Are you having a breast augmentation surgery soon? Well, getting prepared for it makes your whole procedure seems much simpler and easier as most women are at a consensus that they wished they had a comprehensive knowledge of what to expect and be prepared for the duration of before and after the procedure. To make your pre- and post-surgery process a little more comfortable and stress-free, here’s a list of things to prepare:

When you’re in the medical centre, you’ll be given a medical gown to wear so you won’t need clothes while you’re there but prepare for loose clothing that you can easily wear like button or zip up tops when you leave the centre. Choosing easy-to-slip on attire is the key to your comfort because you’ll want to avoid lifting your arms after surgery or manoeuvre them into tight, restrictive clothing.

Cleansing wipes

Having a large packet of cleansing wipes is convenient because after surgery, showering could be difficult as you would want to keep the surgery area dry until the stitches are removed; which generally takes a week after surgery. You’ll be glad to have some cleansing wipes on hand to clean and freshen up every day until you have the opportunity to shower.

Drinking straws

This item has been rated one of the most important “must haves” as you would be lying on the bed or at a low angle during your recovery period of a few days – ergo, you’ll need to rely on a straw to drink without sitting up or moving around so that you won’t disturb the healing process. If you’re able to acquire bendy straws, all the more better as this will make it easier and more flexible for you to sit back and sip up the liquid.

Post-surgery bras

Your surgeon would probably advice that for about a month after surgery, you should avoid under-wire bras. The choices of your post-surgery bra completely depend on whether you have someone to help you put it on. If you don’t have assistance, it’s a good idea to buy front fastening bras that fit a little loosely around the breasts and surgical area so as not to disrupt the healing process. If you have help to wear your bras, many post-op patients recommend seamless sports bras as they are more comfortable and attractive. However, ensure that it wears like a normal bra, not worn over your head. When you’re having your stitches removed, bring along a soft bra to wear after all the bandages are taken off.

Post-surgery care

Keep all these things in the list close by after being discharged from the medical centre:

Saline solution for wound cleaning

Betadine solution for reducing redness and inflammation for wound healing

Swabs and cotton pads for solution application

Silicone gel strips for scar healing

Bio oil to speed up scar healing

Recovery food

You should also give a thought about food for your recovery period to hasten the healing of the incisions as you’d want to minimise scars as best as you can. Besides nutritional supplements, some food you should stock up and consume includes nuts, seeds, fruits and proteins.

Nuts like cashews, almonds, walnuts and pine nuts are great for healing skin tissue

Seeds like pumpkin, sesame and sunflower help with tissue regeneration

Proteins like chicken, fish and eggs are essential macro-nutrients for repairing tissue (vegetarians can replace meat with beans, soy or grains)

If you can, eat smaller portions or have light meals to allow your body energy to recover. Let it focus on repairing the wounds instead of stressing it with digesting large amounts of food. Abstain from spicy food as it can cause inflammation around the surgical wounds as well as alcohol, caffeine and smoking (avoid all of these for at least a month). Don’t forget that adequate water consumption is beneficial for better body function during convalescing. Other things to take note After surgery, in the course of one month, don’t lift your arms or reach for anything high above your head and no excessive or strenuous activities to avoid stressing your upper body. For more information on breast augmentation surgery, make an appointment or visit Beverly Wilshire Medical Centre where our professional medical staff can assist you on your personal checklist so that you’ll know what to expect and be comfortably prepared for the procedure.