It has been a week since my surgery and it has been….interesting.
The pain was to be expected, but there were other things that I didn’t expect.
First, I haven’t slept in a bed. While it may look comfortable, after the sixth night, it loses its appeal. So I am not sleeping well and I am uncomfortable, and that combo makes me really cranky.
Speaking of cranky, adding to my pain and sleepless nights, I’m swelled up like a balloon. I feel like I am nine months pregnant in the middle of a heat wave in July in Arizona.
Third, I cannot walk upright, as my son joyfully demonstrates. Which means, in addition to my abdominals, my back hurts. Trying to help my back, I started to squat-walk to take pressure off of it, which means my quads hurt. If you have followed that progression, my whole body is on fire.
Fourth, I try not to gag when taking my medications and vitamins, which I have to do five times a day.
Don’t get me wrong, I am happy to be where I am right now, but at the moment I am one cranky Mom. It will get better, I know. I can only dream about it as I watch informercials at 3am from my make shift chair, looking at my cankles, while gagging on my pain medication.
Good times.
But if you want to know how I am doing six months later, keep reading….
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Tired is the worst. Hope you get back to a bed soon and heal quickly!
Hi Charlene,
I came across your posts while searching on the internet about abdominal repair recovery and I found it interesting to read. I had an umbilical hernia repair and my abdominal wall stitched back together by keyhole surgery three days ago (as a result of my second pregnancy 18 months ago) and I’m currently sat on the sofa at home recovering. It’s nice read something that I can relate to. I have been wondering if this is a common procedure, if my stomach swelling up to the size of a football is how it’s supposed to be and if it is normal that I find it too uncomfortable to lay in a bed at night, like you I have spent nights in a comfy chair.
I hope you are feeling better now, and it hasn’t taken too long to get to that stage as I am hoping the aches and pains won’t last too long!
Lucy xx
Charlene, curious to see how you fully recovered from your surgery. How long did it take you to be able to stand up straight, be comfortable moving around, and get back into exercising?
I am so worried about my upcoming surgery. I have umbilical hernia and diastatis surgery and breast reduction without a tummy tuck. I am not sure what to expect from my tummy muscle surgery and am reading your posts