Yeah I realised that afterwards, they never told me to only take the gauze they were just like take "it" off after 3 days and keep it dry
So me thinking in case water has gotten into the steri strips, I took them off, im so stupid honestly even tho it wasn't my fault
I called the doctor instead as I was worried it'd pop open lol I did end up putting skin closure tape on it thankfully
Thank you so much for taking your time out to answer xx

According to my knowledge, the steri strips are put in place to essentially hold the skin together as the absorbable sutures dissolve and to minimize too much movement directly over the stitches. As long as you are protecting the area from being jostled until 1 week post surgery you should be okay! If you have any concerns though I would contact your doctor. Wishing you all the best!

Thank you so much guys
My doctor didn't tell me anything so I had to Google everything and I've realised I took the steri strips off too early,
They weren't weepy or oozy or anything except for one of them
What should I do now?
I put a new gauze back on it for now

I always get told to remove the dressings after 2-5 days, and if when you remove them and they’re still a bit weepy to pop another one on. I tend to remove/change them after a shower it seems to soften the adhesive. The steri strips I got told the same as the ladies above. Hope this helps x

I was given nearly identical advice for my upcoming surgery. 24 hours and steri strips will likely fall off, but should be removed at 1 week