regarding hernia repair surgery

hi all- i am 14 months post-op and have been advised that i have problems with hernias. i have what the doctor calls "swiss cheese"- referring to several small holes in the abdominal wall. i will need surgery to repair same. i would love to get some feedback from anyone who may have had this type of surgery. what was it like? please share your experiences. i know that my surgery will be laparoscopic and i will be hospitalized for a few days. thanks for your input. ellin

Hi --I had incisional hernia repair at 11 mos post-op. I did not have laparoscopic though. They opened up my previous incision and put in a mesh wall. I had it done on an outpatient basis and it there was hardly any pain. You just have to be careful not to do any lifting for 6 weeks until all heals well. Good Luck! Sherrie

i had an incisional/unbilical hernia that created one large hole that was 10cm wide. my innards were protruding and i litereally looked like i was 6 months pregnant. my surgeon was able to repair the hole without the mesh but he went through an incision on my panty line because he went ahead and gave me a TT at the same time... the only benefit to the damn hernia! i was hospitalized for 4 days and told to recover for 3 weeks. i'm entering my 3rd week now. your recovery should be a little better since it'll be done laparoscopically... good luck to you!

Hi Ellin, In June I had my gallbladder removed and while they were in there they looked for those small holes and repaired them as they found them. It was a laproscopic procedure and I went home in less than 24 hours. Is your bariatric surgeon going to do the surgery? That's who did mine and it went very well. If they are just the small holes that form due to the rapid weight loss it can be done lap. Good luck! Pat B. 356/242/180 lap rny 8/30/04