As Miami home care specialists, we know how difficult it can be to wait to recover from surgery at home. It feels like it takes forever for the surgery site to heal, and during that time, you might think you can’t really do anything to help speed things along. While it’s true that you can’t expect an instant recovery, there are a few simple things you can do to prevent complications.
Here are five ways you can have a speedy recovery from surgery at home.
Trust Your Doctor’s Instructions
When you’re discharged from the hospital following your surgery, your doctor will give you a set of instructions to help you care for your incision. To some patients, these instructions can seem a bit silly. For instance, your doctor might tell you not to lift anything heavier than ten pounds. Ten pounds might seem insignificant, but if your doctor includes this rule, you should probably follow it. You don’t want to risk reopening the incision and prolonging your recovery time because you didn’t follow instructions.
Maintain a Proper Diet
Many people report a low appetite after having surgery. The reason for this could be that they feel nauseous or constipated from their medication. However, it’s critical to stay hydrated and to eat a healthy diet because doing so can promote healing.
Be Careful with Sudden Movements
After having surgery, you will also want to avoid any sudden movements. While your pain levels will help keep you from getting up or moving too quickly, there are a few things to keep in mind. For instance, sneezing too hard can reopen your incision, so be sure to exercise caution if you feel the urge to sneeze.
Take Care of Your Incision
Your doctor will give you instructions that lay out how you should care for your incision. A few common mistakes to avoid include failing to wash your hands before touching it, cleaning it too vigorously, removing scabs, and soaking in the bath too soon.
Get Up and Get Moving
As mentioned above, constipation is a common side effect of many pain medications. The easiest way to improve your digestion after surgery is to get up every hour or so and walk around. Even if you can only manage to walk for a minute, moving will help to move things along. Walking can also help prevent some other serious complications that arise from too much bed rest, like deep vein thrombosis and pneumonia. Ask your doctor how active you can be after your surgery.
Need Help Recovering from Surgery? Consider Miami Home Care
Recovering from surgery can be a painful, isolating process. If you or someone you love needs a little extra help with things like cooking and cleaning, or if you need help caring for your surgery incision, let Granny NANNIES Miami help. Get in touch with us so that we can discuss your situation and send you the support that will help you recover faster.