night before surgery

[mbeckoff]

what did you do or what are you planning on doing the night before you had or are having surgery?

I know by then I am going to be ready to go crazy

Any suggetsions, thanks

[JDM555]

Idk about you but in my pre-op my doctor gave me antibacterial sponges/pads to clean my back with before surgery to reduce the chance of infection. I did it the night before and morning of surgery. Enjoy the night, don't worry. Get a good nights sleep. Set up your home to help you ehen you get home. Have a lot of snacks ready near your bed incase you come back and get hungry in bed. Get a grabber to pick things off the ground cause you won't really be able to bend. Just enjoy the night with the family. Do not worry about tomorrow, it will all be great trust me.

Btw, do NOT forget to set the alarm clock lol.

Edit:
Come onnn. Your surgery is in 3 MONTHS why are you making a thread of it now. You got to be kidding me Melissa beckoff!!! Go to sleep, there is no way you are trying to worry now. That is ridiculous.

[sccrm08]

Any time I have surgery the night before we take the kids and go out to a nice dinner and have a great time as a family....no running the kids around to activities everything gets put on hold for the one evening.

[JenniferG]

Melissa, I fully understand why you want to know the answers to these questions. I was the same. I wanted to think about all the answers and get it set in my mind about how things are going to happen. I like to be organised and don't like unpleasant surprises. I wanted to know everything!

By the time my surgery was due, I had calmed right down. A combination, I think, of being fit and feeling able to cope with anything and relief that the time had finally arrived. I had to be at the hospital the afternoon before due to an early start, and the fact I live >100 ks from the hospital. I expected to have some pre-op tests done, but none were ordered. That night, I asked for something to help me sleep, was given it without fuss and I was woken at 6am to shower with a special soap, don the very inelegant hospital garb and get ready for surgery. Strangely, I was quite calm. I didn't understand why I was calm, but have since read that quite a few of us suddenly became calm just prior to surgery. I hope this happens to you too. Relief that it's almost over, is part of it, I'm sure. I was grateful for it because I'd been VERY nervous from the time the date was set.

[kt2009]

My parents were here, so that was a big distraction! I had a light but yummy dinner and stayed up most of the night b/c I was more nervous about not waking up on time! I had waited that long, I was NOT going to reschedule. So I puttered in my bedroom and my husband stayed up with me watching old movies. I finally got gutsy and asked my husband to take some pictures of me and measure me...this dispelled the doubts I was still having that I was doing the right thing! It instantly calmed me down when I saw I had lost nearly 2 inches in height and looked so crooked from the back. Wow, was I doing the right thing! I slept lightly for a few hours and then off I went. And yes, I was VERY calm...almost excited that the day had come!

[mbeckoff]

Thanks for the advice

It is not 3 months away
it is 8 weeks away and once I got the pre-op call yesterday. It made it real to me. I am a type A personality to begin with and both of my children who are older 17 & 14 are definitely special needs children who also need to know what is happening. They are both scared that they are going to need me to assist them in school and I will not be there.

[debbei]

Thanks for the advice

It is not 3 months away
it is 8 weeks away and once I got the pre-op call yesterday. It made it real to me. I am a type A personality to begin with and both of my children who are older 17 & 14 are definitely special needs children who also need to know what is happening. They are both scared that they are going to need me to assist them in school and I will not be there.

Melissa,

I had to be at the hospital before 6AM, so we spent the night before in the city. We took the train into the city with our luggage, and then a cab from the train station to the hospital guest house. Neither one of us had dinner, so about 9:00PM we ate at a diner. Then I had to go take that antibacterial shower in the room we stayed in. My husband scrubbed my back. It was hard for me to sleep, hearing the sounds of the city that I'm not used to. I think I was up by 3:00AM and posting asking for luck.

I swear Melissa, I was as nervous as you are going into it, but by the time it came I was strangely calm. Another reason I was calm was because I had people in place to take care of my kids so I didn't need to worry about that. Also, I had help once I got home so I could just worry about getting better.

Have you made arrangements yet? Once you do, you might feel a little more calm and sure of your decision.

[Singer]

My husband and I also spent the night in NYC since I had to be at the hospital bright and early the next morning. I had to eat liquids only and as an added treat I got to give myself an enema in the hotel room that night.

As others have said, I was also quite calm by the day of surgery. And I had to wait seven hours -- from 7 a.m. that morning until 2 p.m. -- hooked up to IVs in pre-op because Dr. Boachie had an emergency and couldn't operate on me until then. I calmly read "Madam Bovary" while my husband paced all over New York City. The worst part of it was that I couldn't eat and I was STARVING. When Dr. B finally stuck his head in the room to ask me how I was doing, I told him I was ready for either a sandwhich or an operation...! and then, mercifully, I was knocked out and wheeled into the OR.

Belive me, you will calm down when the time comes. I was a basket case when I had 8 weeks to go and walked about 5 miles a day to keep sane. It worked!

[mbeckoff]

I have gotten into a cleaning mode.

Everything and anything needs to be cleaned.

That seems to calms me down until I run out of energy and then I can;t move because of the pain and then my fibromalyia brain fog gets worse .

[debbei]

I have gotten into a cleaning mode.

Everything and anything needs to be cleaned.

That seems to calms me down until I run out of energy and then I can;t move because of the pain and then my fibromalyia brain fog gets worse .

I definitely went through a nesting phase prior to my surgery. The same as before I had my kids. Do whatever gets you through.

[loves to skate]

Any time I have surgery the night before we take the kids and go out to a nice dinner and have a great time as a family....no running the kids around to activities everything gets put on hold for the one evening.

I don't think eating a big dinner the night before surgery is a good idea. The less food you have in your system before anesthesia, the better. Anesthesia shuts down the intestinal system and the undigested food will just sit there until the anesthesia wears off a couple of days later at which time your intestines start to wake up. Go out to dinner two nights before surgery is a better idea. Anyone else have thoughts on this?
Sally

[Vali]

Melissa, the night before my surgery was a Sunday, so pretty much all my famiy and friends came to wish me luck. I had spent the month before putting things in order - cleaning, dental appointment, dogwash etc. I put up a whiteboard in my office (home office) with all the dates bills needed to be paid and any other info that may be required. I like to be well organised and am pretty pedantic (sp?). In the week before, my friends sat me down and we put together a roster for who was doing what for me and when. Home cleaning, washing, ironing and help with cooking. After all this though, i just wanted to spend quality time with my family.

[ADMoul]

Melissa, I know exactly how you're feeling--except mine is happening so quickly--3 1/2 weeks from 1st consult to surgery date I am just kind of freaking out with trying to get things done. I am responsible for a large public school orchestra program--so am trying to get all spring concerts planned, logistics etc. for a substitute. Dealing with some medical tests here and some in NY and figuring out where my husband's going to stay in NY and just telling this story to so many people (esp. my students) is draining. Most people are really shocked because I hide my curves well and am really good at sucking up pain! I'm sure our night before will be in a hotel in NY and I hope to eat a relatively decent meal. I will be glad when that's here and this frantic anticipation/preparation is over. I think there is an oddly calming effect about the fact that when it's finally here, you let the professionals take over and do their thing. There's a point where you just have to let go (am so not there yet!) And that's hard for a lot of us.

[mbeckoff]

Good luck ADMoul .3 1/2 weeks is a nice amount of time ; I am feeling stressed again. Today all I did was clean .I feel like I did when I was pregnant
.