Mx: 10 Tips to Get Ready for Your Hospital Stay and Recovery

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If you're having a mastectomy, you can expect to stay in the hospital for anywhere from one night to several nights, depending on whether you'll also be having lymph nodes removed (axillary lymph node dissection) and/or breast reconstruction. You'll then recover at home for a few weeks or more.

Generally, you'll be instructed not to lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk for a few weeks. The more involved your surgery is, the longer your recovery will be and the more restrictions you'll have on physical activities such as pushing, pulling, and lifting your arms over your head. Talk to your treatment team at your pre-surgical visit about what to expect. Ask about how many incisions and surgical drains you'll have, how to care for them, and whether they'll limit activities such as showering and light exercise.

Members of the Breastcancer.org Community share their top ten tips for what you can do before your mastectomy to prepare for your recovery in the hospital and at home:

Before Mastectomy: 10 Tips to Get Ready for Your Hospital Stay and Recovery

Also, consider getting something like the The Shower Shirt, a patented, post-surgical, water resistant garment designed to protect chest surgery patients, including mastectomy, while showering https://www.theshowershirt.com