Tips To Help Accelerate Open Heart Surgery Recovery
Open heat surgery is taxing to the body. This, in addition to problems such as lack of appetite and restricted movement, can prolong the recovery period. The good news is that there are things that you can do to speed up your recovery. The following are tips that will come in handy in helping you do so.
Pre-surgery activity
In order to eliminate the risk of disturbing your stitches, your movement immediately after surgery will be restricted. And given that your body will be already banged up because of the surgery, this will make recovery even harder.
A good recovery strategy involves making sure that you are physically active before the surgery. Physical activities such as jogging will help make it easier for your body to handle the stress of surgery. Furthermore, the inactivity that comes with the limited movement that comes immediately after surgery won't be as hard on your body. Prepping your body for this by whipping it in a good-enough shape will boost your odds of having a quick recovery.
Avoid stressing your body
After open heart surgery, your body needs all the resources there to guarantee a smooth recovery process. Introducing things in the body that stress it out will consume much-needed resources, something that will make for a long recovery process.
Smoking increases the risks of developing respiratory complications such as pneumonia. And since any complication that develops will call for the attention of the body's defense system, this will lead to diverted resources, something that will make recovery from surgery harder.
Also, since the body requires more energy and time to digest processed and fatty foods, taking these foods will add unnecessary stress on the body. Keeping away from these foods is therefore a good way to ensure that your body concentrates on your open heart surgery recovery.
Take nutritious meals
After surgery, your body will need to rebuild. Foods that are rich in protein will help accelerate this rebuilding process and you should therefore include such foods in your diet. Such foods include oily fish, skinless poultry, peas, fish, and beans.
Minerals and vitamins help build the body's defense system. Eating nutrient-rich foods such as vegetables and fruits will ensure that your body has an immune system that is strong enough to prevent infections. Such foods also help reduce the risks of inflammation.
Lack of appetite is a common after-surgery complication. This can limit your nutritious food intake, denying your body the nutrients it needs to recover. To help combat this problem, you should take small but frequent meals. Sipping lemon balm tea will also help to improve your appetite.
For more information, talk to a professional like Firelands Regional Medical Center.
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