Tina – Tested Survival Guide

💡 Know something that would’ve helped you sooner?
Send it my way on the You’re Welcome Here — Don’t Be a Stranger page. 📩

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When your brain is tired, this list does the remembering.

Survival Tools I Didn’t Know I’d Need

What Actually Helped: Surgery, Chemo, and Everything in Between

❤️ Tina-Tested Survival Checklist

Surgery & “Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me?”

☐ Travel neck pillow (protects incision/arm if lymph nodes were removed)
☐ Mastectomy pillow (seatbelt shield + pockets = purse upgrade)
☐ Step stool (bathroom/kitchen if you’re fun size)
☐ Battery-operated toothbrush + soft bristles
☐ Extra-gentle, extra-large wipes for sponge baths
☐ Shower chair + handheld shower wand (when you’re weak but not cleared for baths)
☐ Bidet (helps with constipation + dignity)
☐ PRO TIP: Move toilet paper off the holder (reaching hurts — especially with expanders)

Home Setup Before You Come Home

☐ Move daily-use items to counters (bathroom + kitchen)
☐ Move fridge items to lower shelves
☐ Pre-open meds (safely) + drinks for the next day
☐ Have support person set out bowl, oatmeal packets, measuring cup the night before (easy self-feeding)
☐ Decide sleep plan: recliner / adjustable bed / wedge pillow
☐ Pillows. Pillows. Pillows. (arms, back, knees, tailbone)
☐ Step(s) for bed if it’s tall — test before surgery

Clothes & Comfort

☐ Silky pajamas (sliding in/out of bed is so much easier)
☐ Leggings (swelling + comfort)
☐ Button-up shirts (drains + limited arm movement)
☐ Slip-on shoes (no bending required)
☐ Leak-proof water bottle (works while laying back)

Bonus Comfort Items

☐ Eye mask (daytime sleep is a thing)
☐ Ear plugs or white noise
☐ Small basket for meds + snacks
☐ Grace for yourself — healing is not linear

This list will grow as I learn more. If you have something that helped you, tell me — we survive better together.

Why These Helped (aka Learn from My Trial-and-Error)

❤️ Surgery & Early Recovery: The Things No One Warns You About

  • Travel neck pillow
  • Keeps your arm from rubbing incisions if you had lymph nodes removed. Absolute lifesaver.

Mastectomy pillow (the wearable kind)
Protects you from seatbelts and has pockets.
Also doubles as a purse because lifting bags is a no.

Step stool (bathroom + kitchen)
Fun-sized people, listen up.
Bending over counters with a brand-new chest situation = instant regret.

Battery-operated toothbrush (SOFT bristles)
You will not have the arm strength.
Bonus: you’ll need soft bristles during chemo anyway to avoid gum injuries.

❤️ Make Your House Work Before You Come Home

Move daily-use items to counter height

  • Bathroom
  • Kitchen
  • Meds
  • Even fridge items (yes, bottom shelf)

Open everything ahead of time

  • Med bottles
  • Drinks
  • Food packaging

Our routine:

Casey set out a glass, opened Gatorades and protein waters, laid out oatmeal packets and a measuring cup — so I could feed myself while he went to work.

This mattered more than I expected.

❤️ Clothing & Sleeping (a whole thing)

Silky pajamas
Sliding in and out of bed without using your arms is clutch.
(Yes, the pink leopard ones.)

Leggings, button-ups, slip-on shoes
This is your uniform.

  • Drains
  • Swelling
  • Weight fluctuations
  • Dignity preservation

Bed access

  • Step stool if your bed is high
  • Make sure you can safely get in and out before surgery

Sleeping setup

  • Recliner
  • Adjustable bed
  • Or wedge pillow

You’ll need to sleep at 45° or more — plan now, not at 2am.

❤️ Pillows. All of Them.

  • Under arms
  • Behind back
  • Under tailbone
  • Under knees

No such thing as too many pillows.

❤️ Hygiene Without the Drama

Extra-large, extra-gentle wipes
For sponge baths when showers aren’t an option.

Shower wand + shower chair
Especially once chemo fatigue kicks in.

Bidet (non-electric, ~$25)
Game changer for:

  • Limited mobility
  • Constipation from meds
  • Preserving your dignity

PRO TIP:
Take the toilet paper off the holder and set it on the counter.
Reaching around for it with expanders = pain you don’t need.

❤️ Hydration & Daily Survival

Leak-proof water bottle
Because drinking while reclined is unavoidable.

Eye mask + ear plugs
Daytime sleep hits different during recovery.

🍎 Chemo Moonshine

A Tina-Tested Natural Nausea Remedy

(Not actual moonshine. No alcohol. Just magic.)

This is hands-down the most effective nausea helper I’ve found so far.
Warm, soothing, gentle on an angry stomach — and it works whether nausea is loud, sneaky, or hits out of nowhere.

I keep it on hand at all times. Sip it warm like cider or cold over ice.
Future you will thank you.

Ingredients

  • Apple cider – 1 gallon
    ⚠️ Not apple cider vinegar
  • Honey or agave – 1 cup
    (I use Manuka honey for its healing properties)
  • Cinnamon sticks – 5
  • Whole cloves – about 2 tablespoons
  • Fresh ginger root – 1–2 inches, peeled & chopped or thinly sliced
  • Ground ginger – 1 tablespoon
  • Star anise – 2–3 pods

Instructions

  1. Pour apple cider into a large pot.
    (I use a pot with a strainer in the bottom.)
  2. Add:
    • Fresh ginger
    • Ground ginger
    • Cinnamon sticks
    • Star anise
    • Whole cloves
  3. Heat on medium until it reaches a gentle boil.
  4. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let steep for 10 minutes.
  5. Turn off heat and continue steeping covered for 1 hour.
  6. Add honey or agave.
  7. Turn heat back on low and steep uncovered for another hour.
  8. Remove from heat.

Straining (Important!)

  • Remove large spices using the strainer (if used).
  • PRO TIP:
    Pour the liquid through a coffee filter using your coffee pot for a second strain.
    ✔️ Removes fine sediment
    ✔️ Makes pouring into jars easy
    ✔️ Zero mess

⚠️ Be careful — it will be hot.

Storage & Serving

  • Pour into mason jars once cooled
    (Tie a ribbon + note = perfect chemo care gift)
  • Or pour back into the original container
  • Keeps well in the fridge

How to drink it

  • Warmed like cider
  • OR chilled over ice

Try both and see what your body likes best.

Yield & Time

  • Prep & steep time: ~2 hours 10 minutes + cooling
  • Yield: About 1 gallon (plus a little extra)

Credit

Recipe adapted from Mom Off Track on Pinterest
(With Tina-tested tweaks and upgrades)

💌 Have a nausea trick that actually works?
Share it with me [here → You’re Welcome Here – Don’t Be a Stranger]

🍎 Chemo Hooch (Quick Nausea Relief Drink)

Category: Tina – Tested Survival Guide
Purpose: Ease nausea when brewing the full “chemo moonshine” isn’t happening

What You’ll Need

  • 1 packet spiced apple cider mix
  • Hot water
  • Ground cinnamon
  • Ground ginger

How to Make It

  1. Add hot water to one packet of spiced apple cider mix.
  2. Sprinkle in cinnamon and ground ginger.
  3. Measure everything with your heart (this is not a precision situation).
  4. Stir well.
  5. Sip slowly and let your stomach calm down.

Notes from Tina

  • This is the shortcut version of my chemo moonshine — a perfectly acceptable “sister drink.”
  • Great for when nausea shows up uninvited and patience is low.
  • Works especially well alongside prescribed nausea meds and Pepcid (as directed by your care team).
  • Warm, soothing, fast, and zero judgment if this is your third cup of the day.

Nickname Origin:
If the long brew is moonshine, this one is definitely chemo hooch — quick, scrappy, and effective.

❤️ Final Truth

None of this makes you weak.
It makes you prepared.

And prepared people heal better.

Have something that helped you survive surgery, chemo, or the in-between?
I’m always learning. If you’ve got a tip, trick, or “why didn’t anyone tell me this?” moment, send it my way through the You’re Welcome Here — Don’t Be a Stranger page. Future me (and future someone else) will thank you.

We’re better when we share the good stuff.