Note: The hospital will provide you with an official 'Fitness to work' note when you are discharged. This can be used to provide details to your employer or insurance policy if required. On average, patients will require about a week to recover from surgery.
Written by Consultant Surgeon Mr James Kirkby-Bott
Advice on helping you with your recovery
Post Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery
The following advice has been written by your surgeon - James Kirkby-Bott, with advice on helping with your recovery. Please read it and use the advice to help minimise discomfort and maximise your outcome.
How you will feel after surgery
The first 1-2 days are the worst in terms of feeling discomfort, tiredness, a sore throat and generally not feeling yourself. Surgery and general anaesthetic are perceived by your body as a trauma, and this takes some time and patience to recover from.
Mr Kirkby-Bott says.
“If I can offer any general advice, it is this:
Try not to get pre-occupied with how you feel or how you feel compared to what you have been expecting. Instead try and go with the flow.
Give yourself a period of rest time from work and activities but continue to get up and move around.
As each day passes try and increase your activity levels doing gentle exercise and keeping moving around the house. Going for a walk might be pleasant, but don’t do strenuous sports until you feel up to it. Doing the neck stretch exercises from day 1 is also important.
Remember any unusual sensations are temporary and will improve as time goes by. Don’t be distracted by feeling unwell.
Stay positive – doing things you enjoy while you rest will help achieve this. It is OK to enjoy your recovery time. After all you’ve just had a big operation and deserve the rest!”
