How long after your Surgery?

[JohnnyV_46]

So how long after your Surgery before you started Driving Again? I'm going stir crazy and my Doc never told me. 4 weeks since surgery Friday. I'm not on any pain meds during the day. What do you think? :rolleyes:

JohnnyV

[knightfan2691]

*chuckles*

I know how you feel.... My last surgery was January 6, 2003. The surgery told me I could start driving February 10, 2003. And, I did. In fact, I stayed up until MIDNIGHT ... just so I could drive. Heh...my sis, however, told me that if I wasn't back home within a half hour...she was going to start calling my cell phone...and drive until she hunted me down...he he he.


Cort, "Mr MC" / "Mr Road Trip", 31swm/pig valve/pacemaker
MC:family.IL.guide.future = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort/
chdQB = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort/quilt.html
"It goes so fast" ... Jodee Messina ... 'Was That My Life?'

[EVELYN]

When my hubby, Tyce, had OHS, he wasn't allowed to drive for 5 weeks. At that point the Dr. said it was OK and the next day he was out and about.....but definitely SORE after the first few drives, even short ones.

Of course, I was worried about him getting hit and the steering wheel....well, you know what could happen.....You've had a MAJOR break in that sternum, just take it slow when you're cleared to start driving.

Evelyn

[OldManEmu]

It was 6 weeks after surgery that I was able to drive. This was after the follow up visit to the surgeon. I got someone to drive me over however I was certain I was going to drive back if I got the all clear from the surgeon. ;) I knew I was really on the road to recovery when I went for the first ride on my motorcycle another 2 weeks after this. I was only able to ride for about half an hour as I found this was about the limit of my concentration at first. :)

[Ross]

4 to 6 weeks depending on how well your sternum is healing. Believe me, it hurts turning that steering wheel, but more of a danger should something happen that would cause your chest to impact the column.

[JimL]

The surgeon told me three weeks, and released me to drive when I saw him after surgery at about that time.
Don't be in a rush to push the limits -- I know I wasn't a very reliable driver when I got my privileges back; my mind would wander much more easily than usual from what I was doing.

[geebee]

I did not drive for 6 weeks. Although I could turn the wheel without pain, I was concerned about what might happen should I have to stop suddenly or have a fender bender that would inflate the airbag. I have seen bruises and pain in people who had not just had OHS and were in minor crashes and I did not want to take the chance. When I rode in the car, I kept a pillow in front of my chest "just in case".

[TomS]

My cardiologist told me that the standard healing period before driving is to wait five weeks. When I questioned "why" he told me the issue being the odd chance of having an accident and hitting the wheel while the air bag did not deploy. When I asked him about the real risk of that happening, how those risks change if I'm wearing a seat belt, and how those risks compared to that of being a passenger in an accident, he just looked at me for a bit and finally said that if I hit the steering wheel and the chest isn't properly healed that it will kill me. So, my perception is that it's all about playing the odds unless you wait months. I started driving a couple of days ago, about four weeks post op. I hate sitting in the passenger seat.
Tom

[JohnnyV_46]

You guys are right, I guess I'll wait til I see the doc again on Tuesday. It'll be one month and I'll let him tell me when I can go again.

[Georgia]

I never asked - the booklet from the hospital said 4 - 6 weeks and I felt good and was off pain meds at 4 weeks so I drove. With the self-imposed restrictions that I started off only driving to cardiac rehab and the grocery store and such things (everything's really close to everything else around here). I would NOT drive on highways where really quick reaction times and concentration were required at first. And I know I couldn't have driven a car without power steering - and I think standard transmission would have been a stretch as well.

And my doc never asked.

[Paul_N]

4 weeks in town ... my town has 700 people in it. 6 weeks every where else.

[jwusko]

6-weeks here...make sure to get an ok from the doctor...big issues w/ the steering wheel and airbags...bigger issue something happening when you're not supposed be behind a wheel - legal & insurance...

-Jeff

[TenPly]

I started driving yesterday -- 2 weeks after my surgery. :) I drove to my follow-up appointment with the surgeon and, without telling him that I drove myself there, I asked when it was okay to drive. He said that based on my progress so far, I can start driving now!

I find that my neck and shoulders start hurting after an hour or more behind the wheel though. So I don't plan on driving much at all until I'm fully recovered.

[knightfan2691]

Tom,

I agree ... I can't stand being in the passenger seat either ;).


And Georgia, knowing myself, if my doc hadn't said anything ... I woulda been driving a LOT sooner than I was ;). I guess even my docs know me too well ... he he eh.

[jayaresq]

Same for me -- I was cleared to drive 2 weeks (actually, 15 days) after surgery, but I caught hell on this site for bragging about it. It seems to me that everyone's recovery and resumption of driving is individual and based upon how one feels, the car, the driving destination and, of course, what the doctor says. Good luck. -- Jim

[hensylee]

the doctor must release you for driving. Mine was 5-6 weeks, but I had his permission - AND INSTRUCTIONS.

[linda janicki]

I was at workshop at hospital yesterday and they said hubby couldn't drive 4 - 6 weeks and must sit in back seat because of air bag.

Lin

[hensylee]

back seat???

[CCRN]

I waited 10 weeks but I had plenty of drivers. It was uncomfortable the first few times I drove.....chest a little sore. I also had someone with me the first couple of times out. Not driving wasn't a big issue to me. :)

[knightfan2691]

*chuckles*

Back seat .... good or bad?

Bad:
"Back seat" driver

Good:
Need I explain this? ;)

[JohnnyV_46]

I Couldn't stand it any longer. We went out for dinner and I let the wife drive there, but I drove back.... :D

[ALCapshaw2]

Call your insurance company and ask them what would happen if you were involved in an accident BEFORE being released to drive by your surgeon.

My surgeon 'suggested' waiting 6 weeks but when it was time for my follow up appointment at 4 weeks and there was no one to drive me, he relented to 'limited daytime driving'.

Concentration and potential risks if your sternum comes to rest abruptly on the steering column are two of the big issues, along with the liability and possible insurance cancellation issues.

I KNOW, loss of independence is NOT FUN.

'AL Capshaw'

[LaurieC]

Glad you're feeling well enough at 4 weeks to want to drive, but I'd definitely wait. I was told I could drive 6 weeks after surgery, and did. Felt great, too. The next day, my first day back to work, my husband drove us home. I was leaning my head back against the headrest, the seat tilted back a bit as we waited at a stoplight for the light to turn green, when a drunk driver plowed into the back of our car without hitting his brake. (The first accident we've had together in 20 years of marriage - some coincidence!) My husband took the brunt of the jolt in the driver's seat. Even so, that hit set my healing back a bit - kind of like going back 3 weeks in the incision area, pain-wise. If you start to drive too early and something similar happens, you risk too much. I know it's hard to wait... Hang in there. You can do it!

[JohnnyV_46]

Wow Laurie, glad your alright. I forgot all about the what if's. Yeah, its been a tough 4 weeks but I don't want to start again from the halfway point.

[Georgia]

Re: insurance - I doubt that there'd be a time when an insurer could get away with not covering you because you drove when you weren't supposed to. I don't know a single state that'd allow that provision - if you're licensed, named in the policy and/or listed as a driver, and you've paid your premium, they have to pay in case of an accident. Period.

However, they might non-renew you at first opportunity. But you would be covered for the accident.