First post — surgery in 10 days and feeling overwhelmed

Hi everyone! I’m new here and wanted to finally make my first post. My bariatric surgery is in 10 days, and I’m excited, but honestly I’m also really nervous and feeling pretty overwhelmed.

I have several health things going on right now. My asthma has been acting up badly, and I’ve been coughing so much that it causes sharp, rippling pain in my back/spine. Sometimes I cough hard enough that I throw up most of what I eat. I’m not sure whether it’s just from the coughing or possibly GERD/reflux too.

On top of that, fire ants somehow breached the wall in my bedroom, so I’m currently sleeping in the living room until that gets handled. I’m also alone right now—my closest friends are about four hours away, and my roommate is out of state for work for another month. It’s just a lot to juggle right before surgery.

I think I’m nervous about the surgery itself, recovery, and especially what my relationship with food will look like afterward. I know this is a lot for a first post, but I don’t really know anyone personally who is in a similar situation.

If anyone has advice for getting through these last 10 days, books or resources that helped you mentally prepare, or just words of encouragement, I would truly appreciate it. I’d also love any practical tips for the first couple of weeks after surgery—especially for someone recovering mostly alone. Anything that helped with hydration, protein, nausea, sleeping comfortably, getting around, or managing the emotional side would be really helpful. Thanks for reading. 💛