Hardness around incisions/recovery period

[katia86]

Hi there,

I had a laparoscopy for ruptured ectopic pregnancy nearly 2 weeks ago.
I have noticed that on 2 of my wounds the area around the stitches is hard. The other wound doesn't have this. Has anyone else experienced this hardness?

I'd also be interested to hear anyone elses experiences of recovery times. I really felt like I was getting much better this week - even managed to walk to the shops etc. - but the last day I've felt really tired again and a bit lightheaded. This is really frustrating because I thought I was on the mend and I'm due to go back to work on Monday and will be useless if I am this tired. Hopefully just a blip!...

Grateful to hear any others experiences.

Thanks,

Katie

[Kellermans]

Hi,

First off I'm not a medical professional, but just wanted to reply to you as I had the exact same questions after my surgery.

Only one of my incisions had what you're describing, the one where the tube was removed - right side in my case, but the whole area round it felt hard & not painful but slightly tender! I think it's just the trauma to the tissue inside & it healing, it will go down.

I'm now about 10 weeks post surgery & my other 2 incisions have healed completely, nothing more than red marks, no tenderness at all. My right side just now has a lot of scar tissue, which is also quite hard, but also on the mend.

As for recovery, my doctor signed me off for 2 weeks when I was discharged from the hospital, and I thought I'd be back up & running & back at work in a week, but it did take me the full 2 weeks to feel up to going back to work, and even then I probably went back too soon, out of boredom than anything else really, so if you feel you need a bit more time, take it. Going back too soon will just put your recovery further back. Another thing I noticed, although I had been moving about at home, a full day back at work walking around made my leg muscles ache really badly, so just prepare for that & try to take it as easy as you can when you do go back.

Hope that helps

[katia86]

Hi there,

Thank you very much for the response, that's really helpful I have a GP appointment today to double check everything, but it's reassuring to know someone has had a similar thing.

Your experience on recovery timings really helpful too. I was also told 2 weeks but hoped I'd be better after 1 week and that wasn't the case for me either! I am now at the end of my 2nd week - am feeling much better but energy levels still low and am starting to feel a bit overwhelmed about the thought of working 5 days back to back, especially as I have quite a long commute (fortunately I should be able to do a bit from home too). I was going to talk to the doctor about possibly doing some reduced hours the first week so hearing your experience definitely makes me think this is a good idea!

Thanks again for your response, really appreciate it

[Jess1983]

I too had surgery for an Ectopic Pregnancy just over two weeks ago...in the night of May 25 to morning of 26th. It's been terrible, emotional and life changing. All I've been wanting is a day when some sense of normalcy shows itself. I've had a few of those days, when I've felt kinda good...happier, able to leave the house, etc. but the next day is usually back to bed and feeling sad for myself. Anyway, I have faith that all of this will pass for you, myself and others with time and eventually, we will be fully healed and ready to face life again! What didn't kill is is making us stronger, right?
In the meantime, I too am having a problem with the incision spot on my right side (same as you, right tube). It's looking pretty good but I can feel this hardness under the incision...almost feels like a scab on the inside! I met with my doctor last Thursday and she said that those are he internal stitches that will dissolve and recommended me to gently massage that area and the incision with coconut oil or something lubricating to get those stitches some attention. I started doing this and it feels wonderful! But only if you're gentle. Rub in a circlular motion as soft as you would maybe rub a sad baby kitten and really try to feel those stitches in a soft way. Please, don't rub them or mess with them too rough like though! Yesterday afternoon, I got a little ahead of myself with trying to dissolve them faster by massage and I was too rough. It hurt me and my incision all but yelled out loud to me! Honestly it feels a little bruised now but I hope to be able to start GENTLY massaging again tonight and tomorrow. In my mind, it seems it would be benificial to put a hot towel over that spot too to kinda soothe and relax the stitches. In my experience, disolvable anythings always dissolve faster when exposed to warmth or heat...but I'm not a doctor so I could be totally wrong. That's just my natural intuition for another solution to our problem. I think I'll try it too. I'll let you know how it goes.
Cheers to you, me and our recovering minds and bodies! I know good things are in store for us.

[katia86]

Thanks so much for your reply My timing was actually the same as yours - I went into hospital the night of 25th with really awful pain - was kept in overnight and they did the operation first thing in the morning after internal scan confirmed it.

My GP said similar about the hardness - his actual words were that it was where they had stitched the muscle in stomach back together :/ - but he didn't mention the gentle massage thing so I will definitely give it a go - thanks for the tip I had the same feeling as you re putting something warm on it, I was debating a hot water bottle (wrapped in towel) earlier this week but wasn't sure!

Thanks for sharing how you're feeling too. I'm the same, yesterday I was feeling almost normal and today I've just felt so sad and upset all day and knackered. GP advised the feeling tired thing is likely to continue for 4-6 weeks afterwards. I'm doing a phased return back to work this week (mainly working from home I think) so will see how it goes!..

Sending you all best wishes for recovery and the future

[Jess1983]

While in the hospital that night, I remember thinking "is there anyone else out there going through this same thing right now? Will they be okay? Will I be okay?"
Glad we found each other.

[katia86]

Aww me too =) The internet is amazing for making connections. Hope your recovery is going well