Anyone Personally Had Open Heart Surgery?

[gl55]

Has anyone here personally had open heart surgery? I had it on Nov 30 2011. I'm 7 1/2 weeks post-op. I'm still sore and achy where they cut my sternum in two and I'm tired of being sore and achy. My leg is still sore where they took the vein out for the bypass. What I would like to know is when do you really feel back to normal after this surgery? Is it 3 month? Six months? A year? I mean as good as you did pre surgery. No aches and pain at all. Everyone knows someone who has had this surgery as do I, but no one that has had it ercent enough to really remember and answer my questions.

Thanks for looking.

 

[RaysZ71]

My dad had it and he wasn't really back to normal stuff until about 6 months later.

 

[gl89aw]

I had a quadruple bypass about 8 years ago, In the hospital 3 1/2 days, about 2 months to get semi-normal but probably 6 months to get most of my strength back, I did walk a lot which really helped the leg they took the vein from, no problems now, never had to take a nitro pill to this day.

 

[reddog1]

Hang in there bud, You will recover.

 

[tRidiot]

It's a big deal. The sternum is like having a broken major bone. It's been less than 8 weeks, which is a good healing time for someone of advanced age (i.e., over 50) with a major broken bone. The pain can continue for a few months, but you'll get better.

Good luck.

 

[ssgt ben]

It really takes about 6 months to get enough energy to go to walmart, you'll feel good but ride a bumper car you'll tire fast. The sternum never heals its not a bone and youre wired togeather that feeling of discomfort will last about a year and one day youll wale up and youll feel fine. by procedure was done by Dr. David MIller at southcreast beating heart type he only tool about a inch inch-1/2 from my left leg it never really bothered me. It does get better I slept seting up for about 2 weeks after. was stuck in hospital 1 week.

 

[gl55]

I'm 56. I'm also not looking for sympathy. It's just that most in the medical field pre surgery said you should be back to normal in about 8 weeks. That isn't happening. Just looking for real life prognosis of when you feel as good as you did pre surgery so i know what to expect. Thanks to all that replied.

 

[tRidiot]

It really takes about 6 months to get enough energy to go to walmart, you'll feel good but ride a bumper car you'll tire fast. The sternum never heals its not a bone and youre wired togeather that feeling of discomfort will last about a year and one day youll wale up and youll feel fine. by procedure was done by Dr. David MIller at southcreast beating heart type he only tool about a inch inch-1/2 from my left leg it never really bothered me. It does get better I slept seting up for about 2 weeks after. was stuck in hospital 1 week.

The sternum's not a bone and doesn't heal? Wow, that's news to me... I've seen many of them that have healed just fine. And it looked like bone when we cut it open.

 

[gl55]

It really takes about 6 months to get enough energy to go to walmart, you'll feel good but ride a bumper car you'll tire fast. The sternum never heals its not a bone and youre wired togeather that feeling of discomfort will last about a year and one day youll wale up and youll feel fine. by procedure was done by Dr. David MIller at southcreast beating heart type he only tool about a inch inch-1/2 from my left leg it never really bothered me. It does get better I slept seting up for about 2 weeks after. was stuck in hospital 1 week.

I have reasonable energy at this point and don't tire so much any more. Just tired of the aches and pains in my upper chest and back and leg. Mine was off pump also (beating heart surgery). Just a single artery bypass. They took the vein out of my leg with a scope.

 

[gl55]

And my Dr. let me drive after 2 weeks as long as I felt up to it and wasn't taking pain meds. I drove a few short trips during week 3 and even went to Walmart by my self that week. Driving for about the first 4 weeks was a lot harder than I thought it would be.