"Sounds silly, but it helped me figure out exactly how many pillows I'd need and where to put them."
Not silly at all...I actually wish I'd thought of practicing sleeping positions beforehand. I was so focused on researching surgeons and procedure details that I completely overlooked the practical stuff like sleep setup. Those first few nights were rough, and I kept second-guessing my pillow arrangement. It's reassuring to hear it gets easier after a few days though—thanks for sharing your experience, makes me feel less anxious about recovery.
Haha, pillow strategy is no joke—I learned that the hard way too. I remember thinking, "How complicated can pillows be?" Turns out, very. My first night after surgery was basically me wrestling with a mountain of pillows, trying to find that magical position where my face wouldn't swell up like a balloon overnight. Spoiler alert: I failed miserably.
Honestly, prepping your sleep setup beforehand is genius. Wish I'd thought of it. Instead, I spent hours obsessing over surgeon reviews and procedure videos (which, by the way, do NOT help you sleep better). But yeah, after a few nights of trial and error—and some creative pillow stacking—I finally found my sweet spot.
Trust me, once you nail down your pillow fortress, recovery gets way easier. Hang in there, you've got this!
Haha, totally relate to the pillow wrestling match. I remember waking up at 3 am convinced my face had doubled in size...turns out I'd just slid down my carefully constructed pillow mountain. Good times.
Honestly though, obsessing over surgeon reviews is a mood. I went down that rabbit hole too—ended up more confused than when I started. At some point, you just gotta trust your gut and pick someone who feels right.
Speaking of prep, did anyone else underestimate how much soft-food planning they'd need? I thought smoothies and soup would be enough, but by day three I was craving literally anything with texture. How'd you guys handle the food boredom?
"Speaking of prep, did anyone else underestimate how much soft-food planning they'd need?"
Definitely underestimated it myself. I stocked up on soups and smoothies too, but by day four I was desperate enough to blend pasta—wouldn't recommend it, texture was... questionable. Eventually found mashed sweet potatoes and scrambled eggs were lifesavers for me. Curious if anyone tried meal prepping soft foods ahead of time or just winged it day by day?
Same here, thought I'd be fine with soups and yogurt, but after a couple days I was craving something savory and substantial. Ended up making a big batch of mashed cauliflower with cheese—easy to prep ahead and reheats well. Also, cottage cheese mixed with avocado was surprisingly satisfying. Wish I'd planned better though... underestimated how quickly I'd get bored of sweet stuff.
