For those who have had open heart surgery.....

[Allison Chaynes]

How long after the surgery was it before you could wear a bra again? I had plates attached to my sternum instead of wires, not sure if that makes a difference or not?

[marshalynn]

About one month after my surgery, I was at doctor's office for check up, I asked about driving because I felt good. He said no, not till 90 days after the surgery, because where your chest was cut the ends will rub against each other and not heal wright and get infected, the only way to correct this is to open you back up and scrap the ends and start over. NOT a good idea to me, I waited the 90 days, did every thing doctor said, that was 22 years ago. I have no problem at all from the surgery and I think it is because, I did nothing during those 90 days and let it heal properly. Putting on a bra may make you twist the wrong way and put you at risk. 90 days is not a long time, compared to being healthy the rest of your life....

[Laura912]

You ask for a bit of medical opinion here. When women have open heart surgery, they generally are not restricted from bra wearing beyond the time for the incision to heal. Do not wear a corset until you are allowed normal activity by your physician. Ninety day restriction is quite a bit of old school.

[Allison Chaynes]

I have no intention of pushing things too soon! I was mostly asking out of curiosity. Thanks for the perspective ladies!

[sometimes_miss]

Do EXACTLY what the physical therapists tell you. Talk to a female therapist and tell her; ask what's appropriate movements. And yes, women go back to wearing bras very soon. how you go about putting it on might be a deciding factor; twisting should be avoided; maybe front closure for a while? If your sternum doesn't heal correctly, it probably never will. I've seen many people where it never healed. Take your vitamins. Eat well. Get plenty of sleep (most healing goes on during certain stages of sleep). Give your body every single chance it needs to heal right the first time. Some of the other nurses recommended sleeping on your back, rather than on sides to promote the sternum healing correctly. If you have sleep apnea, you may need a bipap machine for a while to accomplish that. If so, do it, you can go back to your normal sleep positions after you heal.

[Alice Torn]

Good idea is to take high quality calcium, vitamin D, magnesium, zinc, phosphorous, boron,too.

[Diane Smith]

I started wearing a bra again as soon as the incision was well healed -- a month or so after surgery. I do have wires holding my sternum together, and the bottom one can get a little "pokey" at times when I wear a bra that sits at just the right height. But I can almost always move things up or down just a fraction of an inch to relieve the discomfort. My surgeon told me the wires could come out six months or so after the surgery, but of course that means another procedure with anesthesia, which insurance probably won't pay for, and it hasn't seemed worth it up to now. Maybe I'll have it done someday when they're knocking me out for some other reason.

- Diane

[sometimes_miss]

Most leave the hardware in. There's really not much up side to taking it out, unless it's painful or poking you. On the opposite side, I really wouldn't want someone poking sharp things around in my chest again unnecessarily, it's sort of just asking for trouble. Not to mention, despite the good safety record of general anesthesia, every year some go under and never wake up.

[Allison Chaynes]

I'm sleeping on my back elevated on a wedge pillow, which is definitely a change for someone who usually tosses snd turns all night. I'm trying not to push the boundaries of what the surgeon said to do recovery wise, although I did walk a mile a few days ago. None of the docs has said anything to me about taking vitamins- are there vitamins I should take to promote healing? (Maybe this is because I'm 35).

How long does it usually take to be able to breathe normally again? I use the spirometer multiple times a day but it takes work to breathe deeply. The surgeon did not seem concerned about this last week.

[SO1Adam12]

A GG tip for getting a bra on without all the twisting...put it around your waist with the hooks in the front. Fasten in the front, slide it around until the hooks are in the back then pull it up putting your arms through the straps. I have trouble with my trapezius muscle periodically when reaching behind me to fasten my bra is out of the question.

When my friend had open heart surgery she only had to wait until the incision healed. She used the method above for getting her bra on for a good 6 - 8 weeks because the area around the incision was stiff and sore for quite a while.

[CherylAnne]

I am now about 70 days post surgery. Cannot answer the bra question, although my wife does utilize the fasten in front and slide around method. The supplements are definitely a good idea. I had 4 bypasses, grafts, whatever. He wanted to do a fifth bypass, but could not. I am in Cardiac Rehab 3 days per week, seems to be helping a lot. My Dr. let me drive after about 35 days, but will not let me ride my road bike till the first week in November. I hope to go back to work the first of December. I have lost some weight, which is a good thing in several different ways. I do feel like stuff is poking me, sometimes from the outside in, other times inside to outside.
I saw today you had PM'd me, when I figure out how to reply, I will.

[larry]

well I cannot answer the bra question. However as a 3 time surgery of heart and 1 time lung patient I would like to share that the best investment I ever made was a lift chair which became my bed for many nights.