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As you prepare for heart surgery, you’ll need to start thinking about how you can transform your house into the perfect place for your recovery. While the recovery process for any major surgery is no walk in the park, there are ways to prepare yourself for the coming weeks. Here are some factors you should consider to make your recovery a smoother experience.
A HASSLE-FREE HOME
The last thing you want is to come home from the hospital only to discover that your house is packed with obstacles that make your road to recovery bumpy. Since you’ll have limited mobility, you’ll want to start thinking about your daily routines and how to make those activities easier to manage. When you break down your daily routine, think about how you’ll tackle hygiene, eating, sleeping, and more as you push forward to returning to your usual self.
Meal Plans
You’re not going to feel like cooking any major meals for a while, so be sure to grab some easy-to-make meals or have someone else cook for you. You can even consider having fast food delivered to your house since you won’t feel like driving around town to hunt down that next meal.
Easy Storage for Necessities
After heart surgery, it’ll be a while before you grab those hard-to-reach objects without feeling discomfort. If you have any essential items stored up high, make sure you create an easier way to access those items for the time being. You’ll be thankful later when you save yourself some painful attempts at reaching for them!
Clear Paths for Mobility
We spend countless hours arranging our décor based on aesthetics but little time thinking about how we’ll maneuver around with limited mobility. Now that perfect arrangement doesn’t look nearly as pleasing to the eyes when we’re forced to shuffle around couches, footstools, coffee tables, and plants to get to where we want to go. You may need to rearrange some furniture to create a more straightforward pathway to walk to the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. You especially need to keep an eye out for any possible tripping hazards, like throw rugs.
Bedroom Accommodations
You never realize how much strength you exert when climbing stairs until you recover from major surgery. If your bedroom is on an upper level, you can consider renting a hospital bed or having temporary bedding you can easily set up during your recovery.
CLOTHING
After heart surgery, deciding what you’ll wear is one of your biggest decisions. While it may seem easy, the choice becomes more difficult when you think about how you’ll put on clothes when every move you make can feel painful. Make sure you’re wearing clothes that fit loose and can button up from the front, so you won’t have to move your arms much. These are some items you should add to your wardrobe if you haven’t already:
- House gowns
- Buttoned pajamas
- Sweatpants
- House slippers
- Surgi Support Vest
ENTERTAINMENT
Lounging around all day may sound like fun, but it quickly gets boring if you don’t have anything to do! As you recover, you’ll need some entertainment to keep you occupied (ones that won’t require you to exert yourself too much). Fortunately, there have never been more entertainment options for you. Here are some readily available digital options:
- Podcasts
- eBooks
- Streaming services
- YouTube
- Spotify, Apple Music, etc.
- Radio
- Video games
This recovery period is the perfect chance to unwind by listening to music, watching a great movie, or catching up on that book you’ve heard is great!
HEALTH SUPPLIES
You can never be too careful about your health after heart surgery. When your body’s immune system is fighting to heal itself, you’ll want to do everything you can to help your body recover quickly. Here’s a list of items to stock in your medicine cabinet.
- Antibacterial soap
- Hand sanitizer
- Filled prescriptions
- Plenty of water
- Vitamins
- Fiber additives
- Shower chair
- Non-slip shower mats
If you stay hydrated, keep your hands clean, and get plenty of rest, you’ll be on your way to a strong recovery.
Be sure to ask your doctor about Heart Hugger, too! This device makes recovery easier by offering sternal support, pain management, and wound stability. It's a must-have for open heart surgery recovery.
CONCLUSION
The recovery period from heart surgery will be much easier if you take the time to plan for the coming weeks. You can prepare by thinking about your health, food, comfort, and entertainment needs to keep you relaxed and occupied while you heal.
If you’re looking for another way to ease the pain during recovery, reach out to learn how Heart Hugger can support you.
