clothes

How long before I can actually wear my jeans again? I tried today....only had them on for 10 mins. LOL! Since I had a LSH I am anticipating returning to work after 3-4 wks. Will I be able to wear normal clothes then? I might have to go purchase some elastic pants for the time being seeing as I can't wear pajamas in public and I'm not fond of sweat pants.

Any suggestions? Right now my belly button incision seems to be tender and clothing irritates it.

I think everyone is different. I can say, I'm 17 days post-op from a TAH and I put my jeans on today for the first try, and I was able to wear them. I didn't keep them on very long, just because I didn't want to push it and possibly have something without any give on my waist while I was sitting down. I'm pretty sure though that the TAH causes more swelling so you might get lucky. However, I have read stories from some women that say they can't fit into their regular jeans even 3 months out. So, I think it is all based on your body. Good luck, I know stretchy pants are nice at first but it gets old fast lol.

I just bought a pair of jeans with the elastic waist band... Granted, I am not making a fashion statement , but at least I get a break from sweat pants that my DH absolutely hates... I also bought them 1 size larger than I normally wear... That is what I have been wearing since I went back to work.

I also had LSH and could wear my jeans at about week 3 but only for a few hours. A few hints, never sit down quickly, always recline back a little so the pants don't pinch, tuck in your shirt or put something soft on the tummy so the pants don't rub, when you start to feel the pants start to become tight in the tummy area remove them and replace with some athletic pants. I like the athletic pants the black stretchy ones because they don't look like sweats and you can wear them out in public.

I thought that I would go back to work at week 3 also but at week 2 I informed them that I would be taking the entire 6 weeks of leave. There was no way that I could have returned to work.

Good Luck

For my last laparoscopy, I found that my belly button incision was irritating the heck out of me too! What I found helpful was a nonadhesive, nonabsorbent medical pad that I just placed between my belly button and my clothes. It protected the incision from irritation, but didn't irritate any skin because it was nonadhesive. I don't know if that's an option for you, but it really helped me feel a bit more normal (wearing my own clothes). I found mine in the medical supply from work, but I believe you can get them from a medical supply store anywhere.

if pants bother you, wear some dresses for awhile...something without a waist. that will really help. good luck!

I wear low cut jeans so they are nowhere close to my belly button ... maybe a pair of lower cut jeans/pants would be helpful. Just wear longer shirts or buy long camis to wear underneath your regular shirts and you'll be fine.

I was able to wear my pants starting at about week 4. My Dr's nurse gave me a good idea to stick a soft panti-liner between my undies and my incision. Obviously sticky side on the panties - soft side on the skin. I wear my pants (and panties!) low. I did not share that with her, but I put the panti-liner inside my pants and it worked great!

Starbgirl

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Originally Posted by mweaverrn How long before I can actually wear my jeans again? I tried today....only had them on for 10 mins. LOL! Since I had a LSH I am anticipating returning to work after 3-4 wks. Will I be able to wear normal clothes then? I might have to go purchase some elastic pants for the time being seeing as I can't wear pajamas in public and I'm not fond of sweat pants. Any suggestions? Right now my belly button incision seems to be tender and clothing irritates it.

I would recommend buying a pair or two of black pants one size up. It's more fashionable than elastic waist pants and you will look fashionable even if you are feeling a little bloated.

I gained 14 lbs during my TAH/BSO recovery - I went from 120 to 134 and I couldn't wear any of my clothes. I wore my pajamas for 6 weeks straight.

Thanks for the suggestions. The jeans fit fine because they were a bit loose, but I was just having problems with my belly button being irritated. I guess it doesn't help that it's now infected and the whole area is tender. Otherwise everything else feels fine. I've actually lost about 4 lbs. since surgery. I felt bloated for about 4-5 days from the gas, but since that has cleared up and BM's are back to normal it's been better.

I'll have to go to Target and get some athletic pants or something.