# Waiting for surgery



## Jefhrn (Nov 6, 2014)

Hi everyone, getting ready for a total thyroidectomy and single parathyroidectomy next month and I have some questions. Background: I have large nodules that are intermittently toxic based on lab results, symptoms and scans. I have elevated calcium and PTH levels too with one identified parathyroid adenoma. I know I will be in the hospital overnight minimum depending on my calcium levels post op. I want to know how I should be prepared to take care of myself at home. Suggestions on food and drink, comfort measures,clothing, medications to have on hand would be greatly appreciated


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## joplin1975 (Jul 21, 2011)

I would stock up on v-neck shirts, or shirts that have buttons or zippers. I couldn't stand to have anything touch my neck, so I lounged around in large v-neck t-shirts.

Some people swear by those airplane pillows that wrap around your neck. Again, I couldn't handle anything touching my neck, but you might want to have one of those on hand in case you feel more comfortable with it. Same goes for ice packs -- I didn't use them but many swear by them.

For me, drinking was the hardest. I'm not sure how best to describe it, but it felt like my neck muscles were weak. Having a cool drink made my throat feel better. I used insulated cups with straws. The straws were a must for me for the first couple of days.

I ate a lot of softer foods the first week, but not exclusively. Scrambled eggs, yogurt, cottage cheese, soups etc. The day after surgery I had cereal, french toast, and a chai, so it's not as if you MUST eat a liquid diet. You throat will be a bit sore so it just helps.

I bought myself a lot of books to read while I recovered. Turns out, my attention span just wasn't there. I ended up watching a lot of crap TV. If I had to do it over again, I might have stocked up on movies.

Good luck!


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## Airmid (Apr 24, 2013)

I'm a little surprised that they're having you stay in the hospital just to monitor calcium levels. My experience, both first hand and researching it when I had it done was that barring complications from surgery they just throw some calcium at you and you get to go home.

At any rate, I was one of the lucky peoples who never had real throat pain after surgery though that is common. I did have problems lying down, it just hurt my neck too much. So I ended up making a home on the reclining couch for the first couple of days.

As for food I would keep whatever comfort foods you happen to like, such as soup. Just in case I would make sure to have softer foods available in case you do have a sore throat as it is common. I always count ice cream as a win/win because it's comfort and soft/cold all rolled into one.

I was someone who could tolerate ice and found it insanely helpful though depending on your level of tenderness it may not be something you can use with any great regularity. It all varies from person to person.

Like Joplin up there, I wasn't a real fan of things around my neck such as shirts, blankets or pillows and typically wore shirts with a v-neck, drop collar or buttons I could undo.

I was also really tired for the first few days and had the attention span of a gnat at times it seemed like. I ended up either watching TV or playing video games which I would randomly fall asleep doing. Which leads to some hilarious situations when you play a MMORPG.

I hope this helps somewhat.


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## Jefhrn (Nov 6, 2014)

I appreciate the response. I think my overnight in the hospital is for the total thyroidectomy, if it was just a parathyroid I would go home the same day. The surgeon who is doing the procedure is very experienced and I do trust her. I will need to get some fee neck shirts, that's not a style I usually wear, and someone else told me a soft scarf to hide and protect the area is a good idea.


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## joplin1975 (Jul 21, 2011)

They kept me overnight, too, to monitor calcium levels. It's pretty normal!


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

I stayed overnight for both of my surgeries...and my first was just a partial thyroidectomy.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Overnight here, too!


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

I stayed overnight both times. I second stocking up on fluff TV and V neck tops. I had no focus. I didn't feel terrible just couldn't concentrate.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I stayed away from the travel pillow because I didn't want anything near the incision on my neck for a while. I also couldn't do straws, something about the pressure from trying to suck through it bothered my neck.


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