Prepare a nest--helpful hints for post op alone

A friend gave me this helpful list of things to have ready to come home to. I live alone and this was so helpful!

Prepare 2 nests—two different places to move to and from
Have heating pad ready and nearby
Extra pillows
Magazines nearby or easy reading
Make sure your remote has fresh batteries
Rent a bunch of enjoyable (light comedies) videotapes from local library.
Arrange for the telephone to be at each nest if possible. Preferably a phone you can turn off while napping.
Clothing
Granny nightgowns—won’t want to wear anything around waist
Sweat suits are the only thing I could wear for weeks.
Cotton briefs that go to waist. I had no bandages over staples, and was thankful for the cotton underwear to protect my staples
Three people will give you slippers, so save your money. Two will give you bath robes, so no need to buy.
Food
Comfort food—popsicles, ice cream, pudding, Jell-O and things that are easy to prepare and say comfort to you—mac and cheese and chicken noodle soup were mine
Make two casseroles, and freeze some in meal size portions.
Stock up on frozen dinners and canned/easy to prepare meals.

Contact
Arrange for someone to call you every day or expect your call. Move a phone close to your nests
Arrange for a friend to take you on an outing at about one week…grocery store and other errands pile up.
See if someone will take a walk with you for the first couple of days home. Weather permitting get outdoors, otherwise indoors at a mall. Scary to walk alone—what if I can’t make it back—so take a cell phone if no friend available.

Sundries
Baby wipes (flushable) just in case reaching is too much!
Lotion for sore parts.
Baby oil to remove adhesive goo
Lots of clean towels. After a shower, I liked to wrap a fresh towel around waist and dry off with a different towel. They said don’t rub surgical site.
Stool softener
Analgesics—I didn’t feel like eating for the first few days, and my pharmacist said acetaminophen was the easiest on an empty stomach.

Looks like I got the same list!?! Just about the only thing that I could add is a reaching tool (the one around here is called Gopher). Best $10 I spent yet.

Still have to rearange the freezer to fit in all the frozen food. That'll come on my big cooking day.

Thanks for the hints.

Just a couple of new thoughts as I just hopped out of the shower...
scrub brush on a long handle (gotta keep the toesies clean!)
keep shampoo/conditioner/soap in travel bottles in your home shower. (dropped my mega huge shampoo bottle and almost broke my foot!)

Another notion, bending. You don't want to bend.

Put things where you don't have to bend down and pick them up. Put food on the higher shelves in the fridge.

Buy one of those pick up sticks, used for picking up trash on the road. Use it for picking up items on the floor.

This is fantastic! Thank you so much! I've printed it and I will follow your advice.
MareC

I just found another item today that I wish I'd had from the beginning. My skin has been itchy and dry since surgery, and I have been going through lotion like crazy. I begged my nurses to put lotion on my back when I was in the hospital, and I am still constantly pestering my DH to put lotion on my back. Fine, except that he's not always home when I get itchy. Today I found the solution, at Bed Bath & Beyond. It's called the Roll A Lotion- it's got a long handle, and you fill it with lotion, and it has tiny rollers that smooth the lotion on your back. Cost $9.99, and I couldn't wait to get it home and try it out. I filled it up with my St. Ives Whipped Silk lotion, because I figured that would spread well. It really works! I am so excited, and am going to post this info on the post-op side too, so people know about it.

Maureen