Once you get it fixed - don't sit around or nurse it. Get up, walk, move around - it will speed up your recovery significantly.

Also - you will quickly learn how much your body relies upon its abdominal/core muscles.

Thanks all. I've always had a bit of an outie. Its still maybe half the size of a marble. Smaller diameter than a dime. Not lifting things for a few weeks is problematic. That means no work for that time.

I’d check with your doctor on the time and weight restrictions.

It sounds like yours is much like mine was, and I thought it was just a week.
Simple in and out surgery, nothing to special as I recall.
Don’t even recall feeling the mesh for more than a week.

Nice being able to wear a polo shirt without being self conscious.

Well, I'm 6' foot, 190lbs. I don't have the flat stomach so it doesn't really show. But, I don't usually wear tight clothing off the bike anyway. In retrospect I'm going through a patch where everything seems to be hurting. Shoulder, lower back, thumb tendons, belly button, and knees. Nothing overwhelming their just letting me know they are there.

Well, I finally had it done yesterday. So far post-op pain is significant, but manageable. Funny thing is I don't feel the incision site at all. It feels like I really overdid an ab workout. All of the pain is above the belly button. The pain eases after two or three steps. Stairs are no problem. This is day 2. Not as bad as I built it up in my head.

Glad you got it knocked out as hernias don’t repair themselves.

In one month I will be at the one year mark after hernia surgery. I had a double inguinal as well as a tiny umbilical hernia in the mix. The double was repaired laparoscopically and the umbilical was dealt with with a couple of stitches as it was pretty minor. The umbilical was basically an outie where an innie used to be; none of the scary looking stuff online. The doc just took care of it since I was under.

The hardest part for me was twofold- not exercising (I HATED being out of the gym) for the 2 months as I was instructed, and stopped pain meds after 2 days- I wanted the feedback to keep me from overdoing it accidentally. The longer term occasional jabs of pain at the site of the mesh implant would manifest itself no matter what I was doing. I was worried I was blowing it out. The umbilical caused me no significant discomfort, and once it all healed up, it’s like it never existed. I last recalled pain at the laparoscopy site a few months back but all seems well now. Just stick to the regimen and you’ll be fine.

My brother-in-law had one that was really bad. Looked like he was wearing a golf ball under his shirt. He told me the only thing he regrets is not getting it done sooner.

One thing I've learned really quickly is don't eat your normal portions. Eat less and more often. A full stomach adds additional discomfort for a bit.

And, I'll be in your boat. I'll be off for two months. My job scoffs at OSHA lifting requirements on a daily basis.

Be sure to follow the doc's instructions! Avoid lifting or other activities per orders. I am a terrible patient and want to get up and GO, so it was difficult for me after hernia surgery and back surgery to not overdo things. Especially as the pain subsides.

I had it done years ago.

For years it was there but not a big deal.

During an annual checkup, my GP said it was time to get it done. He said it was getting to the stage that it would cause problems down the road.

I had it done with minimal incisions and mesh.

I was told to start moving right away to help good healing.

I was walking the dog in two days.

I have not had a problem with it since.

quote:

Originally posted by sig2392:


During an annual checkup, my GP said it was time to get it done. He said it was getting to the stage that it would cause problems down the road.

Saw my GP on Nov. 1st. He looked at it and said you can probably wait. To play it safe he ordered an ultrasound. Called me back a couple of days later and said it's bigger than I thought it was and to go see a surgeon. It measured 3cm x 3cm x 1.5 cm. Said the longer you wait the worse it will be.

Not much to add, but for anyone reading this that has a hernia, get repaired as soon as possible. It's very easy to put off if it's not too serious, but it only gets worse. Not necessarily a huge problem or life threatening, but the longer you wait, the bigger the repair job and longer recovery and more discomfort.

Had an inguinal hernia repair circa 2006. My surgeon, Doc Brown (no kidding), preferred "open surgery" so he could place the patch PRECISELY where he wanted it. His post-op order was for me to stay out of work for 3 weeks. I shoulda stayed out 4 or 5...

As for the repair, it's better than 100%!

quote:

I had a double repair and was ambulatory in 24 hours

This was my experience about 20 years ago. I was an avid hiker and, although I was restricted to 10 lbs, my wife & I went on a 3 mile hike 3 days after surgery with a 20 lb backpack on. I was cognizant of any pain (none) and would have adapted if I had any. My surgeon said "Walk, walk, walk) which is what I did. The hike was on mostly level ground....

They really make it hard to get painkillers these days. And, rightfully so. I was prescribed Percocet. Man, there is a definite euphoria associated with this medication. I can see how people get hooked on this crap.

I made it to the second day and quit taking that garbage. I took Advil and Tylenol back and forth every 4 hours as prescribed by my doc- did the job fine.

Had an inguinal hernia repaired about four months ago. Surgeon used a robot to repair with mesh. Three small incisions on my torso. I was walking same day. 5k steps three days later. Did the Tylenol/advil thing for a day. Any pain was inflammation related. Careful with any lifting. You’ll definitively know if it’s too much. I have occasional discomfort where the mesh is but nothing remotely serious.

This runs in my family as does failures of Umbilical Hernia Repairs. Do you own Due Diligence and you will find the failure rate for this repair is higher than most would expect in this day and age. In my case we are taking a wait and see approach and at 69 years old I'm not entering any beauty contest so don't care a bit if I have an ugly belly button.

One thing that has helped a great deal was my decision to start exercising back in 2015 and walking off 50 lbs. that summer. Current body weight is 150 lbs. and at 5'10" that means my BMI is a nice lean 21.5 or so. Losing all that fat really reduces the pressure exerted on that hernia. BTW, my brother had a Widomaker Heart Attack while recovering from a correction to his Kevlar hernia repair. My Step Brother had the kevlar mesh cut thru his intestine and it didn't kill him but it was pretty darned close for about a week and a half. As for my Dad, he had his done in the mid 60's using a traditional surgical reduction and it held up well.

Day two of recovery. Can't say I had a good day. Pain was a bit worse today amplified by the fact I didn't sleep worth a shit last night. And, I just can't seem to get comfortable. At my age whatever I get or run into seems to add up to 5 to 7 days of suck. I guess this isn't going to be any different.

Stay the course brother. Getting probed by pieces of metal isn’t fun and pain feedback is a reminder we are alive. I started walking on day 2 and increased the distance slightly every day. At just over 2 months I was back in the gym.