But with a new heart, her body will immediately begin cleansing itself. She'll be peeing like crazy, expelling all those toxins. Within three hours of surgery, he said, you can literally watch her metamorphize into a healthy person. I wish I could be there, but at that point, Andreas will be her only permitted visitor. She is immuno-suppressed and the safest place is away from all the germs you find in a hospital.
Most people are well enough to go back to work within a month of a transplant.
Her body will always try to reject her new heart, but with drugs, she should keep the side effects of rejection to a minimum. In Susan's case, they'll want her to stay in L.A. for about 6 weeks. I'm even wondering if they'll let her go early. Andreas is worried that once she gets the heart, they won't be able to keep her down. After our short talk, we left and Andreas went back to Susan to help her through the dialysis.