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Managing Pain After Cosmetic Surgery
The decision to have a cosmetic surgical procedure can cause a variety of emotions. Surely, you’re excited! You’ve likely been thinking about having some work done for a long time and you’ve been doing your due diligence—research into surgeons and facilities.
Perhaps you have some concerns, too, with regard to pain management during your recovery. If you are feeling nervous about your ability to handle post-surgical pain, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It means you are thinking through all of the steps of the process, and this makes complete sense.
However, whether you’ve spent a lifetime wishing you had a bit more to fill out a bikini top, wanting a tummy tuck after having children, have been seeing signs of age on your forehead or thinking about a 360 Lipo procedure to get beach ready, it’s important to be realistic.
You owe it to yourself to think about what you may need during recovery. Pain management is a big part of the recovery process, as is handling activities of daily living including going to the bathroom, showering, eating, dressing, etc. But, for now…
Let’s talk about pain.
The fear of pain after undergoing a cosmetic surgical procedure is real. But it shouldn’t consume you. If your procedure requires general anesthesia, and most complex surgeries do, your physician will likely give you prescription medication to help manage pain once the anesthesia wears off.
So, that’s a reality that should calm you down a bit. You should also know that knowledge is power. You can and should ask your doctor questions about what you can expect regarding all aspects of your recovery. During pre-operative appointments, ask questions such as:
Of course, the concept of “normal” is in the eye of the beholder because everyone’s pain threshold is different. While one person may feel faint at the thought of a paper cut, another person might be able to tolerate a considerable bit more discomfort before they might even take an OTC painkiller.
As your recovery time passes on, the pain will become less noticeable. You’ll be able to move around a bit more and focus on other things. For some people, a few days of rest with medication to take the edge off will be all that is needed. Others may find themselves in more distress.
The real question is: how do you get from surgery day to the day when you are feeling considerably recovered and able to get back to your life—even for a bit, if not full force?
You Deserve to Recover in Luxury
Some say pain is the price of beauty. Whether that’s true or not, you should prepare yourself. Like we said before, any surgical procedure is going to involve some level of pain during your recovery period. That’s why it’s a good idea to create a plan on how you are going to manage post-surgical pain.
CosMed At Home is a great place to start. When you schedule at-home recovery services with CosMed, you can breathe a sigh of relief. You can rest assured knowing our skilled and compassionate nurses will be with you around-the-clock.
CosMed nurses are specially trained to care for cosmetic surgical wounds and to help you manage pain post-op. Therefore, securing a CosMed At Home nurse for your recovery time is a great way to plan ahead.
When it comes to pain management, CosMed At Home nurses will fill your prescriptions and monitor your pain levels. They will make sure you remain comfortable and will be there to reach out to the doctor if you, or they, are concerned about your pain level.
Another key point, research shows that plastic surgery patients are at “significant risk” of opioid painkiller abuse, according to Dermatology Times. In fact, plastic surgeons often prescribe far more pain medication for outpatient use that is necessary. And, as you likely have heard and read in the news, it’s quite easy to become dependent on prescription painkillers.
CosMed nurses are extremely aware of the addictive realities of opioid medications. When you schedule one of our nurses to be by your side after surgery, you can relax knowing your pain will be appropriately managed. Your nurse will know when the time is right to step down from prescription drugs to over-the-counter pain meds so your cosmetic surgery doesn’t fix one problem and cause another.
With 24/7 support from CosMed At Home, you can look forward to the cosmetic outcome you want with less pain. Make sure you will be able to get the rest you need in the comfort of your own home, as you recover from cosmetic surgery.
Contact CosMed At Home for more information about post-op in-home care. You can also check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
We suggest scheduling your CosMed nurse two weeks before your surgery date to ensure you post-op plan will be in place when you need it to be.