Breast reconstruction surgery is a brave and bold step. Before you check into the hospital, here are a few tips to make your stay more comfortable. I collected them from my own experience, patients in my cancer support group, and other reliable sources.
After surgery your hospital room is your healing zone and you deserve whatever you need to recover. Visitors should enter a hospital room calmly and quietly, not boisterously. Tell your visitors that you want them to leave any negative talk outside the room. No complaints, no whining, no bickering in your room. You need all your energy to heal and your environment should be peaceful. If necessary, say a code word to your doctor to clear the room for a ?consultation.? Take soft CD?s, magazines, photos to look at. Books might be hard to focus on.
Dress in layers, as the room will seem hot to them. And again, NO COMPLAIN
The temperature may be turned up high in your room if you are having flap reconstruction surgery. The goal is to keep the blood vessels from constricting. Tell your visitors beforehand toING how hot the room is, and yes, "just mentioning it" counts. Feel free to pass a copy of this article to them.
Bring construction paper and tape for signs in your room for any special instructions you want staff to follow. In my case, the staff was harried and kept trying to use the wrong arm to do sticks and take blood pressure (had they heard of lymphedema?). We asked them to put a sign above my bed that said ?no left arm sticks,? but they put up ?no right arm sticks? instead. We finally posted the correct sign ourselves, but the whole process took a lot out of me.
The staff will politely ask when they leave your room if you want the door closed and the lights on or off. Put that info on a sign they can see in the room and you?ll cut down on this unending discussion by half. A QUIET PLEASE sign for the outside of the door is a blessing, too.
If the staff gives you pain medication, take it. You won?t get hooked on them, so Billy, don?t be a hero. If they give you a pain pump, have someone put it right by (and I mean RIGHT by) your hand, even taped to it if necessary.
Some of the best advice I ever got was: do NOT talk on the phone or send e-mails when you are on pain medications. You think you are normal; you are not. Repeat this mantra when you have the urge to call someone. Really, I?m not kidding.
The call button, light buttons, and television buttons are all on a paddle-shaped remote that is supposed to be easy to access, but falls off the bed regularly. Have a staff person wrap it around the chrome on the bed, or better yet, bring duct tape and tape that baby right onto the bedside.
Pillows, fluffy socks, and a throw are nice touches of home.
Getting out of bed is a great challenge in the first couple of days in the hospital. There is a foot bar on some beds that nurses can pull out that you can use to brace one foot on; if you can find it, use it. Have the staff teach your home caregiver the proper way to help you in and out of bed.
You might have a catheter in after surgery, so drink lots of water while it?s still in to help flush out the anesthesia. Once it?s out do not lie down without a clear strategy for how you can get back up and pee. Once you are up for any reason, pee, even if you think you don?t have to.
Use the incentive spirometer to help you get over the anesthetic and clear your lungs. Inhale slowly into it and try to hold your breath for a few seconds. It helps a lot; even if you don't think it does anything, so use it as often as you can.
The pillow does a great job of messing up the back of your hair. Some gals get a hair cut while others braid theirs or put it on top their heads. Consider a misting detangler or leave-in conditioner spray, which also gets knots out. I had my husband take me to a beauty school the day after I got out of the hospital for a shampoo, using a footstool to keep my feet and legs up. If you had a tummy tuck for the reconstruction you won?t be able to stretch your midsection.
You will have swelling and bruising, but you knew that. You are organic and every day the pretty colors will change and you?ll get better. Ask your surgeon if natural supplements like Arnica (for bruising) are OK.
Don?t buy nice pajamas for the hospital stay; they will only get ruined when staff changes the bandages. Use the hospital garb. A lightweight, full-length robe will come in handy when you do start walking outside your room. Get one with big, deep sleeves as they are easier to get your stiff arms into. At home, a pajama bottom that is ?satin-like? will help you slide in and out of bed easier.
Remove hair from your armpits and legs before surgery via waxing or depilatory. You won?t be able to bend to shave your legs for a while.
Coughing, laughing, or crying will contract your belly and cause pain. Use a pillow hugged close to your belly to reduce that medical euphemism they call ?discomfort.?
You will have drains inserted during surgery to remove fluids from swollen tissues. Drains are necessary, yet annoying. The staff uses pins to secure them to your pajamas, which I found dangerous. Drains also present quite a problem when you attempt to take a shower.
There is a wonderful woman on eBay, a former cancer patient, who makes something she calls Comfort Pockets under the name CJ Hats. Each pocket is large enough to hold 2 drainage bulbs and uses a long Velcro belt to keep the pocket on. You get two pockets for $20 and wear one set when dry, and use the second (made of fast drying nylon sport fabric) in the shower. She will make the belt to fit your exact size. I used them and would never go back to pins.
The food still sucks in most hospitals, and most of all, it?s not conducive to the healing process. Have someone bring you steamed vegetables and well-diced fruits from home in little containers, but take full advantage of all the smooth, cool food items they have at the nurse?s station, like puddings, popsicles, ice chips, etc. You?ll get the healthy stuff, but still soothe that sore throat (from the anesthesia tube) at the same time.
This list is far from exhaustive, but at least you have a few new ideas to consider that might give you some comfort. Remember that there are many women who have gone through the reconstruction surgery that send you good vibes for a full and lasting recovery! Good luck!
Diana Rivers has had successful breast reconstruction after a double mastectomy. She lives in Appleton, WI with her husband, Michael, and three cats. | |
