General information only. This page is not personal medical advice. Always follow the instructions from Dr Halvey, your surgeon and the hospital, including the discharge instructions and prescription you are given.
Your pain relief plan
If Dr Halvey gave you a code, your personal pain relief plan shows which medicines to take, when, and how to reduce them. It does not replace your prescription.
If you do not have a code, follow the prescription and the instructions from the hospital. Your operation page also describes the usual pain relief: see Operations.
What is normal after an anaesthetic
| What you may notice | What helps |
|---|---|
| Drowsiness | Rest. Do not drive, use machinery, sign important documents or drink alcohol for 24 hours after a general anaesthetic or sedation. |
| Sore or scratchy throat | Common after a breathing tube or airway. Cold drinks and throat lozenges help. It settles on its own. |
| Feeling sick | Sip fluids, eat small plain meals and move slowly. Take any anti-sickness medicine you were given. Tell the ward or the rooms if you cannot keep fluids down. |
| Itching | Common after morphine in a spinal. It is not an allergy and fades as the morphine wears off. Tell the nurses if it is bothering you. |
| Shivering or feeling cold | Warm blankets and warm drinks. It settles as you warm up. |
| Trouble passing urine | Common after a spinal or some pain medicines. The nurses may scan your bladder and occasionally pass a catheter. |
| A numb, heavy arm or leg | Expected while a nerve block works. Protect it from heat and pressure, and take your pain relief before the feeling returns. See nerve blocks. |
| A sore or bruised back | Can happen after a spinal or epidural. Simple pain relief helps. Tell your GP if it is getting worse rather than better. |
| Constipation | Common with strong pain medicines. Drink plenty, move when you can, and use the laxative you were given. |
Pain relief at home
- Take your regular medicines, such as paracetamol and an anti-inflammatory if you were given one, on time, even if you feel comfortable.
- If you had a nerve block, take your first doses before the numbness fades, often in the evening or overnight.
- Use the stronger medicine you were given only when the regular medicines are not enough, and reduce it as you improve.
- Never take more than the dose on the label, and do not drink alcohol with strong pain medicines.
When to get help
Call 000 or go to your nearest emergency department if you have:
- chest pain, shortness of breath or trouble breathing
- severe drowsiness, or you are hard to wake
- new weakness in your legs, or problems controlling your bladder or bowels after a spinal or epidural.
Contact your surgeon, the hospital or the rooms the same day if you have:
- pain that keeps getting worse despite your medicines, especially with a tight cast, splint or dressing
- vomiting that will not settle, or you cannot keep fluids down
- a fever, or redness, swelling or discharge from the wound
- numbness or weakness that has not started to wear off by the time you were told, or comes back after it went
- a severe headache that is worse when you sit or stand, after a spinal or epidural
- pain or swelling in your calf.
Who to call
| Who | When |
|---|---|
| The hospital ward you were on | Any time, about your operation or your recovery. The number is on your discharge papers. |
| Your surgeon's rooms | Questions about your wound, your operation and your follow-up. |
| Dr Halvey's rooms, (08) 6267 6200 | Questions about your anaesthetic or your pain relief plan, during office hours. |
| healthdirect, 1800 022 222 | Health advice from a registered nurse at any time. |
| Emergency department or 000 | Anything that feels like an emergency. |
If you need an interpreter, call TIS National on 131 450 and ask them to call the number you need.