When can I get my surgical wounds wet?

Hi SoniBee No such thing as a daft question on here  Hopefully someone with some recent experience (or a better memory than me) will be along shortly but if not, you could post this on the Ask a Nurse page?

 Ask a Nurse 

Take care

Karen x

Hey there.  I was told not until the dressing are removed.  I have 5 wounds and I had the dressings changed before I was discharged on 16th.  I’d been taking showers and they said to remove the dressing after a few days.  I’m not good with this sorry of stuff so I called my gp and they set an appointment on Saturday and the nurse removed everything saying it all all healed.  My daughter had a good look when I got home and agreed in her opinion I was good to have a bath (she’s 13 with no medical experience except for the odd cut knee) but I decided that I’d have a shower just because my tummy is still bloated and I can’t see anything.  

I think i was ok to shower within a few days but baths were excluded for a month or so. Water is not as clean as you think so you don't want to soak in it until the skin has sealed up. 

But I'd definitely use the ask a nurse forum or call my doctor rather than trust someone else's memory.