Hi
I had a total abdominal hysterectomy, oophorectomy and omentectomy 4 weeks ago and have now started getting a bloated stomach again together with firmness and discomfort above and to the left of my belly button.
Has anyone else also experienced this. Should I be concerned.
Thanks
Carole
During surgery there is a lot of manipulation of our internal organs and frankly I would say my bowel has never been the same. It has definately slowed down but i am meticulous about ensuring I have a daily bm. Its very important you dont get constipated as it may put a strain on the surgical areas....drink lots of fluids 2_3 litres a day. I follow a medium fibre diet as too much fibre can work against you..There is loads of info on this site on bowel management. Don't worry bloating is very common but will pass. However if you are worried give your nurse a call
I had the same I was very bloated before surgery that went down after... Then I swelled up again and become very bloated ... It goes down again... Your body has been through a lot and your internal working have been manipulated and I think they probably take awhile to settle ... If your worried I would speak to my nurse I had a twinge the other day and they set my mind at rest 😃
I would take advice,but in my case, it was wind! I was warned it might be like this and took peppermint tea on occasion because it was quite painful.Drink as much water as possible and don't allow yourself to get constipated,
If you are still worried, consult your team, in my instance it passed
Carole xxx
Can agree with both ladies, bloating was a problem for me too and it takes quite a while to go down and then you start chemo and the bloating comes back again. After all you've been through it is understandable you will feel anxious so would agree with giving your nurse a call to put your mind at rest.
Take care x🌷X
I'm having the same problem and also having pain in my lower abdomen and back. I've debated going to the ER to make sure everything is OK but not sure if it's just the norm for this type of surgery.
Four weeks is a very short time and you'll feel all sorts of twinges and pain - like Bonnie says, a lot of your insides have been manhandled and are not yet back 'in the right place'. I know it's scary, but the discomfort will go on for a while and later doctors will probably attribute any pains to adhesions from your op, which is a pretty major one. Am still having 'fallout' from it two years on! Try not to worry ( easier said than done, I know!) Deb x
Might be constipation? Or your insides settling back to normality after being manhandled during surgery. But call your nurse for advice and reassurance. Take care. Xxx
I agree with the other ladies sound advice here, especially about seeking advice from your Dr. But similar symptoms happened with me and I shared my concern at my surgery follow up visit, about 3 weeks after surgery similar to yours. Doc felt the firmness that was a bit to the left of the incision, and then opened about 2 inches of my incision, cutting thru the stitches. He cleaned the part, he opened, then packed it with gauze and taped it. Yikes!
Apparently, my wound was not draining correctly and it had to be opened to let that happen. AND I had to clean and pack that myself til it healed and monitor the color of the drainage to check for infection. About 8 weeks. I don't want to scare you, but it is another thought. And one I had never heard of but in researching it, it appears to be quite common after surgeries.
Blimey.... Sounds awful !!!
Before my hysto I joined a hysto support group and the ladies called it "swelly belly" and it can come and go for a year! I found in the first three months after my surgery if I was on my feet too much or bending in the garden it would come on by the end of the day but would be gone next morning. It was just the tissues swelling from the trauma of the surgery...it takes a year for a body to get over a hysterectomy, not even adding in all this other crap that we are going through.
Hi Carole-
I had RAH and a proper gutting on April 8th of this year. i am 5 months out and just starting to feel "normal". I had a lot of bloating and discomfort. Everything was competing for the new found space in there. You also have a lot of scar tissue that has built up. Talk to your doc but I think most of us has experience this. i was tender and bloated for a long while. A lot of fluids need to be reabsorbed.
XXOO Carol
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