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Varicose Veins
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 2005-11-08 2:45 PM |
Member  22 Folsom, CA |  Subject: Varicose VeinsIt's a long story but I just had to have 2 operations to remove some very nasty varicose veins. No it's not just an old lady disease some  sometimes even younger men (39) get them. I wasn't in much pain B-4 surgery-it seems physical activity help prevents pain & the best physical activity for varicose veins is swimming, biking and walking (almost triathlon)-but my right calf had swelled to about 20% larger than the left & had unsightly nests of thick veins, so we got rid of them. Anyway, I have a couple of questions that I'm hoping I can get some feedback on: 1. Is this at all common for triathletes? I'm a Clydesdale and am wondering if the pounding from my runs contributed to this. Just another reason to get real skinny right? 2. If you've had this problem, how soon did you start running hard? I've already been walking for 30 minutes every day. But I'm catious about running, it's been 1 week since the last surgery & I'm still bruised up and sore. Also, when you do this you have to give your remaining veins time to adjust and compensate for the one's that were removed. Thanks in advance, your support is appreciated. BTW-if you have this issue & are facing surgery, I'll be happy to share more about my experience/choices. Send me an email at [email protected] |
| 2005-11-08 3:23 PM in reply to: #280780 |
Member 15 Georgetown, TX | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins I had VNUS Closure on both legs 1 year ago (actually I had the left leg done first and the right leg done 3 days later). My surgeon told me no running for 2 weeks after the surgery. I started walking about 2 days after the surgery. I started using an elliptical trainer and cycling about 4 days after. I started running (okay, more like a shuffle-jog) exactly 2 weeks later. I did a 5K Turkey Trot for Thanksgiving about 3 weeks after the surgery (I had to walk a little, but I was so excited to be in a "race" again, so what!). I started seriously training for my next triathlon (sprint distince) about 6 weeks after the surgery. You didn't mention which surgery you had - was it stripping or one of the other methods? I ask because my surgeon said stripping has a longer recovery time. I definately think you need to give yourself more time before you "run hard". I think you can start running at 2 weeks, but you need to give your circulatory system time to repair and rebuild. Also, I have noticed that my bike-run transitions are easier now. I used to have "dead" legs for the entire run. Now I seem to get my running legs in 10 minutes or less. I think the surgery definately helped me. Best of luck to you! Susan |
| 2005-11-08 4:38 PM in reply to: #280824 |
Member 22 Folsom, CA | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins The 1st surgery was RF Ablation to cook/kill the saphenous vein in the right leg & localized stripping at the knee. It was only partially successful, it didn't kill the saphenous vein from the knee to the groin-even though I was the, "perfect candidate." The 2nd surgery was a stripping of the saphenous vein from the knee to the groin-100% effective every time. The 1st one was pretty painful, the 2nd one has made me sore/tender but I'm not really in pain. The positive part of this is the surgeries were only 12 days apart so I've had just 1 long recovery instead of 2 seperate events & I've now been introduced to Percocet I can see why people get addicted to this prescription stuff...no pain/good mood-positive vibration Regae beat in your head & no hangover  |
| 2005-11-08 9:44 PM in reply to: #280780 |
 Extreme Veteran 1491   northeast Ohio | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins Dave, I am very interested in your post especially your recovery time. I have a really bad bulging vein in one leg. In my case totally genetic. My dad actually has worse varicose veins than my mom. So I have a double whammy coming from both parents. Anyway, I've been thinking about doing something about my big vein since the last couple of years I have noticed some mild swelling in that leg after a hard day's work. No pain though. But my first tri is next summer and I was hoping to put it off until the following winter. Diane |
| 2005-11-08 11:00 PM in reply to: #280780 |
Master 1741 Chapel Hill, NC | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins Just curious if your insurance paid for the vein surgery. I just got word that my insurance company won't pay to have my veins fixed. I've had varicose veins since my childbearing years, so it has nothing to do with my running. They really interfere with my running, tho...my lower leg and foot swells when I run and my leg feels heavy at the end of my long runs. I had testing done at a local university medical center that showed the great saphenous vein needs to be zapped, or something like that. Anybody know how much that sort of thing costs if you go to a vein clinic? The bill for just the #!~@% tests was close to $1000, of which I had to pay 20%.  |
| 2005-11-09 8:54 AM in reply to: #281080 |
Member 15 Georgetown, TX | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins Carol, your symptoms sound very similar to mine (swelling, heavy "dead" legs). My insurance did pay for the diagnostic test (an ultrasound) and the surgery. It was an outpatient procedure. Try searching on the internet about the different procedures available; there's a lot of information. Forgot to mention that my v veins are hereditary - my father had to get one leg stripped. My older brother has them but has not had any treatment for them. I did some research when mine were first diagnosed, and I couldn't find much correlation between running and varicose veins. My surgeon told me its mainly genetics and, for women, pregnancy causes it. |
| 2005-11-09 3:59 PM in reply to: #281257 |
Member 22 Folsom, CA | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins Drdi...my recovery time seems to be 1 week until I "feel good". I'll try to remember to let you know about the fitness recovery and when I feel "strong & confident". Keyone...My insurance (Kaiser) covered everything. First I did the ultrasound to eliminate DVT, then consultation, pre-op, then 2 surgeries and finally 2 follow ups. The key for Kaiser seemed to be in identifying my case as physical case (well being related) rather than a cosmetic case (vainity related). Once I passed that hurdle & was refered t a Vascular Surgeon, they were actually advocating surgery. Dryheat...Thanks for the information about your Dad/Brother. It was interesting because nobody in my family has this problem. Oh well, somebody has to be first right? Good Luck |
| 2005-11-09 8:12 PM in reply to: #280780 |
Master 1932 Savannah, | Subject: RE: Varicose Veins The saphenous vein stinks! 17 tiny injections from my knee to my groin were a bit uncomfortable and then lasering out the vein was nothing. The out-of-pocket was about $300...and compression hose for a week (worse than the injections) but for what? I look the same! Have to go back in. It's hereditary (my dad) and the pounding of running doesn't help. But the hydrostatic pressure of the pool does help. If I could live in the pool, I would. |
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