Feeling discouraged...more pain than ever at week 8..

What to do?

Next week is week 8 and I am in more pain with more bloat than I was at week 4!! I am back on my pain meds and resting with some walking and some outings (in the car, short errands, NO lifting!). I feel like my body is going to "mush" and my abdomen is painful to the touch...everything feels swollen and tender.

I am really feeling discouraged...I see MD on Thursday for work release and I know I'm no better than when I saw her 2 weeks ago. I need to get back to work...the bills are piling up and I'm going stir crazy!!!

Yeah, I overdid it earlier this week...have I messed up my own recovery completely?

I feel like I am never going to be "normal"...had to buy more fat sweats today due to swelly belly.

I don't know WHAT to do...do nothing and feel weaker or try to go out and do normal things and have a set back again????

I feel lost and very confused...and sick of being tired and sore and flopping about like that little brother in a snow suit in "A Christmas Story"!!!



Deb in Ohio

hi Deb

I am sorry to hear that you feel so bad. Iwas not able to go back at 8 weeks either. I took another 2 weeks off. I was very sore just like you are.
I will be 6 months post op next week and feeling bad again.I just wonder if we will ever feel normal again!I don't understand why us females have to go through so much.
I know about the bills piling up too, that doesn't halp matters either.
I am having a pitiful time going to the bathroom and is making my abdoman hurt so bad. I may just get that second opinion if my gyn won't do anything. unfortunately I missed his return call to me yesterday and he will be off all next week.I am having the same symptoms as I had when he referred me to the pain dr.
I hope you get feeling better soon, so you can return to some normalcy. You deserve that.
Hang in there. Things have to get better.

Take care my east side sister
Peggy

Dear Deb,

What to do? What not to do, that is the million $ question isn't it?
I am sorry you are struggling with this. I can empathize. I am just behind you in recovery and still struggle with how much to do. It is a constant question I ask myself before and after each activity-have I done too much or will this be too much?

Obviously something you did was too much. I would try to assess your activities and think about what might have thrown you over the edge and next time you need to do a little less. It might have been a combination of things and you just needed to not do them all together. I am trying to err on the side of caution cause I know how badly I can hurt if I don't and it just isn't worth it to me. I still pop a pain pill now and then too.

I don't believe you have messed up your whole recovery, but you need to rest and see how this goes. I wonder if you won't find that you will recover more quickly now. I hope so. Please don't be too discouraged. Try to learn from this and pace yourself better tomorrow.

Don't forget to turn you clocks back! Rita

Hi Deb,
Sorry your feeling so bad, maybe Rita is right perhaps look back on what you've been doing , As my previous post said I've been feeling great but have discovered this week that lifting anything the slightest bit heavy and I get the warning sign from my body , Did you maybe lift something and not realise it was over the limit , I find it hard to judge sometimes or bend or stretch to reach something? Hope it improves for you soon
s
Wendygai

Deb,
It feels like we are walking down the same road! I went for 6 wk and the dr said still tender inside, still bladder spasms, put me on Detrol LA. Well the bladder spasms haven't subsided at all, but I felt like I had more energy so I decided, and because of a comment my previously marvelous DH made about time to get out and get back to life!!, that I would start going at night to help him feed the horses. Did that 2 days, went one night and watched one of his horses run, and then I decided to clean the house and take the trash down to the dump. Friday night along with the bladder pee pain, I had that somethings in there falling out feeling again. Saturday it was so bad that I took pain pills and stayed on the couch all day. I got dressed to go with DH to feed and he said "Oh my, you must be in terrible pain cause you look awful, what did you do? Just stay home and I will take care of things." I took more pain meds and woke up this morning, (after peeing 3 times last night,) feeling better, now I would describe it as feeling like a tampax in there sideways.

I too don't know what to do with myself. I am about ready to commit murder on my loving dogs, but when I get out and go for a few hours I feel ruined. Along with the physical pain the emotional side of all this is really getting to me.

I see my dr thurs also and I am going to beg him to find out what this bladder situation that has gone on for 8 weeks is.

Hopefully the vagina pain won't knock my socks off today as I am sure my DH is expecting me to go watch his horse run tonight.

Thank you all for your responses...when I typed this last night, I was SO frustrated as you all have also experienced!

Looking back, I know it was the cleaning out the closets and bagging up the stuff for Good Will. That was earlier in the week and I did not lift full bags of stuff, but it was over a span of a few days. The bags did not feel heavy at the time...but now lifting a hard back book feels heavy!

Odd with all this...it doesn't really "hurt" until the next day, so sometimes the brain gets carried away with "doing". I just don't realize that I am "doing" things I should not...I may "know better", but it is so automatic to me that it does not dawn on me at the time. Maybe I need a new brain too! Seen any on Ebay?



Anyway, in addition to the closet stuff is that walking my little dogs is probably contributing to the problem as they pull on the leashes. I need to "rein them in" more and not let them go crazy. They have to be walked...I don't have a yard.

As for me, I think I need to just walk more (no dogs) on level, paved surfaces, not hiking trails or anything where the insides get jarred. I am going to start doing this today. I was going out to the park with them or on a hiking trail for our outings and also walking across uneven park lawns throwing frisbee...I think that caused problems. Not real sure about that part.

Other than that, I am going to be taking my pain meds, lying in the recliner, and putting an ice bag on my belly for the next few days.

This is getting really, really old now. I want to be up, doing, and getting back into life. I need to return to work and I am tired of being dependent on my SO to move this, lift that, whatever!!!!!

Did any one prepare us gals for what comes AFTER the surgery? NOT. Thank God for all you sisters....I'd be totally ignorant as to how to deal with this if not for you all!

Love and hugs,
Deb

I felt worse at eight- nine weeks post op.BecauseI had a sharp pain on my right side that pulled a lot especially at night in bed. I knew I was doing more too. My stitches were slow in dissolving too. We have to be patient . After 2 weeks it passed and I had no more pains like that again,but it was uncomfortable and worrisome when it was there though. If it's bothersome enpugh, call your doctor .It's always good to have reassurance.

oh, deb, deb, deb---don't get discouraged but DO TAKE IT EASY----REALLY EASY. the soreness and tenderness stuff definitely sounds like over doing it response mechanism. i went through the same thing, but earlier in my recovery--when the dr. told me i was doing too much--- i listened and i listened hard! i, at that point, started taking it so easy and now feel ALMOST NORMAL. I doubt you did permanent damage, but to increase your chances of NOT doing anything worse---please just take it easier until you see the doc later this week.

feel better!!!

Mindi

I experienced the burning/tender to touch/ over entire abdomen, at week 5 and 6. Just finished week 7 and it is better. Dr. says that it is normal and it is just the nerves waking up. Swelling has also gotten better this week, actually have had pair of pre-cyst jeans on all day with no discomfort....Good Luck to you

I also feel like most of you. I have a few really good days and then I go out and clean up my backyard and get it ready for winter - pull all the dead stuff, rake, etc. Then I just start feeling weak and my tummy starts feeling heavy so I have to go lay down and stay down! We really should take it easy.

I saw ex President Clinton on T.V. the other day and he said that having open heart surgery is a great reminder of how we must take care of ourselves as we recover. He was listing the same symptoms we have - fatigue, feeling good one day and crappy the next and not having any energy. He reminded me that major surgery is a shock to our system and we need to take it easy so that we can eventually get back to our old lives.

Don't worry it will happen soon enough - remember Christmas is around the corner!!! AARGHHHHH!

Maria