To ensure successful recovery, follow these guidelines after your procedure:

• Before you leave the Center, you will be given written instructions for your care at home. If you have any questions or problems after your procedure, please contact your doctor. 
  
  
• After you have returned home, be sure to follow your doctor’s orders regarding diet, rest, medication and activity. Unless directed otherwise, you should start your diet with clear liquids. In four to six hours, you can begin to eat solid foods. By the next day, you should be back to your normal diet. It is not unusual to feel a little sleepy, light-headed or dizzy for several hours after your procedure. Do not sign any important papers or make any significant decisions for at least 24 hours. 
  
  
• A nurse from Tuscaloosa Surgical Center will phone you within a few days after your procedure to see how you are and answer any additional questions you might have.
  

EXTENDED RECOVERY
Some procedures require an extended recovery period. Extended recovery is defined as an admission longer than 12 hours, or an overnight stay.

If you are scheduled for extended recovery, please bring all your routine medications with you to the Center. Each patient is permitted one overnight visitor. We recommend that all children under 12 have someone stay with them. Visitors not staying overnight are asked to leave the Center by 8:00 p.m.