surgery tips?

Hi everyone. I am having surgery on my foot at the end of August. Thankfully I will only have a local and IV sedation so don't have the general anesthesia worries. Also I will have no pins, screws, cast or crutches just a large dressing and a surgical shoe to wear. Mobility will be limited somewhat for awhile. I won't be taking any pain meds since they make me so sick that I would rather have the pain. I have had several surgeries in the past but this will be the first one since I was diagnosed with fibro. So my question is does anyone have any pre-op or post-op suggestions, tips or advice for me? I have a good grasp on what the surgery and recovery involves but have to say I am somewhat concerned about the aftermath as far as my fibro goes. In the grand scheme of things this surgery isn't that involved and I am probably making way too big of a deal about it in my head but I do understand with fibro, anything like recovering from surgery or a physical or emotional trauma can be iffy. I would really appreciate any words of wisdom you all may have. Thanks so much. Lisa

I just had abdominal surgery about 2 weeks ago. This is my 4th abdominal surgery; all after my fibro showed up. Talk to your doc about your reaction to pain meds. There are options that may help with the nausea. If you are in a lot of pain, it will affect your sleep and how you move around making you more likely to have a flare. Of course, you may not have much pain anyway and won't need narcotics.

I have never had a flare after surgery (knock on wood!). You have to pay attention to your whole body, not just the injured part. Eat well, rest, relax, take care of yourself.

Make sure you move around and stretch throughout the day. Staying on the couch all day in one position will make everything hurt. If you are watching TV, stretch during every commercial break. If you are reading, move around after every chapter. My family tries to help me by getting everything I need so I don't have to get up but that just makes me hurt more. Since I can't lift anything, I follow them when they do something for me instead of me just sitting around. Moving makes my abdomen hurt more but it makes the rest of me feel much better.

Since you'll have difficulty moving around, your posture will probably be off. Pay attention to your upper back and shoulders. For me, once my upper body gets sore, I am more likely to have a flare.

Take care of yourself.

Thanks so much for the advice. I will take each idea into consideration. It seems like I normally don't sit for too long so will have to try hard to not use this as an excuse to make up for that and be lazy. Gotta keep moving. After that first week I'll be on my own for most of the day since my daughter will be back in school but I'll "use " her wisely while I can. My doctor did give me some vitamin supplement suggestions but will also look into the ones Nana mentioned. It is good to hear that surgery doesn't have to be a huge problem for us so thanks for letting me know about your experiences. Heal well Dagger and may we all take good care of ourselves. Lisa