Seeking support for recovery from diverticulitis surgery
I hope I am posting in the right section! I am almost four weeks in recovery from surgery to resection my colon because I have had so many diverticulitis flare ups. My last flare up started in June, 2022 and lasted until my surgery on Oct. 14. I had no choice but to have the surgery because I developed a stricture in my sigmoid colon. The surgery was supposed to be laparoscopic but ended up being open. It was seven hours. I was in the hospital for 11 days. Now home, I am still in some pain although the surgical site is healing well. My bowel function is a mess. Lots of gas too. I am getting no guidance on how to proceed or what to expect. I wonder how others have survived this. I am looking at a longer recovery because of the open surgery. I would love to avoid more problems in the future, and regain my health. I just turned 70. I don’t know anyone who has undergone this surgery and would like to talk to others who have!
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I stopped taking the ppi they were making me really sick. And I didn’t take a Pepcid this am and last night I had to. My throat feel like it’s on fire and I need some kinda help. I’m doing a smoothie right now. I be glad when this gets under control
Sorry to hear your are still suffering. What parts were removed in your colon surgery?
Sigmoid. Now I have bad acid reflux
That is very strange and seems disconnected from the surgery. Have you considered seeing an ear, nose and throat specialist?
They are saying it’s stress.
@ciebrown, I moved your posts to this related discussion:
– Seeking support for recovery from diverticulitis surgery
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/seeking-support-for-recovery-from-diverticulitis-surgery/
How is your recovery going? Are things slowly improving?
I had a very similar experience with diverticulitis and am facing surgery in a few weeks. If you are still communicating in this group I would love to know how you’re doing now.
Hello, I'm sorry you need to have surgery. It's a bummer for sure! It's been a year since my resection surgery due to an abscessed colon and perforation from Diverticulitis. Once I recovered, I noticed I could eat foods, that for years, I couldn't tolerate. My constant diarrhea stopped! So, my story ended with a good recovery and a better digestion system.
What I remember from recovery? I worried about my colon working! The first week or so, I HAD to be near a bathroom. Religious adherence to daily Metamucil fixed this. Eventually (a couple months) all BM's did become absolutely normal with a daily movement.
Do not lift anything for two months after surgery. I am going into hospital to repair a post operative abdominal hernia. The incision site was strained somehow and now I need to go in (this Monday!) to have the hernia repaired. Lesson... follow lifting and strenuous exercise instructions.
If you have any specific questions now or after surgery, let me know.
Best wishes for a complete recovery this New Year!
Sorry you are having a difficult time following surgery. On July 2022 I had laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy due to diverticulitis/stricture in sigmoid colon age 72. Recovery takes longer than you think but the worst part is the frequent trips to the bathroom day in and day out. One starts to wonder if things will ever change. I did not feel confident leaving the house for around a month. I was concerned about frequent urgency of BM’s. Believe me, things do get better once the colon adjusts following surgery. Recovery from open surgery will take much longer than laparoscopic. Moving forward, remember the worst is over with, you are in the recovery phase and over time things will improve. Keep a positive attitude and good luck!
"Lesson... follow lifting and strenuous exercise instructions." Your comment caught my eye. I am 3.5 weeks post-surgery for diverticulitis. I was feeling better before than now. I did lift a couple garbage bags and now I have some mild pain in my lower abdomen. I want to start yoga. Do you know if it's too soon?