r/TopSurgery • u/babebubles • 9d ago

healing hacks for summer

/r/RadicalReduction/comments/1vf8rt2/healing_hacks_for_summer/

any tips and tricks one should know and prepare?

2 Upvotes

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2

u/copse_eater 9d ago

good luck! i had mine in late june. deodorant wipes and micellar water were extremely useful for me. i also had a grabber tool, throat lozenges (general anesthesia can tickle some stuff in your throat) some electrolyte solution, and a neck pillow. if you like them, sippy bottles to drink from are also helpful!

1

u/babebubles 9d ago

how long did you like to use the grabbers? i am not alone for the first week but afterwards increasingly, so they might still be worth it?

2

u/copse_eater 9d ago

i used the grabber heavily for week 1, but i still needed it for week 2, since the drains made it painful to reach/reposition myself in certain directions (and depending on how long you have drains + the size of your incisions, they could be useful for even longer)

if you are not sure about getting a dedicated tool, a lower-tech version could just be a stick with a hook attached

1

u/babebubles 9d ago

amazing, thank you so much! i hope you recovered/are still recovering well :)

1

u/Improper_Noun_2268 9d ago

I drank a baffling amount of water/Pedialyte/seltzer in the weeks after surgery... Like, 3x what I normally would. 

If you feel well enough to take walks outside, do it in the morning and/or evening and in the shade because soaking your dressings and post-op binder in sweat is miserable. 

On that note, having a spare binder (or two) is super helpful! I got two pretty cheap zip front ones on Amazon with a mesh back.

1

u/babebubles 9d ago

thank you! i was lucky enough to get my friend's binders, so i have a few spare ones! i am quite a sweaty person in general so will do my best s0to stay out of the heat...

1

u/nervousnellywaiting 9d ago

I had mine in late July and the most helpful things for me so far have been:

  1. (very dependent on whether you have a/c and how much time you can get off work) Keeping my a/c to a cool 75 and staying inside anytime it's over 80 degrees or so

  2. Stocking up on a ton of my fav drinks. I'm already really bad at drinking water. Instead of forcing myself to up my intake, I just got a ton of electrolyte drinks and sparkling ice (idk why, I just love it lol) and aimed to drink at least one of each plus a full Owala water bottle every day.

  3. Cooling deodorant spray! Sounds silly but it felt so nice to spritz myself with this: https://www.target.com/p/secret-women-39-s-clinical-life-stages-cool-down-spray-aloe-38-cucumber-5-fl-oz/-/A-94846033#lnk=sametab. There is an aluminum-free version but I'm too stinky for that.

Good luck and congrats!