newly diagnosed mother in law

Hi . Sorry to hear about your mum in law and putting things in place sounds a lovely thoughtful idea. Are you looking for ideas for things to do in the run up to the operation or for during her recovery?

Karen x

both , i am sailing in uncharted waters here , any help would be wonderful.

Hi . I won’t lie - it’s a big op and the Bowel doesn’t like being manhandled so tends to sulk for a few days afterwards. It’s a delicate balance between starting to eat and not overdoing as there is an after effect called ileus which results in severe vomiting and isn’t very nice. Will she be having a stoma/bag do you know? 

In the lead up to the op she will need to be as fit and healthy as possible. Has she had a pre-op meeting with the surgeon yet? I seem to remember having to follow a ‘beige’ diet for a week leading up to the op so you could maybe see if there’s some ready made meals you can get in and make sure the pantry and freezer is well stocked. When she comes home she won’t be able to drive or lift anything heavy so no more than enough water for 1 cuppa in the kettle for example. I got through a lot of soup and toast.

There will probably be lots of toilet visits over the next few months. In hospital I had a ‘grab bag’ with spare knickers, wet wipes, soft toilet paper, pads, sudocream ready for a quick dash to the toilet. Nighties rather than pyjamas are more comfortable as they won’t rest on the scar. 

She’ll be pretty wiped out for a few days initially but the nurses will encourage her to get up and walk a little each day. It can be long days in hospital especially if visiting is limited. Does she like to read, puzzles, colouring, crochet? If she has a mobile then an extra long charging cable is a good idea.

Ive attached a couple of booklets from the Bowel cancer uk site which will give you an idea of what the operation involves and recovery etc. 

https://bowelcancerorguk.s3.amazonaws.com/Publications/YourPathway_BowelCancerUK.pdf

https://bowelcancerorguk.s3.amazonaws.com/Publications/YourOperation_BowelCancerUK.pdf

Hope these help and if there’s anything specific you’d like to ask then please do

Take care

Karen x

bless your heart, that really really helps,  she is having her pre op anesthetic meeting sometime  this week. she is quite frail,   but we will do our best to get her as healthy as we can and  fill her freezer up. Thankyou so much. I will organise her a grab bag.

much love 

Kirsten