Page 25 - Seniorstoday March 2022 Issue
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or night the activity level is continuous and or one more tablet often added to the list.
loud with bright lighting. - You will feel different kinds and levels of
You are usually the only patient eating pains.
meals in the ICU, the portions and courses - You will feel sensitive to every touch.
are way too much, divide it into three meals - You will feel cold due to weakness, rub
and ask for it to be saved in the pantry, know your palms to generate heat, it improves
that if you are hungry between meal times, it circulation.
takes forever and ever to get a morsel of food - Your mind automatically addresses the
at the wrong time. most painful part at a time.
You don’t need to guzzle water to flush - You will feel overall stiffness of the body,
your kidneys of the dye used for the keep changing your sleep and lying down
procedure, half a glass of water every hour to positions at least every two hours, slowly.
cover two liters in a day is fine, this way you - Eat six to eight fist size meals every three
have bladder control and don’t need to keep hours; this will keep your metabolism up in
asking for the bottle or commode seat. your sedentary state. It’s good for your blood
In twenty-four hours you are discharged. sugar and your digestive system. Sit upright
‘Prepare for discharge,’ the minute the when eating reading using the phone, not
nurses hear that, they buzz faster than ever, slouched in bed.
making sure the checklist is covered. - Keeping yourself hydrated is another very
‘Make your going home outfit special,’ I say, important aspect of recovery, two liters of
leave the hospital looking snazzy, it feels so water and one liter of other liquids is the
good. Even the staff feels good to let you go, norm.
as the stand in a single file at the entrance - Your body needs getting used to a whole
as your wheelchair passes through the door new set of medicines, and you need to now
and you wave and say thank you and good administer them to yourself, timely. Make
bye. I always gift the staff a cake, after all a list of medication to be taken at breakfast,
doctors and medical staff always see you lunch, dinner; do not rely on your memory.
at your worst and rarely at your best, it’s a - Icing the inflamed spots continuously is
profession of self-sacrifice, all honour for imperative; use ice packs as often as possible
those who embark on the journey to save for long periods of time throughout the day,
and better the health of humans. till all bruises disappear totally, even if the
pain completely subsides.
The Recovery Period—
This is the most important time for your
body, when you are in recovery is the time
your body tells you how brave you have
been through the procedure but the truth is
that you have taken an overall beating and
it has to adjust to the medication and the
procedure it has undergone. The effects of
this beating now manifests in all kinds of
unexpected ways. The good news is that the
doctor always has a solution, one more prick This image is a representation
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #33 | MARCH 2022 25
