Surgery can be a lifechanging experience. More often than not surgery changes our lives for the better, in that it gives us the ability to do things we were unable to do with our previous condition. For a fractional minority, surgery and cause more problems than before. Surgery can alter your life for the better or the worse, but most people say that the biggest changes in life after surgery are the subtle day-to-day changes that impact our daily activities. Those minor but important changes are the focus of today’s blog.
It’s impossible to say that you’ll be perfectly healthy or won’t have any complications after pancreas surgery, but there are common lifestyle changes that the vast majority of pancreatic surgery patients experience. Here’s a quick look at some of the areas of your life that may undergo some shifts after your pancreas surgery:
Dietary Shift
After surgery, you’ll be restricted to small portions while your body recovers from the operation. You’ll also want to limit the amount of junk food or foods that are high in fat, because they can cause issues with the digestive process and lead to bowel discomfort. In the long-term, depending on how much of the pancreas was removed, your pancreas may not be able to produce enough of the enzymes that aid in digestion. This can make it hard to digest foods that are high in fat, so you’ll have to limit intake of those foods and consider dietary supplements to ensure your body can adequately digest food.
Activities
If you weren’t all that active prior to your operation, you’ll want to make exercise a point of emphasis after your surgery. Regular exercise after pancreas surgery has been linked to increases in disease-specific quality of life, sleep quality, lean mass, functional ability and general health, and decreases in pancreatic cancer-related fatigue and psychological distress. If you want to help both your body and mind after pancreas surgery, make time each day for exercise.
Preventative Measures
You’ll be much more focused on preventing a future problem with your pancreas after surgery than you were with keeping it healthy in the first place prior to an operation. You’ll find yourself thinking more about how each decision you make may impacts your pancreas. Patients want to do everything in their power to prevent a problem from coming back, and aside from the above lifestyle changes, you’ll also want to kick bad habits, like smoking. Smoking has been linked to pancreatic cancer, and if you’ve already had an operation, you’re already at a high risk. Sometimes the best preventative measures come in the form of giving up bad habits, so if you haven’t already, give up the cigarettes after your operation.
Symptom Awareness
Another thing you’ll notice after pancreas surgery is that you’re much more aware of your body and any pain. You’ll be more likely to recognize warning signs that you may have ignored prior to the operation. Talk to your surgeon about what short-term and long-term symptoms you should keep an eye out for while you heal. The sooner a complication is discovered, the better the odds of treating it before it becomes a bigger issue.
For more information about pancreas surgery and life after the operation, contact Dr. Koeplin today.
