One thing leads to another....

[ponygirlmom]

Okay, so last week I reported that I had pericarditis. On Friday I had The Works: echo (NOT FUN AFTER OHS!!!!!), ecg, blood tests and chest x-ray. Then I met with my surgeon.

The good news is that the swelling around my heart is practically gone. I have a few "adhesions," which the surgeon says is perfectly normal. Of course, he said other stuff I had was "perfectly normal" until it got worse. But anyway, that part is getting better.

BUT.....

I have two problems that are apparently linked. I still have a pretty low red blood cell count, and my heart rate is too high. Low blood count = low blood volume = heart pumps faster. So mission #1 this week is to raise my hemoglobin levels. We're doing this via diet because of other medical problems I have. But then my Dad (a doctor) told me that there are such things as iron injections! I haven't looked into them; maybe they cause the same problems as iron supplements. But it sounds good to me!

The best way to lower a resting heart rate is a way that's not very practical for those of us recovering from recent OHS -- exercise. Weights are out, of course, but cardio is in -- in a baby way! But I'm trying to get some more and harder exercise into my day just in case -- maybe every little bit helps.

And I've developed a fluid problem; I was starting to feel it build around my ribs and stomach last week. Turns out it's around -- thankfully not in-- my right lung. But that's why I'm having trouble breathing easily even though my lungs are clear and my heart isn't swollen. So I'm back on a diuretic. Normally I'm supposed to take it in the morning, but I jump-started it last evening. I didn't mind getting up a few times to pee, but I had some bad nightmares! I've never heard of lasik nightmares, but I'm not taking any other new drugs. Anyway, my stomach is already flatter again and my weight is down.

 

[zipper2]

Can't imagine how uncomfortable an echo for you that was
my first,last surgery 16 years ago and any time frame for echos is uncomfortable for me yet and iv'e not had a recent surgery.
sounds like the doc has looked after you in a good way,im glad the fluid didnot get into things other than around where it is.
Take care and all the best........(BATHROOM LOTS) now to get it out.
hope you can change your pill to days stead of getting up at night.

zipper2

 

[Lisa in Katy]

If your problem with iron is that it tears up your stomach or makes you constipated, that's normal. There are iron supplements that are gentler on the stomach. There's one called Feosol that's pretty good. It's better if you take it with Vitamin C as that helps it to absorb, but not with Calcium products, as that blocks absorption. There are also prenatal vitamins with Iron that are typically gentler on the stomach. If you're very anemic, it's difficult to get enough with just your diet. You can eat lots of spinach, liver, and red meat, but if you're on Coumadin, the first two have a high level of Vitamin K.

How high is your heart rate? It's pretty typical for it to be high while it's in the healing stages. Mine was over 100 for quite a while. I think it's due to the heart being sore and not wanting to push too hard, so it has to have lots of little pushes in order to effectively circulate the blood. Has your doctor referred you for cardiac rehab yet? The best exercise you can do at this point is to walk. If it's too hot where you live, get to the nearest mall!

 

[Dina]

I'm glad the pericaditis is clearing up, and I agree with Lisa re your heart rate
being moderately high is normal,mine was around 100 at rest and up to 120
with exercise for a few weeks postop. I totally understand about the fluid
accumulation; I'm 6 months post op and still have edema since the rt side of my heart is enlarged. Most of my favorite shoes I still can't wear! But my
case is abnormal . Your heart is still in what I call the shock phase and when
you begin to walk around your edema should decrease along with the high heart rate. Also Lisa's explanation of the 'why' of the increased rate makes
sense- our body is always finding creative ways to react to all the things
that we put it thru.
Wishing you the Best--Dina

 

[ALCapshaw2]

(Almost) everybody has a High Heart Rate (90-120) after OHS. WALKING helps. So does time. Doc's don't get too worried unless it goes over 120 bpm at rest. Beta Blockers help also.

I had fluid in the cavity between my lung and chest wall.

My surgeon's assistant told me to use the Incentive Spirometer for 10 minutes every 2 hours.

I would 'push' until I could actually feel the fluid being squeezed out of my chest cavity. Eventually it cleared out.

 

[hall]

I hurt just hearing you had a echo. Ouch! I hope they get you straightened out.

 

[BackDoc]

they did an echo post-op just prior to bring me down from ICU following my surgery at CC- florida. I don't remember it being uncomfortable at all.

As for the low iron levels; eat red meat. It's much easier on you then iron pills.

 

[ponygirlmom]

(Almost) everybody has a High Heart Rate (90-120) after OHS.

This is what I had learned prior to surgery, but for some reason my doctor was not happy with my heart rate on Friday. I think it was because he didn't realize that all that I had done before I saw him was physically stressful (laying on my left side for 30 minutes for the echo with my heart pounding -- it hates the left side -- walking in the heat between the clinic building and the hospital for various tests and the cafeteria, etc.) When my HR was 110, he thought, why is it 110 when she's just sitting around my air-conditioned office? I'm like, I just hiked in here from the hospital and it's 110 OUTSIDE! My heart thinks it ran a marathon!

I've been taking my heart rate regularly since, and it's going down! It did go nuts on Saturday afternoon: 110 at rest. But at 4pm, AFTER I did laundry, it was 104, then at 7:30 after dinner it was 98.

At 3am this morning it was 92 and at 6am it was 93. At 9am, just twenty minutes AFTER I had walked around the barn AND showed someone how to start a young horse on the longe line (DON'T TELL ANYONE I DID THAT!!! THAT'S A TOTALLY UNAPPROVED ACTIVITY!) in +95 temps, it was 106.

I forgot to quote this, but Al talked about "pushing" into his spirometer. I'm confused about this; the spirometer measures your lung capacity -- you inhale and it tells you the volume you are inhaling. Exhaling exercises are very important for clearing fluid out of the lungs, but I don't understand how they clear fluid out of the chest cavity.

Someone asked me if I can take lasik during the day -- yes! I just took it the first night. Now I take it in the mornings. My stomach is flat again -- hooray! I still have "rib puff."

 

[ponygirlmom]

they did an echo post-op just prior to bring me down from ICU following my surgery at CC- florida. I don't remember it being uncomfortable at all.

You were full of pain meds!

 

[Bina]

Full of pain meds and without bosoms!!! LOL

 

[BackDoc]

exhaling expells things from the lungs. That is how the spirometer works to clear the lungs.

 

[ponygirlmom]

exhaling expells things from the lungs. That is how the spirometer works to clear the lungs.

Actually, we were talking about clearing fluid from the chest cavity, not from within the lungs. I was curious about Al's experience; he says he actually felt fluid leaving his chest cavity during vigorous exhalation exercises.

About incentive spirometers: they are an inhalation measuring tool that can also be used as an exercise mechanism (although I think they are very poor at this job, but I won't got into that here.)

Inhaling (whether you are sucking air through a spirometer tube or not) and holding your breath opens the alveoli in your lungs. After any kind of surgery it's important to get the lungs functioning normally again. Since it's often hard to breathe normally all the time after surgery, patients are told to set aside special practice times to fill their lungs with air, exhale completely, perhaps cough to expell fluids from the lungs (or at least practice coughing) and control their rate of breathing.

Although electronic spirometers measure exhalation as well as inhalation, the mechanical plastic incentive spirometers given to OHS patients only measure inhalation. They exist to give patients a goal. You don't need a spirometer to do breathing exercises, but some people find watching the bobble rise motivating. You try to improve your "score" each time.

While it is physically possible to exhale into an incentive spirometer, you may notice that it does not record your rate of exhalation. All you are doing is introducing moist air into a closed plastic environment, where it can get all mildewy and yucky. You are better off exhaling into the room.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

Your heart rate sounds fine to me. I'm 10 years out and my heart rate is 84-88 bpm, just like it was before surgery. I'd say that's one less thing to worry about. The rest just takes time, but I don't think anything that is going on is really abnormal. At the time I had pericarditis they told me it was a very rare complication, but from this site, I've found that it's actually quite normal. It can still be quite painful, but it's nice to know that it will get better.

 

[ponygirlmom]

At the time I had pericarditis they told me it was a very rare complication, but from this site, I've found that it's actually quite normal.

My doctor says that pericarditis is common among young patients. (I love how, at 45, I'm "so very young" in the heart-surgery world!)

From everything I am learning, my HR is normal for this stage. Now I'm wondering why it concerns my surgeon. Fortunately he has scheduled an appointment for me with my cardiologist. I'll bet the cardio is more relaxed about it.