Swelly belly forever????

Hi smp123,

While I know I have a bit of adipose tissue in addition to the post-op issues, this is not the same information that my gyn told me. What your doctor said to you doesn't make sense to me, because adipose tissue doesn't grow during the day....my belly is smaller and softer early in the morning and grows larger and more firm as the day goes on. If I ever considered plastic surgery for my tummy, it wouldn't be until at least 6 months and more likely beyond a year post-hysterectomy. I'd be very interested to see how your appt with the plastic surgeon goes.

I wish you all the best!!

Hi there
I had my TAH 4 1/2 weeks ago too. My belly was big but has gone down gradually, by the end of the day it is a bit bigger. I have found laying down with my legs raised for an hour in the evenings has helped, as has wear fitted tracksuit and nothing with a tight waist band. good luck
from recktoday in london

I am six months post op on Sunday. Recently (last couple months) noticed no swelly belly, but am working at a restaurant at a fair (a fundraiser) this week and had company and very busy since the first of July. I guess being so overly busy brought the swelly belly back. Oh well, when I slow down again it will go down. I'm heading to Germany and Switzerland in a couple weeks. Does anyone know how flying long distances affects swelly belly? Your response will be most appreciated.

I will be 8 weeks post op this Monday. My belly was terribly swollen after the surgery. When I first looked at it, I was like "Oh, MY GOD!". My stomach was flat before, except for this little ball of the bulging fibroid. Anyway, my left side has gone down considerably, almost to where it was before. My right is down just a bit, I kept straining it after the surgery, so it' s taking longer. When I mentioned it to my dr, she said that it does take time, she told me she had back surgery last year and she still has swelling around her incision, it's a normal part of healing, and we are all different. Don't give up hope!

Oh, and I still have half of the dreaded "ledge" on my right side. It looks so odd.

Help, my surgery is august 12 and everyone has scared me to death with the swelly belly. Does it effect everyone?
I've never heard of this from women in my family who have had the surgery already.
This board is starting to scare me more than help.
:[

I wish I had known about this board before I had my surgery - just so Id know about everything. Swelly Belly stinks, but it makes sense. A nurse where I work compared it to having a swollen ankle and repeatedly walking on it every day. The breast I had the lump taken out of in April of this year still is larger than the other breast. I guess this just takes time. PS: just fyi, I haven't had hardly any of the post op symptoms mentioned on this site - a bit of forgetfulness from the trauma to the body and the swelly belly, and that's it. I won't say don't be scared, but just remember that we all react differently. There's another thread on the site talkiing about women who have NOT had swelly belly - read that one too as a balance!

Hi heychele,

Don't let this frighten you. It is not a medical problem just an inconvenience that some of us experience, others don't. I am a little over 3 months post op and my belly still swells when overdoing it. As AngelD said, it is comparable to a swollen ankle when we continue to walk on it. Same idea here. We just get frustrated and need to vent, not scare newbies. Good luck on the 12th