New to forum, new diagnosis need help for post surgery

Supersum

Getting in and out of bed

You asked "what can I expect when he gets home from hospital and what can I do to help him be as comfortable as possible?"

Here is some advice which would have been helpful for me. It might not be helpful for you I do not know your situation.

Getting in and out of bed
 
 The most pain and difficulty will most likely be getting in and out of bed. Patient is lucky he has the opportunity to practice getting in and out of bed before surgery.
 
 Bedding and sleeping plan needs to understood, arranged, and practiced before operation.
 
 Patient will not be able to roll onto or lie on the wound side.
 
 Patient will not be able to get out of bed on the side where the wound is.
 
 Patient will need to sleep on the side of the bed away from the wound and have the bed and room arranged so he can get out of bed from that side.
 
 One of the main movements in getting out of bed after surgery is to roll onto your wound-free side.
 
 Getting in and out of bed takes place at the edge of the bed and involves moving from a lying on the side position to a sitting position on the edge of the bed when getting out, or moving from a sitting position on the edge of the bed, to lying on the side, to lying on the back when getting in.
 
 Patient should practice this to get a general understanding about what needs to be done. The pain will later force him to do it as properly as possible but it is better to get ready beforehand.
 
 Here is a good example of getting out of bed from 1:41 in this video.
 
 (NOTE - the whole video does not apply to a kidney patient because a kidney patient might have very little core stomach strength and will not be able to roll onto wound side)
 
  https://youtu.be/LkFMRm_lO3Q?t=1m41s
 
 You can go to the start of the video to get an idea about how to get into bed, but remember it is not made for kidney patients in particular so core strength might be lacking and patient cannot roll onto the wound side.
 
 This is a good basis for practice but I did not follow it exactly because the pain forced me to make some adjustments such as not keeping my legs together the whole time.
 
 Here is an interesting video using an aid to pull on to get in and out of bed. I didn't see this until bad pain had passed but I think it would have been useful at the beginning as I had to do things on my own.
 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiDy0d7sKQo
 
 Please search on google for terms such as
 
 getting out of bed after kidney surgery
 getting out of bed after surgery
 
 You also must tell medical staff (e.g. nurses) after surgery that patient needs to be shown how to get in and out of bed. If you are lucky someone might be able to show him how to do it but do not rely on this most likely he will not be told.

If patient does not have pain after surgery then that will be fantastic news and his time learning and practicing getting in and out of bed would not have been wasted because it would have contributed to him understanding he has some control over his situation and helped in developing a positive attitude that he can do things in preparing for and recovering from his surgery.

I will try to add some more later.

Optimisticgirl

MFoster said:

Take it easy

I had this surgery 7/21/17 and it was the easiest surgery to date recovery wise. Easier to sit in recliner for a few days. Drink lots of water. My main issue was being tired. I also had an allergic reaction to Dermaflex used to glue my incisions and it was the worst! At four weeks post-op I began peeing alot and burning when I pee accompanied by pelvic pain. I've been treated for kidney and bladder infections but nothing is helping. Hope your hubby has a smooth operation and easy recovery. 

Thank you !

I certainly hope they find the reason for your pain or hope it soon disappears on its own! His surgery was uneventful but he was not prepared for the after surgery pain. He is a tough guy but this has knocked the wind out of him. Thank you for helpful advice! 

Steve.Adam

Hi Randy

I just took a minute to remember how I felt just after I found out I had a tumour on my kidney. Agitated is a good word for it. My mental focus kept shifting away from whatever I was doing and back to cancer. 

I guess you'll calm down after a while like most of us seem to. Learning a lot about our situation helps.

We are all with you.

Steve.

 

Optimisticgirl

Supersum said:

Getting in and out of bed

You asked "what can I expect when he gets home from hospital and what can I do to help him be as comfortable as possible?"

Here is some advice which would have been helpful for me. It might not be helpful for you I do not know your situation.

Getting in and out of bed
 
 The most pain and difficulty will most likely be getting in and out of bed. Patient is lucky he has the opportunity to practice getting in and out of bed before surgery.
 
 Bedding and sleeping plan needs to understood, arranged, and practiced before operation.
 
 Patient will not be able to roll onto or lie on the wound side.
 
 Patient will not be able to get out of bed on the side where the wound is.
 
 Patient will need to sleep on the side of the bed away from the wound and have the bed and room arranged so he can get out of bed from that side.
 
 One of the main movements in getting out of bed after surgery is to roll onto your wound-free side.
 
 Getting in and out of bed takes place at the edge of the bed and involves moving from a lying on the side position to a sitting position on the edge of the bed when getting out, or moving from a sitting position on the edge of the bed, to lying on the side, to lying on the back when getting in.
 
 Patient should practice this to get a general understanding about what needs to be done. The pain will later force him to do it as properly as possible but it is better to get ready beforehand.
 
 Here is a good example of getting out of bed from 1:41 in this video.
 
 (NOTE - the whole video does not apply to a kidney patient because a kidney patient might have very little core stomach strength and will not be able to roll onto wound side)
 
  https://youtu.be/LkFMRm_lO3Q?t=1m41s
 
 You can go to the start of the video to get an idea about how to get into bed, but remember it is not made for kidney patients in particular so core strength might be lacking and patient cannot roll onto the wound side.
 
 This is a good basis for practice but I did not follow it exactly because the pain forced me to make some adjustments such as not keeping my legs together the whole time.
 
 Here is an interesting video using an aid to pull on to get in and out of bed. I didn't see this until bad pain had passed but I think it would have been useful at the beginning as I had to do things on my own.
 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiDy0d7sKQo
 
 Please search on google for terms such as
 
 getting out of bed after kidney surgery
 getting out of bed after surgery
 
 You also must tell medical staff (e.g. nurses) after surgery that patient needs to be shown how to get in and out of bed. If you are lucky someone might be able to show him how to do it but do not rely on this most likely he will not be told.

If patient does not have pain after surgery then that will be fantastic news and his time learning and practicing getting in and out of bed would not have been wasted because it would have contributed to him understanding he has some control over his situation and helped in developing a positive attitude that he can do things in preparing for and recovering from his surgery.

I will try to add some more later.

Fantastic!

Thank you..so many things we take for granted until something comes along and slams us with reality. :-)  Great help, much appreciated!

Optimisticgirl

randyradiohill said:

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Randyradiohill

Your emotions are common. Trying to stay optimistic helps, but those sneaky bad thoughts will sometimes find their way in. My husband and I are relative newbies, only 1 month since diagnosis and yesterday was surgery day.  So many ups and downs in so few days can be overwhelming. I found comfort once I found this group and read the stories and saw how peoples lives have changed in ways...but they still had life! And so much of it!  I heard cancer and my mind immediately went to all the dark thoughts...this place helped balance my thoughts, showed me there is life and hope after hearing that dreaded word. Best of luck to you, keep posting and updating, your experience will help others. Thank you!

Optimisticgirl

Retcenturion said:

Stairs were hard

I had to take stairs real slow. Moved a gravity lounger into living room for first week as I had hard time getting into and out of bed.the chair helped a lot. Watched a lot of tv, and caught up on some reading. When not napping.The surgeon limited lifting anything over a gallon of milk for 6 weeks. I moved slow and tried not to lift anything!

Thank you!

Gravity lounger sounds like a winner.  Thank you for the idea, he comes home from hospital today or tomorrow.

randyradiohill

Supersum said:

randyradiohill

<deleted>

i apologize...I thought I

i apologize...I thought I started a new thread.  

randyradiohill

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Supersum

randyradiohill said:

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randyradiohill

<deleted>

Supersum

Hope recovery is going well

Hello how is your dear husband progressing? I hope he is recovering well and you are remaining strong during this difficult and demanding time of caring for him.

Nutrition

Other people have given great advice for nutrition.

You can consider including a nutritional powder in his diet there are a number of different types some of them have a higher component of protein and these can be prepared in a shake with milk for an added boost. I do not know what is available in your area to give you a specific recommendation.

If he likes bread then that is a great start invest in some good quality bread for making toast to go with foods throughout the day.

If he likes eggs then prepare these in his favourite way every day they are easy to digest and full of goodness.

Avoid heavy red meat such as steaks in the beginning they can be difficult to digest.

If he has a craving for red meat see if sausages are acceptable they are a softer alternative

Use herbs and spices to make food more appealing. For example if he likes pepper you can buy a small container of peppercorns with its own grinder to spice up his food. If he likes chilli then a sprinkle of chilli can be good on some foods. Also herbs such as parsley, oregano and garlic can make food more appetising.

Constipation

Constipation can be overcome by eating prunes (not drinking prune juice). Best tasting prunes are unpitted prunes (prunes with the pits still in them) and organic is best because they will be unprocessed in any way.

If he doesn't like prunes then that is okay he is not meant to "like" them, they are medicine.

If he really doesn't like them and can't eat them or they are putting him off his other food then he won't be able to eat them.

Clothing

You might have already discovered he will need to wear loose fitting pants such as loose elastic waist track pants, even better if you get a pair with an adjustable tie. He can pull these up above the wound area. He can expect to wear these for at least four weeks. If a shorter time than that then that is great, if a longer time then there is nothing unusual about that. 

If it is acceptable to him he should avoid tight underpants. If he wants to wear underpants he should avoid briefs and avoid boxers which hold penis and scrotum tightly. Best option is a loose light-cotton boxer with just enough elastic tightness to remain up while being loose in all other parts. These might be available in larger Chinese-run discount bargain shops if there are any of these in your area.  If this is not acceptable then that's okay just let him wear whatever he feels best in. 

Sometimes he might like to have pants hanging low around the buttocks below the wound area this can be good in the privacy of his own home.

Stiches and dressing removal

If husband required stitches make sure you have a strategy to have the stitches removed and dressing changed. Most hospitals do not supply this service and require patients to attend their local medical center. This should have a dedicated nurse on duty.

If the drainage hole is weeping into the dressing then get that seen to as soon as possible.

Have the stitches removed as soon as possible to make sure the wound is healing and there is nothing such as dried body fat preventing final healing.

Walking

Other people have given great suggestions about walking such as starting small, just going out to the letterbox or around the house to begin with.

Slow short walking to begin with there is no rush for long walks. Husband might be nervous around cars such as car parks and crossing roads as he will not have any agility to move out of the way of a car coming too close to him.

Confidence and walking distance can increase very quickly just work out where he likes to walk such as parkland and go there walking it can have a massive impact on his mood.

Best Wishes !

lauras

Optimisticgirl said:

Thank you so much for your

Thank you so much for your great advice! I have looked up the davinci robot which is used in our area..it is amazing how that thing works.   I appreciate your help, thank you!

Im 2 weeks post op and its no

Im 2 weeks post op and its no fun, stool softeners is really good advice, also just watch how much you do i would feel good, i mean by post surgery standards and do too much and then have really bad days, you need to move but be good to yourself also use that damn breathing machine i ran a low-grade fever for a week and they were very concerned about pneumonia. It gets better, slowly but by no means is this a cake walk my incision is 12 in.