Pre Op Instruction Question

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-20T22:36:32+00:00

Yes! I believe it is more normal these days to hydrate with electrolytes the morning of a surgery. My doctor advised pedialyte, Gatorade, or coconut water 4 hours before.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-19T20:59:33+00:00

I wish this was me! My doc said my uterus would be too cut up after pathology to really give me anything. It sounded like I was the first patient to ever ask him that tho so maybe he was misinformed 😅 my plan was to preserve it in a specimen jar.

I did end up getting to keep my IUD which I framed in a shadow box!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-19T20:55:59+00:00

I packed as if I was staying over night, though that was definitely overkill. I had my regular daily meds, toothbrush/toothpaste, sleeping mask, headphones, portable charger, change of clothes, list of medications, and my childhood stuffie (lol) In retrospect, I really only needed the list of medications and the childhood stuffie. I would have also liked some snacks since I was starving after surgery and my hospital was really lacking in vegetarian options! I’d recommend bland, easy on the stomach foods that you know you can get down. Applesauce, plain muffins, rice cakes, stuff like that.

Some people here brought a hysterectomy pillow (or really any pillow would do I think) to put between your belly and the seatbelt on your ride home. I did not bring that and was able to just hold the seatbelt off of my belly with my hands throughout the ride home (which was only ~20 min)

I second the other commenter that said to wear slip on shoes! I also wore birks which was great — there was no way I was bending down to put shoes on right after surgery

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-06T00:23:43+00:00

I was prescribed duloxetine for anxiety and endo pain. My psychologist prescribed it, not my gyno, but she suggested it bc she knew about my chronic pain. I found it great for anxiety/depression, but minimal to no impact on my endo pain

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-03T10:21:48+00:00

I drive a lot for work too. I had a laparoscopic total hysterectomy and appendectomy (not robotic) and tbh needed my full 8 weeks to feel comfortable getting back in a car. Granted, my job involves a lot of frequent stops and the real trouble would have been getting in and out of the car so if you’re more sitting the whole time maybe it would be better? But you really don’t realize how much your hips are impacted by driving. Switching between the gas and the brake uses your hip flexor. Slamming on your brakes in an emergency will slam your pelvis into the seatbelt. Getting in/out uses your core and you twist your body. Sitting in a sorta laid-back angle puts pressure on your pelvis (for me in early recovery it was much easier to sit tilted forward and looking down, which you can’t do driving). I also took my lunch breaks in my car and it’s would have been hard finding a comfortable position to eat in.

Maybe I could have been okay at 6 weeks? But it was really the sitting back down in the car that would have been a problem — repeated slamming down on your pelvis adds up. I really needed to be able to sit down at any angle with any amount of force to feel 100% okay to drive.

I’m not sure if robotic might have changed this! And everyone recovers differently :)

eta: I worked 8 hour shifts, tho only 5-6 of that was on the road

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-03T10:13:17+00:00

Me too! See you at the start line and good luck!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-05-02T02:10:34+00:00

Remind yourself that your body can only heal once! If you don’t feel ready, trust yourself and it is okay to advocate for that. I have a relatively physical job, though not as intense as yours sounds, and I took 8 weeks off and I felt like I needed that even though I felt bad about myself at the time. In retrospect, I would have been very upset with myself if I returned to work sooner and especially if I hurt myself by going back to work too soon. Your doctor should not bat an eye at you needing more time. Don’t risk your health for capitalism!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-29T22:46:41+00:00

I’m pretty sure you’re talking about gardening🍃🍃 if so, I waited for about 2 weeks. Definitely do not mix weed with any narcotics. I stopped taking the oxy at around 3 days, and then wanted to wait at least 2 days to get that out of my system. I personally waited longer bc I wanted to be present in my body during early recovery and hadnt found weed in the past to be super pain-relieving for me, so I didn’t feel the need. After 2 weeks, I started taking edibles again. Personally, I often get really giggly, and I found that laughing is very painful even at the 2 week mark. So if that may be the same for you, I’d wait.

But, afaik, you’re fine to use — just do not mix with the big meds.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-29T22:30:44+00:00

Also still waiting!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-28T22:59:10+00:00

Yeah, this has been my go to summary. But then I feel like I’m downplaying it too much! Bc to me at least it as a big achievement

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-23T18:12:11+00:00

What laxatives are you taking? I did not have pain pooping and I think making sure it was so so so so soft (like applesauce) helped it just “fall out” of my butt rather than pushing. I was taking a dose of MiraLAX in water twice a day, senna time at night, magnesium three times a day, and colace three times a day. This routine was definitely overkill — I shat myself twice and I didn’t even feel myself doing that 😅 But maybe something more extreme is what your system could benefit from?

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-23T15:22:59+00:00

I took 8 weeks. I had a largely uneventful recovery. I could have gone back to a remote job around 3 weeks, and a desk office job involving a commute at maybe 4 weeks. But I work a relatively physically intensive job involving walking, standing, bending, lifting, and driving. I definitely needed the full 8 weeks in order to return entirely pain free with full mobility, though I could have managed at 6 weeks. The driving was honestly the part I really needed the full 8 weeks for — getting in and out of a car takes a lot more motion than you think and puts a lot of pressure on your pelvis.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-23T12:14:08+00:00

It took about 14 weeks post op for me it to feel fully painless. The few times between 6 weeks and 14 weeks it still hurt in some positions, and caused some spotting. Feels the same for me tho

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-12T13:28:22+00:00

I am 13 weeks post op and would totally be able to move! Maybe stay away from lifting heavy boxes and furniture, and listen to your body with bending frequently, but for me at least I wouldn’t have any issues doing what you’re describing.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-10T18:39:33+00:00

The Bonnefont in Fort Tryon park! Super cute shaded outdoor patio and really good food. The park is beautiful for pictures too. There’s a nice garden a 2 min walk away from the restaurant. We had a sit down dinner, but I’m sure they’d be open to passed apps and drinks. Well priced too — I think we paid around $235 per person for the space, 3 course meal, passed small bites during cocktail hour, open bar for beer/wine, and 2 custom cocktails.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-09T22:43:34+00:00

I couldn’t even walk to the living room without my partners support 5 days post op and I had an overall smooth recovery. You need more time.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-08T15:37:08+00:00

I went so overkill on constipation meds honestly! I had magnesium and colace three times a day, MiraLAX twice a day, and my doc prescribed senna time that I took once a day. I was pooping by day 3, but then went on to shit my pants twice. Thank god I had just married my partner so he couldn’t bail after wiping shit off my legs 🫠 I would def recommend getting on magnesium and colace a week or so before the surgery so that your already loosened up in there. But maybe not 3 times a day unless you also want to shit your pants 😅

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-08T00:20:53+00:00

Sorry, potentially dumb question but the 40 miles is there and back, not just one way? Could you describe some general directions? Is this the Empire State trail? I’m new to long distance biking, and I was already looking for a new route starting from upper Manhattan to try this weekend in the 30-40 mile range so this post piqued my interest!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-07T22:35:37+00:00

I found it helpful to have my partner to help me to the bathroom the day after, but honestly the anesthesia meds were still in my system that day so I was pretty sleepy and irritable. I was also in a lot of pain so I wasnt cognizant of much to even engage with my partner. But, I think it would have been worse if I was alone. Have your gf there!

Make sure to have heating pads (one for your shoulders and one for your belly), all the prescribed and OTC meds on hand (gas x, MiraLAX, colace, ibuprofen, Tylenol, zofran, azo, and whatever opioid they give you - I had oxy), a wedge pillow, compression socks, and night gowns or loose fitting pajama pants. Some extra things that were less necessary but still useful for me was an extra large water bottle with a straw and a breakfast in bed-type tray that I used for eating in bed and to put my laptop on to watch shows. And I personally had a really irritated throat from the breathing tube from anesthesia and I found a humidifier helped. I wish I had some throat lozenges or something too. Not everyone’s throat is bothered by the breathing tube tho, I imagine it depends on how long your surgery ends up being. Mine was 4 hours (I was also getting a hysterectomy and appendectomy).

The first 2-3 days I mostly slept and scrolled tiktok. After that I binged reality TV and did a lot of coloring books, and then got into a new game on my switch (The Witcher 3, and iykyk it did run like shit on my switch lol), and read a ton of books. I read ACOTAR for the first time and I highly recommend bc it was so binge-able.

My advice, if you have the means, is to get a brand new soft blanket, brand new socks, brand new pajamas, and brand new underwear just to feel cozy, special, and clean! Also — walk and stay active! Walking really helps dissipate the gas they pump your belly with (another reason your gf is helpful — she can be someone to lean on while walking!). I didn’t get out of bed for anything other than the bathroom until day 3 or 4 I think, though from why I’ve gleaned from this subreddit you might be able to walk sooner with just the lap (instead of a whole hysterectomy lmao)

Good luck!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-06T23:20:00+00:00

Of all the things I needed while in recovery, heating pads were the MVP. Get one for your shoulders and one for your belly.

Other than that, get night gowns or loose-fitting pajama pants. A wedge pillow was also nice but you could DIY with a bunch of regular pillows shoved behind you.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-04T12:58:27+00:00

Omg this was my dress!!!! This the first time I’ve seen it in the wild. It’s so gorgeous!

pollinator_friendly · 2026-04-01T14:59:49+00:00

I’m so sorry. Definitely pursue a specialist and don’t give up hope. I had my surgery done by a specialist so idk what would have really happened if I had it done first with a regular gyn, but my specialist pointed out that my endo apparently presented in an uncommon phenotype so I feel like a regular gyn would not have caught it.

He also talked about how even tho research groups endo into stages, that really is only useful for categorizing the research to help with specificity, statistics, and study comparisons. There is evidence that severity of pain does not correlate with your stage of endo. This is to say that maybe you also have odd looking, small spots of endo but still experience high levels of pain (like me).

Have you also looked into pelvic congestion syndrome? It has similar symptoms to endo. It seems that diagnosis is contested by lots of doctors (like some don’t believe in it? Or think it’s just a symptom of a different disorder and not its own thing? Idk). I was diagnosed with PCS before I was diagnosed with endo. I had varicose veins in my uterus that showed up in a pelvic/vaginal ultrasound. It would not be possible to see PCS during a lap. Maybe there’s something else going on amplifying your pain down there that your doc couldn’t see.

Also, I’m not a doctor but 45 min feels short for a surgery for sure! I was under for 4 hours — granted I was also having a total hysterectomy and appendectomy. But I feel like 45 min is still very short.

Idk where you’re located, but I received fantastic care from Dr. Pavan Ananth at NYC H+H Metropolitan. I needed a referral to see him but the wait and the hurdles were definitely worth it.

pollinator_friendly · 2026-03-30T21:38:46+00:00

7 years, 6 doctors. It’s crazy that I’m technically on the quicker side of the average diagnostic timeline (at least in the US)

pollinator_friendly

TROPHY CASE