Hello lovely ladies, my long story has taken a rather surprising twist! Trying to get a second opinion and hospital for my ovarian cancer surgery which hasn’t been done yet and which initially was doWn for last September on Monday I heard I was accepted for surgery in the new hospital I moved to - Monday was my first proper consultation. Surgery is scheduled for 16 July. My friend who also is my carer when needed will be away so I am getting friends to help as I live alone. I haven’t got a clue what to expect so would love to hear from your experiences - lifting things, cooking etc, how did you do it? Did you get council help or ordered food online? Did you do dIly walks? How long did it take before you could do most things again?
ThAnk you so much
Dieneke
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dieneke
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That sounds positive Dieneke? I was surprisingly mobile after coming out of hospital- despite the row of staples! You should take it very easy and it would be good to have food you can just heat up. It is quite boring- so good films or box sets a must. After a couple of weeks I was going for short walks. Hope it goes well xx
Hi Dienke I had a radical hysterectomy and was home on the 4th day after my op. Not sure how you will be getting home but you will need a pillow over your tummy to protect from the seatbelt. When home you need to rest as much as possible, NO LIFTING, no house work, not even lifting a kettle for 6 weeks. (I could fill the kettle a cup at a time and when it's boiled just tip it to pour rather than lift). As for food I had my husband to do my meals so I can't answer in respect of that though maybe you could stockpile some ready meals in the freezer until you are up to cooking again or batch cook ahead of time your fav meals (I'm assuming in saying this you have a freezer!).
I did find my listening to my body, gentle exercise (little walks) and I was back doing most things within the 6 weeks. Don't push yourself though, what's the point, you will probably only slow your recovery.
Confession..... I did learn to hoover by sitting in one chair and then another and could pretty much hoover my living room - wouldn't recommend it though because it was exhausting! I do hope your op and recovery goes well - take it from a wimp, it wasn't anywhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be! xx Kathy
Hello Dieneke. I've enjoyed this kind of surgery twice now and for me, the first couple of days or the first week felt a tad tough at times. What with all the tubes you get tangled in during the first days, the bowels on strike, possibly some nausea (especially following taking anti-emetic pills, brr, or opiates for pain control, which are not really optional unless you go for an epidural, which I love btw).
Every time you sneeze, laugh or throw up, it's advisable to hold a rolled up towel over your belly to alleviate the pressure on the wound... usually while listening to your rebellious bowels voicing their grumpiness (despite copious amounts of mint tea) and entertaining well meaning relatives at the same time... which you really wish were on a trip around the world at that time and would leave you the **** alone .
But things got better for me after that first tough week. As long as you take care getting up, and don't carry anything heavy, you should hopefully feel alright, if slightly worn. Gentle/short walks might be enjoyable too. Strenuous housework is probably a nono in the beginning. You could consider having groceries delivered (or meals frozen prior to surgery) and hiring a cleaning maid when the mess gets out of hand , maybe?
NB: I found a stool softener helped my bowels get to a compliant state again.
Just to reassure you, I live alone, and apart from a family member calling in each day to see how I was, managed well. I did food shopping on line, and ate ready meals for a couple of weeks. I only showered when my son called in after work, as I don't have a walk in shower and was afraid I would slip getting in and out of the bath. My son also walked with me up and down the road for the first week. After that I had a short walk on my own. I felt very tired, and napped every afternoon.
I am sure that you will find that you will see an improvement in how you feel very quickly, and will soon be feeling a lot better.
With regards to the hoovering tip- you could get a carpet sweeper. While it doesn't do as good a job, it's very easy to push and weighs very little. Very useful while I was on chemo recently. Best of luck with the surgery! Hope it goes well.
Hi Gwen, it is at the Queen Charlotte and most likely it will be done by the lovely Christina Fotopoulou who gave such a great presentation at the Ovacome Info Day in London. Long story, was seen somewhere else but asked to be transferred to Queen Charlotte for everything!
Thought it would be Queen Charlotte's. Prof. F.and her team are the best. Good luck and best wishes for a successful op. Are you going to stay in hospital(orother ) accommodation post op. Prof.F. recommends in case of post op complications. Also at some point you will need your staples out which they did for me abt a week post op before I left for home in Doncaster. The staples for me were the worse thing esp. when trying to get out of bed - a pillow helps to hold the stomach. Also you need to watch that you get your bowels moving. The hospital will discuss with you. Best wishes. Gwen Xx
Thanks Gwen, interesting those staples. A friend of mine talked about glu instead of staples. I have investigated accommodation post op. My friend did that but were she went was very expensive. Any suggestions? Dieneke
I don't know if you would have a choice bet. glue/staples - I didn't ask. As regards accommodation - my husband and myself stayed at the hospital accommodation block abt 100/200 yds from the hospital. The phone no. you can ring is 020 3313 4873. You can pick it up via the internet if you google Imperial College Healthcare Trust, Du Cane Rd. They charge abt. £60. per night. The room has twin beds, television, bathroom, kitchenette with kettle and microwave, etc. There are maids that will come in to tidy your room daily. We generally had our main meal at the Hammersmith Restaurant which was very good. My husband and myself stayed in theaccommodation for abt.a week after I was discharged. You do need to be very near to the hospital in case of complications and it is very practicable. Hope this suits you Gwen Xx
That is a great idea. Would it be easy for you to walk to the restaurant? I will be on my own. But staying there until the staples/glue goes out seems like a good idea.
If you were on your own I think it would be quite difficult to move independently from the hospital to the accommodation/restaurant. And also there would be your baggage and any foodstuffs you need at the accommodation I found it very difficult to walk - I was crouched over because of my wound/staples and painful. I also needed help to get in/out of bed, etc. In hindsight, dieneke it was quite a difficult few days. My husband managed to borrow a wheelchair from the hospital which was a godsend. Dieneke can't you ask if you can stay on the ward until you are ready to do home - I would be quite worried for you re, all the above issues if you were alone GwenX
Yes that doesn't surprise me, thanks for that. I was also thinking that staying the maximum time, ie 10 days in the ward might be best. But of course that is more determined by the need for beds possibly than the patient's needs.
Hi again dieneke, I would have thought the hospital's priority would be your safety - perhaps you need to discuss with them. When I was in I did ask if I could stay in a further 1/2 days as I had to wait for my husband to come down from Doncaster. They didn't have a problem with this. Gwen Xx
Hello Dieneke. I remember having a hard time picking things up from the floor first week after surgery. I got to bring home a tool like a stick with a grip in the end to use for that (sorry, I don’t know the word this in English). Also, I found it difficult to open low drawers as I couldn’t really kneel or bend down.
At first I rested a lot and took very short and slow walks every day. Then everything got easier after a few weeks and I got a bit restless and started moving about to much too fast (have two kids and a dog, so it was hard not to). That increased both the pain and swelling, so try to take it slow and easy for as long as the drs say you should. Best of luck with your surgery!
I was told initially not to lift anything heavier than a cup of tea. But I argued that I couldn't make a cup of tea unless I could lift a kettle. I was then told ok, but don't fill the kettle too full. I admit I did make some meals, but tried to stick to easy things that didn't take too much effort. I left the shopping, hoovering & other jobs to my husband, though I found myself very tempted to do more than I probably should after the first couple of weeks. An occupational therapist I know told me off when she found out I'd been ironing. As for walking, I went for very short walks as soon as I felt I could cope with it, & gradually went a bit further as I felt able. I hope all goes well for you. Di
I was in the hospital 10 days so when I got home, I felt OK enough to handle moving around and do light housework. I would wheel my office chair into the kitchen and scoot around cleaning without having to stand washing dishes or cook. I had my second chemo the day before I left the hospital so had to deal with the effects while dealing with lost surgery healing. But the fact that I don't remember any big pain or problems is good. Good luck and listen to your body. Hydrate to keep bowels moving and eat to build up strength. Hugs, Jill
If the cut is from stem to stern, so to speak (for a full debulking op) meaning from the midriff down to the pubic bone, it will be staples, not glue, they only use glue on smaller incisions. I had to badger my GP to fit me in for an appointment to take the staples out within a certain length of time post surgery, can't remember the timing now. Needless to say, they didn't have an appointment, but they fitted me in because I insisted, and I'd been given the staple remover thingy by Queen Charlotte's when I was discharged and had to take that with me. I had to have someone else drive me there and back, obviously. I was in hospital for nine days because they'd taken out a section of bowel and resected it (luckily, no stoma). I also seem to recall you have to have someone pick you up from the hospital and take you home, they won't let you go on your own in a cab.
After the surgery, I absolutely could not wash and dry below my knees - I was told to shower daily, not bathe, because Queen Charlotte's (where I had my surgery) removes all dressings from the wound within 24 - 48 hours, and get you to shower daily instead. Apparently less risk of infection without dressings... I live alone, but my sister stayed with me for the first 4 days - I could get in and out of the shower (overhead in the bath) on my own, very carefully, but my sister had to wash and dry my lower legs and put my support stockings on. Then I employed a carer from a local private agency (I'd spoken to them before I went in for surgery, explaining the circumstances and my uncertainty about my requirements, then called them when I got out of hospital to set it up) for an hour every morning for the next week or two to do what my sister had done (basically the washing and drying and stocking routine) and then flick the hoover round or whatever to fill up the time. No way would our local Council have provided any help.. too short notice for one thing, and their care services are contracted out anyway, so you still pay. As it was, I was fine with the carer coming around 10.30 am, because they couldn't fit me in earlier in the day.
I was perfectly capable of cooking, and in fact, cooked a full English breakfast my first morning home, which I have to say I heartily enjoyed after so long of not eating at all, or at least, only those horrible Ensure drinks... otherwise, I ordered some ready meals. I slept whenever I felt tired (which was often) and made sure I walked down and up the three flights of stairs outside my flat at least once every day, as advised by my surgeon (Professor Farthing). Admittedly, very carefully and slowly for the first few days though! I was able to pick up the kettle, but never put much water in it when I boiled it, only enough for a couple of cups of tea. Worse was the 4 pints of milk container... that was pretty difficult to lift, so I swapped to 2 pinters instead for a little while. I was told not to drive for 2 or 3 months, and I didn't, though some people feel more confident in that regard - I didn't feel I would be able to do an emergency stop, which is what they use as a guideline for driving. One other thing - I didn't wear knickers for a good couple of months either, too uncomfortable, and when I did start wearing them, I wore really big ones that were a size too big for me. Oh, and make sure you have a dress to go home in - I watched a woman leave the hospital today in close fitting jeans which she'd had to leave undone, with a pad the hospital gave her to cover up the gaping zip... she'd had the surgery I had last year only last week, and hadn't realised she wouldn't be able to get her trousers done up afterwards. It was winter when I had my surgery, and I lived in the only winter dress I possessed with just an old pair of legwarmers from the nineties (thank god I'd kept them) stretched out straight to keep my legs warm over the support stockings, not being able to wear knickers or tights. I was also deeply grateful I'd already got one of those long handled shoe horns from IKEA, I couldn't possibly have bent down to put shoes or boots on. Spent a fair bit on cabs too, going to the hospital and back afterwards.
As for shopping, yep, third task after showering and cooking breakfast my first day home was an internet order from Waitrose, followed by several more over the next few weeks. And odd bits of shopping by my very kind neighbours and odd bits by the carers too... they also took the rubbish to the bins for me, since I couldn't carry it, and I couldn't actually get out the main doors either - they're very heavy, so I couldn't open them for the first 6 weeks. And because of the bowel surgical interference, I was on Movicol twice a day for some time. Obviously, I, too, live alone... oh and like someone else mentioned, I ordered a litter picker (though I think they have another name too) off Amazon, otherwise, whatever was on the floor had to stay on the floor, it was a very useful bit of kit.
Thank You Miriam for this brilliant account of living post op. That does bring it home - would never have thought that when discharged you might not fit in trousers but a dress is better.
It looks like you’ve already had great advice - and know and trust your surgeon - so I’ll just add my Good Wishes for a speedy recovery.
Hmm, I’ll add not to leave hospital before you are truly ready, especially as you are on your own. Get up (holding a pillow or towel to your abdomen) every day and walk around hanging onto your drip stand! I had post op ileus (paralysed bowel) and that isn’t unusual - it really sucks - but whatever you go through you must remember IT WON’T LAST.
You need a plan for when your home- how to get the shopping in etc. The advice re the kettle is good, it’s surprising how heavy a full kettle is! Tell staff whilst in hospital that you are on your own, they should assess you to see how much support you will need at home - don’t try to be brave about that! Speak to Macmillan.
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