learn me hernias

I've been having some weird, come-and-go pains in my lower abdomen for about a year. We did a CT scan back when it started and doc said it looked like I might have the start of a hernia. They've gotten worse in the last few weeks so I went to my doctor today. His comment was (cue Arabic accent) "Well, that's definitely a hernia. Wow, that's gotten bigger. Look, you can see it, that's definitely going to need surgery." LOL.  Thanks Doc.

So he's called in a referral and I'll be hearing from the surgeon in the next couple days. In the mean time, I'm sure some people here have been through this, anyone want to share their experience?

As a side note, I'm actually happy with this diagnosis. Having plenty of time for my mind to spin on my symptoms while quarantined has not been a good experience. Especially with a good friend who is fighting stage 4 cancer that started with abdominal pain. This will suck and require surgery in an uncertain time, but it IS repairable.

I have no first hand experience but my dad had one about 25 years ago. A stomach muscle let go and he had to have a mesh put in.  I'm pretty sure he was in and out the same day and he went back to unloading trucks by hand in a couple months and never had trouble with it. 

I have had a small incipient groin hernia for years, but it never develops any further, is completely non-symptomatic, and the doc says to ignore it unless it gets worse.  The only reason I even know it exists is that he tells me after my yearly turn-your-head-and-cough session.

About 15 years ago I had a pretty good umbilical hernia that was surgically repaired.  I went on vacation while recovering from a cold, and during a coughing fit, I felt something pop in my lower belly.  You could see and feel a little bump about the size of the last joint of my little finger.  I could push it back in and it would stay in place until the next cough or sneeze.  I spent the rest of the week coughing with my finger poked into my belly holding it in place or putting it back.

Once at home I had a surgical consult followed by surgery a week or two later.  The repair was done outpatient under general anesthesia and I was back at work the next day - admittedly I have a desk job.  I had (still have) a little scar inside my navel, but no other real indications.

Mine was reinforced with a piece of surgical mesh a couple square inches in size.  It healed perfectly, can't really be felt, and doesn't seem to have caused any problems in the last 15 years.

I have a lot of first hand experience with hernias.  Inguinal hernias are really fun.  A cool little operation. Unless you have some other type:  umbilical, epigastric, uncal, diaphramatic, hiatal,  trans-tentorial, falcine, herniated nucleus pulposus, and, of course, the dreaded Brain Hernia.  Those really suck.

I think Weird Al had a song detailing life with a hernia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8Ow1nlafOg

Dr. Hess (Forum Supporter) said:

I have a lot of first hand experience with hernias.  Inguinal hernias are really fun.  A cool little operation. Unless you have some other type:  umbilical, epigastric, uncal, diaphramatic, hiatal,  trans-tentorial, falcine, herniated nucleus pulposus, and, of course, the dreaded Brain Hernia.  Those really suck.

Well, it sure isn't a brain hernia although it's not far from that, lol. If I wear my belt under my belly, it's just under the belt. But seriously, I guess I'll find out when I see the doc what variety it is. 

I had two inguinal hernias and an umbilical hernia all repaired with mesh during my radical prostatectomy.   The prostatectony hurt like hell because my urologist strongly discourages pain medication.  I toughed it out and every day was better than the day before.  Still took almost 4 weeks to recover.  A couple of years ago I had a rather large hernia southwest of my belly button show up that a surgeon repaired with mesh.  It was painful but was uncomfortable.  That took a couple of weeks to recover from, but several weeks before it felt normal.  One odd side effect is it cut sensation on my skin a lot where the mesh is.  Every now and then it gets uncomfortable if I am on my feet a long time.  

I had mesh done on a bi-lateral (????) hernia. The worst part was I swear every muscle in your body is connected to your abdomen. Getting out of bed for the first week was really painful. I'd wake up needing to go to the bathroom and I would take a painkiller and wait 20 minutes to get up and go. My boss had the same thing done and said he experienced no pain to speak of. He was back at work after four days and I was off for two weeks. Hope you're like my boss.

I had an inguinal hernia at the ripe old age of 25. I ignored it until the bulge in my pants stopped my ability to hide it. Surgery was difficult to recover from as they had my sleep schedule screwed up, wanting me to walk around every 2 hours. I went back to work after about a week but was unable to do much physical exertion for about a month. What type of hernia do you have?

I've had 2. Both sides. It sucks. Second one ended up being larger than they thought and had to prep a larger mesh. 
 

suggestion: hydrate after. OIC is a mother.  Trust me. I literally passed out when it finally passed. 

In reply to E_NinjA :

not sure yet. Waiting on the specialist to make contact.

Bobzilla - what's OIC?

Opiod induced constipation. Can't poop. Can't bear down to push it out. 2.5 days of not going (I'm a regular twice a day guy). When it finally "came free" I was glad I was already leaning against the sink. 

bobzilla said:

Opiod induced constipation. Can't poop. 

Good lord, I'll never be an opioid addict.  After my gall bladder removal the doctor gave me some awesome kind of pain med.  surgery was at 8am.  I felt great...until 6pm.  Then I started taking hydrocodone that my ufologist had prescribed just in case I needed it after the prostatectomy.  I didn't poop for a week. Not doing that again.   

I had one repaired "south of the belly button" during the era when you got 8 weeks off work. The first week was not the best but the remaining time was great. Doc didnt want me driving for 2 or 3 weeks - I think I held out for 2 or 3 days. I felt guilty and went back to work after 6 weeks. A cake walk compared to gall bladder attacks (and surgery) and kidney stones (and surgery). Always took the pain meds for a day or two after and then quit.

Best of luck.

spitfirebill said:

bobzilla said:

Opiod induced constipation. Can't poop. 

Good lord, I'll never be an opioid addict.  After my gall bladder removal the doctor gave me some awesome kind of pain med.  surgery was at 8am.  I felt great...until 6pm.  Then I started taking hydrocodone that my ufologist had prescribed just in case I needed it after the prostatectomy.  I didn't poop for a week. Not doing that again.   

I'm pretty sure that I need a ufologist who can prescribe opioids....

spitfirebill said:

bobzilla said:

Opiod induced constipation. Can't poop. 

Good lord, I'll never be an opioid addict.  After my gall bladder removal the doctor gave me some awesome kind of pain med.  surgery was at 8am.  I felt great...until 6pm.  Then I started taking hydrocodone that my ufologist had prescribed just in case I needed it after the prostatectomy.  I didn't poop for a week. Not doing that again.   

MY GOD. I can't imagine not pooping for a week. I think I'd die..... My problem with most opiods is that they literally just put me to sleep for 4-6 hours. So I didnt drink as many fluids as I should have. When I'd wake up the wife would feed me. So don't do that. 

Had a right side inguinal hernia in basic training.  I was carrying a guy who weighed about 230 lbs (I weighed about 180 at the time) and was running through a field in the dark when I stepped in a hole.  Something popped and he carried me back.

That was in the 5th week of basic and even at 18 I knew what it was.  I also knew I wasn't going on sick-call because If I went in for surgery I get recycled and have to repeat basic.  Nobody wants to repeat basic.  So I finished up the last 3 weeks (road marches, PT tests, everything) holding my right groin area like Al Bundy.

First thing I did upon arrival at AIT was go in and get it evaluated.  It took the army nearly a month to schedule my surgery during which time I was on a "breath at own pace" profile.  Then they gave me 30 days of convalescent leave.  And when I got back I was put back on that BAOP profile for a further month.

After AIT I went straight to airborne school and had no problems whatever so I guess they did a good job.  All that was 31 years ago and the mesh has held up fine.

OIC is a terrible thing. After my car crash I was in icu for about five days, the first few on a delightful morphine drip.  About three days in on Thanksgiving night Nurse Ratchet announces to my family that she was here to clear the jam, they'd have to wait in the hall. I don't remember all of it but according to my father in law she bent me over the side of the bed and gave me an enema while I tried to yell rape. The fact that I recall so little of that week is how I learned I could easily become a junky. 

Whenever I lift something really heavy, while I'm grunting and straining I yell "HERRRR-NIAAA!"  The body awareness and the muscular contraction caused by yelling serves to reinforce the relevant areas and keep everything in place.  

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, but neither am I an opioid addict. 

Maybe I wasn't back at work the next day?  I probably had my surgery on Friday so I had the weekend to recover, but I definitely had my snip done that way so I may be confusing the two.

Either way, I don't remember being off work a long time or having much pain in recovery.

Standard post op/discharge orders are "No heavy lifting (anything over 1 gallon of water) for 6 weeks."  If you were in the joint, I'd say "medically unassigned x 6 weeks."

In reply to Wally (Forum Supporter) :

there's another story with my wife that will never make it to typed form. It definitely put a strain on our relationship...

I had the laparoscopic mesh repair for an inguinal hernia 15-ish years ago.

I ignored mine, until it was bad enough that intestine had dropped below the Mason Dixon line, and ole 'righty got huge.  I did the self check, turn-your-head-and-cough, and I didn't have to be a medical professional to know what was going on.  I went to the Dr. got felt up by him, he said I needed surgery soon.  Met with a surgeon a few days later, he felt me up, then had surgery a couple days after that.

It was out patient, but was an all day ordeal, YMMV, but I had mine done at the University Hospital, get there at the crack of dawn, they finally get to you at 10:30, then you wait a few more hours, then you have surgery, then you're a couple hours in recovery, then you go home.

I remember them drugging me, count down from 10, I think I got to 7 and was out.  They must have drugged me before I was on the operating table, because I have a vague recollection of waking up while they were moving me from the gurney, or maybe moving me to the gurney.  No recollection of the procedure thankfully.

Three little incisions, one right in the lower portion of my belly button, one right at my waist line, and one right below it.  No stitches, just little butterfly strips.

Recovery was rough.  They blow you up like a balloon during the procedure.  I couldn't lay flat because it hurt to stretch my abdomen out, so I slept in a recliner for a week.  I assume because I stayed more or less upright for so long, some of that air found it's way up to my shoulder.  That was the worst, constant, deep bruise, ache.  Hydrocodone didn't touch it, the only relief that stuff gave me was knocking me out, didn't actually numb the pain.

The mesh was occasionally noticeable, it hasn't bothered me in years, but for probably 3-4 years post surgery, I'd turn, lift, or move in such a way that I'd tug on the mesh.  I'm a slow learner, but eventually I trained myself not to do that.

bobzilla said:

In reply to Wally (Forum Supporter) :

there's another story with my wife that will never make it to typed form. It definitely put a strain on our relationship...

 

Ummm, you may have discovered some of the other "side effects" of opioids.  Never being able to cross the finish line can be problematic....

ultraclyde (Forum Supporter) said:

I'm pretty sure that I need a ufologist who can prescribe opioids....

Actually my uRologist did give me a script for pain med, he just told me not to use it.  I didn't that time.