surgery

Hi jennas,

Everyone interprets pain differently, but from my own experience and the experience of working here on the forum, I'd say that the vast majority of people don't have a significant amount of pain. 

There are always a few outliers who, perhaps because of a variation in procedure, have pain problems, but as a whole, people who have a straight hiatus hernia repair and Nissen fundoplication don't find the pain unbearable at all.

Most often the referred shoulder pain is the most bothersome. I found that the more I walked post-op, the less shoulder pain I had. Walking is key.  You can start it right away when you are in the hospital.  I walked at night whenever I got up to go to the bathroom.  The nurses saw me as I strolled by pushing my IV pole!  A nurse recommended the walking routine, and it was wonderful advice!

Read over my early recovery journal and you can see what my experience was like in regards to pain:

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=45&m=2183443

Take care,

Denise

Hi Jennas,

That's a very important thing to know.  The only way I know of is to call his/her office and ask for that information straight-out.  They have a responsibility to tell you the truth.  I went to a surgeon recommended by my GI doctor, and he had done 300+, and did 3 the week  had mine.  I lived in a small city, so that was a substantial number. 

Just ask.

Good luck!

Denise

jennas-

They do try to remove as much of the gas as they can, but some will still remain. The pain I believe is from the pressure on the nerves and such from the gas and irritates them.

My hospital stays were #1 2 days, #2 3 days (redo), and #3 7 days (redo open surgery). My open surgery was my best recovery. No shoulder pain!

Take care,
Bill