! Re: Recovery & Caretaker Question

September 23, 2003

Hi ,

Congratulations on your upcoming surgery date and I wish you well!

As you may have gathered by now, everyone's experience is pretty

unique and it's hard to determine just how you are going to feel at a

given point. But having said that, you have a couple things going

for you. Having your husband off for almost a week is great,

especially if you have children. Then, having them in school or

daycare is also a bonus. I had a small toddler when I had surgery

and I just couldn't take care of him for two weeks. Once your

husband is home from work, he'll most likely have to do all the kid

stuff probably through the second week, if your recovery was like

mine. Like healthy days, I felt the evenings was when I was the most

tired. I remember Day 14 being a good one where I started doing more

things with my son.

As far as whether you'll be able to take care of yourself, my best

suggestion is that in the event you are still feeling weak once your

husband returns to work, it would be most helpful if you had ready-

made food available so you don't have to exert much effort to eat.

Perhaps hubbie can open some cans of tomato soup (or thin non-chew

soups of your choice) and have them in microwavable bowls in the

fridge. All you'd have to do is pop them in, heat them and slurp.

Or have bottles of that great-tasting liquid yogurt handy, or

Boost/Ensure. Just pop the top and drink. I was just too pooped to

blend fancy concoctions until Day 14. So " preparation " is the word

of the day! It will make things much easier.

I hope this helped a bit.

Irish!

> In mid-December, I am having upper jaw surgery with segmental. I'm

> trying to plan out what kind of help I'll need at home. My surgery

> will be on a Wednesday (with a one night stay in the hospital. I

> will be banded maybe with a splint, but not wired.

>

> My husband is off work from Wednesday until Sunday (and goes back

to

> work on Monday). Will I be ok to take care of myself alone by

Monday

> during the day? (My two kids ages 4 & 6 will be in school &

daycare

> all day until 6, so I won't have to worry about them).

>

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