9 days post hysterectomy: Did I set myself back?

Hello to all the ladies out there!
I just joined this site today and I am glad I found it. I had a vaginal with laparoscopic assisted hysterectomy on February 26th. I had my uterus, tubes, and cervix taken out my ovaries were left. I stayed one night in the hospital and then went home the following day. My pain was minimal after the third day post op and I quit taking the hydrocodone and started taking ibuprofen 400 mg three times a day along with Tylenol once a day for good measure. I also had very little bleeding and hadn't bled since day three post op. My bowels were moving on their own and regular once a day except for the first day in the hospital. I had a couple of little things that happened when I got home. My first shower at home, I was weak and nauseous afterwards. There were also a couple of times that I fell asleep and waited too long between my second and third dose of ibuprofen. This caused an increase in pain and cramping along with nausea that was hard to get under control. Other than these minor things I was feeling great until YESTERDAY! I have been bored and decided to run a couple of errands. It was my first time driving and that went ok. I went to the bank and then went to the mall with a family member who needed help shopping for prom. We were there awhile ( couple of hours). We then went to eat lunch and I started to hurt pretty bad. We went home and since then I have been hurting quite a bit more and bleeding vaginally ( which I haven't bled since post op day 3). It is a scant amount that Is just there when I wipe and use the bathroom. I also was not able to have a BM today because of the pain. I have been resting since. Has anyone had this happen? Did I just overdo it? How long does the bloated belly last by the way? Any advice would be helpful.

You probably did over do it. It has only been 8 days since surgery, and everything is still healing inside. I would tone it down some so that you can heal.

I'm exhausted just reading about everything you did. Rest, relax, and allow yourself time to heal! This is why it is just as important to prepare ourselves for "6 weeks of recovery" as it is to prepare our families. We all tend to lead busy lives and to slow down for any length of time feels like torture. Do things you have wanted to do but never found time to - for instance, as boring as it sounds, I'm writing out all of my recipes for my nice recipe box. I've been planning to do this for 3 years, and never once found the time. Now I have it and something so simple is making me happy as I allow my body to heal.

If the bleeding does not stop, call the doctor and tell him/her what you told us. While some bleeding is obviously normal, if your pain increases and the bleeding is bad, you should get checked out, even if it just gives you some peace of mind.

Only you get to set the tone of your healing. 6 weeks is not long when compared to the 12 or 18 it might take if you need additional surgery.

Thank you ladies for the input. I am going to take it easy and hope that It is a minor setback. I think I was operating under a false hope that I would be feeling great and back in my jeans in a couple of weeks. I now see that this will indeed take at least the six weeks that the doctor prescribed. Good luck to all of you in your healing.