I know you've heard this a thousand times, but it is SO, SO, SO critical to drink all of your water post op. 12 days after a hugely successful surgery I landed myself back in the hospital for the last 3 days because I was dehydrated (elevated heart rate) and experiencing extreme pain. They tried 11 times to get an IV in & couldn't so they finally had to put in a central line to get fluids in me. I was subject to 3 days of every kind of test under the sun to try to find out why I was in so much pain. The didn't find anything major, but suspect it was due in part to the dehydration. After 3 days on fluids & pain killers, the pain dissipated & I got to come home. The hospital I was at has a fantastic staff, but it was still a miserable & completely avoidable situation. I will NEVER, EVER miss drinking all of my fluids again. It's good to be back home & the fun news is that I had lost 26 lbs in the 2 weeks since my surgery (I gained 3 when I was in the hospital this week, but I don't mind at all since it was much needed fluids).