What does an adhesion feel like? healing? Any similar experience?

[Amywoodx]

Hello everyone. On 21st September I had a laparoscopy for suspected endometriosis (none found) in which they found an omental adhesion to the anterior abdominal wall which was released by bipolar and scissors. They made two incisions, one through my bellybutton and one on my lower left side. I had not had any surgery prior to this so I was very confused as to how it formed.

About 2 months before I got the call to go in for surgery, my pain started to get better and I started to feel a lot more normal. It was great, I still had a bit of pain now and again, it wasn't completely gone but nothing compared to how it was at the very beginning of the journey and I was able to eat what I wanted without worrying about pain. Then I went for surgery and I feel like I've taken a huge leap backwards to when it all began.

My pain is bad, every day I get the same sensation of having a bad gut infection or stomach bug, I constantly feel like I need to go to the toilet today however when I go nothing seems to happen and I keep getting wriggling twitches in bellybutton area and to the right accompanied by bad gas. This all started about 2-3 weeks after surgery. I get bad pain every morning which indicates the need for a bowel movement and usually the pain would subside after doing so however recently the pain seems to just continue throughout the day now. I've also noticed differences in my stool to how they used to be. This is exactly the type of pain I went through at the beginning of this horrible journey that led me to having a laparoscopy in the first place and I'm seriously afraid that I'm going to have to go through it all over again. Nobody made me aware that surgery can cause further adhesions either and now I'm just really upset as I wish I never went. It's like I'm sat here waiting for the pain to get worse and worse again because that's what happened last time. Until it eventually did get better but that was after a year and there's no promising it will get better this time around.

The week after my laparoscopy was quite a journey too as I ended up in A&E with bad constipation, then got a bellybutton infection which required oral antibiotics too. Could it be that the antibiotics have messed with my gut flora, could it be healing or does it sound like an adhesion? I'm absolutely sick with worry at the thought of it being another adhesion or the same adhesion forming again. The surgeon did tell me that he wasn't sure if the reason for my pain that I had the laparoscopy for was due to the adhesion he removed in the first place.

I spoke to my gastro doctor the other day who sounded like he couldn't wait to get off the phone to me and got annoyed when I told him I think my adhesion is forming again so he wasn't of much use either. But he did mention to give it a couple more months as it could be internal healing.

I really do want to believe that it is just healing however the pain seems to be worsening and I don't think they actually did much inside of me for it to cause pain like this due to healing anyway? It's also been a month and a half since the laparoscopy was carried out so surely it shouldn't need to be healing at this point as that's a pretty long time. Has anyone had a similar experience? What do adhesions feel like, do they eventually get worse and worse or does it sound like it and could it get better?

[Konagirl60]

All I can recommend is to buy a product called Serrapeptase OR Wobezym. These products are made to be ingested and supposedly they help digest old dead tissues and scar tissue.

I took Wobezym for two weeks after my laparoscopies ( 2017,2018 ) and it helped.

A great probiotic is coconut kefir. It’s helped me as well.

[Amywoodx in reply to Konagirl60]

Omg thank you so much! Will definitely be buying some of that! I'm taking probio7 advanced probiotics but don't think they are doing much at the moment. Which one did you take, serrapeptase or wobezym? Just trying to figure out which one to buy

[Konagirl60 in reply to Amywoodx]

I took both. Wobezym to start and Serrapeptase after for a month.

[Amywoodx in reply to Konagirl60]

Thanks, I've ordered serrapeptase hope it helps!

[Panda83]

Hi, I’ve just joined on here just so I could reply to you, I literally had the same surgery just a few days after you, my womb was stuck to my omentum, was it your womb or bowel that was adhered to yours? They were under the impression that my pain (mostly pelvic pain) was related to endometriosis but today I’ve had a further consultation over a biopsy that was taken at the Op and was told it wasn’t endometriosis, and like you my pain is much much worse now that pre op, I asked if it’s because of him separating both the organs but he didn’t think it would be at this stage, so I am also at a loss.. your story sounds so similar to mine though

[Amywoodx in reply to Panda83]

That's awful it's such a shame we have to go through this. What does your current pain feel like??? The pain I'm getting again makes me wish I never went for my lap. Mine was an omental adhesion to the anterior abdominal wall. Because it was minor (apparently) they also weren't sure whether it was the cause of my pain. But now a month later and I feel like I've gone back a year as I'm feeling all the same pains I used to back when it was really really bad and just starting out. It's so upsetting.

Nobody made me aware that more adhesions would form after surgery. I really wish I never went for it as I was just starting to feel better and maybe my adhesion should've been left alone if it was only minor but I was also worried I had endo (they didn't find any). So I guess in a way I needed to know if it was or wasn't but even my period pain had gone back to a normal level for me.

I'm not sure how the adhesion they found even formed in the first place as I'd never had previous surgery. It's known fact that adhesions form in about 93% of people after having surgery so I feel like it's probably forming again which sucks but I hope that's not the case. Even so, if my pain got better last time I hope it can get better again this time but I am experiencing new pain with it. It's like very short (literally less than 0.5 secs) stabbing/poking pains in my lower right and left abdomen, one directly under the incision. I hope this goes away with time too like my other pains did but who knows

I had a lot of abdominal pain and gas all day yesterday which felt like a stomach bug. I'm also getting pelvic pain again and the usual pain I used to get very bad every morning and I'm very scared for my period to arrive. How have yours been since the lap? I'm going to try and look into physiotherapy or something to help with adhesion pain, maybe you could try that too.

[Panda83 in reply to Amywoodx]

That is such a shame that after surgery it’s got worse for you, and your right quite unusual that the adhesion formed when you hadn’t had previous surgery, I had a c section in 2017 which they believe caused the adhesions. Have you got any further follow ups with the other issues your having? Say if it hasn’t been caused by the adhesions and is something else? I also have IBS and issues with my bladder so sometimes it’s difficult to tell what’s causing what, but my ibs has definitely been worse since my op, my pain sounds similar to yours, I also get extremely bad period like pains too, so it can vary from dull to very sharp quick pains.

Are you in the UK? I’ve been referred to the pain clinic with me being in more pain now than before the op, I keep taking a cocktail of different painkillers which isn’t ideal, my surgeon told me today he sees about 1 case every 2 years of what I had which doesn’t sound much, have you been told similar too?

[Amywoodx in reply to Panda83]

Oh ok, did you only start to feel pain from the adhesions after a while or did you get pain immediately after? Sorry for the questions, just wondering as I'm trying to see what might be the problem with mine.

I've got a follow up next week but I know there's nothing that can be done. Of course I'd like them to reassure me that it's probably healing pain etc but I know I'll still worry especially since it's been quite a while.

I know that adhesions can cause IBS like symptoms so it could be possible that your adhesions are the reason for the IBS. I also have IBS like symptoms which came on when this all started but it went away just before surgery and now it's back again. I also get a period pain type of feeling too when I'm not even on my period again. This all went away 2-3 months before my surgery so I'm honestly gutted that something has triggered it off again. I'm awaiting my next period which is due very very soon and I'm so scared it's gonna be really bad!

I am in the UK and no my surgeon didn't even bother to visit me in the ward or talk to me after the surgery, they all think it was a very minor surgery and nothing more was needed to be said on their part. I have a follow up with a clinician next week.

Some people do get adhesions and it doesn't cause them any symptoms I've heard. Whereas with others it can be managed with painkillers and other things. My gastroenterologist told me to give it a few months and see if they pain gets better. He said it could be healing or it could be adhesions again

[Panda83 in reply to Amywoodx]

Apologies for taking days to reply!

So they think my adhesions started after I had a C section when my son was born in 2017, tbh ever since then I had various forms of stomach pain, but I just took this as an after effect of being pregnant and also from the c section surgery, however when I spoke to other friends who’d had c sections they didn’t have similar complaints, it’s so frustrating isn’t it when you don’t know what’s going on inside your body but can tell that all isn’t ok!

I’m really not sure how long they take to form but in a slightly separate note, after my last surgery my left ovary was suspended which I think they do so that it can’t become stuck again, it was released after a week so it does make you wonder if they can form quickly. But I hope not as if so both our operations would of been in vain...

Do you recall doing anything different/taking and supplements etc in the time when you were symptom free?

[Amywoodx in reply to Panda83]

I took lots of supplements actually, I took MACA, magnesium, multivitamins and omega 3-6-9 but I don’t think they did anything as I stopped taking them 2 months before surgery and I was still fine. I only took them because I came off the pill and I found out on the internet that they help get your natural hormone levels back. I was even told to stop them because I had a blood test and my b12 & one other hormone was too high. My pain seems to have got worse since I last wrote a comment on here unfortunately. Been experiencing diarrhoea and bad spasms. Couldn’t even eat anything yesterday because it Hurts. Also on my period now which doesn’t help 😣 I just really really hope it’s not permanent and just a little blip in my system.

I’m sure there’s something wrong but none of the docs will do anything. Just been taking lots of painkiller and buscopan for now. And I will try to incorporate a good probiotic into my diet and hope it helps with the spasms and food

[Panda83 in reply to Amywoodx]

So sorry to hear your pain has got worse 😞 did you say you had a follow up soon or have you already had it? I know my first period post op was horrendous and made my ibs flare really bad.

That’s really interesting that those supplements may of helped your symptoms, depending on how long you took them for they may of still been in your system and possibly helping.

I was hoping to find something to balance my hormones after coming off the pill, but I opted for the coil during the operation, I’m not really getting on with it but it’s early days and I was told it could take a while to settle.

Honestly though if things don’t get any better for you try to keep pushing for answers, I know I will be if things don’t turn around soon, doesn’t help with the whole Covid situation and resources tied up right now I guess, but I have found through experience that you sometimes have to put your foot down xx

[Amywoodx in reply to Panda83]

My follow up is on monday or Tuesday I think! See my first period post op wasn’t too bad but this one was a lot worse especially a few days before I came on too! I may try the supplements again. I agree, the Covid situation really isn’t helping either. It sucks that my family think all my pain is minor and in my head now because in my lap they didn’t find anything. The docs won’t take me seriously anymore either because nothing was found, they think I’m just a silly 23 year old who can’t take a bit of pain but it’s so much more than that. It’s horrible having to fight. My gastroenterologist even called me a hypochondriac previously!