First post from Maryland - advice and support needed!

[Chuck C]

My dreaded first sneeze just came five minutes ago on my 6 week surgery anniversary. Didn’t hurt much at all. I guess all that hard work holding off sneezing all this time paid off.

Like you, I was determined to avoid sneezing in recovery. On day 5 in the hospital a nurse came in to test me for Covid. I had already tested before being admitted, but the policy was to test patients every 5 days while in the hospital. I had tested twice the week prior to admittance and both times I sneezed after they abrasively swabbed me and here she was about to stick a swab up my nostrils again while my sternum was still fragile.

Me: "Ok, but if you make me sneeze, I'm going to be really pissed off. "

She then proceeded to do the most gentle nasal swabbing imaginable. She did not make me sneeze!

I'd say it was about day 10 before my first sneeze and I had healed enough by then that it was not painful.