Incisional hernia painful followed by vomiting

Digestive health
1

Hi everyone,

I had half my stomach removed 12 months ago. Several months ago I noticed a lump just above my belly button, it is an incisional hernia that has got bigger and at times painful.

This morning I woke at 5am with a very painful stomach where the hernia is, the pain went through to my back, the pain didn't go away and around 9am I was vomiting, 6 times actually and twice there was no warning, it just seemed to fly out of my mouth. Not pleasant.

I don't know if it's symptoms of the hernia or if maybe it was food poisoning as I had a frozen pizza last night that had beef on it, something I don't normally eat as since the removal of half the stomach, I'm only suppose to eat very small meals and eat them slowly, I mean to the point they become cold. 

I feel a lot better now, 3.5 hours after I vomited last. Still slightly painful.

Does anyone know if it was complications with the hernia, if the pain would go away? Or does the pain stay. My stomach is also very bloated and been that way for months, so bloated I no longer have a belly button, it looked very weird after the operation last year anyway and has now ended up flat. 

I have an appointment with a specialist in 2 weeks time, but I have been told that the waiting list in Australia for hernia operations can be up to 2 years.

I can't help but think I did this to myself as after the stomach operation I went back to doing everything as I used to, housework, lifting heavy thing, even lifted my 38 kilo dog off the bed once, taking him for walks where he constantly pulled and lunged forward.

It's now 5.40pm and there's hardly any pain and I haven't eaten all day. If I wake again with that pain and vomit again, I'm scared it might be the strangulation of the hernia. My very busy doctor is booked out until next week, so I'll go to A&E.

I would really apprciate anyone that can help me with some of the questions.

Thank you and take care.

Sue

2

I have had a umblical hernia surgey Dec 2016 but still do not carry heavy stuff and also don't climb stairs only problem is my stomuch is still bloated but have been given the all clear.

Yours must be due to picking up heavy stuff and you need to get it done the op soon as possible because this thing grows so if I was you need to scream the roof down so that your doctor has you on a urgent list .

Good luck

3

Sue, my advice to you is to go to your doctor or A&E NOW.

Of course I have not had my stomach removed so I don't know if the following is relevant but the symptoms you describe are very similar to the symptoms I had in November 2015 which turned out to be a twisted gut which can be fatal.

I had pains that would not go away, I went to my GP and he decided to send me by ambulance to A&E, I started vomitting suddenly (as you say, you don't nuch warning!) and the GP injected me with morphine for the pain.

When I got to A&E they were all for operating straightaway but snce the pain had subsided they waited and did some scans and x-rays and would have operated then but a more urgent case came in ..... after that they did operate on me. They found part of my small bowel kinked and had separated from it's blood supply and thus died. They cut that bit out and stitched me up and I've been fine ever since .... well apart from the incisional abdominall hernia that I later developed!

Frankly I feel that had my GP not acted when he did the consequences would have been a lot worse.

Looking back I can see that this had been coming on for a long time. I used to get indigestion, bloating, generally feeling bad and then I'd be alright again sometimes for months. Then it would happen again. I put it down to over indulgence, the cheese was off, too much red wine and so on .... I see now it was my bowel kinking and unkinking.

I don't want to sound alarmist but please seek medical advice as soon as you can.

I feel I have had to say the above because if youshold take a turn for the worse and I had said nothing then I wold have felt awful.

Regards,

Phil.

4

I still avoid lifting heavy things even though surgery was 2 1/2 years ago for a large incisional hernia. I still wear a support every day as I feel more secure and comfortable. I also am a bit bloated but I'm told it's fat. Huh! 

5

Hi Phil,

Thank you for your reply,

I feel OK now, started to feel good last night but as my doctors surgery is fully booked out, I phoned another surgery and have an appointment to see a doctor today, I was going to cancel it but to be on the safe side, best I still go to see him. If it starts up again though, I'll skip the doctor and go straight to A&E.

Things haven't been right since the stomach operation, next week I have to go into the hospital and swallow a pill that has a camera and light, it take 10,000 photos (I think) and sends them to a transmitter that I wear around my waist, modern medicine is incredible. They want this done because of my bowels which they had to reattach when removing half my stomach, endoscopy and colonoscopy didn't show anything wrong.

Sounds like you've been through a lot too and now dealing with a hernia. I'm glad you're doing well now, well, except for the hernia.

I'll let you know if I end up going to hospital but so far last night and this morning, I feel fine.

Sue.

6

Hi Trish,

Thank you for your reply. How long before you can pick up heavy stuff? I hate the bloating, it's uncomfortable.

I think you're right, mine to due to heavy lifting, when I first noticed the hernia I was getting out of bed, as I sat up, I saw the bulge and it's bigger now. I showed my doctor at the time and she said it was nothing to worry about, that is was not a hernia and it was normal. Normal?!! I saw another doctor a couple weeks later at the same practice, she took one look and said it was a hernia and sent me for an ultrasound.

As I mentioned, I see the specialist in 2 weeks but I figured out last year, instead of waiting to see the specialist, if you want immediate attention, go to A&E. 

Thanks for your advice.

Sue

7

Hi Sue,

I am mightily relieved to know that you are feeling better and that you are now alerted to the possibility that it could be something worse than hernia pain, as if that wasn't enough!

My partner and I were quite worried when I told her of your circumstances last night beause of what had happened to me; your symptoms sound so similar to mine. Of course a twisted gut or a strangulated hernia are effectively the same thing; the passage of digesting food is blocked and pain and reversal of peristaltis action result in vomiting. What colour was the vomit? If it's dark then it's coming from further down the digestive tract.

As you say, the surgery you have had in that region does imply a link. The camera-in-a-pill sounds amazingly advanced! Wow!! Hopefully this will give you a definitive answer but if it doesn't, just because they don't find anything does not mean that there is not something amiss. You know your body better than anyone alive, so as Curtis Mayfield said, "keep on pushing" ...... until you get an answer.

I'll be thinking of you.

Phil.

8

Hi John,

Your comment is very interesting to me since I've just had an incisional abdominal hernia repaired. My consultant gave me similar advice; "if you intend to do any heavy lifting then wear your support belt". I had thought I'd stop doing this after 6 monhs or so but now, thanks to your experience, I think I will do the same as you and wear support whenever I am likley to lift anything heavy - whatever heavy means!

Regards,

Phil

9

Yes, it makes sense to me. I wear mine all day though. It is an elasticated type, not adjustable, but I have one of those too. They do stretch over time so then I get another one! They keep you warmer in the Winter, which is now where I live. Heavy according to the hospital advice, is a bucket of coal. But I've no idea how heavy that is or what size bucket... Etc, etc. 

Keep well and safe. Regards, John.