon to push me to the lobby to wait for my ride. OMG, what a disaster. The doc walked out mumbling the maximum a day I could take without hurting myself. The RN watching the ordeal play out, told me to call my primary tomorrow get an appointment and get the situation taken care of. She said all the docs at the hospital are paranoid of what they prescribe. (note, the full exchange is a little more convoluted and involved the PA, too but not worth elaborating)

Know what I’m doing tommorow. I’m home safe, and not looking forward to an uncomfortable night. Good news, I’m healing well and am able to walk aroud. This will eventually pass and I’ll be healthier and stronger than before.

Posted in Travel | 7 Comments