Waiting for an appointment, treatment or surgery? Take steps to improve your health while you wait

One of the best things you can do to improve your peace of mind and be sure that your medical treatment and recovery goes smoothly, is to make sure that your health is as good as possible beforehand.

You wouldn't run a marathon without training first and preparing for a medical procedure is no different. Surgery especially can take a huge toll on your body but the fitter you are before you go in, the quicker you will recover.

Personalised signposting for health and wellbeing support

Complete our short quiz to receive your personalised health and wellbeing plan and take that first step to better health.

Click on your nearest GP practice to take the quiz.

* denotes that the quiz is not available through that practice. Please select another nearby practice in your area.

Similar health and wellbeing information can also be found below.

Slough	North East Hampshire and Farnham	Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead	Surrey Heath	Bracknell Forest
Bharani Medical Centre	Alexander House Surgery*	Ascot Medical Centre*	Bartlett Group Practice	Binfield Surgery*
240 Wexham Road	Crondall New Surgery	Clarence Medical Centre	Camberley Health Centre	Crown Wood Medical Centre
242 Wexham Road Surgery	Downing Street Group Practice	Claremont Holyport Surgery	Lightwater Surgery*	Easthampstead Surgery
Cippenham Surgery	Farnham Dene Medical Practice	Cookham Medical Centre	Park House Surgery*	Evergreen Practice
Crosby House Surgery	Farnham Park Health Group	Cordwallis Road Surgery	Park Road Group Practice	Forest Health Group
Farnham Road Practice	Giffard Drive Surgery	Datchet Health Centre	Station Road Medical Practice	Great Hollands Practice
Herschel Medical Centre	Hart Health Partnership	Green Meadows Surgery	Upper Gordon Road	Ringmead Medical Group
Kumar Medical Centre	Holly Tree Surgery	Kings Corner Surgery		The Waterfield Practice
Langley Health Centre	Jenner House Surgery*	Lee House Surgery
Manor Park Medical Centre	Mayfield Medical Centre	Linden Medical Centre
Ragstone Road Surgery	North Camp Surgery	Magnolia House Surgery
Shreeji Medical Centre	Oakley Health Group	Redwood House Surgery
The Chapel Medical Centre*	Princes Gardens Surgery*	Rosemead Surgery*
The Orchard Surgery	Richmond Surgery	Ross Road Medical Centre
The Village Medical Centre	The Border Practice*	Runnymede Medical Practice
	The Cambridge Practice*	Sheet Street Surgery
	The Wellington Practice*	South Meadow Surgery
	Voyager Family Health*	The Cedars Surgery
		The Symons Medical Centre*
		Woodlands Park Surgery

Move more

The healthier your heart and lungs are before a medical procedure, the safer it will be and the quicker you'll recover.

For ideas to help you take the next step, visit the NHS Better Health Get Active web page here.

Programmes to help you get fitter and feel well

You can search online to find local classes and activities, including:

Your condition

You may have other long-term health problems that you have been managing, like issues with blood pressure, heart or lung problems, diabetes or anaemia.

In the run up to medical treatment it is important that these are appropriately controlled. Talk to your GP or nurse if you feel that you could benefit from any extra help in managing the condition.

For advice about steps you can take yourself, visit the:

Maintain a healthy weight

Eating a healthy diet will help you get fit and recover quicker after any kind of medical treatment. Being a healthy weight also reduces your risk of blood clots and wound infections afterwards.

The more overweight you are, the more stress there is on your heart and lungs during the process.

Visit our weight management page for details of local support available.

Take care of your mind

It's natural to feel anxious in the run up to a medical procedure and sometimes the burden of being unwell can lead to low mood, depression and anxiety disorders.

Being prepared mentally is as important as being prepared physically.

For ideas to look after your mental health visit the NHS Every Mind Matters webpage.

If you feel you may need help with your mental health, there are online resources available, for example:

Drink less

Alcohol is extremely high in calories, so drinking a lot will make it much harder to reach or maintain a healthy weight. In addition, alcohol can reduce the liver's ability to produce the building blocks necessary for healing, which will slow your recovery.

Visit the Drinkaware website for help and advice.

Quit smoking

Smokers are more at risk of complications during treatment/surgery and are likely to take longer to recover and stay longer in hospital, As such you are strongly advised to ‘Stop before your Op / Treatment’.

Please note that all Frimley Health sites are smoke and vape free. As there is nowhere on any site that you can smoke or vape, Nicotine Replacement Therapy is available to help inpatients manage withdrawal symptoms from nicotine use. Mention this to your nurse on admission.

Specialist support is also available for patients who would like to use their hospital stay to help them quit smoking/vaping completely.