That was incredibly generous and helpful! Thank you
so much 💓.

I had a hard time after my double mastectomy washing my hands w liquid soap. It hurt to pump the soap out of the bottle. I got some bars of soap and put then in the kitchen & bathrooms. I also had the same problem w pumo bottles of shampoo & conditioner.

For my first few hair washes I went to the beauty salon & paid to get my hair washed. It was much easier to sit in the chair & have someone else wash my hair than try to do it on my own & it only cost about $10 including the tip.

I got tired quickly in the shower so I bought one of those cheap, plastic stackable chairs which really helped. It also helps if you have a shower wand instead of a fixed shower head.

Having a back scratcher was a must since it was hard to reach & scratch when I was itchy.

Those grabbing tools you can use to pick things up off of the floor, like the remote control I dropped constantly, so you don't have to reach or stretch or bend. The grabber also helped me pull up my sheet and blanket when they were down around my feet. They have cheap ones at the dollar stores, but they break quickly. You can get a sturdy one someplace like Lowe's. I paid about $15 for a good one & I still use it all the time. It's great when my service dog wants to play fetch since I don't have to bend over to pick up the ball.

The wedge pillow is helpful. I'm 7 years post mastectomy & I still use mine to sleep when I stay in hotels when I go on driving road trips. For me it works better than trying to stack up pillows behind me. The pillows end up shifting around & then your body slumps down in bed & you wake up sore. At home I have a tempurpedic hospital style bed which I love.

I had a hard time resting my arms when I would sit or lay down cause it made my armpits hurt. It helped to have a couple of small pillows to tuck under my arms so they rested on the pillows instead of my armpits. It also helps to have a small pillow in the car to put between your body & the seatbelt.

Using a can opener was hard the first few weeks. I also had a hard time applying pressure to cut food like pork chops or steak or anything that wasn't kind of soft to start with.

Before I have surgery, chemo, or radiation I will cook a bunch of foods then freeze individual servings. Most pasta dishes freeze well & so do rice dishes that have a sauce & some meat & your own home made "tv dinners" taste better & are healthier than buying the frozen meals from the grocery store.

Loose, comfortable clothes help & so does wearing shirts that button or zip. It can hurt to lift your arms up to put on or take off a shirt. Slip on shoes are also user friendly.

It helps to have anything in the kitchen that you might want to eat or use located in a place & at a height where you don't need to reach, stretch, or bend.

Hope these tips make recovery a little easier for you. Good luck with your surgery ❤️

With reconstruction, or without? You will need a wedge pillow in your bed if you decide to do DIEP flap reconstruction since you won’t be able to straighten up (or lay flat) for at least 2 weeks.

Ask at your center if they will be providing any products, our center provided 2 aprons for holding the drains (they were mesh and tied around the waist)- so I could use one under clothes, and one while in the shower.

Button up jammy tops are awesome, as were my zip up hoodies. And yes, those little U shaped pillows that go under the arm are great- they really help with reducing the pressure and friction from your arm against the incision sites.

Keeping you in prayers for every success with your upcoming surgery! Hugs!