At ten days I went to the Dr. office and his nurse removed the staples and he came in and checked everything over to make sure everything looked good. I didn't know staples could/should be removed anyplace other than an office. Due to severe constipation and a bowel prep at 9 days I stopped pain meds however I managed it with Tylenol (sometimes occasional Tylenol 3), muscle relaxer at bedtime and Gabapentin. At around six weeks my surgeon stopped giving me an pains meds so I was able to talk with my regular NP and she gave me Tylenol 3 which works for me if I take it sparingly when things got bad. I am now at 10 months and still experience soreness/stiffness. I want to be done with this but it is so much better and I am doing everything I did before except getting off the ground (it's a process). I think for where you are you are doing great. If you can I would do PT at the office as it's much more effective.