Good afternoon and welcome to Connect, @ls114 I am also glad that you posted information about your upcoming surgery. I actually had a reverse shoulder replacement after having two other surgical attempts. Your information is spot on. The after-surgery pain is moderate. Just make sure you do take the pain meds as long as you need them so you don't suffer any more than necessary. You will have an immobilizer sling It's pretty big and very protective. What I did use a lot was the ice machine. Frequent use for me was every few hours.

For sleeping, you need to keep your shoulder comfortable and in a helpful position. One of the things you can do is pull on a large t-shirt without putting your arms or that sling through the armholes. The other thing you can do is get a large pillow or foam piece to rest your arm on while sleeping. I never had to actually sit up. Even after the immobilizer is removed you may still want that t-shirt to keep your shoulder tight to your body.

And now for the driving.......that depends on how you do in PT and the laws in your home state. In CA you cannot drive with a sling of any kind. I pushed it a little bit to go get gas and I am embarrassed to say I ran into the post at the end of the gas pumps. That's a no-no in anybody's book.

I will tell you that my friend Kathy popped in to help me recover. What a gift she was. However, she had me out walking every morning........a little more than I was ready for but it did help me with the recovery.

Don't worry, you will do well.
Any other questions?

May you be safe, free, and protected from inner and outer harm.
Chris

Again...... be sure to ask for a nerve block catheter as part of your anesthesia. I wore the block in my neck for 5 days after surgery releasing pain meds as needed. Pretty much 0 pain. Also use an ice machine. My shoulder is 1.5 years out and doing pretty much everything I'd hoped to do. Good luck.