Activities in Hospital after surgery

[hall]

Hi and Welcome! I was a little different. I was awake at night much of the time. When they would want to walk in the day, I wanted to sleep, but I did walk. I knew I had to. I had a hard time focusing, very tired. Best of luck to you.

 

[azpam]

Hey Terry, Welcome to the 1962 Club. You and I are it!! I too had OHS in 1962 in Cleveland,Ohio for holes in my heart. Yes back then OHS was different and semi-foreign but apparently things "held" for all these years. I remember an enema night before (was traumatic for a 10 yr old i must say).Don't do those anymore that i know of. We have come a long way and many years. I still surprise myself that the surgery has held up for many years. Had a cardiologist do an echo last years and watched the whole echo (?approx 45 min). Just stood there in awe and did a lot of OH Oh Ah Ah. Able to see all the repairs done. I think i made his whole week!! Welcome to the 1962 club!

 

[ponygirlmom]

What, if any, small activities were you all able to do during your stay in the hospital after the surgery and how many days after the surgery were you able to do it?

I was able to use my laptop many days before I could concentrate on television. I have no idea why. I just know that two days after surgery was able to sit on the couch in my hospital room with my laptop. I read VR.com (of course!) and answered email. I even edited photos. In contrast, I could not follow a TV show for several days.

I found it easier to read a computer screen than any book or magazine for several days, too, although I did read magazines.

 

[gerrys]

Terry:
If it's anything like my experience, the time will pass quickly. I was in on Thursday, out on Monday morning. Once out of recovery, I spent a lot of time with the walker, supervising the nursing staff. For some strange reason they paid little attention to me.

At any rate, the hospital time was like a flash in the pan. My largest pain was blowing in that device (forget the name) to promote deep breathing and keeping your lungs clear.

Best wishes to you.
Gerry

 

[BigOwl]

Hi, Terry, and welcome.

In the fourteen years between my OHS experiences, things had gotten more posh, but I was once again up and walking around as soon as they could disconnect me from the in-room ICU apparatuses. I made my first circuit of the post-surgery floor the morning after surgery, and by the time they turned me loose on day 4 post-op I was racing newcomers around the "track." And I am no spring chicken. My hospital just had really good physical therapists.

By all means have the laptop available in case you feel like sharing your progress with us. I had a wifi connection to work with, and was letting people know I wasn't dead almost as soon as I wasn't. I had a day between my cath and surgery, so spent a lot of time watching Star Trek Voyager episodes on the laptop, too. A book helps--to put you to sleep if nothing else--and so did having daily papers around, courtesy of the "guest relations" people.

And Gerry's right--that spriometer gadget and respiration therapy were by far the worst part of the whole thing. But now I can pull my spirometer out and impress everyone with my lung power, since I got to keep it.

 

[Maryka]

Welcome! Gee, no one told me to walk all over the place, so I watched TV a lot. ( I could not concentrate to read.) If you are lucky (NOT) you will get the flashing light show from, we think, the effects of the heart lung machine, but the lights fade away with time. Get to know your nurses. I was there for Christmas and there was a bit of celebration among the nurses. And, of course, get back to the forums here as soon as you can!

 

[Lisa in Katy]

WiFi wasn't around yet then, but that sounds like a great idea. I had books, puzzle books, and I walked a lot. Oddly enough, I had a spirometer, but I never used it. In fact, the first time I noticed it was when they put it in my goody bag to take home. I never saw a Respiratory Therapist or a Physical Therapist. My oxygen level was always good and I walked plenty on my own. Guess they were busy with the old folks.

 

[Superbob]

WiFi wasn't around yet then, but that sounds like a great idea. I had books, puzzle books, and I walked a lot. Oddly enough, I had a spirometer, but I never used it. In fact, the first time I noticed it was when they put it in my goody bag to take home. I never saw a Respiratory Therapist or a Physical Therapist. My oxygen level was always good and I walked plenty on my own. Guess they were busy with the old folks.

Yeah I was one of them thar old folks. They were VERY concerned about my oxygen intake. Had to sleep with an oxygen mask first two nights in regular room after staying on vent for overtime in ICU. Guess my lungs independently decided it was time to check it in, or out.

Anyway, in answer to your question, I couldn't concentrate on books then, and would have been worried my laptop would have been stolen. Watched a little TV. A spirometer was my constant companion -- they made sure I used it. And I walked a lot. Had to prove to them I could breathe before they would let me out on day 5.

 

[BigOwl]

Did any of you folks have an inhalation therapist? The Baylor Heart Hospital, Resort, and Spa (BHHRS, for short) had people come in and make me breathe in meds and blow into a tube a couple of times a day, in addition to the spirometer. And I was one of the younger patients on the floor (I love it when they say, "You can't be 60!" unless they follow it with "What are you, about 70?"). But this therapy procedure was difficult and a major pain in the backside (well, maybe the chest) and I didn't really know what I was doing until the last night when the tech explained it all to me. The idea is to keep patients from developing post-surgical pneumonia, and in retrospect I'm grateful, because that's what killed a great aunt a few years ago.

So if some tech comes in to entertain you with a long plastic bag and a fancy machine, welcome him or her with open arms and then ask for the explanation.

 

[gerriann]

Hi, Terry.
I had an aortic valve and root replacement this Spring and I was only in the hospital three days. I had enough energy to do the walking and answer my cell phone, that was all. But I know that if I had to stay longer, I would have had someone bring it to me.
Gerriann