Holmes out of hospital: 'It was a scary upset'

Broadcaster Paul Holmes. Photo / Supplied

Broadcaster Paul Holmes has been discharged from Hawke's Bay Hospital and says his stay "was the peace I needed".

"Everything is calm, my health is secure and I am relaxing at home," he said.

Mr Holmes was admitted to Hawke's Bay Hospital after complications from last week's open-heart surgery in Auckland left him gasping for breath.

"Everything has settled down, it was a scary upset - a hell of a thing."

"I spent an excellent few days in Hawke's Bay Hospital and we are simply taking things easy - watching a lot of telly, reading, eating some nice soups and going for walks."

He said hallucinations and nightmares had subsided. One dream involved Queen Elizabeth ordering him to fix tail-guns on broken-down World War II bomber planes for her Jubilee.

"I only had one hallucination last night, that a big doctor was standing next to me. But my wife assured me he was not and I said, thank you very much for telling me and I went back to sleep."

He said he was looking forward to "a quiet few weeks of rebuilding" before returning to work.