[Jim82]

My PT gave me printouts of the exercises. I also told him upfront I only wanted a couple of sessions. First session he evaluated my flexibility and gave me about 5 exercises. Went back in 6 weeks and he gave me 4 additional exercises.

[Jim82]

I do feel they help. Hard to tell how much I’m strengthening my core but I figured the stretching aspect couldn’t hurt. Not real comfortable passing on the actual exercises as I wouldn’t want anyone to hurt or injure themselves from advice form a non-medical person. A lot of insurance plans allow you to self-refer. Or you could try your family doctor to see if they would refer you.

[Jim82]

I was in the same boat at the 3 month point. I made an appointment for two sessions with a physical therapist, told him I wanted some stretching and core strengthening exercises that did no focus on crunches and he provided instructions, training for 6 or so various exercises. Key is to find a PT who understands you don’t want endless/expensive sessions. My insurance allowed me to self-refer. Others may need their surgeon to provide a referral. Or just pay out of pocket.

[Jim82]

I had left side inguinal laparoscopic TEP with mesh about 16 months ago. I had similar soreness at about the three month point. As I recall it slowly got better but even at the 16 month point I can have some general soreness but now its only if I work real hard like load a few truckloads of wood or something like that.

[Jim82]

I was very conservative and waited 4 weeks to start light exercises. Elliptical, upper body weights. At 6 weeks added jogging less than 1 mile and physical therapist recommended core exercises then at 12 weeks started my pre-surgery routine which was what most would consider light fitness weightlifting. My doc said to avoid quick movement type sports (basketball, tennis etc) for 6 months.

[Jim82]

I have seen nothing that says you cant do crunches other than 1. Its easy to do crunches wrong and 2. My own experience pre-surgery was that crunches aggravated the hernia site so I wanted to try core strengthening that didn’t involve crunches. The PT also reinforced this approach by saying that crunches aren’t necessarily the best core strengthening exercises.

[Jim82]

I started two months after the surgery. 5 pages of instructions and you would probably want to see a PT in person to make sure they are right for your condition. For the first 30 days he had me more of a stretching series of exercises then he progressed to more strenuous exercises. All were floor exercises and required no weights or special equipment other than an exercise ball.

[Jim82]

Highly recommend core exercises. Had TEP/Mesh surgery in Apr 2018 and went to a physical therapist for two sessions a few months after surgery with the specific purpose of getting instruction on core exercises that did not involve crunches. Been doing the exercises two to three times per week ever since. In addition to core strengthening they appear to keep things from tightening up.

[Jim82]

Thought I would post a 6 month update/success story. Mid 50s slightly overweight male. I had Laparoscopic TEP surgery for a medium sized left inguinal hernia on 9 April. Surgeon used Parietex (Covidien) folding mesh and that it was about 4″ x 6″ in size. This is a polyester based mesh with a removable suture to enable ease of folding/insertion during laparoscopic surgery. Near term recovery was uneventful with minimal pain after about 5 days.

Thus far I have zero issues although from reading all the posts it looks like problems can still crop up years later. I am fairly active ( elliptical, jogging, home repair etc) but I have been ultra conservative on heavy lifting and fast motion sports (ie basketball, tennis). I suppose at 6 months I could be less conservative but in reading all the posts on this forum it appears that these are the most common activity based re-occurrence issues.

[Jim82]

I am also from Atlanta and had Laparoscopic TEP with mesh about 4 months ago. I realize its only been 4 months thus most mesh issues dont show up yet Provided Surgeon I used via message to scaredtodeath. Post of my experience is as follows:

https://www.herniatalk.com/6860-post-op-experience-laparoscopic-left-inguinal-surgery

[Jim82]

Very happy with the surgeon but I’m not sure I should provide a name. I struggled with how to find a hernia surgeon in the Atlanta area in that there are many surgeons that list hernia surgery but no reliable way to figure out who does the most hernia surgeries. I looked through numerous bios from general web searches focusing on years of experience, hospitals associated with, medical specialty/education. Got down to about 5 or so then used a site called Amino to figure out who does a lot of surgeries. Not sure if Amino is 100% accurate but they apparently data mine insurance claims and compare the surgeon you are looking at against other hernia surgeons in the Atlanta metro area they give a result that says “Dr X saw more hernia patients than 95% of similar doctors in the Metro Atlanta area in 2014–2018”. When I met with the surgeon I then asked him how many hernia surgeries he did per year and what was the ratio of open vs lap. His answer was about 70 per year and 60% lap, 40% open. Lastly the Dr I chose had completed a Laparoscopic fellowship at a well known Med school and since I was leaning toward Lap this tilted the scale somewhat.

If anyone is looking for a Hernia surgeon in the Atlanta area and figures out how to message me from this board (not a forum expert but I think this is possible from looking at other posts) then I will gladly provide the name

[Jim82]

Status Update: 3 months post-op from left inguinal laparoscopic TEP with mesh hernia surgery and still no issues. No pain, tightness or swelling. I will say I am being super cautious though. I’m doing strenuous yard work, house repairs etc and walking/elliptical but I’m self limiting lifting any more than about 50 lbs from the floor and have not done any running or golfing. Thinking of re-starting light jogging (1/2 mile or less) and nautilus type weight training (mostly for tone, not heavy lifting). I’ve also self referred to a physical therapist to learn some safe exercises on core strengthening to hopefully build up the various ab muscles. If anyone thinks the start up of light jogging/weight training is too soon at 3 mos let me know.

[Jim82]

I’m about 3 weeks post op. What worked really good for me regarding coughing/sneezing (also in GA)was to place a pillow against my groin and abdomen and lean against a wall or dresser when coughing.

[Jim82]

Good Intentions asked what type and size of mesh was used. I had my 2 week follow-up appointment yesterday and the Surgeon said that he used Parietex (Covidien) folding mesh and that it was about 4″ x 6″ in size. This is a polyester based mesh with a removable suture to enable ease of folding/insertion during laparoscopic surgery.

I realize any issues crop up months down the road but for now at the 2 week post op point I feel fine with no twinges/pain/ itching/etc. Other than walking, elliptical and general house projects with no heavy lifting I plan to be fairly conservative with regards to aggressive exercise/motion for 4 or 5 months.

As a side note for those that are considering living with a hernia; even though mine was NOT incarcerated I had a constant battle with constipation that has gotten significantly better since having the surgery. It is my un-medical theory that the loop of intestine/bowel poking down through the hernia site was negatively impacting normal movement. There’s a lot of web results on constipation straining causing a hernia but not much on a hernia causing constipation. Still on a high fiber, lots of water diet but bowel life is definitely more normal since the surgery.

Will post to the above link after a few months

[Jim82]

Day 5 was a carbon copy of day 4.

Day 6 (Saturday, surgery on Monday) was overall about 20% better.

A little soreness at the hernia site area when first getting up then a little tightness depending on what I am doing.
Improvement from day 4 and 5 was noticed primarily in the area of the belly button incision.

Stopped taking Ibupropen with no apparent issues. Could have returned to work (desk job) today if required to.

Will stop posts unless something significant occurs.

[Jim82]

Day 5 was a carbon copy of day 4.

Day 6 (Saturday, surgery on Monday) was overall about 20% better.

A little soreness at the hernia site area when first getting up then a little tightness depending on what I am doing.
Improvement from day 4/5 was noticed primarily in the area of the belly button incision.

Stopped taking Advil with no apparent issues. Could have returned to work (desk job) today if required to.

Will stop posts unless something significant occurs.

[Jim82]

Day 5 & 6 Update (Friday/Sat)

Friday was a carbon copy of day 4 (see previous post)

Saturday (Day 6) was maybe 20% better than day 4/5.

A little hernia site soreness/tightness when first standing up and then still existent but a little less when walking/moving around.
Abdominal pain around the belly button incision area still exists when getting up/coughing/bending over but overall better than day 4/5.
Stopped the advil today with no apparent issues.
Felt comfortable enough to drive a short distance and kept up the three 15 min walks per day and light activity around the house.
Could have went back to desk job work today if necessary.
Haven’t tried yet but I’m guessing the middle incision site would be problematic with a non-elastic/real a pair of pants. Will save that test for a later day.

All in all a pretty smooth process for now. Will stop posting unless something significant pops up.

[Jim82]

Day 4 Update (surgery was early am on Monday ) Thursday = day 4

Day 4 was overall a little better than day 3
Hernia site pain is starting to feel more like just general soreness level 1 or 2, with a high 2 when just getting up then a 1 the rest of the time
Pain of 2 or 3 still around the general area of the incisions.(mostly near the belly button incision) when getting up and moving around
Pain of 2-3 around belly button when coughing. Found best way to minimize cough pain is to take a large pillow and lean firmly against a wall or dresser when coughing.

In general I was able to be up on my feet a larger percentage of the time today.

Medicine-wise took (2) 200 mg Advil at 10 am, (2) Advil again at 9 pm, (1) Colace at 8 pm

Activity-wise took a few 15 minute walks, up and down stairs a few times and general light activity around the house.

[Jim82]

Will try to get clarification from the Dr at the two week post op visit on the exact mesh used.

Day 3 Update (on the morning of Day 4) Just for reference surgery was early am on Monday. Calling yesterday (Wed) day 3

Day 3 was essentially a carbon copy of Day 2
Hernia site pain of 2 or 3 when first getting up from sitting then 1 or 2 when walking around unless I walk around too much
Pain of 2 or 3 around the general area of the incisions.(mostly near the belly button incision) when getting up and moving around
Pain of 2-3 when coughing. Nagging fluid coughing probably due to allergies/high pollen season in GA. Started allergy medicine to counteract.
Key lesson learned is not to sit at a desk for more than 30 min or so without getting up and walking around.

Medicine-wise took (2) 325 mg Tylenol at Breakfast, (2) 325 Tylenol mid-afternoon and (2) Advil at bedtime and (1) Colace

Activity-wise took a few 15 minute walks, up and down stairs a few times and general pacing around the house

[Jim82]

At the consult surgeon said he used perietex mash. Will ask at the 2 week post op visit if that is what he ended up using and how much.

Day 2 update:

Lots of morning activity due to taking 2 colase tablets (12 hrs apart) yesterday and full 4 tablespoon dose of Milk of Mag before bed.

Pain status as follows: Note I stopped Hydrocodone after last night’s bedtime pill and switched to Tylenol today
No pain when in recliner or laying down.
Hernia area pain is still a 2 to 3 when first getting up then 1 or 2 when walking around
Started getting stomach pain/tightness today (around 2 or 3) around the general area of the incisions. Not sure if its incision pain, pain from ballooning up the area (TEP) or residual cramping from the stool medicine.
Pain of 2-3 when coughing or passing gas but no pain anymore to start urination
Used ice three or 4 times when in the recliner

Activity-wise took a few 15 minute walks, up and down stairs a few times and general pacing around the house

No bruising yet other than around the LAP incisions and no fluid bulge yet. Surgeon told my wife that he didn’t think i would see much of a fluid bulge.