The Goal of Pain Management Is to Get You Up and Moving
- Pain management can help promote a faster recovery, so it's a priority for both you and your doctor
- Many patients will receive a "multimodal pain regimen" that includes an epidural, nerve-blocking injections, and anti-inflammatories, which keep most post-surgical pain well-controlled
- Doctors have gotten really good at helping patients manage pain without narcotics
- Movement helps alleviate post-surgery pain, so the sooner you’re up and walking the faster your recovery can be
For most surgeries, doctors typically will make a large incision down the middle of your abdomen, from your ribs to your pelvic bone, and remove the ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, as well as any other organs or tissue where cancer is seen.
Read MoreIn recent years, doctors have implemented some new protocols, based on new research, that focus on optimizing care before, during, and after surgery to help streamline recovery. Called ERAS, an acronym for Enhanced Recovery After Surgery, these guidelines encourage patients to prepare themselves by eating well, staying hydrated, increasing their stamina with some light activity, and managing stress as best they can prior to surgery. All of those things help patients recover more quickly, Dr. Levinson says.
Doctors Have Many Tools to Help Manage Your Pain
“One of our goals is to decrease the experience of pain after surgery, as well as the amount of narcotic pain medications that patients require,” Dr. Levinson explains. Narcotic painkillers can slow down the return of bowl and bladder function, and leave patients too groggy to get up and move around, which doctors want you to do as soon as possible.
Many of our patients will have what we call multimodal pain regiments, which can include an epidural, a shot that numbs the lower half of the body similar to what many women might be given during childbirth. They might receive [nerve blocks] that are injected into the incision, different strategies of pain patches or pain pills, or other types of pain medications. You may be prescribed round-the-clock non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and muscle relaxants, which also help keep pain well-controlled. There are many ways to help women manage discomfort beyond narcotic painkillers.
The Goal of Pain Management Is to Get You Up and Moving
The goal of pain management is to get patients up and moving around as soon as possible after surgery, most oncologists tell SurvivorNet. When patients do move around after surgery, it can help reduce the pain more quickly.
Movement, even on the day of surgery, makes a huge difference for managing postoperative discomfort and encouraging a faster return of bladder and bowl function, and may lessen your chance of developing complications. All will help speed the healing and recovery process.
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