When you're getting ready for a hospital stay, you may be feeling a lot of different things.

Like worried ... or afraid ... or feeling like things are out of your control.

A lot of people feel the same way. But there are a few things you can control when you go into the hospital.

And these things can help you get better ... heal sooner ...

and have a healthier stay.

So, what are those things? Don't smoke ... prevent infections ...

and pay attention to your medicines.

You'll get better faster if you're in the best health you can be before you go into the hospital.

So if you smoke, this is a great time to quit.

If you can't quit, think about cutting back. If you want to try to quit, ask your doctor for help.

The best way to prevent infections is for you ...

and the people who come into your room ... to have clean hands.

Lots of different germs live in the hospital ...

and they're easily passed around just by touching things.

Some of the germs are serious. So, how can you prevent spreading germs?

Wash your hands, and ask everyone who comes into your room to wash their hands too. Or take along a bottle of hand sanitizer for your bedside table. Depending on why you're in the hospital, you may or may not be able to get up easily or often to wash your hands.

And having the bottle in plain sight will make it easier to ask visitors to clean their hands when they come in.

Last but not least, pay attention to any instructions your doctor gives you about your medicines. You might have to take your medicines and natural health products in a different way ... or even stop them before you go into the hospital.

If you're not sure what to do, just ask your doctor.

And when you're in the hospital, the staff needs to know about everything you take ... medicines and natural health products ... as well as how much you take and how often, especially if the way you take products is different from the way it was prescribed.

Try to bring a list that's as detailed as possible.

That means having the product name, how much you take, and how often you've been taking it.

These three things ... not smoking, preventing infections, and paying attention to medicines ... are three ways to take charge of your hospital stay so that you can heal sooner ... and have a healthier stay.