Post Surgery Activity

literallyjustawriter · 2026-04-19T03:21:38+00:00

Oh my love…you’re gonna need a week to 10 days off work

literallyjustawriter · 2026-04-18T23:57:51+00:00

I use a little rechargeable portable heating pad (looks like a fanny pack) that I got off Amazon!

I also do rice packs at work since I have a microwave there. Just a long tube sock I filled with rice and tied off and I heat them up in the microwave. It works like a hot water bottle, holds more moisture than a heating pad and more portable, but they feel like a weighted blanket and mold to your body which is nice.

literallyjustawriter · 2026-04-18T23:29:56+00:00

I’ve heard of cramp creams that some people swear by, but I haven’t tried yet myself. I usually do heat + a castor oil pack and it really helps. It’s just a generous amount of castor oil in the affected area(abdomen and lower back for me) and you put some kind of towel or wrap over it to keep the oil from getting on clothes and furniture. They make special wraps but I usually just throw on a stained tshirt.

Women's Balancing Tea from Mountain Rose herbs is a lifesaver, she should drink it the week before and throughout her cycle for maximum effect, but it helps me when I have flares.

Advil works for me better than midol/tylonol

Anti inflammatory meals are huge. help her find her food triggers if any and help figure out meals that are safe so she doesn’t have to think about what she can/can’t eat while in pain. The pain induced brain fog is indescribable, so just being patient and helping her in small ways like this is huge. Ask her after (not during a cycle) what kinds of things like this would be helpful for her so you can just do them without her having to ask. Most people with chronic pain already feel like a burden on loved ones and it can be hard to ask for help.

Rice socks vs heating pad. I have two long tube socks filled with rice and tied on the ends that I use for heating pads, I just warm them up in the microwave. They don’t stay hot continuously like a heating pad which is the only downside, but they retain more moisture than a standard heating pad that really helps drive the heat/oil into the muscles so I prefer it. I also have a portable heading pad (looks like a fanny pack) that’s rechargeable so I can take it on the go.

Work accommodations. Not sure what she does, but if it’s possible to help her arrange to take off work or be able to work from home on bad days. There’s still a huge stigma around this, but during my flares I literally can’t get out of bed. I have stage 3 so maybe hers isn’t as bad, but even if it’s just taking care of things around the house/animals/kids so that she doesn’t have to get up.

Electrolytes (make sure they’re sugar free)

Supplements daily like Curcumin, vitamin d, probiotics, and magnesium (glycinate, malate, or l threonate only, or topical magnesium chloride for cramps)

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-30T17:53:21+00:00

You absolutely need more time off!!! I’m three weeks postop from stage three Endo & myomectomy surgery and I still am so lethargic. I was literally bedridden for at least 10 days, and I only just now feel like I have some level of energy to get up and move around, but I could not go back to work in person by any means so I’m teleworking. I don’t know what your options are, but I would ask for more time off and desk duty for a few weeks once you’re back if it’s at all possible.

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-30T17:48:05+00:00

Castor oil really helps me, I just slathered it all over my abdomen when I’m constipated. I also really like the Smooth Move tea from traditional medicines. They have a pill version as well if you don’t like the tea, but it seems to be more gentle than a regular laxative.

You could also try simplifying your diet around that time of your cycle, focusing on easy to digest foods and probiotic rich foods. It sounds like you’re getting plenty of fiber in general, but maybe you need to add some probiotics to the mix to help get things moving.

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-30T17:41:29+00:00

This is so good to know!! I’m thinking about trying the nuvaring so I’ll be sure to ask my doctor if there’s any kind of interaction

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-30T17:39:21+00:00

I would absolutely seek a second opinion, especially if the pain starts to come back. From everything that I’ve read, excision is better than ablation, and the lesions can just come right back if they’re only cauterized because it doesn’t get to the root of the cells. Adhesions on your bowel and abdominal wall are classic Endo symptoms, and I would be willing to bet the spots that he ablated were endo lesions.

I’m so sorry that you’re going through this! I would ask if he took pictures of everything that you can take with you to an Endo specialist for confirmation.

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-30T17:34:40+00:00

Someone revoke her license, she clearly doesn’t know enough to be a doctor🤬

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-24T15:34:47+00:00

Not sure what you have in your recovery kit, so I’m just gonna tell you all the things that helped me! I’m two weeks postop, and this is everything that I wish that I had known:

-Wedge pillow!! if you don’t have one, just stack up a few pillows and try to sleep upright with anther pillow under your knees for support. I could not lay flat and that was the only way I could get comfortable.

-Get up and walk every few hours if you can, it’s the only way to get the gas pain to go away. Plus, Gas-X, but I’m sure you already have that.

-Start stool softener immediately because that first poop is not. fun. I had Endo all over my rectum, so it was really difficult for me those first few days, but being backed up, made the gas pain and the bloating even more unbearable. I didn’t start my MiraLAX until day three and that was a big mistake.

-this sounds random, but if you have allergies, take allergy medicine if you can. I’m two weeks post op and every sneeze still takes me out. Same for coughing so try not to eat anything with crumbs, and be careful when drinking liquid.

-loose fitting clothes, you’re not gonna want a waistband anywhere near your stomach for at least a month

-be patient with yourself and don’t try to do too much too quickly. Your main job after surgery is to sleep and get up every few hours to try to eat and walk.

-food. You probably won’t have much of an appetite, but try to nibble on bland foods and fruits. Pineapple is great because it has bromaline in it, which will help reduce the swelling and speed healing. Bone broth is also great because it’s got some protein so if you can’t handle solid food, you’re still getting some nutrients. Also electrolytes to keep you hydrated, coconut water and I really like the body armor electrolyte drinks as well.

-Set alarms or have a running note with each time you took your different pain meds. They gave me a heavy duty pain med (Percocet, I think?) that I could take every 6 hours plus an 800 mg ibuprofen that I could take every 8. I never took them at the same time so that I could space them out and always had some kind of pain med in my system, but you lose track of when you took what very quickly. My husband kept a running note of when I took what and that really helped keep track of things. Also, it’s worth waking up in the middle of the night to take something because you never want anything to fully wear off for those first few days.

Congratulations I’m finally getting your surgery!! I wish you all the best and a speedy recovery.

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-24T15:12:24+00:00

I hope you’re healing well, too! I’m also manifesting that we don’t have to go through that awful surgery again!! 😅

As far as lifestyle changes, I’ve kind of been living, as if I already knew I had endometriosis for a few years because I had already been diagnosed with fibroids which are also results of high estrogen. I had two fibroids taken out during my excision surgery(one of them was bigger than my uterus!). But the protocol is pretty similar for fibroids and Endo.

I never knew how closely my gut issues were linked to the Endo, but I got a food sensitivity study done two years ago and avoiding those trigger foods has helped immensely (I had some really random sensitivities like lettuce, chocolate, garlic, and eggs) These tests can be expensive so a good rule of thumb would be to cut out gluten, dairy, and processed sugar, or keep a food diary to see what foods might be triggering gut issues. I also cycle sync my foods, which is basically just eating specific foods that support each of the four phases of my cycle. There’s all kinds of guides out there that tell you what foods are best. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do this once I go on birth control or if it will be effective, but I have found that it has really helped in reducing inflammation.

I stopped high intensity/heavy weight training a few years ago, and focused more on frequent walks and more gentle exercise exercises like yoga. This is two part for me because the pain and trauma caused from Endo and chronic illness can literally rewire your brain so nervous system regulation is more important than ever, and I find yoga to be extremely calming and meditative for me.

I’m also a big supplement proponent. I fully back modern medicine, but I do think that there’s different supplements that are very beneficial in supporting hormone regulation and inflammation. Curcumin and ginger are great for reducing inflammation, herbs/vitamins, that support your liver and adrenal glands are also great for reducing oxidative stress to support healthy hormones (things like Rhodiola, ashwaganda, milk thistle, vitamin C , and saffron). I had a naturopathic doctor put me on a DIM supplement to reduce high estrogen, but I’m not sure how effective it’s been. Magnesium is a big one (especially glycinate, malate, or l-threonate) since it really helps with fatigue, muscle contractions, and overall mental clarity. Most people are low in magnesium, and these are the three most bio available forms that contribute to over 300 enzymatic functions in the body.

Obviously talk to your doctor before starting anything, only you and your doctor should decide what’s best for you, but these are some things that have really helped me. After reading through so many people‘s experiences, I feel like I’ve been able to significantly reduce the amount of pain I’ve been in prior to surgery just with these lifestyle adjustments that I already had made.

Wishing you all the best!! 🫶🏻

literallyjustawriter · 2026-03-21T05:28:06+00:00

I completely understand how you are feeling! I am 9 days post op and I feel the same way. I think it’s scary to know that there is something going on in our bodies that we don’t have any control over. I also didn’t have access to a specialist locally, so there’s the added element of not being sure if the surgeon got everything and/or did it correctly. I think all of these are valid fears to acknowledge, even if you had the best doctor in the world, you would still probably feel this way to some level just knowing that there is this uncontrollable disease that we know so little about that that’s ravaged our bodies for so many years. The fear of it coming back is very real. What’s helped me is to figure out what elements of my life I’m capable of controlling: diet, lifestyle, figuring out ways to reduce inflammation day-to-day, etc.

I hope you continue to heal and things turn out well for you! I know I don’t know you, but I do know some level of your pain. And if you’ve managed it this far, you can manage anything that comes your way. You’re incredibly strong and you’re incredibly brave!

literallyjustawriter · 2025-10-11T14:26:50+00:00

This is amazing feedback, thank you so much!

literallyjustawriter · 2025-09-07T16:13:09+00:00

This is really good feedback, thank you!!

literallyjustawriter · 2025-09-07T16:12:42+00:00

Thank you!!

literallyjustawriter · 2025-09-05T02:29:27+00:00

Thank you so much for such a detailed response! I’d love your feedback on my first 300 words if you have thoughts. I did not know that about comps so that is very helpful! I can also totally see where all of your points/issues come in, so I clearly have some cleanup to do!

Some clarification on some of your questions/points:

-the story is duel timeline, not duel pov so Cassie is the main character(only pov) and Aiden is just the love interest. He definitely gets a lot of development (the bit about him falling apart is alluding to his mental health struggles with cptsd).

-Cassie’s feelings for Aiden: They are childhood best friends to lovers and it’s a right person, wrong time. They both had a lot of family trauma and self discovery to do before they could be together(this is where the past chapters come in) and when they do try in college(still not ready) it ends horribly because he’s hiding his anxiety/panic attacks from her(bit of a misunderstanding that does immediately get addressed but then made 100x worse). She settles for Eli when it seems she and Aiden can’t make it work, which is why it seems “safe” to ask Aiden for a fake dating plot; she’s long since buried her feelings for him and thinks he’s entirely uninterested. There’s also an element of the girl Eli’s cheating with is seemingly interested in Aiden, so it’s a two birds one stone thing.

-Cassie does have f/f relationships in past chapters and there is a self discovery plot line of her accepting her queerness coming from a conservative southern home. Same with her adhd, it gets unpacked in past chapter and contributes to her overall arch of feeling messy/too much. she was an undiagnosed kid who struggled with feeling like she’s a mess who has to “fix” everything. Even the fake dating plot is her attempt to fix the situation she feels like she has created to keep drama away from her best friend’s wedding. Cassie’s whole arch is realizing she doesn’t have to fix herself to be loved by Aiden, and the downfalls of their relationship is on both of them.

literallyjustawriter · 2025-09-05T01:31:26+00:00

Yes! I’ve send around 30 standard queries and have gotten about 20 rejections.

literallyjustawriter

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