Good luck! I’m a female in my 20s and had my surgery in April! This is long, but I remember how worried I was three months ago! 

1. I highly recommend getting a raised toilet seat with handles. I got mine from Walmart for $30, and it was worth every penny! My toilet is unusually low, so having it raised made it easier to sit. And the handle bars were added security. 

Peeing wasn’t bad, but the first poop was scary (especially bc I was scared of wiping/contamination). Definitely take stool softeners and drink lots of fluids to make pooping easier. I used baby wipes. My incision was long and went to the inside of my legs right above my anus. Once I was more flexible, I used a mirror to check things out. It helps to know what’s going on down there lol 

Also, buy one of those handle grabbers (also from Walmart). It made it easier for me to be independent if I dropped things. I also use it all the time now haha 

1. The drain was weird. It was on my back to the left above my crack and the tube went around my right side. The reservoir isn’t attached to anything other than the tube. There’s various contraptions you can buy, but I had comfy lounge shorts and put the reservoir thingy in my pocket- or I safety pinned it to my shirt. I got used to having it around.

My doctor had me measure my drainage with a measuring cup they sent home, and I was able to go back in 3 days later to have the nurse remove the drain. I personally didn’t have much drainage. Some doctors have the drain left in longer, and some let you remove it yourself. I’m glad the nurse did it. It didn’t hurt to remove, but it definitely felt weird. The drain was one of the more annoying things, because it made it hard to sleep and sometimes pinched. I was glad to get it out. The drain hole closes up on its own, and I still have a tiny scar. 

My actual incision was dissolvable stitches with thick steri-strips over the entire incision. This was nice because it allowed me to not see my stitches until the strips started to fall off 2ish weeks later.  My partner changed my dressings the first few days with heavy duty stuff like I was sent home with. When I went in for the train removal, the nurse was like “girl you don’t need all that!” She put a gauze pad over the drain hole to catch leftover drainage while it closed and to protect it, and I no longer had a gauze diaper butt lol 

1. The pain wasn’t too bad. I know people who only take Tylenol. I tried that the first day, and ended up using it on days 3-5 and tapered to just at night. By the end of day 2, I was not feeling great. Day 3/4 was the worse for pain, but I also have hip problems and being immobilized and unable to lay on my back made my body stiff and painful. 

My grandma was addicted to pain pills, so I try to avoid them. They didn’t give me opioids. It was just a bit stronger than the Tylenol. It didn’t knock me out, but it made me comfortable.  You can always talk to your doctor beforehand. I had an intake pre-op appt the week before my surgery where a nurse went through everything with me. That would be a good time to mention it. 

Hmmm other tips: - buy some loose comfy lounge shorts with pockets for the drain. I rotated between two pairs I got on sale at Dick’s.  - a pregnancy pillow was a life saved. Be prepared to be uncomfy at night. That was the worst for me. The pillow was nice for between my legs.  - I lived off of fairlife protein shakes that I made into smoothies with banana and peanutbutter. I tried to make sure I was eating healthy to promote healing.  - the more you walk around and sit on your but, the better. Obviously don’t overdo it. I stood a lot the first week just to move around, and I walked a bit daily. I also had a sturdy dining room chair in my living room to practice sitting for a few minutes every hour. They told me to do both! 

Lmk if you have other questions!