ARISTA OB/GYN            770-475-7275

Make arrangements for someone to be available to help you during your first two days  at home.

Shower as usual, washing the incision with a mild soap (such as Dove unscented). Avoid tub baths for the first couple of weeks.

Use sanitary pads, not tampons, to absorb blood or vaginal drainage. Tampons may cause infection. Some vaginal discharge is normal, and may have an unpleasant odor.

You may use an electric heating pad (low setting) or warm compress to relieve incisional pain or gas pains. Make sure to place a thin towel between your skin and the heat source, and limit exposure to 15-20 minutes at a time to avoid burns.

Keep the incision clean and dry. Gauze pads may be applied to the incision to absorb any wound drainage. A clear, pink, or yellowish drainage is normal unless quantity seems to be excessive ( more than three gauze pads per day). A small amount of hydrogen peroxide may be applied twice daily to clean the incision.

Take any antibiotics that were prescribed as instructed to help prevent infection.

You may take any pain medications that were prescribed to you to aid in your comfort during the initial days at home. Unless you have been instructed by your health care provider not to take anti-inflammatory medications, ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) may be taken in addition to your prescription pain medication. Dosages of 600-800 mg every 8 hours usually offer relief for moderate pain.

You may experience constipation and/or increased gas after your surgery. In addition to maintaining good hydration, you may wish to take an over the counter stool softener such as Colace. Fleet’s enemas may offer relief of constipation as well. Preparations containing simethicone (Gas-X, Phazyme) may give some relief of gas pains.

If supplemental hormones have been prescribed, take them at the same time every day or as instructed by your doctor.

A clear liquid diet is usually recommended until normal bowel function has resumed. Thereafter, a well-balanced diet is advised to help promote healing.

To help recovery and aid your well-being, resume daily activities, including work, as soon as you are able. Recovery at home may take up to 3 weeks, with full activities resumed in 6-8 weeks.

Avoid activities that increase intra-abdominal pressure, such as lifting, pushing or pulling heavy objects. A good guideline is not to lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk for the first two weeks at home, and increase slowly thereafter.

You may resume driving 2 weeks after returning home (automatic transmission).

Sexual relations may be resumed in 4-6 weeks, or as advised by your health care provider.

You will be asked to return to our office 2 weeks after your surgery so that we may check your incision and evaluate the progress of your healing. We will also schedule a post-op exam at about 6 weeks after your surgery to make sure that you have recovered satisfactorily.