As much as we try to minimize the risks in our mind, there is no such thing as a minor surgery. There is some risk to all of them and they entail some level of inconvenience. If you do not have good health insurance, they also carry a great deal of expense. Even if you do have insurance, you will still be responsible for some part of the bill. If you cannot pay that copay, you might not be able to have the surgery. If you are allowed to have the surgery, nonpayment of the bill could badly damage your credit for a long time.
The best surgery is the one that doesn’t have to be done. Even so, there are “elective” surgeries that are indistinguishable from vital ones such as knee replacements. One only has such a surgery when they are having chronic and debilitating knee pain. If a person suffers damage from a fire and needs cosmetic surgery, that doesn’t feel like it is elective. It is certainly not frivolous. When you have one of these surgeries, you will need to do some preparations beforehand so that you can have a better recovery afterward. Here are a few of those preparations:
Update Your Contact Information
If you have recently moved or are about to, you will need to update your contact information with a lot of services. It is not just your address. There is always some vital service you have that you forgot to update. When you go in for surgery, all of your contacts need to be up to date. That includes your work, your insurance, your auto financing, your credit cards, your bank, your food delivery services, and everything else in your life. After getting home, you are going to want as many things running on autopilot as possible.
Get most of that done in one go and change your address online. Use a service that can do more than just alert the post office. If you do everything piecemeal and forget to change your billing address, you could end up with a lot of chargebacks that will be messy to clear up. Your renter’s insurance will not cover you if you do not update it to your new address. The food delivery service will not get that chicken sandwich to you. That is a serious concern if you are alone with no one to bring you food. Before you have a medical procedure, be sure all of your contact information is current.
Shop in Advance
What kinds of food and special supplements will you need after surgery? Part of your pre-surgery checklist should be to ask the doctor about special dietary needs. Make a list and get that shopping done well before you go to the hospital. If you wait till afterward, you might not be able to go to the store for yourself. Some items might be difficult to find. The nutrition store you use might have to special order one of the things you will need.
You will also want to do as much food prep as possible before surgery. No matter how much you love to cook, you might not feel up to doing anything more strenuous than reheating something in the microwave. Be sure to not only cook beforehand, but scoop up meal-sized portions in advance so you don’t have to lift a heavy or awkward pot before you can scoop out a cup of soup.
Arrange for Helpers
Dog-walking services are big business. Not everyone can take their dog out twice a day for a long walk. You might be one of them in the weeks following surgery. Think ahead and secure the services of a dog-walker ahead of time. You will also need to have someone who will come by and take out the trash or wash the dishes. This might necessitate the temporary use of a maid service. That is often not the sort of thing you can book at the last minute. Figure out what help you might need if recovery is rougher than expected and have that help at the ready when you get home.
Recovery from surgery is never fun. But it can be made easier by updating your contact information, doing your shopping and cooking in advance, and having a few helpers lined up in case you need them.