Hernia Operation Last Saturday. First Post-Op Ride This Sat

Blancmange

Had surgery last Saturday to repair an Inguinal Hernia. Mesh reinforcement,
three inch scar, etc, etc. Discharged on Sunday. Stopped taking pain killers
on Sunday evening, as it was more discomfort than actual pain I was suffering.

By the time Tuesday arrived I was becoming pretty lethargic and miserable,
due to not getting my pedalling fix. I resolved that I would be back in the
saddle the coming Saturday afternoon.

So it was. I did a steady 25-miler over a flat route(bar two railway flyovers).
Used a higher cadence than usual so as to not to put pressure on the wound.
It was a nippy 6C, but the Sun was out. Saw a pair of babes out together on
road bikes – what a delightful sight. Got home feeling Over-The-Moon.

Checked scar for integrity/seepage. A-OK.

Will rest tomorrow and attack some bottles of the “Tesco-glitch” wine
we’ve stocked up on. Then I’m out for a spin on Monday…

Yippee! I am alive, again.

Stuuu

That's an incredibly fast turn around. I wish you a speedy full recovery.

elderone

well done you for getting out..been nearly a week for me and still not fully on my feet so god knows when i can get out.like you just want to have a ride.grrrrrrrrrr

Blancmange

Stuuu wrote:

That's an incredibly fast turn around. I wish you a speedy full recovery.

Thanks, Stuuu. I'm not going to take on any proper hills for another 3 weeks, but it's a real joy to just
get out on the bike in the fresh air on some quiet country roads.

elderone wrote:

well done you for getting out..been nearly a week for me and still not fully on my
feet so god knows when i can get out.like you just want to have a ride.grrrrrrrrrr

Cheers, Elderone. I think everyone is different in how they respond to surgery. My brother had the identical
hernia op a few years back and he was back on his feet in no time, too. However, the two guys who'd been in
the same ward as him for the same op, were still really suffering a lot of post-op pain 10 days later. It's just
one of those things.

I pushed myself to go out on longer and longer walks as the week went on. I was hobbling along like Chelsea
Pensioner(I'm only 53) on the Monday and Tuesday , but it got easier as the days passed by.

I hope you are soon feeling fit and able to get back on the road. It'll be great if you can post, telling us when
when you're back in the saddle again.

Best wishes. Keep taking the tablets.

GGBiker

Getting straight back into normal training so soon after surgery is probably not a great idea, you would be better to build up gradually starting with some walking, can take about 6 weeks for tissues to heal fully after surgery.

IShaggy

I could hardly walk for 2 weeks, and it was 5 weeks before I could even consider a gentle spin on the turbo. I've never experienced pain like it. It's a luck of the draw when it comes to hernia ops - sounds like your numbers came up.

Blancmange

IShaggy wrote:

I could hardly walk for 2 weeks, and it was 5 weeks before I could even consider a gentle spin on the turbo. I've never experienced pain like it. It's a luck of the draw when it comes to hernia ops - sounds like your numbers came up.

Maybe it could be down to the surgeon. I was one of eight guys he did the same op on that day. Some of these
surgeons must get very good at doing hernia repair jobs, day-in-day-out. I read somewhere that about 60% of
males suffer hernias, so that's a lot of hands-on experience for a keen surgeon to learn from.

I have in the past recovered very quickly from the surgery I've undergone, so that could be part of it, too.

IShaggy

Very true - surgeons are of differing abilities. Luck of the draw again I suppose - unless you go private and can choose your clinic/surgeon. I thought I'd recover very quickly as I was pretty fit at the time - just coming off of 6 months of Ironman training. But a nurse I spoke to said that it can sometimes work the other way - I didn't quite get what she was saying though, so maybe not true.

Velonutter

Nice Blancmange, I had a similar op in 2000, had a bet with my mates that I wouldn't be out riding my wife's Ducati Monster 2 days later, I won and it cost them an expensive breakfast :-)

Although not recommended I was back to work and full operational with a couple of days.

I have heard nightmare stories of people who have had a similar op and still been off work 3 months later because of scar adhesions, IMHO the best thing you can do after such an op is keep pushing yourself and it then get easier quicker.

Blancmange

Good to hear that you too had a pretty easy recovery from the hernia op, Velonutter.

There seems to be no half-way outcomes with this op. Either it goes well for the patient, or
it results in weeks of agony.

Like you, my brother was back at work after only a few days. But he's an office jockey. I'm
not going to risk it, as I do some heavy manual stuff. So I'm hoping to stay sane by doing a
bit of pedalling over the next few weeks.

turbo1191

Wish i was at the op stage, ive just been diagnosed with an inguinal hernia, so no biking for a good few months as im waiting on an nhs op...

Blancmange

turbo1191 wrote:

Wish i was at the op stage, ive just been diagnosed with an inguinal hernia, so no biking for a good few months as im waiting on an nhs op...

I kept cycling(even did a couple of 100-milers) before I had the hernia repair op. I got very little pain from mine
and, just pushed it back in when it became a bit uncomfortable.

Does yours cause you too much discomfort/pain to ride?

Following my initial GP visit I waited ~3 months for my NHS op.

Hope your surgery isn't too far off and you make a speedy recovery afterwards.

All the best.

turbo1191

No real pain, but lots of discomfort. I do quite a manual job which involves lots of walking and carrying and this agrivates it throughout the day..just going to keep pestering my doc.