Driving LOOOOONG distance after surgery. Good or bad?

[ChristinasSleeveStory 44]

Hi there. I plan on having surgery and then driving from FLorida to NH. How long should I wait before my trip in your opinion and guidance?

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[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

This is definitely a question for your surgeon. One of the biggest risks post-op is blood clots (the other is pneumonia). Since I live over 45 minutes away from the hospital where I had surgery, my surgeon required me to have a plan in place to stop and walk every thirty minutes. That was the day after surgery and I was taking blood thinners.

A long car trip would be extremely tiring at the very least.

[Valentina 2,642]

Hello,

I realize that sometimes we have to do what we have to do. Life dictates the steps we take at times.

Since you haven't had your surgery yet, PLAN ahead. Brain storm with your bariatric team. Maybe you can map Quest the trip and mark "resting/walking" areas where you will stop and do just that.

A DVT is a real threat right after surgery. (Deep Vein Thrombosis AKA: blood clot) They can be lethal.

By all means, make an appointment with the "long distance driving" the top item on the agenda.

Plan ahead---stay ahead.

Prayers going up for you and a safe and healthy trip and WLS journey.

[Miss Mac 6,262]

If you have an option, I would wait until I was at least on soft foods. You will not have much energy yet and could fatigue more easily than you would otherwise.

[AvaFern 3,516]

Definitely consult your surgeon. As a general idea, if you're in the hospital for three days, and you're up and walking around, as long as you continue to be active to an extent your risk isn't as huge. The link below shows a study that found that the risk remained elevated for at least 6 weeks after surgery and was not fully back to normal risk levels until 12 weeks post-op. If you are driving and taking a break to stop and walk around fairly frequently, you are likely going to be fine. Flying is also risky after surgery and people do it all the time. If you're the passenger, massage your legs, wiggle around, and basically don't just sit in the seat for 12 hours like a bump on a log, or you're increasing your risk. You aren't banned from going on your trip, it just might take you a little longer because you need to get out and walk around a few more times than would already be the case whenever you would have had to stop for gas.

http://www.webmd.com/dvt/news/20091204/post-op-blood-clot-risk-high

[ChristinasSleeveStory 44]

If you have an option, I would wait until I was at least on soft foods. You will not have much energy yet and could fatigue more easily than you would otherwise.

How long do you generally wait for that clearance? A week? A month? I'm so naive ...

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[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

When I was about 4 weeks out, I drove around 800-900 miles in a weekend, in a 36 hour time period. I had to. I was fine.

If you are 4-6 weeks out you might have the energy to do so. The issue after blood clots is fatigue. You get very sleepy, very fast after surgery, you can have a lot of energy, and then boom, exhausted.

If you are able to eat, well early on you will probably have the energy. I was able to meet my Protein goals on day 2, and I have met and exceeded them almost every single day since surgery. Most people aren't like that. They have issues with getting their Protein in, I don't. I also have an Iron sleeve.

It is just risky to plan something like this when you have no idea how you will feel after surgery.