1. Community
  2. Gut, bowel and stomach
  3. Hernia

Umbilical hernia surgery problem

Posted , 4 users are following.

sian85963
sian85963

Hi I was wondering if anyone would be able to share their experience with me. My mum was taken into hospital on Friday night in a lot of pain and vomiting, it turns out a very old hernia had become strangulated and a piece of intestine needed to be removed. They did this as an emergency operation and she is healing well. However, she is now feeling sick all the time and doesn't seem to be able to eat anything or even drink very much. She vomited again 3 times today and is very dehydrated. Her incision isn't really bothering her but her stomach above that is extremely distended and swollen, they took an X-ray and said her bowels have gone to sleep, however she did have 1 bowel movement 2 days after surgery? Does anyone have any experience of this happening? They won't let her home until she is better.

1 like, 13 replies

13 Replies

  • Tammyshernia
    Tammyshernia sian85963

    Posted

    I had a paraesophageal hiatal hernia on march 25 I was sick for 6 weeks I had the feeling of nauseous all day everyday I started vitamin e and fish oil I took 2 vitamin e a day a 1 fish oil with in a wk I started feeling better I had to take meds daily for nausea I was so weak I couldn't eat or drink try and get her to take a little sip of Gatorade every 10 mins even if it's just a sip everyday she will start to  feel a little better I no just what she is going through my intire stomach slipped up into my chest I am now so much better but she has to drink I don't care what any dr says Gatorade will help with in 3 hr she should gave at least a half of it gone start on vitamin e it's a good healing vitamin 

    • Guest
      Guest Tammyshernia

      Posted

      did you experience burping/belching, How did you know that you had a paraesophageal hernia? You didn't go for surgery?

    • Tammyshernia
      Tammyshernia Guest

      Posted

      Esic I couldn't burp for 4 years or throw up before the 4 years I just had a lot of pain in the left side under my ribs heart burn that felt like I was on fire and I couldn't eat anything that was red or orange I no that' sounds crazy no pork at all I would throw up everything they took my gallbladder out and said my gallbladder was bad well I was in the same amount of pain I happen to have a colonoscopy and they also went down into my stomach that drsaid it was 10 to 11 cm which was 5 to 6 in he didn't tell me that it was a paraesophageal hernia the surgeon told me he ran 2 test did a some X-ray and I say it but I had no idea what it was but they moved the tv screen as soon as they saw it I was back into the surgeon office within 2 days he explained what it was and I was scared but so relieved to finally have someone tell me what it was he did say it was a dangerous surgery but he had done tons do I also read all the reviews on this dr and he was 1 or the best .i just went last Week for another X-ray where I had to swallow barium and the dr that read my X-ray said it looked great I can't eat much at a time but I feel like a new person I would recommend this dr a 1000 times over he travels to different countries and does seminars for other dr he is in Charlotte nc

  • Tammyshernia
    Tammyshernia sian85963

    Posted

    If this was just on fri she will be fine it's a healing process I lost 15 lbs your mom is lucky they cought this 

    • sian85963
      sian85963 Tammyshernia

      Posted

      The sickness seems to have subsided but she now has diarrhea, I think this is preferable though as at least we know there is no blockage and something is getting through. Her incision however now is infected so she has a drain bag and they had to remove some staples to allow it to drain out. They are hoping to let her home Thursday, so she will have been in for 2 weeks!!
    • Tammyshernia
      Tammyshernia sian85963

      Posted

      Wow 2 weeks I was there for 3 days and the diarrhea is normal I had hat 2 I also have a lady on here who had surgery and the punctuated her lung you really have to check the dr out they are rated from other patients and I read all of them the worst thing I read on my surgeon was the waiting time you have to Waite to see the dr or the time for the surgery I had to wait 4 month to have my surgery but they moved me up from April to march I was worried it would strangulate that seem like an awful long time to state in the hospital what type of hernia was it 
    • Tammyshernia
      Tammyshernia sian85963

      Posted

      I'm sorry I don't no much about that type of hernia I'm sorry I thought it was a hiatal hernia send prayers for your mom

  • donna41526
    donna41526 sian85963

    Posted

    Hello Sian, I read your post. I'm kind of going thru the same thing, wondering if there is any more you can tell us. I've had an umbilical hernia for years, finally it started giving me problems. Like others here, I've had constant severe nausea, can't eat much. Everything is a waiting game, meanwhile I'm sick all the time. My hernia is massive (my surgeon's word - to me it looks like an alien trying to break thru my belly button - it's THAT ugly) and it has some epigastric involvement plus a section of intestine stuck in it, but it's not strangulated. I'm waiting for my insurance to approve the surgery now. Found out I won't be in the hospital overnight but at least a week. I have to do a colo prep and a course of antibiotics in case part of my intestine needs to be removed. I'll have two parallel vertical incisions (about 4 in long?) near my rib cage so my doc can pull my muscle together to help reinforce the Strattice mesh he'll put in place. I'm hoping I'm saying all this right, I was so in shock about this not being minor surgery anymore. I have NO idea what else to expect but my boyfriend told me I will be in the hospital until I pass gas and go poo after the surgery. Is there any info anyone can tell me? Is this as serious as it sounded? Any stories of similar experiences? Any and all replies are VERY appreciated! Sian, I hope your mom is doing well!

    • sian85963
      sian85963 donna41526

      Posted

      Hi Donna, my mum finally came home today 10 days after her surgery! she was in pain and nauseous before the operation and then the nausea came back on 48 hours after the operation and lasted about 72 hours, in that time she wasn't able to keep anything down including water. then she turned a corner and now she has light diarrhea, but no more nausea and vomiting. she is eating light meals and drinking again. she has an infection in her incision which has a drain and she is taking antibiotics. she had to have a small bowel resection however no mesh used as they are not so keen on it here. will be a few weeks to heal but hopefully all OK now. good luck for your surgery, she wishes she hadn't left it so long now.

    • donna41526
      donna41526 sian85963

      Posted

      Sian, thank you so much for your reply. I'm so glad your mom's home now. Good news, indeed! I hate to ask for more info, but was your mom put on limitations such as no lifting or only easy exercise? Was she given pain medication or more antibiotics when she was was discharged or given dietary restrictions? I'm expecting to be unhappy in the hospital but extremely grateful as well. Thank you for your good wishes for my own surgery!

    • sian85963
      sian85963 donna41526

      Posted

      hi no problem ask anything you like. yes she will be out of action for a while, no bending, just light walking. after the operation she had local anesthetic tubes plugged into the incision area and they gave her oramorph for the pain but now she is just taking paracetamol, I think the most important thing is to get up and move as soon as you can after the surgery, I think they left her in bed too long which is why her bowel shutdown, my dad had bowel surgery at Xmas for rectal cancer and he was on his feet 24 hours later and didn't have this problem (although he is both fitter and lighter than my mum, this also could have been a factor) overall she is relieved it's over.

    • donna41526
      donna41526 sian85963

      Posted

      Hi again! Thank you very much for all of the information. I'm so glad to hear your mom's doing better. Wow, your family's been through quite a lot. I hope your parents just get more well with each passing day! I didn't fully realize you're in the UK - I'm in the US, in the LA region. As far moving after surgery, I did hear it is much better to get up and walk around. For me, the more I know beforehand, the less scared I will be. It's definitely encouraging knowing your mom's pain level has decreased enough to take paracetamol. I thought I'd be doped up for weeks afterward. Thank you very much for all your help during this scary time! Sending wishes of good health to you and your family from this moment on! 😀

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.