I remember this last time too. I cannot regulate my body temperature. I sweat like a pig at night. I’m cold other times. I sometimes go out in 4 layers and it’s in the 50F range.
Both my kids were here last weekend. And now both are gone. It was great to see Marc and Nathalie. Marc was here for the weekend and did some “lifting” for us. Nathalie was here from Friday to Wednesday. They helped out around the house. Nathalie took me on my first outing, then lost me in parking lot. I was walking around looking for her with two coffees in my hands and not knowing if I set them down would I be able to pick them up again. Eventually she found me.
It was great for Amy to get some relief after a tough week. Paul, Amy’s brother, was a great comfort in the hospital. Amy was there for hours each day. Paul came and spent several hours on different days just hanging out.
I get better everyday. And that feels good. I think I might be slightly ahead of where I was last time. I don’t know what that means but thinking about last time, we must have gone to the tulips a month or so after the surgery. I still couldn’t drive, if I remember correctly. I don’t remember being tired but I do remember not being 100% either.
I did better with the pain management this time too. But compared to brain surgery, this looks easy. You don’t actually have a lot of nerves in your sternum because it is where the nerves terminate. I get a weird pain in my leg that is referred pain from the “cut-down” where they attached the heart/lung pump to a vein in my groin.
I am only taking Tylenol now and at a fairly low concentration. But it still helps. If I forget or try to stretch too, too much, I feel it. And then it is tough to catch up for a while.
I have a cough, too. Also normal.
I feel good most of the day until about 8:00. Then my shoulders, neck, chest start to get a little achy and I really want to go to bed so I’m in bed by 10 and up at 6 or 6:30.
Today I thought I would see the surgeon for the final follow-up. Instead, I saw the nurse practitioner. That’s ok. I had my final sutures removed. And everything looks good. Therefore, I am “released” back to the care of my main cardiologist. I see him Oct 17 so not quite 2 weeks later.
This time, I’m going to do one thing different. I’m signed up for cardio rehab. I will go to some therapy where they get me on stationary bike and, with a lot of supervision, help me get back to some level of exercise. My doctor told me that I didn’t need to do this last time. He said that my exercise program would be good enough. I should insisted because I spent too much time thinking my heart would explode. In other words, the main point is to help you get over the mental hurdle that you are indeed healthy and that you can TRUST your body. That really took a long time last time.
