* When can she cook?

When can she cook?

Many Hyster Sisters have help from family or friends for a number of weeks after surgery. Even then, getting up to fix a full meal was difficult and tiring. Plan on bringing in healthy food or picking up frozen casseroles from the grocery store to cook following the directions.

Make a salad and *Voila!* you have a meal. Your wife will need help with kitchen chores. We'd like to suggest learning to help her all the time but at least be on hand to help her when she is up a bit. Be understanding if she is asleep on the couch when you come home.

Cooking activities should be resumed gradually - just like all the other activites. While your wife might feel up to doing a few things almost right after surgery she should be careful because she'll probably feel a bit shakey- and accidents can happen!

She may be fine after the first week or so for preparing light meals - and by that we mean meals that do not involve lifting heavy pots!! A large pot to cook spaghetti in can be taken out of the cupboard and put on the stove -- a pot full of boiling water and cooked spaghetti is better left to someone else to carry and drain!

Stove-top meals are probably easier for her to prepare too - because they don't involve a lot of bending to get things in and out of the oven.

If you can help with any of the preparation work and let her save her energy for when she is really needed, that would work out well.

Bon Appetit!