Can I Care for My Kids After Rhinoplasty?
If you're a parent to young children, you may wonder how a nose job will affect your ability to care for them in the days, weeks and months after your surgery. The following considerations will help you plan and schedule your rhinoplasty around your kids and arrange for the appropriate assistant during your recovery ahead of time.
Day 1: Don't expect to do much other than rest with your head slightly propped up in the first 24 hours following surgery. Make sure you enlist the help of a responsible adult to drive you home after the procedure and stay with you for at least a day in case you need help or experience a complication. Hopefully this person can simultaneously care for your kids; if not, enlist a second friend or family member who can.
Days 2-3: Though you may feel well enough to do very light activities close to home, you'll likely appreciate having someone around during the day to help look after your little ones. Your recovery will also go more smoothly if you plan to stay as stress free and relaxed as possible early on - if you find that you feel capable of handling things yourself, simply send the sitter home.
Heavy lifting: Your surgeon's instructions will be to take it easy during the first two to three weeks of recovery, keeping activities like bending over and heavy lifting to a minimum. If your child weighs 20 or more pounds, you'll have to be careful about picking him/her up too often; if you must, try to move as slowly and mindfully as possible.
Safe play: You'll need to take care during playtime, too. Quiet activities are fine but, for the first two weeks after your rhinoplasty, try not to engage in rowdy activities with your kids that could result in a hit to the face.
Breast feeding: Your surgeon will likely prescribe some painkillers and/or medications to take after your surgery; if you're breastfeeding, be sure to ask ahead of time if these are safe. Some moms prefer to pump and store breast milk for their baby prior to rhinoplasty.
Show 'n' tell: Some children get scared if they perceive that their parent is in pain. While the majority of patients only feel slight discomfort after their surgery, the cast alone (which must be kept in place for seven days) is enough to make some kids upset. Talk to your children ahead of time - having an open and honest discussion about the procedure may be the best way to prepare them for your recovery.
If at any point you have questions about which activities are safe to do with your children and which aren't, please contact the friendly and supportive staff at 8 West Cosmetic Surgery.
