1 Month Before Surgery
- Ask questions and write things down! Unless you are having emergency/unexpected surgery, for the most part, you will have to wait a while before the big day arrives. Once you get a date scheduled, you'll have to complete (at a minimum) both a pre-op with your primary care and a phone/in person interview with a member of the anesthesia staff at the hospital you're having your procedure done. Ask any questions you might have and try to write down their answers. Chances are, you will probably forget something. You'll be happy to refer back to a notebook full of answers of things that you might have forgotten. And if you forget to ask something, write it down in your notebook to be answered next time. It'll be there to remind you at your next visit.
- Start to think about a reliable caregiver for after surgery along with a back-up plan. This tip is a little bit of a no brainer for most people but life is unpredictable. For me, I had planned to have my hubby be my reliable person. He'd drive me to the hospital, wait for me while I was in surgery and then drive me home when I was ready to leave. However, I could not predict that my hubby would bust up his leg 2 weeks before my own surgery and be unable to drive. Now, suddenly, I had to scramble and find someone else to drive the both of us to the hospital the day of my surgery. Very stressful and not fun. If you are married, see if a relative or close friend could be your plan b (just in case). It never hurts to be too thorough.
- Give notice to work (if you are working) and fill out all forms for FMLA/Leave of Absence/Short or Long Term Disability. Most employers require paperwork if you will be out of work due to surgery. Fill out the paperwork as early as you can. Most require at least 30 days advance notice if it is a non-emergent surgery. I had to fill out leave of absence forms for all my surgeries, even the one where I was only out of work for 5 days. If you have been employed for at least 1 year, you are entitled to the FMLA which is the Family Medical Leave Act. The FMLA allows you to take leave from work for a personal medical issue. It also entitles you to keeping your position for up to 3 months so that your employer can't fire/let you go while you are recovering. The FMLA has a lot of other conditions/benefits like caring for a loved one who is sick so definitely check it out if you are not familiar. The FMLA only provides you with the ability to take protected UNPAID leave. You will have to elect separate coverage (I.e. short/long term disability) in order to maintain your current wages while on leave. Check out this link for more information --> (http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/benefits-leave/fmla.htm) Some forms you may be required to fill out are:
- FMLA / Leave of Absence Request Form
- Signed form by your manager/supervisor regarding your leave
- A Provider Certification Form that is filled out by your doctor/surgeon
- Short or Long Term Disability Forms (may be required to setup a claim via telephone as well as fill out paperwork)
- GINA FMLA form (this may only be required by Massachusetts but I had to fill this out as well)
3 Days Before Surgery (or weekend before)
- Clean your house! Now, this isn't totally necessary but you'll feel so much better knowing that you won't have to worry about doing anything while you recover.
- Wash and fold any dirty laundry (this includes linens and towels).
- Clean and put away all dishes.
- Clean all bathrooms (disinfect showers/tubs and toilets).
- Wash and vacuum the floors.
- Vacuum your couch (chances are, you'll be vegging on the couch watching tv while you recover).
- Clean out your fridge! If you are having oral surgery, the fridge is a must! You probably won't be able to eat much anyway and throwing away old and nasty food is the worst. If you won't eat it by your surgery date, just toss it. You'll thank me later.
- If you don't have time to do a major thorough cleaning, definitely clean out your fridge, disinfect all bathrooms and clean all dirty dishes. Try not to do everything yourself, recruit family and friends to help if you can!
- Go Grocery shopping! Once you've cleaned out your fridge, you'll need to stock up on post-surgery essentials. Check out my list of grocery items that I bought for my recovery here! If you have people who depend on you for meals, try and make a few meals ahead of time and freeze them. All they have to do is defrost them, reheat and enjoy. Or buy a few frozen pizzas and call it a day.
1 Day Before Surgery
- Go out and de-stress before your surgery. It doesn't have to be something crazy or extraordinary. For surgery #2, I got a coupon to my favorite restaurant (The Melting Pot) and my hubby and I spent a romantic evening together. For surgery #3, we went to a steak house where I ate a big steak dinner (since I wouldn't be eating much for the next 8 weeks). But it doesn't have to be dinner. Go watch a movie, hang out with friends, read a book, eat junk food, have sex, whatever your heart desires. Sit back and chill out.
- Pack a bag for the next day. If you are staying at the hospital overnight, your doctor should give you a list of things to bring with you. If you are just having day surgery, you don't necessarily need to bring a ton of stuff but pack a few essentials should something come up. Make sure you have:
- A change of clothes --> t-shirt, socks, cotton underwear, athletic shorts and pj pants.
- Some form of Identification
- Medical Card with insurance info
- Hair tie
- Anything extra your doctor has told you to bring (i had to bring the "key" for my appliance for surgery #2. They used it during my surgery to start the expanding process.)
- A travel neck pillow and blanket for comfort on the ride home.
- A bottle of water. (I was so thirsty after surgery, even on the ride home!)
- A comfort item (like a stuffed animal)
- Prepare the area where you will spend the most time. Typically, most people hang out on the couch but choose wherever you are most comfortable. Make sure your essentials are close by so you don't have to keep getting up to grab stuff. For example:
- TV Remote
- Movies (All day time TV sucks EXCEPT for The Price is Right)
- A book or magazine
- Laptop computer with charger
- Phone with charger
- Medications
- Water bottle and/or Gatorade
- Blanket and/or comfort item
- Pillow for when you ultimately fall asleep.
Day of Surgery
- Leave all valuables at home. The hospital should be very clear about not bringing valuables to the hospital when having surgery. This includes all jewelry (including wedding rings), laptops, tablets, cell phones**, medications, wallet (minus the license & insurance card), cash, ect. I opted to bring my cell phone just in case any family called my cell while I was out. And there was a short wait (about 20-25 minutes) before I was brought into the O.R. The cell gave me something to focus on while I waited. Once you are ready to go in for surgery, make sure to give your cell phone to your reliable person.
- Wear comfy clothes to the hospital. Wear things that are easy on/easy off. Athletic shorts and a large t-shirt were my first choices. The hospital staff will require you to change out of your street clothes anyway. These comfy clothes are for your comfort after you wake up. I also wore flip flops which were magical. I didn't have to bend over (not that I could have if I had tried, lol), I just slipped them on my feet and away I went. For my first surgery I saw people wearing jeans, boots and stylish outfits and couldn't understand how they even pulled their pants up, never mind put boots on after surgery!
- Leave everything but your I.D., insurance card, and required surgery items in your car. The bag you packed the night before is mostly there just in case of emergency. If something were to happen and you suddenly needed to spend the night, it's nice to know that your loved one won't have to rush home for anything major. They can just walk to the car and grab your bag and bring it into the hospital once you get assigned a room. Or if something happens during the car ride home, it's nice to know that you have an extra set of clothes (in case you vomit or bleed all over yourself).
- Make sure you don't forget anything! Your reliable person will be with you when you get discharged since they'll need to drive you home. Have them be your second set of eyes. Make sure you have any instructions for recovery (do's and don'ts), prescriptions, info for your post-op appointment with date and time, and any belongings you brought into the hospital.
After Surgery
- Rest and relax. Try to get comfortable and focus on recovering. Surgery is traumatic and recovery doesn't happen overnight. Take it easy and don't overdo it.
- Set goals each day. When I was in the hospital, they told me that in order for me to get discharged, I had to show that I could do a few things. First, I had to be able to take medications by mouth (as a liquid) and not through my IV. Second, I had to be able to go the bathroom by myself. And third, I had to be able to take enough liquids to not be dehydrated. If I could show that I was able to perform all those tasks, they would discharge me and send me home. Those were my goals. I liked the idea of goals and continued with the trend after coming home. And they don't have to be difficult or unattainable. After coming home, my next goal was taking a shower. And after that, it was going for a walk around the block. Make your goals easy and you'll feel like you accomplished a lot.
- Maintain a schedule. Having a schedule isn't completely necessary when you are recovering but I like having a routine every day. Being organized with a routine every day makes it easy for me to accomplish those goals that I set earlier.
- Speak up! If something doesn't feel right, make sure to tell someone. Even if you think it's silly or minor, talk to a loved one or a doctor if you are concerned. After surgery, I had to go to a lot of post-op appointments. I noticed that my nose felt funny after surgery and mentioned it to my oral surgeon. After I complained about it, my oral surgeon referred me to an ENT specialist where it was confirmed that I had a deviated septum and would need another surgery to fix it. Don't hold anything back because you honestly never know what could happen!
This is it for now! More will be added as I think of them or experience them, whatever comes first!
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