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So last week I went in for surgery on a worsening hernia from years of picking up heavy shit (including full kegs of converted grain). The procedure to install a polypropylene mesh went smoothly thanks to laparoscopic surgery via a robot like this one. The surgeon remotely works the arms from a booth over to the side, viewing the internally-lit repair site greatly-enlarged on a giant monitor. Instead of a deep incision, I was left with 4 distant pencil-sized holes, one for each robot arm and I was able to go home at 3:30pm the same day. Yesterday the soreness had abated enough that I was able to walk a mile.
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I admit (like most guys) I am guilty of habitually putting off getting timely medical treatments just because. I also admit that now well into my sixties, I am finally no longer ‘bulletproof’ and subject to the wear and tear of past indiscretions and age. I learned that one million hernia surgeries go down in the US annually, and I’m glad I finally pulled the trigger on fixing mine. I should be good to go just in time for fall distilling season.

Get well soon! Youth is wasted on the young.

Good to hear you’re OK TB.
LOL , I sit here and wiggle mine back in . Sadly , the result if surgery a few years ago that was meant to be laparoscopic and it fucked up and they had to cut me open . Yes , I’m scared to go back .

Yummyrum wrote: ↑Thu Aug 15, 2024 1:07 pm
LOL , I sit here and wiggle mine back in.

Thanks Yummy. I've been pushing mine back in for years.

Sorry to hear of your mishap. The way I figure it, the longer you wait the closer they get to perfecting this procedure and when you’re ready will have it wired.

An acquaintance mentioned a friend of his who cut a 3" circle out of a tennis ball that he held in place by one of those velcro elastic waist belts. Has served him well for quite a while.

Take it easy there TB and give your body plenty of time to heal.
I wiggle mine in because they keep telling me it isn't big enough to mend. I've had an Inguinal hernia for a few years. It was the size of a golf ball when I noticed it. Now it's the size of a goose egg. I guess its a good thing I have retiree medical, so when it does blow out enough for these quacks to pay attention to it, I'll still have coverage.

Take it easy for a while TB, let it heal and you'll be good to go. You and I are about the same age. I fully recovered from a serious injury 2 years ago by doing exactly what my Doc said, for the first time in my life,. Turns out they actually know what we need more than we think we do.
Cheers.

Deplorable wrote: ↑Thu Aug 15, 2024 3:53 pm Take it easy there TB and give your body plenty of time to heal.
I wiggle mine in because they keep telling me it isn't big enough to mend. I've had an Inguinal hernia for a few years. It was the size of a golf ball when I noticed it. Now it's the size of a goose egg.

Mine was umbilical and my navel was protruding a half inch and obscenely purple. The doctors weren’t kidding when they said these things are expected to progressively worsen over time.

NorthWoodsAb wrote: ↑Thu Aug 15, 2024 6:56 pm Take it easy for a while TB, let it heal and you'll be good to go. You and I are about the same age. I fully recovered from a serious injury 2 years ago by doing exactly what my Doc said, for the first time in my life,. Turns out they actually know what we need more than we think we do.
Cheers.

Thanks gentlemen. Wise words indeed and you’ll get no argument from me. I’m grateful for the ready expertise and modern equipment. Consultation to surgery was 11 days and the hospital was 20min from home. Following recovery instructions with care and patience.

Took my wife to Mayo Clinic yesterday. 3 years cancer free. Thank God

dieselduo wrote: ↑Fri Aug 16, 2024 4:13 pm Took my wife to Mayo Clinic yesterday. 3 years cancer free. Thank God

Fantastic news indeed, dd. What a comfort for your wife (and you) to know she's currently clear and that you are there beside her.

Twisted Brick wrote: ↑Fri Aug 16, 2024 9:22 pm

dieselduo wrote: ↑Fri Aug 16, 2024 4:13 pm Took my wife to Mayo Clinic yesterday. 3 years cancer free. Thank God

Fantastic news indeed, dd. What a comfort for your wife (and you) to know she's currently clear and that you are there beside her.

Truely so . Man you guys must have felt a lot of anxiety heading in there .

Geez, I often forget what a bunch of old coots hang out on this forum.... then I walk by a mirror
Glad to see everyone doing better!

I'm up in California just walked out of a stress test after my ultrasound for my heart. What a day, I had a breakfast Jack and then after my test they make you drink a coke for the caffeine that counteracts the speed they injected in me. If I live that long it will be another 20 years before I go to Jack's or drink a Coke. To top it off they want me to wait 5 weeks for the results. I told them then they must be paying for this because if I'm paying for it you tell your doc to call me on his vacation. One thing is for sure, getting old ain't for sissies.
Tōtō

TB, Good luck with recovery. That is one fancy machine they used on you. I had something similar done 30+ years ago, and it did not go great, due largely to the bad patient (me).

At the age of 18 I had a surgery that opened my abdomen all the way via a 20” long incision. After that they sewed up my abdomen muscle wall and stapled the skin, but a small section of the muscle wall did not heal well and if I moved just so, I would literally bust a gut. Lots of pain, and I could see a bulge under my skin. I’d have to lye down and relax for 10 minutes until the gut was pushed back inside.

About 13 years later I scheduled a surgery to have things sewn up again and they also sewed a mesh over the muscles it to hold it in place. Well the dumb, 30ish year old Otis had a new girlfriend at that time and next time we had sex following the surgery I ripped the damn thing open again. I’ve lived with it ever since, thought busting a gut is only a problem for me once it twice a year now.

Lesson to you TB is that sex is bad. Don’t do it.


Dieselduo, that is some fucking awesome news regarding your wife. So happy for you both. The surgery I mentioned above was for cancer, so I can relate to the anxiety of those annual checkups and the great feeling after getting an all clear.

Damn, I didn't realize I was in such good company. I spent a week in the hospital with an ulcer in February and then had open heart surgery for a quintuple bypass on May 21st. We're all wore out, LOL

I'm really glad you're doing better TB!

OtisT wrote: ↑Tue Aug 20, 2024 2:51 pm
Well the dumb, 30ish year old Otis had a new girlfriend at that time and next time we had sex following the surgery I ripped the damn thing open again. Lesson to you TB is that sex is bad. Don’t do it.

Geez, Otis! I had to read your account twice to get the full effect of the pounding you took. I empathize, wholeheartedly. To be sure, 30-something stamina must be continually tested for limits.

Rusty Ole Bucket wrote: ↑Tue Aug 20, 2024 2:59 pm Damn, I didn't realize I was in such good company. I spent a week in the hospital with an ulcer in February and then had open heart surgery for a quintuple bypass on May 21st. We're all wore out, LOL

I'm really glad you're doing better TB!

Thanks, this sitting around is getting to me. My recovery is not remotely close to the league bypass recovery is in. Is the knowledge of today's cardiac procedures great or what!

Twisted Brick wrote: ↑Wed Aug 21, 2024 9:16 am Thanks, this sitting around is getting to me. My recovery is not remotely close to the league bypass recovery is in. Is the knowledge of today's cardiac procedures great or what!

The sitting around was the worst part, I was at home for 6 weeks before they'd let me drive and go back to work. Yesterday was the 3-month mark and 6 weeks back at work. It is absolutely amazing how far cardiac medicine has come; it was honestly a lot easier than I thought. I had a full 7 WEEKS to think about what was coming between diagnosis and surgery, that was the hardest part. Of course I was all up in my head about it.

As you know, they found it with a routine stress test, so I didn't have a heart attack thank goodness, I believe my heart being healthy and a really active lifestyle helped with the recovery. That and I had an amazing surgeon, he specializes in bypass surgery and has literally been doing them for 30+ years. I had 5 blockages around my heart, I credit the man with saving my life. If you're over 40 or have a history of heart disease in your family, get a stress test, it can save your life. I was presenting ZERO symptoms.

We should all get together one day, compare scars and drink something!

Looks like 2023 /24 has been a rough one.
Wishing all a good recovery