What is the most important things to have on hand right after surgery. I am starting to get nervous and I dont want to have to much on hand. SVG date Nov 27th.

The foods that your doctor says that you can have. Sugar Free popsicles were a life-saver for me. Liquid Tylenol, not the childrens kind though, that stuff is grotesquely sweet. An ice pack will be good, if you experience pain at the incision site.

My biggest advice for after surgery is to get up and walk. It will help you SOOOO much!

Sleeping might be hard. My husband went out and bought a recliner rocker as soon as I got home from the hospital. I couldn't lay down, lay on my side, nothing. I sat up at the hospital for the three days I was there and continued to need to be sitting up for a couple weeks. This might vary from person to person and be dependent on how old or heavy you are going in. But maybe be ready with extra pillows for propping if you don't already have a recliner.

As far as eating goes, water and protein drinks will probably be what you focus on the most for a good while. Warm drinks, broths, tomato soup, greek yogurt, sugar free pudding. Cold things might be hard to tolerate initially. If you feel discomfort switch to room temperature liquid. Good luck and be brave! Happy for you!

The foods that your doctor says that you can have. Sugar Free popsicles were a life-saver for me. Liquid Tylenol, not the childrens kind though, that stuff is grotesquely sweet. An ice pack will be good, if you experience pain at the incision site.
My biggest advice for after surgery is to get up and walk. It will help you SOOOO much!

Thank you so much for your tips.

Sleeping might be hard. My husband went out and bought a recliner rocker as soon as I got home from the hospital. I couldn't lay down, lay on my side, nothing. I sat up at the hospital for the three days I was there and continued to need to be sitting up for a couple weeks. This might vary from person to person and be dependent on how old or heavy you are going in. But maybe be ready with extra pillows for propping if you don't already have a recliner.
As far as eating goes, water and protein drinks will probably be what you focus on the most for a good while. Warm drinks, broths, tomato soup, greek yogurt, sugar free pudding. Cold things might be hard to tolerate initially. If you feel discomfort switch to room temperature liquid. Good luck and be brave! Happy for you!

Thank you so much..

I had a grabber reacher thing that was invaluable to me. It helped me not bend and twist for those first days home from the hospital.

I like @KimTriesRNY‘s grabber idea and wish I’d had one. I kept a couple flavors of protein drinks on hand, along with bone broths (higher in protein than regular), and flavored protein powder with frozen fruits for smoothies. I really struggled to get calories in immediately after I got home and having a couple options helped.

Also kept water by the bedside for when I woke up in the night; those random sips can add up and make a big difference in how you feel overall.

Good luck!?

My advice is not to buy too much. I bought way more liquid, pureed and soft foods than I even came close to eating. So much I gave or threw away.

Tiny 8 oz bottles so you can track how much water you are taking in. It is nice visual feedback for all that sipping you'll be doing.

Also Benefiber, just in case. I know it doesn't happen to everyone, but the tragic atomic megaturd that appeared a week after my surgery really could have been avoided.

What I wouldn't have bought now that I know what I know now was a pill crusher. It was really cumbersome and the nurses even struggled with getting things smashed. It was much easier to snip the tops of capsules and cut pills in pieces with plain scissors before swallowing.

Edited October 13, 20187 yr by John Kitsu

Chicken bullion cubes to make chicken broth. It tastes better than the canned/boxed stuff. Bottled water to track your intake and sugar free popsicles. They were a lifesaver! I am 3 weeks post op. My surgery was on September 25.

I like [mention=329713]KimTriesRNY[/mention]‘s grabber idea and wish I’d had one. I kept a couple flavors of protein drinks on hand, along with bone broths (higher in protein than regular), and flavored protein powder with frozen fruits for smoothies. I really struggled to get calories in immediately after I got home and having a couple options helped.
Also kept water by the bedside for when I woke up in the night; those random sips can add up and make a big difference in how you feel overall.
Good luck![emoji256]

Thank you

I like [mention=329713]KimTriesRNY[/mention]‘s grabber idea and wish I’d had one. I kept a couple flavors of protein drinks on hand, along with bone broths (higher in protein than regular), and flavored protein powder with frozen fruits for smoothies. I really struggled to get calories in immediately after I got home and having a couple options helped.
Also kept water by the bedside for when I woke up in the night; those random sips can add up and make a big difference in how you feel overall.
Good luck![emoji256]

Thank you

My advice is not to buy too much. I bought way more liquid, pureed and soft foods than I even came close to eating. So much I gave or threw away.

Thank you

Chicken bullion cubes to make chicken broth. It tastes better than the canned/boxed stuff. Bottled water to track your intake and sugar free popsicles. They were a lifesaver! I am 3 weeks post op. My surgery was on September 25.

Thank you

I had awful gas pains in my neck & back from all of the air that goes into your body during the surgery. A Heating pad saved me with these pains, so did salonpas pads. I was surprised that with all of the reading & research I did months prior to surgery, I read nothing of people these pains, however after surgery I learned that these pains are very common after laparoscopic surgery. It lasted about a week for me but was more painful for me than my incisions (2 hernia repairs & gastric sleeve). Heating pad & salonpas saved me my first week.

I had awful gas pains in my neck & back from all of the air that goes into your body during the surgery. A Heating pad saved me with these pains, so did salonpas pads. I was surprised that with all of the reading & research I did months prior to surgery, I read nothing of people these pains, however after surgery I learned that these pains are very common after laparoscopic surgery. It lasted about a week for me but was more painful for me than my incisions (2 hernia repairs & gastric sleeve). Heating pad & salonpas saved me my first week.

Hi...I had my Sleeve done on October 17th and just recently I've endured gas pains that are quite annoying. What exactly does heating pads do and where do you put them?

Live...Love...Laugh [emoji3]