Shooting after heart surgery

[alnpar]

wldcat,
Not the same, but similar. Had a heart attack July 4th. Two stints, out of hospital July 5th at noon. In truck for road trip to Montana July 9th. Baby girl was getting married in Glacier Nat'l. Stopped in SD for prairie dog hunt on the 11th. Mostly used 308 and 6.5prc. Did drag out the 300RUM for a few…whacked one at 1005yds. 5006mi. later, back home in Ohio.
Obviously not giving med. advice, but depending on your healing process, bet you will be just fine for your hunt!
Glad all went well for you and best wishes for you and your family!

Stinks or a piece of cake, Heart surgery is still yet another story.

 

[yobuck]

I'll try to make this short and sweet but couldn't get a straight answer from my dr so maybe some members have been through this and can help me and my dr make an informed decision. I had a heart attack Sunday the 2nd, got transported to a heart facility and had a couple bypasses put in a couple days later. After surgery they told me I would have no restrictions after nov 5th, as in full release! So I said that's perfect I have a hunt scheduled in Idaho November 6th !!!!! And then they all looked at me kind of crossed and said you can't shoot a rifle! So I guess it's not full release after all, closest thing I got to someone giving me a time frame was an occupational therapist and she said at least after the new year before I can shoot again. Not shooting a cannon either, this year's rifle is 11lb 6.5ss with a brake, basically zero recoil but I do plan to listen to dr and not shoot, but I would like to find out when it is safe to shoot.
Thanks for any insight anyone has

I had triple bypass surgery on April fools day when i was 70 years old.
In November of that year i killed my first and only Pa black bear long range with a 7x300 Wetherby.
And im a left handed shooter.
That will have been 19 years ago this coming fall.

 

[memtb]

No answer from me either……but, wishing you the best with your recovery and whatever decision you make! memtb

 

[wldcat]

Thank you everyone for your advice, I want to make it clear I am not asking for medical advice so much as looking for people with personal experience. I am going to do exactly what my dr says and will not fire a single shot until at least after the new year, that's if he says it's ok. Guess I am trying to come up with a rough estimate of when I might be shooting again. They told me my sternum will be fully healed in 8 weeks and that's the Nov 5th release date. So my understanding is they are not worried about my sternum at that point but evidently there is going to be something inside that isn't all the way healed yet. To answer a couple questions i am a right handed shooter The worst part is I'm only 43!!!

 

[AnesthesiaMD]

Thank you everyone for your advice, I want to make it clear I am not asking for medical advice so much as looking for people with personal experience. I am going to do exactly what my dr says and will not fire a single shot until at least after the new year, that's if he says it's ok. Guess I am trying to come up with a rough estimate of when I might be shooting again. They told me my sternum will be fully healed in 8 weeks and that's the Nov 5th release date. So my understanding is they are not worried about my sternum at that point but evidently there is going to be something inside that isn't all the way healed yet. To answer a couple questions i am a right handed shooter The worst part is I'm only 43!!!

You will be back doing everything you love before you know it. Praying for a smooth and quick recovery for you!

 

[Nimrodmar10]

I had open heart surgery last November. They split my sternum to get access. They used 3 plates to repair the sternum.
I'm 71 years old and normally shoot a lot. My heart surgeon told me for the first 6 weeks I was not to lift more than 5 pounds. When I asked him when I could start shooting again, he said to wait at least 12 weeks to make sure the sternum bones had fused back together. Now, that's just me. Results may vary. Good luck.

 

[thekyrifleman]

I had 4X bypass on Nov 4 1997 when I was 54. Had the same questions for my surgeon who was an ultra marathoner. He listened carefully, "nothing heavier than 8# and enjoy. I missed PA buck season, killed a doe with my 8# 7X57 from a lawn chair. My buddy drove me to my stand and field dressed it for me.
As all have said, listen carefully to your Dr and don't be hesitant to provide all the details.
Good luck!

 

[yobuck]

I had 4X bypass on Nov 4 1997 when I was 54. Had the same questions for my surgeon who was an ultra marathoner. He listened carefully, "nothing heavier than 8# and enjoy. I missed PA buck season, killed a doe with my 8# 7X57 from a lawn chair. My buddy drove me to my stand and field dressed it for me.
As all have said, listen carefully to your Dr and don't be hesitant to provide all the details.
Good luck!

Dont be shocked when your Cardiologist puts you on a treadmill within a couple of months following your surgery.
I called my surgeon and wanted his opinion on that, and he said go for it.
Can hiking around hunting be any worse?

 

[wldcat]

Dont be shocked when your Cardiologist puts you on a treadmill within a couple of months following your surgery.
I called my surgeon and wanted his opinion on that, and he said go for it.
Can hiking around hunting be any worse?

They told me I could absolutely go hike all I want and I can go on the hunt so long as I don't fire a rifle.

 

[Weaver93]

Thank you everyone for your advice, I want to make it clear I am not asking for medical advice so much as looking for people with personal experience. I am going to do exactly what my dr says and will not fire a single shot until at least after the new year, that's if he says it's ok. Guess I am trying to come up with a rough estimate of when I might be shooting again. They told me my sternum will be fully healed in 8 weeks and that's the Nov 5th release date. So my understanding is they are not worried about my sternum at that point but evidently there is going to be something inside that isn't all the way healed yet. To answer a couple questions i am a right handed shooter The worst part is I'm only 43!!!

Best part is you will see 44...45....46...47....48.........et cetera

 

[wldcat]

Best part is you will see 44...45....46...47....48.........et cetera

Yes, I actually feel very lucky I had symptoms for a couple months before the actual heart attack that my primary care Dr believed to be heart related and we were in the process of doing different tests and therefore I was mindful of my heart. I don't believe I would have went to hospital with the minor symptoms I was having during the heart attack itself had I not been already nervous about my heart, might not be here today in my primary didn't connect an irritation in my throat to a heart issue!!

 

[Critter Picker]

Listen to the Dr. You only have 1 life, use it wisely!

I had a Stent and pacemaker put in October 2004. Mieesd rifle season and archery league that year. But by doing that I'm still doing it!

 

[villagelightsmith]

If you had open heart surgery I think the concern is your split sternum along with your heart. My wife had open heart surgery in July and Dr restricted her lifting for quite a while. He even said no shooting (he is from TX ). From what I understand the sternum takes some time to heal completely. I would ask a point blank question and abide by what is said.

Listen to your stitchin' too. Take a year off. Find a good Olympic air pistol and enjoy it. This is not the time for heroics. Don't do anything that hurts. Splitting and wiring the sternum back together is a pretty invasive entry, not to mention somebody holding your heart in their hands. I'll shoot the rimfires, the '17's, the Fireball and its' kittens, and even a 410 from an 1148. The latter doesn't have the recoil to even operate the action unless I get a hard grip and lean into it, so it's a pretty soft shooter. It'll still bust the clays.
I'll be working up through the gentler calibers for quite a while. And even though I'm planning on building a 4-Bore this year, I may never fire the thing. Even Frederich Selous had a double gun he named "Baby" that he refused to fire, even though it was always with him on Safari. If I remember right, it was a 2-Bore. His helpers/volunteers always refused the honors if they were asked to unload the second barrel. With a load of a quarter pound of the Righteous Black behind a half-pound ball, I'd be a bit timorous too.
I've replaced the recoil pads on my kickers with the thickest, softest shotgun trap pads I could find. Find an old beater stock that fits your Iron and do a little research and experimentation. Re-shape the combs if needs be to make the recoil parallel with the bore, or even diving down and away from your face. That, and a cush 1 1/2" kick-eeze pad. And give yourself a year to scab over & heal up.

 

[VaWhiteTailHunter76]

Thank you everyone for your advice, I want to make it clear I am not asking for medical advice so much as looking for people with personal experience. I am going to do exactly what my dr says and will not fire a single shot until at least after the new year, that's if he says it's ok. Guess I am trying to come up with a rough estimate of when I might be shooting again. They told me my sternum will be fully healed in 8 weeks and that's the Nov 5th release date. So my understanding is they are not worried about my sternum at that point but evidently there is going to be something inside that isn't all the way healed yet. To answer a couple questions i am a right handed shooter The worst part is I'm only 43!!!

I would say you're too young to be having a heart attack ..... that was until my stepdaughter had a H-A at age 35 about 5-yrs ago. It was the "widow-maker" type, but she was extremely lucky and survived and is doing fine now. They did put in a pace-maker too.