belly still swollen after 14 weeks...the more i exercise, the worse it gets

Hi gals, Newcomer to this terrific website...I'm 14 weeks post op (ute/cervix only) and my belly starting swelling after 3-4 weeks and hasn't stopped. I started exercising after 6 weeks or so, and it seems that this has made it worse. You would think the exercise would help!! It feels like I'm wearing a gallon jug around my waist...My stomach was so slim for the first 3-4 weeks and I don't understand the delayed swelling and why it is lasting so long? Anyone?

Thanks for any help.

No-Ute

My doctor said everyone was different, but due to the trauma of the surgery it could take up to a year for the swelling to subside for some people. He compared it to a sprained ankle, the more you use it (until it's healed) the more likely it is to swell.

Dr also said it takes 90 days for internal stitches to heal completly on most people.

Hope you have a speedy and complete healing.

peace

I've had the swelling on and off from the beginning, but it really got worse around the 3 1/2 month mark for me - I started trying to get back to exercising and after 2 days my belly was huge - bigger than right after my surgery. FINALLY finally the swelling does not appear after exercising (just in the last few weeks). I can't tell you why this stupid swellybelly torments us the way it does, but I just wanted to pass along that it happened to me too - I've gained about 7 pounds since my hyst (Grrrrrrr) so my tummy isn't very flat, but I think chocolate is my major problem at this point. Hang in there - the BIG turning point for me was 4 months +.

Thanks Painter Lee. Good to know. I'm receiving better info on this website than I rec'd from my Dr. !!

Here's my question from another thread, you guys sound like you'll know:
okay i have a question about swelly belly (which is relevant to wearing regular clothes), hopefully not TMI, but here goes: starting from the bottom there is the shaved area, then the incision, and that is fairly flat, and then WHAM a big balloon comes out off the top of my incision area and that is the rest of my abdomen. It is heavy feeling and poofy. Is that swelly belly, or did the incision just re-shape my abdomen area, and that is just my fat? (I could lose 30 pounds but I don't look "fat" since I am 5' 10" my fat is distributed evenly, up until now that is). I am just trying to figure out if that is going to go away or if the incision re-shaped me yikes.

Hi Ispy, That's exactly how my incision area looked after surgery. Unfortunately, now my abdomen from my belly-button down to the incision is swollen. At first it was only swollen above the incision but is now even more swollen than before the surgery...and I had a uterus the size of a football!! I really rely on exercise to keep my weight off (love the cheeseburgers and pizza!) but I think I may have to watch my diet a little more because the exercise is only exacerbating the problem. The good thing is that if this is all I have to deal with and no more crappy periods, I'll learn to be patient. Take Care.