Activity

• Get plenty of rest. Take breaks between activities.

• Increase your activity slowly. Start with light exercise, such as walking.

• Ask your health care provider when it's safe to drive a car.

• Don’t swim until your provider says it's okay. Then wear earplugs and a nose clip. Don't swim in lakes or streams.

• Don’t do yard work until your provider says it's okay. This includes gardening, mowing the lawn, and raking leaves. Wear a mask when it's okay to do these activities.

• Ask your provider when you can go back to work or school.

• Don't ride a bike until your provider says it's okay.

• Ask when you can travel and what precautions to take when you travel.

Skin care

Wash your hands often. Use soap and clean, running water. Wash them:

• Every time you use the bathroom.

• Before you take care of your incision.

• Before you take care of your central venous catheter.

Make sure to:

• Follow all instructions for caring for your incision.

• Not get the central venous catheter site wet. Cover it with waterproof material before you take a shower.

• Ask your health care provider if sun exposure is safe.

Check your incision for signs of infection. These include:

• Redness.

• Heat.

• Pain.

• Leaking fluid.

Keeping your home clean

• Clean floors, carpets, furniture, and countertops often. Use a standard cleaning solution that kills bacteria.

• Make sure your bathroom is clean.

• Wash your hands after handling trash.

More ways to help prevent infections

• Ask your health care provider if it's safe to kiss or have close, intimate contact. Ask when you can have sex.

• Wear a mask when you walk through areas with germs or dirt. This includes health care facilities. It also includes construction areas, windy places, and any area with dust or fumes.

• Ask your provider if it's safe to use cosmetics, contact lenses, tampons, or douches.

• Before eating fresh fruits and vegetables, wash them well.

• Limit contact with animals. If you have contact, wash your hands right away. Don't touch pet urine or feces. Don’t clean litter boxes, cages, or aquariums.

• Don’t smoke or use tobacco. Don't let other people smoke in your home.

• Don't have contact with chemicals and fumes. This includes gasoline, fuel oil, paints, bug or weed killers, and fertilizers.

• Don’t use a portable humidifier or vaporizer.

• Stay away from large crowds. And avoid people who have an illness that can spread. This includes colds and the flu. It also includes measles, chickenpox, herpes, pinkeye, coughs, and sore throats.

Taking medicines

• Take your medicines exactly as directed. Don’t take any other medicine, over-the-counter medicines, supplements, or herbs unless your health care provider says it’s okay.

• Tell your provider if you have any side effects.

Asking for help

Let your health care provider know if you or other family members need help. Managing your transplant can be stressful for you and your family. You may all be dealing with the physical, emotional, and financial issues that a transplant can cause.

When to call your doctor

Contact your health care provider right away if you have:

• A fever of 100.4°F (38˚C) or higher, or as advised.

• Some bleeding that you can't control.

• Vomiting.

• A small amount of blood in your stool.

• Some black or tarry stools.

• Diarrhea that does not stop after 2 loose stools.

• Pain or cramping in your stomach.

• Less urine (if you had a kidney transplant). 

• Irregular blood sugar or trouble controlling blood sugar (if you had a pancreas transplant). 

• Mild shortness of breath.

• A severe headache.

• Confusion.

• Mild dizziness or lightheadedness.

• Signs of infection in the incision.

• Fatigue (feeling very tired).

• Swelling in your legs, feet, hands, or stomach that gets worse.

Call 911

Call 911 if you:

• Have a lot of bleeding that you can't control.

• Vomit blood.

• Have a lot of blood in your stool.

• Have a lot of black or tarry stool.

• Feel very dizzy or lightheaded.

• Lose consciousness.

• Have chest pain.

• Feel very short of breath.