Reply To: Had my surgery done finally – Shouldice

[ajm222]

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

My initial thoughts, for whatever they are worth:

I have noticed recently that when I am focused on my issues, the pain and discomfort goes up significantly, to the point of sometimes being debilitating. When I relax about it, it almost vanishes. I will often get stressed about lingering issues and they will get worse and worse, and then I will make an appt with my surgeon and talk over surgical options, and my hope for the future increases with a game plan, and then the pain ‘magically’ goes down to almost nothing.

Point being, I do tend to believe in many cases there is a very cerebral component to the pain and discomfort. Recent science suggests this isn’t at all a new or fringe idea. Anyway, I am wondering if anticipatory anxiety, and being in a situation where you know almost TOO much, has had an impact on your level of pain. Some surgeons even suggest cognitive therapy or medication prior to surgery to improve outcomes.

I had an experience when younger where I had two surgeries. Didn’t feel like I healed from the first one. Then the second didn’t seem like it was healing either. Lots of issues. Freaked out, had a breakdown, got on an SSRI, and finally fully healed within a month. The meds were the difference maker. My brain just needed a break from the obsession. My mind had gotten stuck and physically I was healing but mentally I was not.

So I would recommend trying your best to do some positive visualization and relaxation tricks just to keep your spirits up, and just tell yourself daily you are going to heal up perfectly fine. Unless something bad happens that clearly needs medical intervention, give yourself lots of time to get better and try not to stress too much about it. It also just takes a long time for some folks to heal from surgery. As long as there are regular improvements from week to week, you should be good. The body is amazing with it’s ability to heal. But we can hamper this by focusing too much on it and thinking about the pain. That keeps the body from trimming those neurons and delays it from turning off the pain signals as you heal by reinforcing those pain pathways that really aren’t serving a purpose any longer.

Lastly, I wonder, physically, if having a hernia for that long may just mean it’s going to take you a bit longer to heal and feel back to normal. Most people get a hernia and have it repaired fairly quickly and don’t wait years or decades. And they don’t have a hernia while crossing from child to adult. No reason to think that would prevent you from healing, but it may explain some of the extra pain and healing time needed in your particular case. Usually after about a year most people find the vast majority of twinges and discomforts have finally stopped being noticeable. Ultimately sounds like you’re going to be just fine.

Just some thoughts. Thanks again for sharing this experience. Very interesting.

I am possibly having a procedure myself in February to remove a lipoma and tighten up the inguinal area because I have a small bulge after removal that is apparently technically not a full hernia but probably is some extra fatty tissue pressing on some weak areas that exist possibly because of the mesh removal. I think it may be the source of some lingering pains and discomfort and the plan is to do a more minor repair with some stitches (not a full Shouldice-type repair). Hoping it goes well. But I also have some concerns as I am obsessive and a hypochondriac and I know I am my own worst enemy when it comes to healing. I’d leave it alone but I feel it’s an issue and I am finally ready to deal with it after my last surgery two years ago.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 4 months ago by  ajm222.