01/12/2026
What most patients wish they knew before surgery
Not because anyone lied to them.
But because this part doesn’t always make it into the highlight reel.
Surgery is a tool. Not a finish line.
The procedure matters, but what determines outcomes is everything that surrounds it.
Healing is not linear. There will be good days and frustrating ones.
Swelling, fatigue, tightness, and doubt are all normal parts of recovery; not signs that something went wrong.
Your timeline will not look like someone else’s.
Social media compresses months into seconds and rarely shows the hard, quiet middle.
Mental readiness matters just as much as physical readiness.
Patience, realistic expectations, and self compassion go further than perfection.
I can perform the procedure.
But you do the healing, through rest, nutrition, movement, and follow-through.
Ask questions. Communicate. Advocate for yourself.
The best outcomes come from trust and partnership, not silence.
And finally:
This is about quality of life, not comparison.
If you’re considering surgery in 2026, this is the part worth slowing down for.
