Hi folks, are there any post-op musicians here (winds or strings)?

I'm most likely having surgery in November or December, and I'm wondering on how long I can expect to be out of commission.

Since I play winds, I'm particularly concerned about soreness in the diaphragm, the surgery's effect on stamina in the immediate post-op phase, and to a lesser extent, simply sitting up in a chair for long periods of time. I would rather let my contractors know that I'm not available for Xmas gigs than to suffer through two-hour performances, or worse, being unable to play at all.

Any thoughts from a fellow professional or any amateurs would be appreciated.

"When all is said and done, usually more has been said than done. "

I'm a drummer and keyboard player, sleeved 6/27. Haven't tried playing drums yet, but as long as you do your breathing exercises you'll get all of the anesthesia gas out of your system, and you should be back to normal regarding your breathing after a few days. You'll need to build your energy back up, but you should be fine after a week or two I'd think. I would run this by your surgeon for sure, but the pain will be less and less each day after. I'm 2 weeks out, and can breathe in and out with no problems. Best of luck!

Thanks John, playing a wind instrument is much more taxing than simply breathing, but your comment does indeed give an idea of the effort that might be necessary.

"When all is said and done, usually more has been said than done. "

Well, drumming is essentially a cardio workout, so breathing is just as important. :-)

But I get what you mean.

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I play the flute, not professionally, but I still dabble here and there every now and then.

When I had my lap band back in 2011, I was in my college marching band (piccolo) and I remember having a performance maybe 2-3 weeks after my surgery. I can't remember any pain and I was pretty steady with my breathing from my diaphragm.

I just recently had the sleeve and I haven't tried playing my horn yet and I'm 23 days out.

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Edited July 14, 201610 yr by yeaaahBEE