Recommended Supplies and Suggestions After Tummy Tuck Surgery

Preparing for your tummy tuck recovery. Items recommended below in no specific order.

1. Lots and lots of gauze pads, all different sizes.
2. Non stick bandage tape.
3. Neosporin or triple antiobiotic cream
4. Landyard; wear around your neck to pin drain tubes while showering. I found this to be the easiest and best option for showering.
5. Walker, to assist with getting up and walking for at least a week.
6. Arm lounge pillow. This was extremely helpful to prop you up for sleeping or just sitting.
7. Stool softener and or milk if magnesium. The pain meds and anesthesia will cause constipation.
8. Robe or long button up flannel shirt. I slept in this for 2 nights, I skipped wearing panties for few days, only robe.
9. Tray table. This was so helpful to use for eating, placement for drinks, meds, remote, phone, etc. You can buy a cheap, adjustable, collapsable tray table at Walmart for $14.

I had a full tummy tuck, muscle repair, and lipo of flanks on 7/25/17. I was prepared to be in major pain for a few weeks. My husband was so worried he took a whole week of to nurse me. Turned out I had no pain. Can you believe it? I think I was so numb due to the nerves being disrupted from the surgery that I experienced no pain from the muscle repairs or the major cut across my lowerabdomen.

Don't get me wrong, it wasn't an easy process. First couple of days, it was difficult to stand up by yourself. I had a walker, it was a major help! My husband also had to use his muscles to pull me up and help me lay down. The drain tubes were the worse part! If there was any pain, it was the drain tubes. When I moved certain ways, the tubes would poke me where the open wounds were located. Even having them removed, the wound still hurts.

I slept downstairs the first 2 nights on our nice big sofa with propped up arm lounge pillows. My husband took the other side of the sofa to help get me up at night to use the restroom. After day 3, I was well enough to climb the stairs to the 3rd level to sleep in my daughter's room. We slept there for 2 nights and by 5th night, I finally was able to walk up and down comfortably to my bedroom on the 4th floor. Yes, the 4th floor. We have a townhouse with 4 levels. Garage on the bottom, main floor with kitchen and living room, and bedrooms on upper levels.

I went back to work one week after my surgery. I had no bruises from the lipo or pain from anything (except occasionally the drain tubes poking me) so I felt good well enough to go back. My doctor cleared me to drive 6 days after surgery because I wasn't on any pain meds. I only used the pain meds first day when I came home from surgery but since I didn't have pain, I used Tylenol 2nd day just in case. By the 3rd day, I stopped taking anything.