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A Therapist's Perspective on 5 Purchases That Were Worth It - Surgery Edition
Updated: Aug 10
There's a trend on social media where folks are sharing 5 purchases that they feel were "worth it", and I thought it might be helpful to jump in and talk about this in the context of surgery recovery.
While I'm not a physician (so please, run these by your surgeon before trying), I'm a mental healthcare provider who supports clients that are preparing for, undergoing, or recovering from surgery. I have also had multiple surgeries myself. When preparing for surgery, there's often this mad scramble phase where we try to think of all of the things we could possibly need at the hospital and while we're at home recovering. We often impulse buy a bunch of items we either don't use, or that don't end up being helpful. Honorable mention to the lonely lap desk that I never used, and the strange foot massager that never quite worked. However -
Here's 5 things that I actually think were worth purchasing, that helped with the surgical experience:
1. Wedderspoon manuka honey & ginger lozenges
My clients and I often refer to these lozenges as the "emotional support lozenges" because they're such a staple and a support for some of these tough initial post surgical symptoms. Often times, when we're undergoing surgery, we're intubated during the procedure. Afterward, it's common to experience symptoms of airway irritation such as a sore throat, mild upper respiratory symptoms, mouth dryness or even minor mouth lesions. After running those symptoms by your doctor, if it's determined that it's typical post intubation irritation, Wedderspoon's manuka honey lozenges can help. Added bonus- their ginger flavor is also helpful for nausea. Post anesthesia and while on pain meds, nausea can be challenging. They're great to stash in your purse, in the car, by your bedside, or even on your hospital table. However, run the use of lozenges by your care team at the hospital to make sure you aren't "NPO" (nothing by mouth) and that you're allowed and ready to have a lozenge.
This may sound bougie, but hear me out. Sleeping after anesthesia can sometimes be tough. Our sleep schedule gets thrown off, we've got a post anesthesia "tired by wired" feeling, and we can experience an increase in sensory sensitivity. Sleeping during the daytime can also be hard while we're trying to recover. A sleep mask can help, but for those of us experiencing hair loss related to our illness or the stress on our body, sleep masks can further contribute to loss of eyelashes or hair. That's why we want to use silk. The Blissy sleep masks are not only silk on the eye mask portion, but the band that goes around your head is silk too. If you're losing your hair, eyebrows or eyelashes, the silk doesn't rub the way other materials do, so it's far less likely to contribute to hair loss. Paired with some Beinkap ear plugs (a comfy option on Amazon), you have a nice sensory reduced nap situation. Pro tip: If you end up bringing those to the hospital with you to help with sleeping next to beeping machines, make sure you let your nurse know you're wearing earplugs and/or a mask while you sleep. That way, they won't be startled when they can't initially wake you up, and you don't be startled when they try to wake you.
3. Thermacare low back heat wrap
Surgery can be tough on our spine. Depending on your position during surgery (hysterectomy girlies - google the position during surgery at your own risk - but it's not a mystery why we have neck pain post procedure), as well as how long you're in the hospital or on bed rest, your back can really begin to ache. Thermacare heat wraps are great because they're like a heating pad, but don't require electricity or a plug. Just be sure to check with your surgeon before you put prolonged heat near any surgical sites, sutures, stitches or glue. We may not want heat directly on surgical sites, but it certainly can be soothing on your back, especially after pelvic surgeries or prolonged hospital bed experiences. The lower back wraps are great, because the strap keeps them in place and they can travel with you around the house or wherever you're trying to get comfortable. They also have an option for your neck that drapes over your shoulders a bit to stay in place, without any adhesives or sticky stuff (post surgery, our skin doesn't need more adhesive!).
4. Moongate app
Post anesthesia anxiety is a real phenomenon after surgery. I see this often with my clients; post anesthesia for days or a couple of weeks they often describe a very physical and free-floating anxiety. It can feel like "body anxiety" without any associated thoughts. This type of dysregulation can be common after anesthesia due to how disorienting surgery can be for the body and mind, but also due to the very real neurochemical changes that anesthesia can cause. Bilateral stimulation, specifically via binaural beats, can help address that very physical manifestation of dysregulation and imbalance. The Moongate app is a great accessible option. I like their options for "sleep" and "relaxation", especially if the anxiety has an uptick at night. Binaural beats facilitate brainwave entrainment using Theta and Delta frequencies to encourage relaxation, and support deep, restorative sleep.
5. EMDR
Okay, as an EMDR therapist, I may be a little biased. However, I truly believe that addressing the experience of major surgery and major medical events with EMDR can help prevent things like post traumatic stress, health anxiety, and somatic hypervigilance in the future. For example, when my clients with Endometriosis or Cancer have masses or lesions removed, it's often hard for them not to become hypervigilant about their inner terrain. It's common to experience looping thoughts after surgery - "is that pain normal? Am I healing or is something wrong? Is the disease already growing back?" EMDR can help us process the medical experience that led up to surgery, as well as surgery itself, so we can begin to come back home to our body and start to feel safe in connecting to it again. We can't predict what our body is going to do in the future, but this is the place our spirit and our soul live. Our intention it not to gaslight ourselves into believing that this isn't hard or that our health is perfect, but rather the intention is to allow space in our body and mind to exhale, and find embodied safety in present moment awareness. That helps us direct our energy and capacity to healing right now, and helps us re-develop trust in our discernment instead of somatic hypervigilance.
Candice Craft, LMFT
LMFT # 154305
