It’s been eleven days

since I came home from the hospital after having a hysterectomy(so I guess technically that’s twelve days post-surgery. Whatever.) It doesn’t hurt as much to laugh or sneeze anymore and I can sit in a chair and think I’m feeling great and then get up and walk downstairs to get something and by the time I come back up again, I’m ready to sit down and take a nice, long rest.

I didn’t realize how much energy it takes to have a conversation. I’ve had a few wonderful visits with friends or family, and it is so nice to have that mental distraction from “I-can’t-go-anywhere-or-do-anything”, but when they leave or I hang up the phone, I just want to take a nap.

Nevertheless, I am recovering and doing great. Progress gives me hope that eventually this will be a memory. That being said, I thought it would be good to write some things down that are good to know ahead of time. I’m posting them here and also as an update to my previous post.

Here is some stuff you might want to plan for ahead of time:

• Have someone who can stay with you for at least the first couple of days post-surgery. You are not going to be very mobile and you won’t want to carry anything that weighs more than your Bible (and I’m not talking about those fat sets of scriptures that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints use either). If you have an e-reader, now’s a good time to use it.
• If you have children who need care and attention, you need someone with you for the first week. I promise.
• When the doctor says, “Don’t drive for two weeks,” he means it. Ow.
• Arrange for someone else to do the grocery shopping.
• Eat freezer meals or let someone else cook. Canned soups are helpful also.
• Consider getting some underwear in a size larger to allow for post-surgical gas and swelling. My whole abdomen was sensitive to the touch and this really helped me.
• Along the same lines, buy a couple of nightgowns that you are comfortable to have visitors see you in. You will be living in your nightgown for the first week at least and it’s nice to have one to wear while the other is being washed.
• The value of muumuu dresses has gone up significantly in my eyes. They don’t bind at the waist, I can sit or lie in any position and not flash the world (or my family) with body parts I’d rather not show off to the public.
• This website called Hyster Sisters is wonderful. Those kind ladies have covered almost every question you could ask about hysterectomies, and if they haven’t, you can post yours and someone will answer you.
• Consider getting a post-partum/post surgical abdominal support brace. I don’t have one yet, but I’ve ordered one. They say it can help side sleepers like me get a better night’s sleep when gravity is putting less pressure on the belly. I learned about this at the Hyster Sisters website I mentioned above.
• I found that taking digestive enzymes and a probiotic supplement really helped my digestive tract resume normal functioning very quickly. No need for laxatives. Of course being laxative-free, may have also been a result of being narcotic-free. At any rate, you don’t want to have to make your ab muscles work hard while you are in the bathroom, know what I mean? For me, enzymes and probiotics take care of that just fine.
• Drink lots of water post-surgery. It makes a big difference in recovery. Keep a water bottle near you at all times and drink, drink, drink.
• Drink water. Lots of it.
• Also, remember to drink plenty of water.

winner-winner, veggie dinner 🙂