planning post surgery

I'm going to be having arthoscopic bone spur removal in my shoulder soon. Since I have never had surgery before, and have a little time to plan ahead - what should I be doing in the 2 weeks beforehand- besides getting lots of sleep, hydrating, getting the house clean, and bringing in a big load of groceries.

Make some casseroles for the freezer? Julia Child's Beouf Bourgingnon? Mmmmmm. Couple loaves of homemade bread

I figure I'll be out of commission for the better part of 1-2 weeks, and while I have a couple of neighbors that might be able to help out a bit for the most part I'm on my own.

I have already talked to my boss about this, and can do some work at home when I'm able, but need to be thinking about how to manage that as well.

Who has gone through this and what tips do you have?

When I had my bone spur removed, I slept in a recliner for about a week. If you sleep in your bed, you might want a pillow to hug -- it helps keep your shoulder stable. Don't try to tough out the pain, take your drugs! Even if they make you sleep 20 out of 24 hours, it's worth it. I will not lie, my shoulder surgery hurt worse than my spinal fusion.

My favorite post surgery item was my "adult sippy cup" otherwise known as a Camelbak Better Bottle :D Made it so much easier to stay hydrated while "lounging".

I had ankle surgery back in '93 while living alone. I did stay with my parents for a few weeks immediately afterwards, but after that I was back in my 1BR apartment in NYC. A few years before that I had a benign growth chiseled off my shoulder blade when I lived in Chicago, a thousand or so miles away from all my family.

Before the ankle surgery I stocked up on groceries, particularly stuff that was easy to fix. (I'm a lousy cook, so most of what I eat is easy to fix anyway.) I also found it easier to use paper plates and plastic cups so I wouldn't have to worry about cleaning up afterwards. Also make sure you have plenty of non-food items like soap, shampoo, toilet paper and any medications you take.

You'll also want to have clothes that are easy to get in and out of. For your shoulder, you'll probably want tops that button or zip up rather than go over your head.

I could be wrong but I'm assuming you might have limited use of the hand/arm where the surgery is taking place, so you might want to think about putting important things in containers that are easier to open than what they normally come in. Like any medicine that you currently have in child-proof containers or food that you'll want to eat that comes in jars.

You might also want to think about how you'll entertain yourself while you're recovering -- stock up on DVDs, magazines, books, maybe buy a new CD or two to listen to.

Good luck!!

ny biker's post reminded me -- I went to Target and bought a large men's shirt, that buttoned up the front. It was perfect for my "going home" clothes. The bandage on your shoulder is liable to be quite bulky, so a too big shirt works great.

When is your surgery?

Wow - these are good ideas, esp the large men's shirt- I have so little range of motion right now that I may resort to some of these right now. This thing has escalated to the point that the pain wakes me up every two hours. I had thought a recliner might be useful but sadly, I don't have one. I tried the hugging the pillow technique, and can see that it will be a big help once I find a smaller pillow.

I'll get the dates worked out on Monday. I think I have some help the first couple days (and transportation) worked out - depending on the actual date so that's a big relief.

I'll miss biking and will try to get in a few more short rides before the big day. Riding does not seem to bother it until around 20 miles but I'm sure that after the surgery it will be impossible for some time.

Thanks for the tips
Martha

If you'll be using pain meds, make sure you have lots of fiber in the house, and maybe a laxative. They're very constipating.

Washing hair. I couldn't get in the shower for 3 weeks because the bandages could get wet (and I found the waterproof ones too itchy). I rang my hairdresser and said could they wash my hair every week.

It was the best thing ever as they have really nice couches to lay back on while they washed my hair and then blowed dried it. Because I went in the day during their quiet time, they had the shampoo girls practise blow drying my hair. And the best thing, they didn't charge me for it. It made my crappy accident just a bit better to have nice clean hair.

Otherwise find some dry, spray on shampoo. That helped in the in-between days.

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Originally Posted by Kiwi Stoker

Washing hair. I couldn't get in the shower for 3 weeks because the bandages could get wet (and I found the waterproof ones too itchy). I rang my hairdresser and said could they wash my hair every week.

It was the best thing ever as they have really nice couches to lay back on while they washed my hair and then blowed dried it. Because I went in the day during their quiet time, they had the shampoo girls practise blow drying my hair. And the best thing, they didn't charge me for it. It made my crappy accident just a bit better to have nice clean hair.

Otherwise find some dry, spray on shampoo. That helped in the in-between days.

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Good point. I was able to wash my hair in the bathroom sink, but I suspect that's much easier to do after ankle surgery.

Oh geeze - hadn't thought about that. My kitchen has a separate sprayer but wait - so does my shower. I have had to do it one handed for months anyway - can't raise my arm up to touch my head at all. Should get a haircut before - maybe this is the time to go real short? yikes!

I was able to take the bandage off after 2 days and take a shower. Still had to do it one-handed though. I kept small band aids on the sutures, so my clothes wouldn't rub on them.

And the suggestion for lots of fiber or a laxative is a good one. Miralax was recommended to me.

I had a cervical fusion several years ago. Here's what I learned:

Don't wait until it hurts to take your pain meds. You want to "stay ahead" of the pain. Being relaxed also helps healing.

Lots of good books, dvd's etc. +1 on the fiber, miralax, etc. Pain meds can be quite constipating. I made sure I had some really nice indulgences, like scented hand cream.

Be good to yourself. Know that healing takes a lot of energy from your body. So, it's OK to sleep & veg out. I watched old Rosanne reruns every day at 2PM. Really looked forward to them too. Life became blissfully simple for awhile.

For my husband's recovery I just put the bladder from my camelbak on the bedside table & clipped the hose to his pillowcase with a retractable ID badge holder. It made it easy for him to find.

After my partial shoulder replacement I found that big mens t-shirts with the sleeve slit open or the neck so you can get in and out very easy is helpful. Pain medication is important. If you have one of the shoulder machines that raises your arm up and down for hours, I found that a baby blanket that is soft helps where you lay your arm on the machine. When taking a shower I borrowed a shower seat and changed the shower nozzel to the kind that you take down with the cord like thing so you could stay a little more dry. I had to have someone help me wash my hair for maybe a week or so. The best thing I think for showers and I am still having to use one after 3 months are the scrubbers that look like net and are round because it helps you reach the things you can not reach otherwise. Good luck and I hope you have a fast recovery. Do your PT it helps you get back to where you were.

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Originally Posted by snapdragen

When I had my bone spur removed, I slept in a recliner for about a week. If you sleep in your bed, you might want a pillow to hug -- it helps keep your shoulder stable.

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This tip alone has already given me many more hours of sleep than I would have had "normally" in the last couple of nights. Who knew a little pillow would make so much difference? I still wake up every 2-3 hours, but at least I'm no longer in tears when I do. Thank you Snap for your wisdom.

My tentative date is 11/23, which relieves me of any obligations to travel over Thanksgiving. However if this pain progresses as much in the next two weeks as it did in the last two weeks, I'm in trouble.

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Originally Posted by withm

This tip alone has already given me many more hours of sleep than I would have had "normally" in the last couple of nights.

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Glad I could be of help!

Has your doctor given you anything for the pain?

I say although you may be independent, you may have to ask for help with things. I remember it was sometimes frustrating not being able to do something by myself. Give yourself extra time to get around and do things. Don't overextend yourself at the time even if you may feel pressure from work. Easier said than done I guess.

Thats all I remember.

I've never had shoulder story just a couple knee surgeries when I was in college. I guess college was nice though as I had a dining hall. I didn't even think about stocking up on food.

withm! Did you have surgery?

Surgery was on Monday. I have a row of 8 staples down my shoulder about where my bra strap should be. They did manipulation under anesthesia first, and said when they had my arm up over my head they heard a pop! I'm thinking what did they break? But I guess that's how they break up the scar tissue and adhesions. Then they did a shoulder decompression and removed the bone spur that was pinching the tendon. The good news is that I ought to be doing really well in a couple of months. The bad news is that I ought to be doing well in a couple of months. Got the dressing removed today, start PT on Monday - that's really going to hurt - and get staples out on Wednesday.

Your tips have really been helpful - pillows especially. Also realizing how much you do that you really need two hands for - to cut your meat, open the bottle of percocet, tie your shoes, or even just to arrange your covers in bed. Both my orthopedist and physical therapist are avid cyclists so they understand my drive to be back on the bike - but might have to settle for the trainer for a while, but not until I get some range of motion going.

This week I can take my arm out of the sling for short periods, and can now take a short shower, but motion is pretty much limited to dangling my arm and making very small circles. One step at at time.

I'm very thankful that my sister and brother in law have been able to come and take care of me this week, and drive me to surgery and post op appts. She is not so grateful that she might have to cook our very small Thanksgiving dinner. We may go out but that just seems so wrong to me.

One of the greatest "tips" was to have a batch of bread dough in the fridge. What a treat. I showed her how to shape the loaf on Sunday when I still had "use" of 2 arms, but she's a little reluctant to do the next loaf. She doesn't enjoy cooking as much as I do I guess, but we'll give it a try.

They will leave on Friday, and another sister will come for the weekend. Then I'm on my own. Hopefully I'll be able to drive by then. PT is only about a mile from my house so theoretically I could walk if I needed to. I'll probably try working 1/2 days next week. I'm very grateful that my boss is OK with this. The beauty of working for a small family oriented company that's really slow right now.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions. And if anyone else has good ideas to get through the next couple months I'm all ears.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Martha

PS in the meantime - it hurts. A lot. Enough said.

Ouch! Heal quick.

And in the meantime, ask for some better pain meds. Trust me, I DO know how the DEA has made it super difficult for doctors to prescribe adequate pain relief. :mad::mad::mad: But your surgeon doesn't know how much pain you're in unless you tell her/him. And it's possible that a different med might work better for you, too.

Your surgeon's probably already left for the holiday :(:( but I think pain relief is worth bugging the doctor on call for.

Ooh, staples? They must have opened your shoulder up completelty then? Ouch! Hope your recovery is quick!:)

Happy Thanksgiving!

On a happy note, staples are usually much better go get out than stiches. they don't take as long and less discomfort (I work for a surgeon and I remove stitiches and staples all the time)

Secondly, I hope you start feeling better FAST. Yes, if your pain is not controled well, let your Dr. know. You should still be able to call the nurse -- I'm still at work just for patient calls right now.

and Finally, thanks for the preview. I'm having my shoulder decompression and an ablation done in december ---- on the same day.

Hope to hear about your progress

Whew!
Be thankful they broke up those adhesions while you were under.

I was wide awake when I had my knee joint adhesions done. Ow ow ow.

It's all down hill from here (isn't that what they always say?)

You go out for dinner and I'll see you at next year's Goose Chase :)

yes it was an "open" procedure. If I can get the pix smaller, Ill post one but it's not for the squeamish.

I had Vicodin before the procedure, and now they gave me percoset, so I should be covered with drugs. But sleeping is really difficult - there is no comfortable position for more than 20 minutes at a time.

Mostly Im a little concerned about starting PT with the staples still in place. Is this really a good idea?

Our 1st 2restaurant choices turn out to be closed tomorrow so we willl roast a chicken. I taught my sister how to make the artisan bread in 5 minutes a day and her 1st loaf came out great tonight so her confidence has had a huge boost.

Hope you all have a nice and pain free TG!

Re driving.

I started driving after 6 weeks as I needed to get to work. I have an automatic car. It's amazing that even though you can eat/talk on your phone (not that you are supposed to), driving with one had all the time is very difficult. Things like putting on the indicator and turning the wheel for full lock etc are pretty bad. It took about 3 months before I could have both hands on the wheel in the 2 and 10 positions. Your car insurance could be invalid if you have an accident while driving one handed so be very careful and check into things before you start driving.

And going back to work while still taking pain killers. You will really find out how weak and tired you are. I almost curled up under my desk after lunch every day as I was so tired and sore. I had a clamp on computer wrist holder which I used to support my arm. I also took a pillow and used a chair with arm rests.

Anyway best of healing and be kind to yourself. Also don't be worried about asking people (work collegues etc) for help.

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Originally Posted by withm

Both my orthopedist and physical therapist are avid cyclists so they understand my drive to be back on the bike - but might have to settle for the trainer for a while, but not until I get some range of motion going.

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Martha - THAT is worth everything! I was lucky to have cyclists for my PT's and surgeon. The PT's can give you great tips on how to compensate on your bike.

I know what you mean about worrying about things being done too soon. When I had my cervical fusion, I was terrified when the PT manipulated my neck. But, he had the x-rays and as they say, "this ain't his first rodeo." Worked out just fine!

Sending you sweet, 20 minute dreams.

A tip from the recovery room - a pull-over or step into camisole top with a shelf bra is pretty comfy to protect your breast from your sling and give you some support. You can put it on and just leave the strap loose or off on the surgery side. Good to wear to bed too. And I strongly recommend Miralax. No yucky taste, cramps, etc. Just start taking it - if the pain pills give you bad constipation, you might want to take the usual dose twice a day 'til you poop. Good luck! tokie

Well I got my staples removed today. I had been prepared for a painful session and was surprised and relieved for it to have been a non-event. It felt like a great weight had been lifted from my shoulder. I guess the staples pulled my skin quite a bit more than I realized. I went to PT afterward, and though my shoulder is still very tight I did notice that my range of motion is improved even from Monday. It's a good thing too, cause doing my "homework" yesterday brought me to tears. I managed to stay with it up until the end when they brought me my ice, but forgot to bring me a pillow for my arm.

I've learned a lot of things this past week.

Miralax is my friend. It took a few days before it started to work, but it looks as though I'll be needing it for as long as I am taking the percocet.

Wearing t-shirts, sweaters, fleece with V-necks are the easiest clothes to get on/off. Shirts, sweaters, jackets with buttons/zippers are hard because I can not flip them off of my shoulders, nor reach behind far enough to grab a sleeve and pull the clothes off. Slippery fabrics are better - pima cotton, fleece, fine gauge sweaters. Rough fabrics grab onto each other and are more difficult to manage.

I did break down and buy a recliner (Ekornes Stressless chair). What a luxery! I had avoided owning one all these years cause most seemed to be huge, clunky, and ugly. This one is on a swivel base, reclines, and has a separate footstool. Butter soft navy blue leather. This is heaven. I have probably slept more in the recliner than I have in my bed in the last 5 days. It was not cheap but it's definitely worth every penny.

I still can't wash my hair easily, or style it at all with the blow dryer but at least it's clean. :(

I still can't open jars, or child-proof pill bottles. I can finally tie my own shoes though after 10 days.

The doctor said to give it a least 2 months to expect noticeable improvement. I have seen small improvements every day so right now things are looking good. But the good news is that but the PT says I can probably ride my bike "in a couple weeks." A bike ride for Christmas sounds pretty good to me right now.

I know the feeling about PT bringing you to tears. :o It gets better!

So glad you've been able to get some sleep, I think you made an excellent investment in your recliner. I asked my pharmacy to put non-child proof caps on my meds, you might see if yours has replacement caps.

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Originally Posted by snapdragen

I know the feeling about PT bringing you to tears. :o It gets better!

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I had to use a pillow...for screaming into.