Hello and Welcome to the forum. Joining this site mostly means you've been through much pain, emotionally and physically, and for that we here are truly sorry. On a brighter note, I believe getting over the challenging mental hurdle of proceeding with surgery is a major victory and congratulations to you for taking the next step towards healing and recovery
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I had lis surgery back in February and can only offer my advice based on that surgery...I'm not quite sure if your's is the same.
Night before surgery up until surgery, no food/drink.
Following surgery, you'll be given your first bite of food at the hospital, to ensure your stomach is settled with no nausea/vomiting.
You'll be given a pain med to take, and should be released with a prescription to fill for those meds, to take for the remainder of the day...you will need them, so be sure to have someone fill the rx on your way home so you can continue to take them in a timely fashion for the duration of the evening. I only continued use of them through the following morning, after that advil did the trick for me from that point on.
The evening I came home from hospital, I simply ate some veggies and beans in a little broth (like a light soup). My appetite wasn't quite there, but I did want something more in my stomach aside from the muffin I had at the hospital.
From that night on my diet remained the same as it did prior to surgery. Fiber from soy products, beans and veggies, plenty of water. I followed the same regiment because I pretty much had it down to a science to produce the perfect consistency of stool for me. I continued eating this way for the first 4 weeks following surgery.
I also, from the night of surgery through the first 4 weeks, continued with my daily dose of miralax and 2 stool softeners as well. This also is what I took before surgery, all part of controlling my bm's.
Sitz baths continued for me as well, each day after bm, then one in the afternoon and one in the evening.
Before and after surgery I always had my 2-3 cups of coffee in the morning. For me, it never impacted my bm's negatively, so caffeine didn't seem to be an issue for me, thank goodness :D .
I think everything after surgery, just like before, revolves around maintaining the perfect bm. So, if you've found what works for you by means of your diet, I would highly recommend you continue with that at least until your first follow-up with your crs. Everyone's recovery is different though, and some people may be able to adjust their diet accordingly, sooner or later, based on their own individual healing.
Hope that helps....and I hope I can offer you some comfort by saying that you certainly don't feel the surgery itself, pain meds definitely relieve the pain afterwards, and the recovery was soooo much less painful than the pain leading up to surgery.
Best Wishes to You and we look forward to following your progress as you get on your way to "restoring your body".
Angel