Preparing for surgery is a very important step, not only for the procedure itself but also for your recovery. If you prepare properly, there is a better chance of everything going well, making the recovery time quicker and easier to deal with.
With this fact in mind, here are a number of tips and tricks that will help ease you into all kinds of surgeries so that you can make both your operation and recovery a breeze.
Diet and Exercise
Being healthy is vital for anyone anyway; however, if you are going for surgery involving anesthetic, it is extremely important to ensure you are in tip-top condition. In fact, eating a ‘clean’ diet can transform how quickly you recover. While recovery is different for everyone, someone on a much healthier diet will heal much faster than those who aren’t.
Exercising is another piece of advice that is recommended by many doctors. If your surgery might reduce your mobility, walking and staying on top of your fitness beforehand can help you recover quicker and get you back to your normal lifestyle.
Although exercising weeks before surgery is great, you shouldn’t overdo it in the upcoming days. You might still be recovering from a heavy workout, and surgery on top means your body will have to work overtime during recovery.
Quit Drinking and Smoking
Most will already be aware that drinking and smoking are some of the worst things you can do to your health. Not only will stopping drinking and smoking weeks before surgery improve your diet and overall health, but it will also do wonders for your mental wellbeing.
In the weeks and days before your procedure, you may already be anxious about getting surgery but stopping these bad habits may help relieve some of those worries by reducing your stress levels and bolstering your overall health.
This notion also extends to lighter, simpler surgeries as well – not just big operations. For example, stopping drinking a few days before eye surgery can help you recover much quicker. How? If you’re going to have laser eye surgery to fix your vision, it is highly recommended to cut out booze since alcohol causes your eyes to dehydrate, which can cause further irritation and affect your recovery time.
On the Day
When you finally get to the day of your surgery, you may be feeling very anxious and nervous about it. There are different things you may need to do to prepare for your procedure, and your doctor should have given you instructions for doing so.
The following points are some things that doctors recommend before any operation:
- Do not shave the surgical site
- Remove all jewelry, including piercings
- Remove make-up, especially if it is on the face and eyes
- Remove contact lenses
- Follow the eating and drinking rules you’ve been given
- Take any medicine your doctor has prescribed
- Take any pain relief if your doctor has recommended (this can help with the pain after the surgery)
Final Thoughts
You will likely know about your surgery weeks or even months in advance, so you should keep these tips in mind if you’re going in for a procedure in the future. That way, this advice, coupled with your doctor’s information and instructions, might be able to make your recovery process smoother and faster, and reduce your worries before the surgery even takes place.
As always, though, follow your doctor’s advice and ask them any questions you might have – they are the experts!
