Georgie's Journey

I’m 5 weeks post op and this week I’m over it - I’ve hit that brick wall. Last week was my hardest week yet - I was very irritated, sore, tired and I was sick a few days.  I’ve been very sore, my pacemaker shoulder, collar bones, top of chest and near my drainage tubes hurt, the incision in my leg is still tender and the swelling has only just gone down. It was a pity party in my head last week, just fed up being sore and not fully being able to do things on my own, the heat wave last week really didn’t help either. Ive been resting and sleeping a lot but also working on my recovery. Ive been doing 20 minutes of walking a day and doing what household jobs I can manage.  Despite feeling a bit sorry for myself I’ve been keeping positive and my mind strong. I know that some days will be harder than others and I just have to remind myself to keep going and keep pushing through.  I managed to open the car door this week and sleep on my side for a few minutes, a...

So my parents and brother live in Mt Gambier which is a 5 hour drive from my home. After going through a big surgery i found it important to soak myself in my family love and getting spoilt ( I’m 26) but you can never out grow a good home meal and a cuddle.  I went home for one week and it really helped with my recovery - to anyone about to have heart surgery take all the help you can get and enjoy the recovery process as well, it’s not easy but easier when your surrounded by support. 

INR Stands for international normalised ratio - it is a blood test that measures how fast the blood clots. Anyone not on blood thinners has a ratio of 1, mine needs to between 2.5 -3.5. So if my level today is 2.5, it takes 2 1/2 times longer for my blood to clot.  At home INR kit  So this little kit arrived on my door step a few days ago from an anonymous sender ( I presume the hospital sent it) this machine however is $800 so I’m very happy I didn’t have to buy it like I was planning too.  This kit means I can test my blood at home and don’t need to visit a pathology clinic.  It works similar to what a diabetic would use, prick the finger and drop the blood on a strip which the machine then reads to determine how long the blood takes to clot.  The first time I used it I was very nervous I didn’t like the thought of pricking myself and got nervous and clammy- I was at the Dr’s to make sure I did it right. I tried twice but stuffed up ...

I’ve  been home from the hospital for 1 week now.  It seems longer but I’m progressing really well.  Still very sore in the pacemaker shoulder and the incision in my leg is uncomfortable and a bit swallowen still but apart from that I think I’m recovering really well.  I start cardiac rehab once I’m 4-5 weeks post op which goes for 10 weeks so still a long road to full recovery but I can see improvements each day.  Everyday things are getting easier like showering and getting dressed but I am still struggling with picking anything of the floor and everything feels extra heavy. My weight limit is only 2kg atm.  Some days are much better than others feeling tired and sore today.  My scars are healing well, my IRN is a bit all over the place so still having very frequent blood tests and Dr visits. My new zipper  Incision from bypass machine- the sorest of them all Drainage tube incisions healing well Pacemaker incision healing really well