Post-op Pain/Incisions

[LAJ23 70]

Can someone please give me the lowdown on a couple of actual surgical questions? How many incisions are made? How big are they and where are they? Of the two surgical consultations, neither doctor really went over this with me (and truthfully, I didn't think to ask). How long do the external incisions take to heal? How long do you take to heal internally? Are you in a lot of pain on the inside or out (aside from gas pain or overeating, etc.)? I've read stories about some people being in pain for weeks and others "rollin' in the hay 3 days later", so I honestly don't know what to expect! I know I won't be doing the latter! LOL!!!

[Pandemonium 515]

14 minutes ago, LAJ23 said:

Can someone please give me the lowdown on a couple of actual surgical questions? How many incisions are made? How big are they and where are they? Of the two surgical consultations, neither doctor really went over this with me (and truthfully, I didn't think to ask). How long do the external incisions take to heal? How long do you take to heal internally? Are you in a lot of pain on the inside or out (aside from gas pain or overeating, etc.)? I've read stories about some people being in pain for weeks and others "rollin' in the hay 3 days later", so I honestly don't know what to expect! I know I won't be doing the latter! LOL!!!

It can vary, but it's usually between 4-7. There will be at least one incision that's about an inch long (I had two, but my procedure also removed my lapband and port) and then several about the width of your pinkie finger.

[Hill_Billy 14]

I have five incisions, the largest is maybe an inch and a half right over my belly button. Other than a general feeling of soreness in my belly, like I did a million crunches, I’ve basically been pain-free! Even gas pain wasn’t bad, but I did walk a TON... I did 3-4 miles the day after surgery. I’m only 10 days out but the incisions are scabbed over. My surgeon seems to have used a glue on them, so no obvious stitches. But I wish you the best of luck!

[breavsg 90]

Can someone please give me the lowdown on a couple of actual surgical questions? How many incisions are made? How big are they and where are they? Of the two surgical consultations, neither doctor really went over this with me (and truthfully, I didn't think to ask). How long do the external incisions take to heal? How long do you take to heal internally? Are you in a lot of pain on the inside or out (aside from gas pain or overeating, etc.)? I've read stories about some people being in pain for weeks and others "rollin' in the hay 3 days later", so I honestly don't know what to expect! I know I won't be doing the latter! LOL!!!

Hi!! I had my VSG done on January 8 of this year along with a hernia repair (so my experience may be a bit different). I had five incisions: one in the middle of my belly up towards my ribs/bra line, then the other four were in a line, level with my belly button, about 4 inches apart. The incisions themselves are about a half an inch except for the one that they remove your stomach from, that one is a bit larger, maybe an inch or so (that one was the most sore). I had a bit of bruising around the top incision and the larger one of the four, but not much around the others. My surgeon used surgical glue which fell off within a couple weeks and the wounds were healed, barely any scars. Hope that helps at least a little bit, take care!

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[Foxbins 625]

I had five incisions with each of my surgeries. My sleeve was nine years ago and you can't see the scars unless you know where to look. My RNY was seven weeks ago and they are browny-pink and two are an inch long, on either side of my belly button, two are about half an inch long on either side of my waist, and one, where the drain was removed, is on my left side just under my rib cage. There are internal sutures that you can't see but most surgeons use a surgical glue called Dermabond to close the skin. My glue peeled up along the edges and flaked off a little bit at a time but was all gone by three weeks post op. Healing internally takes about six weeks. My doctor did not want me to lift anything over 15 lbs until then so that the internal staples and sutures were tightly knit together. I was not in very much pain with the sleeve--by the third day after surgery I was not taking any opioid painkillers. With the bypass there was more pain, I took oxycontin for about a week postop, but I also had a hernia repair and a myotomy, so that might have made the pain worse. The scars are nothing, the pain is only for a short time. You'll do great!

[WhatATool:-) 15]

I got gastric bypass - 6 incisions. Every day the pain got better. At day 8 I felt like I truly hit a turning point and felt almost normal. Not coincidentally, that was the day after I started getting my Protein in

[ms.sss 15,573]

I had the sleeve, 5 incisions: 4 of them less than 1/2 inch, 1 of them about an inch (this one is the darkest one in the pic below).

I had a Tummy Tuck a few months after this pic was taken, and the 3 scars closest and above my belly button are now below it. The one under my bra line is still in the same spot (which confuses me?) and the last one seems to have completely faded because I can’t find it anymore, lol.

Edited to add: pain was there, but manageable. I did not take any pain meds after the first day home (i was in hospital for 1 nite). I was sore, but it was the tiredness/exhaustion that was more bothersome.

P.S. FYI This pic was taken 11 months post op. I have a long history of not being a great scar healer (i.e., keloids or hypertrophic scars), so I think the predominance of their appearance here is not typical. I know there are many whose scars were already faded at the same point post-op.

Edited August 14, 2020 by ms.sss

[mjneeves 3]

There is suppose to be 5 incisions. I got 6 but I think that is due to the weak skin in my belly button (it would sometimed use to split and bleed whenever I would clean it) I am 3 days post op. I gotta be honest my doctor told me it wouldn't be very painful but it really is. It is increasingly getting easier with each day. First few days I had trouble sitting and getting up on my own since mt house has relatively low furniture and I'm a tall person. Now my main problems are bending over. I cab get almost halfway but nothing on the floor is reachable to me
Literally dropped a chapstick on the floor looked at my mom (who had surgery same day as me) and went oh well looks like thats where it lives now. Now for incision pain.. Honestly they don't hurt much themselves. The bellybutton one does for sure. But the others are just kind of a little sore with certain movements. For me the one furthest on my left gets little pangs of pain around it when I move certain ways. Which honestly isn't the incision itself its the surrounding area of the abdominal wall that is sore for me. My doctor said 2 weeks for incisions to heal and 4 for stomach to heal from being split and stapled. Everyone heals differently though so I'd plan to give it about 5 to 6 weeks just incase. Also the biggest pain for me was gas...oh my god that gas pain is really something. When your stomach is bloated and swollen and healing to feel gassy air bubbles travel around is incredibly painful. However with walking, stretching(carefully) and changing positions it is manageable. Funny enough just had one while typing that sentence lol. I just moved my position a little and it passed within a second or two. Good luck! Just remember pain and healing aside...this surgery is worth it as long as you are willing to work hard to make it so.

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[mjneeves 3]

There is suppose to be 5 incisions. I got 6 but I think that is due to the weak skin in my belly button (it would sometimed use to split and bleed whenever I would clean it) I am 3 days post op. I gotta be honest my doctor told me it wouldn't be very painful but it really is. It is increasingly getting easier with each day. First few days I had trouble sitting and getting up on my own since mt house has relatively low furniture and I'm a tall person. Now my main problems are bending over. I cab get almost halfway but nothing on the floor is reachable to me
Literally dropped a chapstick on the floor looked at my mom (who had surgery same day as me) and went oh well looks like thats where it lives now. Now for incision pain.. Honestly they don't hurt much themselves. The bellybutton one does for sure. But the others are just kind of a little sore with certain movements. For me the one furthest on my left gets little pangs of pain around it when I move certain ways. Which honestly isn't the incision itself its the surrounding area of the abdominal wall that is sore for me. My doctor said 2 weeks for incisions to heal and 4 for stomach to heal from being split and stapled. Everyone heals differently though so I'd plan to give it about 5 to 6 weeks just incase. Also the biggest pain for me was gas...oh my god that gas pain is really something. When your stomach is bloated and swollen and healing to feel gassy air bubbles travel around is incredibly painful. However with walking, stretching(carefully) and changing positions it is manageable. Funny enough just had one while typing that sentence lol. I just moved my position a little and it passed within a second or two. Good luck! Just remember pain and healing aside...this surgery is worth it as long as you are willing to work hard to make it so.

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Forgot to add my pics   

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[mcfluffington 179]

Incision pain is not a big issue for most people.

But gas pain bothers a lot of folks.

I had two weight loss surgeries and the first one I breezed through.

The second one was excruciating when I moved. It lasted a month.

My doctor had no idea what it was. But he was a newbie at this particular operation.

I know, what a dummy I am. But I felt desperate to have the second weight loss surgery.

Hey it resolved my diarrhea that I had from the first operation so there is a silver-lining.

I feel confident you will breeze through this. (fingers crossed)

The incisions are very small and they disappear completely over time.

I can not even see my first incisions anymore and I am eight years out from the first operation.

[BigSue 1,364]

I had gastric bypass, but I think this part is pretty similar for both surgeries. I have six incisions. Five of them are in a row; you could connect them with a horizontal line about three inches above my belly button. The second one is about two inches below my right breast. The largest one is about an inch and a quarter and the smallest is about half an inch. The largest one had a lot of bruising around it at first.

i was instructed to keep the dressings on the incisions for three days and leave the steri-strips (adhesive strips to hold the incisions closed) on for a week. The incisions looked kind of nasty when the dressings and steri-strips were on, but when I removed the dressings and steri-strips, I realized that I was just seeing dried blood and the incisions were almost healed.

i was surprised by how little pain I had. The only real pain I experienced was gas pain, and it was awful the first day but improved quickly. By 24 hours after surgery, I was merely uncomfortable, but not really in pain. I had a couple of doses of Toradol in the hospital. I went home the day after surgery with a prescription for Vicodin, which I filled just in case but did not need it. I didn’t even need Tylenol. I have not felt any pain in the incisions except a tiny bit a few times when I leaned over a certain way and the waistline of my clothing rubbed against an incision. I could feel a little internal discomfort if I twisted my torso too much (e.g., rolling over in bed).

By about the 4th day after surgery, I felt ok. I could have returned to work (desk job) at that point if I really had to, but I was definitely better off taking the week off and focusing on getting fluids and Protein (which is pretty much a full-time job at first). I went back to work 11 days after surgery. I remember that I actually felt great that day, better than an average day before surgery.

I’m almost a month out right now and I basically feel “normal,” except that I am not hungry at all. I haven’t felt the least bit hungry since my surgery despite the fact that I haven’t had more than 500 calories in a day for over a month. I was instructed not to lift anything over 20 pounds for the first 6 weeks, but that’s the only physical restriction I have.

[WishMeSmaller 1,273]

RNY and hiatal hernia repair on July 7. I had minimal pain, except when I woke up in recovery I was in agony. Took a couple of pain pills for about three days, then just Tylenol. My gas pain was minimal, but my abdomen was hugely bloated for a good week. I walked a ton as soon as I was in my hospital room the night of surgery. Every time I woke up during the night I walked a couple of laps in the unit. The surgeon actually told me I was walking too much.😂 5 incisions 1/2-3/4 inch. All were bruised and tender, but no significant pain. I took two weeks off from work because of the hernia repair causing me difficulties with eating (pain and puking) for the first 10 days or so. If it hadn’t been for that, I could have worked week two post-op. I have actually felt great and had tons of energy since surgery. Good luck!

[STLoser 1,099]

I had a Loop DS on July 24th. I had 5 incisions, and one drain in my upper left abdomen. My largest incision was above and to the right of my belly button and is about 1.5 inches. There is another incision to the left of my belly button that is about an inch. The other incisions are all about the size of a pencil eraser or smaller. I have to say this surgery was harder than any other I've had. I usually wake up fine from anesthesia and bounce right back. This time I was so nauseated. I had some pain, but mostly in the back and I think that was gas. The day after surgery I was still nauseated and I had to go for my swallow test, and threw the contrast right up. I ended up staying 3 nights because of the nausea. My husband was so worried because I was really out of it for the first 2 days, which has not happened to me with surgery before. Even though I felt so sick those first couple days, I walked as much as I could. The nausea was gone the day I went home, and I haven't had any since.
I had to keep my drain in until 10 days post op when I saw my surgeon, and I was sore after it was removed. I also ended up having pain in that area and in my back, and actually took a Percocet. It was so weird because I hadn't had much pain since coming home. I later found out it was a kidney stone which I've never had before.
Anyway, overall, the post op pain was pretty mild for me, but I did have a couple days of bad nausea and some vomiting in the hospital, but now I feel almost 100% back to normal! I just got to soft foods yesterday, and I feel great now that I finally get to eat!


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[Bastian 458]

I had a sleeve then a bypass a week later, 5 incisions for both, they just went back into the 5 from the sleeve for the bypass.

I'm a year out and they are a dull pink colour. Healing takes approx 6 weeks. But there's no issue showering with them, they are covered with a waterproof dressing.

I had a fair bit of pain but I did have 2 major ops within a week through the same incisions, so mine was to be expected.