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Would like help with post-op recovery

Posted , 5 users are following.

Sunchild
Sunchild

I had a successful op for Giant Hiatus Hernia 10 weeks ago.  Recovery has so far been excellent, I am told  However, now I have been discharged by the surgeon I feel rather abandoned to deal with the rest of my recovery without support. Does anyone else have morning nausea until after bowel movements?  Is there any way of counteracting this? Also I still have limited energy. Is this normal?  I am an active 68 year-old and long to get back to life in a faster lane!

1 like, 29 replies

29 Replies

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  • andrew62131
    andrew62131 Sunchild

    Posted

    Hi sunchild

    glad you ahd a nice day in the sun.you cant be any closer to god when you are in a beautiful garden

    i m having an endoscopy on the 15th of june i worry about them finding a hernia larger than 5cm I am thinking of changing my online name to Exit as it is my favouirite sign in Hospital

    dont worry your appetite and what you are able to eat it will improve.

    rest after meals

    bye for now

    Andrew

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild andrew62131

      Posted

      Hi Andrew Exit!  I can't blame you for your new name!

       Yes I have learnt by experience not to do anything after eating. All new skills!  It is an excuse ro read or watch the tele. Thank goodness for TV!

      I will be thinking of you on 15th.  Let us know how it goes. 

  • andrew62131
    andrew62131 Sunchild

    Posted

    hi sunchild,

    i hope you dont mind me asking if your introthoracic stomach was found by an endoscopy or a mri scan?

    i have a very tight chest with pain and bowel noises in chest which increases with inhilation and chest pain which radiates up to my left shoulder and arm i some times get a sharp sudden pain on the left hand side of my abdomen which qiuckly fades  were these symtoms  i have at the moment similar to the some of symptoms you had with a 5cm hernia. 5cm does  not seem big but it is two and half inches?

    Andrew Exit!

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild andrew62131

      Posted

      Hi Andrew Exit(!),

      Well neither really.  I had a gastroscopy under general anaesthetic which showed that 5cm of my stomach was in the chest cavity.  Then I had a c t scan which showed the full extent of the problem, which was almost all the stomach permanently in the chest cavity and the hernia was tight around the base of the stomach.

      I had extreme nerve-type pain in my left shoulder, neck and across my head reaching as far as my left eye.  I also had very loud bowel-type noises in my chest, mostly in the evenings and it happened on every in-breath. 

      All these symptoms have completely gone so I can only assume that they were related to the problem. The surgeon was very pleased on my follow-up appointment and said that they were related. 

      No nausea so far today! Yipee but I wont get too excited.  It may haunt me again tomorrow.     Sunchild overandout

  • lynne63401
    lynne63401 Sunchild

    Posted

    I had surgery on 31st March for Giant Hiatus Hernia and like you it was successful but I am still tire easily and have problems with my digestive system and I, like you, sometimes feel nausea after drinking coffee which is odd! I was told by Surgeon that it would take about three months for the digestive system to right itself. My breathing and sleeping is way better. I am 65 years old and am pleased to have had the surgery which has already improved my life?

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild lynne63401

      Posted

      Hi lynne ,  Thanks so much for your reply.  We seem to be in about the same place which is very reassuring. Maybe it could be coffee with me, I will cut out my one coffee of the day and see.  I suspect not. It could be Earl Grey tea though. 

      My surgery, like yours, has already changed my life as you will see from my ohter replies. Agonising neck and shoulder pain is all in the memory now which is a miracle in itself. And yes, breathing is better and no more heart flutterings. I still tire more quickly but that has improved a lot in the last week actually.

      My dietitian reckons up to 6 months before you can forget being careful.  I am about to go away for two days.  I shall be eating out for the first time so that will be interesting. Have you done that yet?

      And my biggest problem is thinking I must try never to vomit again because of undoing the surgery.  How do you feel about that?  I have had a lot of help on this already from the other contributers to my cry for help.

      I would be interested to hear how you get on over the next few weeks. 

       

  • lynne63401
    lynne63401 Sunchild

    Posted

    Hi again

    I had the pain in my shoulders for two months and started to think that it was not the op but the surgeon said that the firstfew days were from the gas but then it was referred pain. Today has been a bad day for me with my stomach feeling inflamed and intestines rumbling so I must have eaten something which didnt agree with me! I find thst it is all trial and error re eating and the worst is pastry. I definitely cannot eat pastry at the moment. It is funny because I am frightened to eat and peer into the fridge quite concerned. I know im fine with yoghurt and porridge! Lol. Good luck with dinner out and be careful! I am still having trouble with bm and discomfort in chest sometimes too! Impatient I guess. Chemist put me on some vitamin tablets which suit old ladies to help my tirednes! Keep in touch and let me know how you are going. It is very hard to know what is normal and I worry about failed fundoplication and how would one know! I wonder if they will send us for a scan at some stage.

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild lynne63401

      Posted

      Great to hear from you again lynne.  

      My shoulder and neckpain was for a year before the op.  I got the post op bit too but once that went I was thrilled to be out of pain.  Apparently my stomach had been affecting the vagus nerve hence the awful pain. 

      I know just how you feel about peering into the fridge for soft and easy!  It seems to take a bit of a leap to try new stuff.  I am not doing too badly but I had a few sprouts the other day and that was a mistake!  So was a cheese sandwich.  I find concentrating on the" big chew" is very important.  If I am hungry I eat too fast and then get nausia. 

      I will be very careful eating out.  I have seen the menu and plan to do a starter and ice cream I think. 

      I would love to keep in touch.  My op was 26th March so we are level pegging. Great to find a friend on the same rung of the ladder.

      I will be back on Tuesday.  Meanwhile keep plodding on, it is all worth it.  I cant bear to think of the alternative to the surgery.  There was no choice was there? 

    • ilovepodge
      ilovepodge Sunchild

      Posted

      I had a huge hernia and gastric volvulus and my operation (which was four months ago) was done by open surgery due to other factors. I still have stomach tightness and where I have been sewn up is very hard, the scar tissue like plastic (due to wound infections and the fact my peg tube was in for a lot longer than it should have been). My tummy is a hot mess and sometimes so hard and tight I can play it like a drum!

      I get constipated sometimes and a horrid dragging pain in my lower abdomen sometimes. I think that the op irritated my bowels somewhat!

      I am back at work now but feel constantly knackered and achy. I think I am mentally scarred as much as physically - it has been a long haul but think that it will be several more weeks, possibly months, before I feel anything like normal again (if ever).

      I would like to know if anyone here has had open surgery and if so is their tummy tight and hard when standing? It doesn't hurt but it is uncomfortable. To illustrate how it is - wounds from a previous surgery used to be low down on my abdomen but they have now moved up to just under my boobs!!

      Good times...

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild ilovepodge

      Posted

      Hi ilovepodge,  Yur journey since surgery sounds like an assent of Everest compared with mine!  However I can understand completely the irritation of the bowels.  I am sure that has happened to me too. I have done my own thing this week and put myself on Fibregel (dont do this on my say-so PLEASE!)  and for me it has helped enormously.  All advice was to do it all theough food, but try as I might it was not enough.  

      To date I have noticed a big improvement in the "poo" department and this is the fifth day without nausea.  I know it is early days but Yeh!  Way to go!? Just hope I am not doing any lasting damage but I can't think I am.

      Well done for returning to work, but take it a seasy as you can.

      I hope you get some replies from others who have had open surgery.  It is such a help to speak with someone on the same journey isn't it?

  • andrew62131
    andrew62131 Sunchild

    Posted

    hi sunchild

    i hope you are keeping well i have had my endoscopy i have a 5cm sliding hiatus hernia . no other problems with stomach or osoephagus waiting to see surgeon

    in about 14 weeks?after that i will be looking for exit sign?

    Andrew exit

    • Sunchild
      Sunchild andrew62131

      Posted

      Hi Andrew, good to hear from you after your endoscopy.  That is better news than you had feared isn't it?  I hope the surgeon can come up with some miracle for you. 

      As you will see from my reply to ilovepodge, I have taken things into my own hands a bit.  Fingers crossed it is the right thing to do, but I am better for it.

      Tomorrow I am going to a minute flat by the sea for two weeks.  I just felt I wanted to get away from these four walls however nice they are!  I am lucky that it is only 30 mins away from home so will be able to come back to doc etc if I need to. It is called The Cupboard!! I hope there is room enough for one! 

      Take care of yourself meantime, Andrew Exit!!    sunchild.

  • lynne63401
    lynne63401 Sunchild

    Posted

    Hi sunchild

    Wanted to tell you that I had constipation problems too and am still having digestive problems. Pastry coffee bread all give me grief so seems like we are having similar problems. Coffee makes me feel ill and causes my insides to feel inflamed. Trial and error! Hope you are having a nice holiday. I need one too!

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