How Can I Prepare Myself For Surgery?
If you have surgery coming up, you definitely know how tough it can be not to “psych” yourself out and get incredibly stressed and anxious about what’s to come. Here at Suncoast Surgical Associates, we treat patients for a variety of conditions with standard and robotic surgical procedures every day.
From our experienced surgeons to you, we want to help impart some peace during this time by answering some common questions we hear about upcoming surgeries: what should I do to prepare my body for surgery, how can I reduce my anxiety before surgery, and how can I overcome my fear of surgery. Let’s dive in.
Common Questions & Concerns About Upcoming Surgeries
How Can I Reduce My Anxiety Before Surgery?
“Anxiety is meant to keep you safe.” - Psychology Today
Anxiety is a natural response in the body that just happens to get misplaced and overused due to modern triggers. Anxiety is the body’s way to keep us alert to danger when we know something is coming – back in our hunter-gatherer days, anxiety helped to keep us alive. However, now, it’s a huge distraction and pain point for millions of people.
Overcoming anxiety is hard, too, since it’s baked into our physiology. However, by understanding how anxiety manifests in the body, we can target it and help reduce it. If you struggle with persistent anxiety, medication is always an option, but if you’re just anxious about your upcoming surgery, you can use some of the methods we’ve listed here to help you cope until the surgery has passed.
Keep yourself busy – plan other tasks and outings in the days leading up to your surgery that will help keep your mind occupied.
Try meditation and other relaxation techniques. Meditation and “mindfulness” can be especially helpful as it helps you focus on the here and now.
Take relaxing baths and try stress-busting aromatherapy.
How Can I Overcome My Fear of Surgery?
If you have had a negative experience surrounding surgery, it can be hard to move past it. Sometimes, patients find that knowing the details of what will happen can help them be less afraid. However, others might find that these details will simply make them more afraid. Knowing how you will personally react to these options will help you decide what’s right for you.
If you’re afraid because you’ve never had surgery before, you should know that the risks are there but they’re minimal. Your surgeon will, of course, go over all of these things with you – not to scare you – because they have to, by law. And, a surgery that goes well will definitely help you resolve some of that fear, too!
What Should I Do to Prepare My Body for Surgery?
Surgery can be hard on the body, especially if you have a condition like diabetes or cholesterol issues. Really, the best thing you can do to prepare your body for surgery is to stay relaxed, stay moving, stay rested, stay well-nourished, stay well-hydrated, and follow your surgeon’s instructions.
What Can I Do To Make Recovery Easiest?
In the days before your surgery, you should also make arrangements for your home to be recovery-friendly. Depending on your surgery, you may not be able to move around much – or you may be taking some strong painkiller drugs. Keep all of these things in mind as you prepare meals ahead (or save money for deliveries), situate your furniture to make it easy to get to the bathroom, or ask a friend or family member to come to stay with you for a few days.
And remember, if you are having surgery at one of our offices, you can always contact the Suncoast Surgical team with any questions you have that we can answer to help assuage your anxiety!