Partial Hysterectomy Recovery Week By Week
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This post has everything you need for a more comfortable and happy hysterectomy recovery. Including the 12 items you need after hysterectomy for recovery.
A must-have checklist to prepare for before and after your hysterectomy surgery.
For ideas on how to plan a goodbye uterus hysterectomy party before your surgery, check out my post HERE!
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Surgery day & officially breaking up with your uterus
The morning of surgery day is a breeze.
1. No bathing with anything other than water.
2. No cosmetics or makeup.
3. And no food after midnight.
I had already spent the previous week doing everything from washing and folding all of my laundries, mopping all the floors, bathing the dog, redecorating and organizing my bathroom and closet— basically anything that I knew I could not do around the house after surgery.
I was only a little nervous the day of about the unknown (damn subconscious mind), but not too much worried. The friendly hospital staff immediately eased my nerves, and I had The Mister, my mom and my daughter by my side.
They sometimes call this procedure a partial hysterectomy because you keep your ovaries, while your uterus and fallopian tubes are removed (my fallopian tubes I had tied and burnt 17 years ago in the tubal ligation procedure right after my son was born).
Most women, including myself, keep their ovaries in today’s hysterectomy procedures. If the ovaries are healthy, they can be kept. Keeping them prevents escalation into early menopause— and that’s NOT what we want right now!
Anyhow, they gave me my “cocktail” as they called it. I remember the nurses rolling me into the operating room— and then I woke up after it was all done!
Here’s the one thing my doctor recommended, along with everything else you should know about what I learned during my two weeks of hard hysterectomy recovery:
12 items you need after hysterectomy for recovery
1. Get Lularoe brand leggings to wear post-surgery. Many ladies love Lularoe and look amazing wearing their fashions. They’re not my everyday jam, but post-surgery, they are the best thing ever! No elastic waistband to bother your incisions and soft like butta’!
—I learned this pre-surgery online and bought seven new leggings for $5 each via the OfferUp app from a Lularoe consultant going out of business.
2. Get a belly band. While I don’t wear this anymore, I thought it was the best thing ever the first-week post-surgery. Because of the size of my uterus, I lost 2 pounds in belly mass! However, my tummy still felt tender and jelly-like. The belly band firms you up and is excellent for walking support.
—I learned this pre-surgery online and wore it for about a week.
Lularoe leggings | Belly band | Heating pad | Birkenstock sandals | Mermaid blanket
Shopping list for hysterectomy
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3. Drink LOTS of water. Water is good for 100 million reasons, including help with movement, flow and the c-word (constipation) after surgery!
—I learned this post-surgery when reading online reviews about my next tip.
4. Get a stool softener. —Learned this pre-surgery online, and it’s true. I drank lots of water (see above tip) and only had to use these two or three days.
5. Take ibuprofen. It helps with swelling and obviously pain, but the side effect post-surgery is why you need tip number 4 and lots of water!
—My doc prescribed me ibuprofen, although I read online and had a friend tell me the same, that no one at the hospital told them to take ibuprofen post-surgery! They had to learn about it on their own after days of pain— Poor things!
Get your free hysterectomy party printable!
6. Get a heating pad. Especially if you have an extra incision like me. I still sleep with my electric heating pad every night, as my doctor suggested I do.
—I learned this post-surgery. My doctor didn’t tell me to use a heating pad until AFTER I came for that early post-surgery visit to his office!
7. You may not be able to eat solid foods right away. It was about five days after surgery before I could eat solid foods. I wanted them! But my body wouldn’t hold ’em down. My doctor prescribed medication for nauseousness, but just like when I was pregnant, it didn’t work for me!
—I learned this post-surgery in the hospital when even soup wouldn’t stay down.
8. Saltine crackers for the win! These stayed down, so I would eat them before taking my ibuprofen. —Another post-surgery figure-out!
9. Ginger ale is your friend. Helps with nausea AND the release of any last gases from surgery trying to escape.
—Again, a post-surgery lesson learned.
10. Get a massage. I had a massage as my first outing two weeks after my hysterectomy. The masseuse had to modify my service because they can’t have you lay on your stomach until after six weeks post-op. Still, it was the best thing ever, and I started to feel like I was on the mend!
11. Walk— and I don’t mean for miles and not even power-style. In weeks one and two, I would walk the deck in my back yard when I was letting out Prince George, my puppy. Walking helps the healing and loosening of the incisions.
—Walking is THE ONE THING that the hospital and doctor’s office did tell me *pre-surgery*. Oh, and yes, to their credit, they did prescribe the ibuprofen, too!
12. Wear supportive shoes when you do go out. I’ve been wearing my comfy Birkenstocks everywhere from the porch to the doctor’s office, and probably because they slip right on and also I keep them by the front door. Today I wore a pair of really flat sandals, and I felt the hard, concrete walk. While these sandals are a fave of mine and never felt this way before, I need supportive shoes for the time being.
—No-one told me this one either, but maybe it’s a common-sense thing!
Having a hysterectomy is major surgery, so it wasn’t until week eight before I ultimately felt like myself again.
Even after an 8-week recovery, I’m still beyond satisfied with my decision to have a hysterectomy.
PLEASE NOTE: The information in this post should not be construed as providing specific medical advice, but rather to offer you information through the lens of my personal experience. It’s not intended to provide an alternative to professional treatment or replace a physician’s services.
For more happy hysterectomy stories, check out these posts:
1. How To Thrive After A Hysterectomy Surgery Today
2. After My Hysterectomy I’m Living My Best Life
3. A Very Happy Hysterectomy Story
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wow, your story is really inspiring us how you did you recover and it also helps others to recover after the uterus removal.
I’m happy you’ve found my story helpful. Thank you!