All surgical procedures require a recovery period before you are back to your normal routine, and breast augmentation is no exception. In particular, the first few weeks after surgery are crucial to ensuring you heal properly and achieve the best possible outcome. The following tips will help ensure your recovery after breast augmentation goes smoothly and comfortably.
Have Someone Available to Help You around the House
You will most likely need someone around the house to assist you during the first few days after surgery. Your level of activity will be restricted, making it challenging to handle routine chores and tasks on your own. You will find these first few days of recovery much easier if you have help:
- Make sure you arrange for someone to drive you home after your procedure since the lingering effects of anesthesia will impair your ability to drive
- Ask someone to stay with you for the remainder of the day following surgery to ensure your recovery gets off to a smooth start
- Arrange for a friend or family member to stop by periodically during the first few days of recovery to assist you with routine household chores that may be challenging right after surgery
- Have someone around the house to assist you with young children since you won’t be able to shoulder all of your parenting responsibilities, particularly those involving heavy lifting, for about six weeks
- Driving is prohibited until you’ve discontinued your pain medication, so plan ahead and make sure someone is available to drive you when you need to leave the house
Prepare Meals in Advance
As you start recovering from breast augmentation, the last thing you will feel like doing is cooking. You should consider preparing a few meals before your procedure that you can easily reheat during the first few days after surgery.
When planning your post-surgery meals, keep the following items in mind:
- Cook healthy meals that will provide the nutrients necessary to heal properly
- Prepare soft, light foods for the first day or two of recovery since you may experience mild nausea from the anesthesia
- Keep lots of water available to prevent dehydration
Set Up a Comfortable Recovery Area
You will be resting for most of the day during the first week of your breast augmentation recovery. We encourage you to set up a comfortable area that will make this initial recovery period as pleasant as possible.
Prior to surgery, create your recovery area. This way, you will be able to relax from the moment you get home. Make sure your recovery area includes the following:
- A few extra pillows so that you can keep your head and feet elevated. If you’re an active sleeper, place a few extra pillows along your side when you go to sleep to minimize this motion.
- A comfortable couch area containing extra pillows so that you can relax outside of your bed and watch TV.
- Entertainment items that help you relax. Keep some of your favorite movies on hand, as well as a good book or some crafting activities.
- A good supply of healthy snacks. This will prevent you from having to get up every time you are hungry. Also, leave a few bottles of water by your bed and couch so that you can easily refill your glass. Bendable straws will make it easier for you to drink liquids and stay hydrated immediately after surgery.
- A charging station for your mobile devices that is easily accessible without bending down.
Quit Smoking
Smoking is absolutely one of the worst things you can do after surgery. The nicotine in cigarettes restricts your blood vessels and reduces your blood supply to tissue. This can result in an increased likelihood of infection and other surgical complications.
Therefore, it’s crucial that you quit smoking several weeks before undergoing breast augmentation and throughout the recovery period. If you continue to smoke during this time, it can have a negative impact on healing and your final results.
Contact our St. Louis Plastic Surgeons
Please contact Renaissance Plastic Surgery using the form on this page or call 636-896-0600 today to schedule a breast augmentation consultation. We serve patients in St. Louis and the surrounding areas of Missouri.