Medications:
- You can take all your medicines that you were taking before your procedure. Do NOT drink alcohol before, during, or after the surgery while taking pain medication.
- Also take the new medications you were given after your procedure. Be sure to follow the instructions for how to take your medicines. These instructions usually include what time of the day to take your medicines and whether to take them during a meal or on an empty stomach.
- For Pain: It is OK to take Tylenol (acetaminophen) or Advil (Ibuprofen) for mild pain. If this is not enough, you may take your prescribed pain medicine. DO NOT take Tylenol (acetaminophen) at the same time as taking your prescription pain medicine.
- For Constipation: Prescription pain medicines frequently cause constipation. This means it can be hard to use the restroom. You may take over-the-counter stool softeners to help prevent this problem.
Eating and Drinking:
- Resume usual diet as tolerated. Start with liquids first, if you aren’t nauseated, you may advance your diet. No alcoholic beverages today.
What to Expect During this Time:
- It is normal to have a slightly sore throat for a few days following your procedure. This should go away within 24-48 hours. You may use a throat lozenge or cough drop for temporary relief.
- Having surgery may cause temporary body aches, tiredness, nausea, and light-headedness. These should also go away within 24-48 hours after surgery.
- You may experience shoulder pain or chest discomfort from gas used in laparoscopy. This is normal.
- For your procedure, an IV was inserted into your arm or another part of your body. It is normal to see bruising where the IV was placed. If you have swelling or discomfort, a cold compress may be helpful. If you develop redness, warmth, or oozing where the IV was placed, please contact your physician.
- The medicines you received during your procedure may slow your ability to think and react. Do not drive anything, operate machinery, or sign important legal documents today.
What to Expect During this time:
- Rest today.
- Resume activity as tolerated. Avoid climbing stairs except when absolutely necessary. Morning and afternoon rest periods are advisable. Please restrict lifting to 8-10 lbs., until after your follow up appointment. Unnecessary physical activity such as housework should be avoided until this time.
- You may drive a car 2 weeks after surgery if you feel capable unless otherwise instructed.
- You may expect a slight amount of bleeding at first; you should have no more bleeding that your normal period.
- Leave dressing on until tomorrow, steri-strips should remain on until your follow up visit. Your incisions may be gently cleansed with soap and water. Occasionally a small area of redness may appear and drain a yellowish pus. This is best treated by warm water soaks or cleansing gently with a Q-tip dipped in hydrogen peroxide. However, if the area of redness becomes larger or your incision has increasing tenderness or drainage, please call the office.
- You may shower tomorrow as desired. No tub baths until incision is healed (preferably 2 weeks).
- Intercourse, douching and the use of tampons are to be avoided until after your post-operative appointment.
- A girdle or abdominal binder may be comfortable and worn if desired.
- Your doctor’s office will also notify you of any test results from your procedure at your follow up appointment.
- A nurse will call you in the next few days to discuss your recovery and answer any questions you may have. If you have questions before our nurse calls, please contact your physician or call MHP Surgical Care (317-398-1226) to speak with one of our nurses. After hours, you may call the MHP Medical Center (317-392-3211).