Tummy Pain 2 weeks after hysterectomy

Hello Hystersisters,

My surgery was on 11-17-21, so I am about 2 weeks and a few days post op. I am experiencing belly pain around my belly button area still and wondered if this is normal at this stage of recovery? Also I am still unable to sleep on my sides without pain and I am longing to sleep on my sides because my butt & back hurt from sleeping on my back, I am a side sleeper and miss it so much, I was wondering how long it took some of you to be able to side sleep? And can these complaints wait until my 4-week follow up next week?

Thanks Ladies

I'm a side sleeper myself, and I was okay with that from the first night after my surgery. My best position for this is the Lazy S position, with my knees bent towards my chest, which loosens the hamstring muscles in the back of my thighs, taking tension off my lower back, and tilts my pelvis into a more neutral position; I also recommend a pillow between your knees to support proper alignment, a pillow to support your belly, and a firm pillow to support your head and neck. For sleeping on your back, a pillow under your knees and another one under the curve in your lower back can help to support proper positioning. Best wishes for finding what works for you, and for continued health and healing!

and oh yeah... tummy pain and discomfort track for being 2 weeks post-op! While not "fresh out of surgery" you're still in the early stages of initial recovery. It helps to understand what went on inside - it's major even if you only see a few incisions externally. You've had 4-5 sets of ligaments, many blood vessels and connective tissue cut as well as organs removed, and anything which was bleeding from the procedure has been stitched or cauterized. All that internal trauma takes time to heal, and recovery really does have to be thought of in terms of many weeks rather than days.

I started sleeping on my side again fairly early post-op... but to do so, I used a travel-sized pillow under my sagging tender tummy, and another one between my knees. Same thing after my more recent open abdominal surgery, except I also had a pillow against my back to keep me from rolling over to my back before falling asleep.

Hello,

Thanks to the ladies that responded about my pain and side sleeping, the recommendations will be tried, as I already have a ton of pillows on my bed, what do you ladies think about one of those full body pillows that pregnant women use to help me with side sleeping? I forgot to mention that my surgeon told me he spent 45 minutes removing scar tissue from all of my c-sections before he even got to the surgery, so I guess I should remember that as well when gauging how much discomfort I am in while recovering.