Parastomal Hernia Surgery Experience and Recovery

Hi, how is stoma hernia surgery? What is the recovery like? I may have to undergo it later this year.

Hernia surgery isn't too bad. Just don't sneeze or cough too hard afterward. That will hurt. But if you exercise, recovery is fairly quick. I had hernia surgery on May 15th, and I am fine now. Back to normal. I had incisional and parastomal hernia repair, so I had a double whammy. I got mesh put in my stomach. It was done robotically. The only drawback is your stoma can fall asleep and not want to wake up. Then you get ileus, throw up, and have to get an NG tube put in. But if your stoma doesn't usually fall asleep during surgeries, then you probably don't have to worry about that. Mine does have a history of falling asleep and not wanting to wake up. When it was created was the first time it fell asleep, and I got ileus. Then, in the hernia surgery, was the second time it happened. I had a blockage too, where I needed an NG tube, but it wasn't that my stoma fell asleep; it just got blocked. My advice is don't leave the hospital until you know for sure that you are having output regularly and digesting food okay; otherwise, you might have to go right back in the hospital. The surgery itself isn't too bad, though, if you get it done robotically. Small incisions and no stitches; they use glue. Walk, walk, walk. It will help you recover. You will have a lifting limit for a while. Mine is 15 pounds. I can't lift anything heavier than 15 pounds until I get the okay from my surgeon, which I am hoping will happen on Aug. 4th when I see her again for a follow-up. I don't think I will be lifting very heavy things, though, because I don't want to get another hernia. So, I might just forever not lift more than 15 pounds or be careful of how much weight I am lifting. If I lift more than 15 pounds.

Thank you for your reply. I'll find out in October at my next visit with my surgeon if I have to undergo this. He did say he hopes to avoid it for me. So far, it is not interfering with my stoma or my appliance.

Also, what is the prep like the day before the hernia surgery?

Generally, they wait until it is interfering with your appliance sticking on. I had mine repaired because they were going in to fix the incisional hernias, and if they didn't fix the parastomal one, the mesh wouldn't have gone far enough over to cover the incisional hernia. So they just did both so they could put one big piece of mesh in instead of trying to piece together smaller pieces of mesh. But in general, as long as it's not interfering, they take a wait-and-see approach.

Words of Encouragement from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

They tell you to stop taking certain meds, but that is the only prep I had before the surgery.

Hi Al,

Good luck - I hope you will not need an interventive repair.

If you have been prescribed any supportive means to wear - do so - and make sure you only lift minimal things _ and correctly _ ....... you can help yourself so much not to exacerbate the forming of a hernia - keep weight to ideals and indulge in exercise - the healthy lifestyle is the best long-term plan!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Jayne ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I had my robotic parastoma hernia repair this past January. Everything was going well until a few months ago when I started experiencing tightness, heaviness, and a pulling sensation. My surgeon scheduled a CT scan to see if I had developed another hernia. Everything looked good. My surgeon said that the sensations I'm feeling when I am sitting or lying down are something that I'll probably have to live with for the rest of my life because it is the adhesions that are causing me to be uncomfortable.