Facing Ventral Hernia Repair post DS - any info?

[windyridge4mom]

Hi all-

Had my DS on 11/2/15 and am down almost 50#. In addition to losing weight for health reasons another big one is because I have a large ventral hernia just below my belly button. Think basketball size. I am completely miserable with this thing and my surgeon keeps telling me it will be easier to repair the more weight I can lose. Well duh - but it's severely limiting my activity now because of the pain! It's also looking way more obvious with the more weight I lose. I look about 7 months pregnant!

Because of the size, he has no choice but to do an open procedure. At the same time they are going to go in and remove a couple of grapefruit sized (non cancerous) Fallopian cysts. Lucky me. He tells me he will have to use mesh to repair the abdominal tear and I'll be in the hospital at least a week with several days in ICU.

I have had 7 other surgeries - all laproscopic. Has anyone else had this type of repair and is willing to share their experience? I was up and about 2 days after the DS and back to work in 2 weeks. Surgeon states that this type of hernia is pretty common in obese patients....really?

Thanks all.

 

[Clematis]

Basketball??? Wow. After her stomach hit the steering wheel in a car accident, my mother had an umbilicus hernia the size of a tennis ball and she was miserable. I can;t imagine basketball sized. I'm so sorry you are going through that. A week in the hospital and in ICU sounds like super major surgery.

Internal pressure (ex obesity) of a spot weakened by laparoscopic or open incisions often causes hernias so your surgeon's comment is true. My mother sued the person who hit her and part of the claim was for repair of the hernia. Opposing counsel fat-shamed her to tears in the courtroom saying being so fat the hernia would have happened anyway. My point is that obesity/hernia connection is well known.

Would wearing a compression garment (i.e. truss) help hold things in place and reduce the pain before your surgeon will do the repair?

 

[windyridge4mom]

I have a hernia band but you have to shove the whole thing back into the small hole through which it came. Not an easy feat and was cautioned that can cause strangulation if you don't get all of it back in. I've never been able to get the lot of it back in.... Now since I lost weight my $50 compression garment is too big.

He also mentioned I would have several of the JP drains similar to the DS procedure. Which I hated but understand how necessary they are. But if I only had one for the DS why in the heck would I need several? Am I whining??? Yes, probably.

 

[Clematis]

Whine away cuz it all sounds icky.

Cute doggie, though!

 

[Munchkin]

I am the proud owner of a softball size hernia so I get this! If and when I can afford to get it fixed I will probably end up with mesh but I also want the muscle work done. I want to be able to do and see benefit from AB exercises. If you have to be open, make the most of it and pay a bit extra to get the abdominoplasty done at the same time. That's what I would like to do too.

And the more you lose before surgery, the better the results!

 

[DSRIGGS]

I have had the same intestinal hernia replied twice in the last 18 months and now have a softball sized recurrence. On Monday I have a surgical consultation with a guy in Peoria and Dr K said it will potentially need a
component separation and pannicuelctomy to help prevent recurrence.

 

[DSRIGGS]

And I sympathize with you. It is a miserable condition as my guts always hurt