Surgery and the unknown

Hi Kk123 I think I would have wanted the same, straight to surgery and get rid of it!  Hope all goes well for you, let us know how you get on. 

Hi Kk123,

Good call - better out than in. Tips?

Take all the painkillers on the clock, don't wait until it hurts. You'll need to breathe properly to get the lung healing right and you'll need pain relief for that. You shouldn't feel any discomfort at all so complain if you do.

Take the laxatives you should be given, even if you never needed them before.  The pain killers will lock your guts up so going to the toilet will be difficult. Your insides will not be fully healed for some days so no straining!

Walk. Who knew that a gentle ramble around the ward would feel like heavy duty exercise? It will - but only for a few days. Walking is good, build up to tackling stairs when you're ready. Don't expect to get back to normal without some effort.

Clean tee-shirts. Your operation wound will gently leak for a while, you'll need to protect clothes and bedding to keep the laundry under control.

Internet shopping. You will not want to lug a heavy bag of groceries home or push a trolley round the supermarket. Get it delivered.

Play the cancer card - you deserve the only perk you'll get out of all this

kind regards,
Steve

Steve you are a legend truly made me giggle! 

Great tips will buy a load of cheap tops! And pop all the drugs i can!

I'm a single mum to 3 kids and extremely independent so having to suddenly rely on others is my idea of hell but I know that's how life is going to have to be.

I have amazing friends and family abd a partner of a year who bless him probably wonders why he ever swiped right at the mo! Joking he's bloody amazing been my rock and is temporarily moving in after surgery.

The last 4 months have made me realise how precious life is.

X

Hi Kk123 ,I had a lobectomy ,it will be 3 years this july ,i also had a small nodule it was 19mm,and it was suggested i go for surgery,my nodule was in the middle lobe ,and though i was scared it gave me the best chance ,the day of the surgery i was the first one down so no waiting that was a bonus .after surgery ,i was in pain but not as much as i expected ,i had no breathlessness at all even though i was expecting it ,i did find coughing/sneezing /laughing difficult to do for a few weeks ,and i did have a chest drain on ,which is more annoying than painful as it just got in the way of everything ,i spent 5 days in hospital ,because my chest drain was not going to zero ,but that is just me awkward ,i eventually came home with a portable chest drain for another 5 days ,i found walking helped me a lot ,not that i walked anywhere just up and down the corridors of the hospital and up and down my garden at home .take things with you that give you comfort ,something to occupy your mind ,magazines/books/crosswords whatever ,comfy pj s and make sure you have a comfy bra with no wiring soft sports bras are ideal (if your female) this July i go for a full body scan ,hopefully all will be ok ,as so far everything has been ok when i have gone for my 3 monthly scans ,they removed the full nodule which was only 20% cancerouse and my lymph nodes which were also clear ,so if my scan is clear this year my surgeon will discharge me .When you go to see your surgeon dont be scared to ask questions no matter how daft you think they sound ,and good luck