How to Prep Your Home for After Breast Surgery

It can be daunting to recover from major surgery like a mastectomy. You may be wondering how much pain you’ll be in, what your physical limitations may be, and what kind of support you’ll need.

But there are things you can do before the procedure to boost your odds of a smooth recovery — including by setting up your home to make yourself more comfortable when you return from the hospital.

Change Your Sleeping Habits 

Create a Comfortable Sleep Setup 

When you come home from surgery, you won’t be able to sleep in your bed the way you normally do — at least for a short while. “There may be challenges finding a comfortable position that does not put pressure on incisions or drain sites, especially when it is a bilateral surgery,” explains Kelly Hunt, MD, a professor and the chair of the department of breast surgical oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

To get comfortable in bed, you may want to use a variety of pillows, like a wedge pillow to recline on or a heart-shaped mastectomy pillow that can be tucked under armpits to keep pressure off sensitive surgical sites while they’re healing. If getting in and out of bed is too difficult, try camping out on the couch with pillows propped behind your back so you can sleep semi-upright.

Consider Sleeping in a Lift Chair 

After Beth DeLong, 36, a breast cancer survivor and the founder of Adventure After Cancer, had DIEP flap breast reconstruction (in which tissue is taken from one area of the body — the lower abdomen — and used to reconstruct the breast), she required a more involved sleep setup. For the first two weeks after surgery, she slept in a lift chair, which she borrowed from a friend. You can rent a lift chair from a local medical supply company if you find you need it.

Prep Your Kitchen 

Make Sure Everything Is Accessible

Get Groceries and Prepared Meals Delivered 

Driving to the store, dealing with crowded aisles, lifting heavy bags … you definitely do not want to go grocery shopping while you’re recovering. If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can have your groceries delivered to your home, and depending on where you live, there are other grocery delivery services such as Instacart, FreshDirect, and Target Shipt.

Similarly, you can eliminate the burden of cooking by having prepared meals delivered. Ask friends to bring over prepared meals — you could have them sign up for time slots using Google Sheets or by creating an account on MealTrain.com. Make sure to include any dietary restrictions, preferences, or other instructions. You can also order fully prepared meals (versus meal kits, where you have to prepare and cook the food) to be delivered to your home from a number of subscription services. Some grocery delivery services even offer prepared meal options, too.

Create a Drain Station

A dedicated “drain station” — for example, on top of a dresser — can help make this process go more smoothly. Your station can include things like hand sanitizer, liquid measuring containers for collecting and measuring the fluid (the hospital should provide these), and a pen and a drain output log (again, the hospital should send you home with this, but if you need extra copies you can download this drain log template from mastectomy lingerie brand AnaOno). You may also find it helpful to empty the drains in front of a full-length mirror.

Set Up a Bathing Station 

If your doctor doesn’t want you to shower while you still have your drains (there’s a possibility that water could get into the drain exit site), try setting up a “wash” station in your bedroom or bathroom with several types of wipes — face wipes, deodorant wipes, and large body wipes — for a daily “bath.” A full-length mirror nearby can also be helpful when wiping down your face and body. How soon you’re permitted to shower after surgery varies from doctor to doctor, so make sure to ask your provider for their specific post-op bathing instructions.

Take Your Medication

Log Everything 

It’s important to take all the medications your doctors prescribe, and the best way to do this is to log everything — which pill you took and at what time you took it. Write everything down in a notebook, or use a medication-tracking app on your phone, like Medisafe — in addition to logging your medications, you can also schedule them all in, so an alarm goes off when it’s time to take each one.

Check Your Insurance Coverage Before You Purchase Medical Equipment

Contact your insurance company to inquire about its full list of covered DME and what its requirements are. This can be a complicated process to navigate and requires obtaining prescriptions from your doctors for any necessary DME. Wendy Griffith, LCSW, an oncology social worker and the program manager of the Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Program at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, recommends asking if there’s a case manager or social worker at your hospital with experience in this area who can help you handle the logistics.

When you’re undergoing a mastectomy and reconstruction, it could mean one surgery or several if your mastectomy and reconstruction are done separately.

The Takeaway

If you’re undergoing major surgery like a mastectomy, there are certain things you can do to make yourself more comfortable once you return home from the hospital — including sleeping on a lift chair and setting up a bathing station. You can also contact your insurance company to find out if you have coverage for postsurgical recovery supplies.