I had a small hernia for the past 13 years just above my belly button and it never ever bothered me. All you could see was a tiny bump but it never caused me any pain or discomfort. Doctors and Gynaes all told me to leave it alone. Six week ago I got unbearable pain in my abdomin while brushing my teeth and two hours later the pain was so bad I couldnt even stand up straight. My husband took me to the local doctor who told me to immediately get to the nearest hospital. He phoned ahead and got a surgeon to meet me there as he feared I was having a ruptured appendix. When I got to the hospital they gave me a shot for the pain and sent me off for a CT scan. The scan showed I had a stranguated hernia and I was immediately rushed into theatre (luckily there was a theatre available at the time) The hernia cut off the vlood supply to my small intestine and a large portion had to be cut away and a bowel resection done. I was in ICU for a few days and spent several more days in a general ward recovering. Recovery is slow and frustrating but I'm told I'm lucky to be alive.
I'm still not able to process solid food very well and mostly eat soup and a soft diet. I was wandering if anyone else experienced this and how long its going to take before I feel like myself again.
Wow! I don't understand why doctors insist on saying there's no need to have surgery. Hernia's seldom stay fine forever. And when it all goes wild, it's not a place you want to be. I had something similar to you. Though, I felt the pain of my muscle tearing and the bulge was from tissue, not an intestine. There was no way I was just going to let it sit there un-opperated on. Maybe it's an optional surgery and therefore not covered by your healthcare until it's a full-fledged emergency.
Firstly, thank you for recording your story. I too have an umbilical hernia, one that was discovered a couple of years ago by chance, during an MRI scan. I was told the same, it wasn't bad enough to worry about yet.
over the past 6 months, I've noticed the area above my tummy button has taken a "rounded point" shape. It hurts when I wear jeans and the button digs in. I'm quite a big person (18st) and even after losing over 1.5 stone, it still pertrudes. I'm wondering if in a few years time, I'll go through the same as yourself?
i hope you've got over the op, the diet side of things, I'm sure will settle. Bit by bit I'm sure you'll be able to do a trial and error, introduction of food you used to be able to eat, into your diet. Did you get an after care sheet with regards diet, post op.
Had a bowel perforation and resectioning 2 years ago, it took me ages to get better, this was followed by an incisional hernia which I had repaired 8 months ago in the recovery process again.
we are 2 people who are lucky to be alive so many people dont make it to the operating table with the conditions we had. It will take you months to get better, but you will get better. Hernias are just bitches I had no idea previous to my experiences. Take care candice. Shirley Dancer
Thanks to everyone who replied. I was led to believe that if the hernia didnt bother me, it was best left alone. Obviously now I know that isnt the truth at all. This operation is covered by my healthcare so I can only guess that maybe the doctors made a mistake in their assessment.
I can tell you that the pain is worse than any pain you could ever imagine. I had two babies, both delivered with natural births and in both cases I opted for no pain relief at all (I had a huge phobia with needles). The pain I experienced with the strangulated hernia was ten times worse than labour pains.
I was lucky that the surgeon I saw handed me over to a hernia specialist in hospital who had just finished surgery and that there was a cancellation so there was immediate theatre time available.
Shirley thanks so much for the encouragement. The cut is still very tender especially where the hernia was repaired. Feather 9, I was given a diet sheet and I can't manage 80% of the foods listed there yet I guess I just have to be patient untul my energy levels are back up.
Do take care Candice after my bowel perforation and repair I was having a low moment whilst in hospital and one of the nurses came and sat with me and bothered to take the time to explain to me, that it was going to take me a long time to recover, and not to be hard on myself, and not to think I should be feeling better than I was. She was not wrong and it took me ages to get my appetite back and to begin to eat normally again, and to feel better. The evenings and nights were the worst at first, the recvery seemed to happen at first during the day and after a very long time, several months, I began to feel a little better on an evening, and I am again in the recovery period following my hernia repair, the process was very similar so i knew what to expect. However, if you have concerns you must see your doctor, after all we both nearly died, but we are getting better xx Ps following my bowel resectioning, my nose bleed for months, My mouth was unbearably dry,I lost more than a stone in weight, my skin fell off and I lost a lot of hair. One of the things I did was keep a recovery diary, which I wrote once a week, which meant that I could look back and reflect and be thankful for my progress towards recovery. I hope this helps
I had that same thing done on my hernia about 3 weeks ago. It hurt so bad I thought I was going to pass out. They wouldn’t do surgery on me until I lose some weight. I’m afraid to do anything.
I had a strangulated hernia, and I was one of the scariest ordeals I ever had in my life. Here is my story:
I started out with me with missing work for stomach virus symptoms and the day everything hit the fan was Friday of the week. The symptoms weren’t bad at 1st but overtime the symptoms rapidly got worse quickly. The symptoms I had were worsening stomach cramps, dizziness, and sweating. All this occurred while at work. At this time, I told my boss I had to leave work. I only made it down the road about three miles to where I could drive no more. At this time, I called my parents to alert them of the problem and to come to my rescue. By this time, I had collapsed, and I had had a fast heart rate, and I had to fight to stay conscious. Also, at this time I had also started to vomit badly. When my parents showed up my dad drove my car home, and my mom took me to the ER. At the ER, I was so weak, I had to be helped by the ER because I could barely walk. At the ER, I was stabilized and through a CAT scan the strangulated hernia was discovered. At this time, I was immediately admitted to the main hospital. When I was admitted I was informed that I had sepsis symptoms and I had a bowel blockage, The hospital did several tests on me to find where the blockage was and get a scope of the hernia. Before the surgery, I was on an all-liquid diet. When I was able to have the surgery, the only thing I can remember is getting the mask put on my face and waking up in the recovery room. My surgery was done with the aid of a robot. When you wake in the recovery room, you are put in the post-surgery recovery position, and you must have a nurse help to move back into regular laying position, having to do this really painful.
Overall, I spent 4 days in the hospital, and I was out work for 6 weeks. I could had died from this ordeal but, the good lord still has plans. for me and has brought me even closer to him. This ordeal has left me scared emotionally and I am still recovering from PTSD. This ordeal has forever changed my life and I am so grateful for second chance at life.