Seeking support for recovery from diverticulitis surgery

YES, it's too soon. "Walking" is your friend for the next month, then gentle stretches that involve some easy twisting. No lifting. If I had to do it all over, I would not have lifted or twisted for 3 months. I had the repair surgery with mesh reinforcement to repair the colon resection incision damage (hernia) on Jan 8. Now, six weeks later, I'm feeling great and it's soooo hard not to resume ALL physical activities, BUT I need to remind myself.... it takes months, maybe a year for that incision, now mesh to "meld" with all the muscles and tissues in my abdomen to create strength. Surgeries take a toll on your body and the aging process. I don't want anymore surgeries! We must take time getting back to the gym. Slow and steady!

Thank you for the response. How did you injure yourself?

That's the problem. I can't tell you. Had my colon resection in December. I thought I waited long enough walking, easy stuff....then, I think March-April made up my mind I would recover my energy and strength. I started swinging golf club, doing senior boot camp, swimming, gardening. I had a great, very active summer, golfing three times a week. Then in August, I noticed my waist being bigger than usual with no weight gain. No pain, just a slow, growing waistline with a slight bigger protrusion near the belly button. Saw my surgeon. He confirmed a hernia in September. He said it would not get smaller, only bigger. The danger was a bowel blockage if the hernia got too big. By Jan 8 when I had my elective surgery, my waist was a 42! I weigh 145 and am 5'8". Not skinny, but certainly not a 42" waist! I'm a 71 year old who is vain! 😂. I'm not sure if I'll plan a forced slower pace this Spring-summer. I know I don't want anymore surgeries to recover from!

You don't know how much your post means to me. Thank you very much. I also have a "nugget" in my pants sometimes & also am unaware of it. Otherwise, I feel fine and hope you do too. My robotic surgery was done when I was 82, for the same reason--a lot of similarities.

I'm very confused. I need Diverticulitis surgery in July. Is it normal to have a colonoscopy the day before your surgery? Any advise would be apricated!! I have meet with two different surgeons and one wants to do a colonoscopy the day before surgery and the other doesn't.

Hi, @graciek. I was prompted by your situation as similar in some respects to mine. I had a colonoscopy on December 15 last year and a partial colectomy the next day. Leading up to that, I had been troubled by burbling juices in my colon where it crossed from right to left just below my chest. My medical team wanted some visuals, so in had a CT Scan that showed a partial blockage where the colon turns down on my left side. Was cancer involved in the tissues of the block? A colonoscopy could provide the answer, we agreed, so it was performed one day, and abdominal surgery the next day removed three-fourths of my colon and connected my shall intestine to the sigmoid section of the residual colon. Cancer was confirmed in the blockage and in the cecum (near the appendix). For good measure, they took my gall bladder out too, though no cancer turned up there or in 20 lymph glands along the route. Now six months later, I'm progressing in rehabilitation to the point of driving a hundred miles to and from medical examinations, exercising regularly in my basement gym, and dieting to build some muscle to replace 30 pounds I lost from digestive interruption. At age 88, I'm able to help my wife with homekeeping tasks and grocery shopping. Hope this can be helpful to you in deciding what to do with your medical team and whether to get another opinion from a major teaching hospital in your community. Martin

thanks for your story!

GM. If I can lend any advise, it would be to take it easy during healing. As others noted, a few months post surgery I felt ready to get back my exercise routine including sit ups. The sit ups agitated my surgery site which I explained to my doctor that it felt like 'pulling'. After a discussion on scar tissue and healing, I was advised to hold off further until I was fully healed. Which could take a year or more. It was recommended for me to use a TENS machine which helped with the ache-pull effect. Take it easy. Watch your diet and walk. You will heal slowly.

I am 82 & had 6 inches of my colon removed. No one told me but my stool comes out in small balls. If I walk a lot and drink 64 oz. of water daily, as well as eat fibrous foods, I can have a normal bowel movement.

I had 6 inches of colon removed in 2017...problem with constipation ever since.