Abdominal Pain 5 Months After Ileostomy - Seeking Advice

It has been 5 months since my ileostomy and I am now having abdominal pain just above my belly button. It really hurts when I cough. I first thought maybe a pulled muscle but now the pain is getting worse without coughing. Has anyone had this problem?

Hello SHRONB.

Thank you for your post although I'm sorry to hear that you are in pain. It is always useful to have these things checked out by a competent physician, if only to give you peace of mind.  However, as you are inviting comments from the rest of us I will put my twopenniworth in. 

It is highly likely that you might be getting pain because of the healing process and that may or may not be 'normal'. Sometimes the scar tissue overdoes the its healing to the point where it can cause problems. Other times, the sort of pain you describe, can be the result of something else causing pressure in that region.

I wanted to ask you if your pain was constant or intermitent? Mild or severe? (on a 1-10 score) Focussed in one spot or spread over a wider area? Does it dissipate when massaged or when you pass wind and faeces?  You might see where I'm going with these questions, as anything making the bowel expand (like wind and faeces) is likely to cause pain if there is scar tissue in that area and this would be classed as 'normal'. Coughing is like any other straining which will put pressure on muscles that don't normally get that sort of use and if it's scar tissue down there, then pain is likely to be the result.

I hope you find a reason for it soon, as that can ease the worry. However, I ALSO HOPE THAT YOU FIND A SOLUTION as that will help much more. 

Best wishes  

Bill 

I am also at 5 months out with my ileostomy. I also had that pain. Mine turned out to be a large amount of trapped gas. I just ended up using a heating pad, hot baths, and figured out a medicine protocol that helped relieve the pain. It has just slowly gotten better but if I eat too many sweets, rich foods, or hard-to-digest food, I still get the belly pain. So that's basically what I can offer as I am still working out the kinks myself.

I had my ileocolostomy this past May and have developed 2 parastomal hernias and a huge prolapse. I have lower back pain, abdominal pain, and lately a lot of gas. Is there anything natural effective for abdominal pain? Peppermint tea seemed to help somewhat.

If it's above your belly button, maybe it could be your stomach? I started having stomach pain after using high dose ibuprofen for a long time. Aleve, Aspirin, etc. can damage the stomach lining also. They can cause ulcers. Always make sure you have food in your stomach if taking any medicines classified as NSAIDs.

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Thank you everyone. Some days the pain is worse than others. I am also finding that the side where my stoma is seems puffy. I don't know how else to describe it. I don't know if that is normal or not. Being a newbie to this, everything that changes is a concern.

This sounds just like what I'm having! And it's 5 months since my surgery as well! Had a CT scan yesterday... all good. And they collected urine by catheterization of stoma.