Appendectomy at 26 Weeks Pregnant

I had one of these...but not when pregnant. so I FEEL for you.
about the gas...lay on your left side as much as possible...and it will pass. it takes a while to get feeling back to normal. BUT what is normal when you are pregnant! I felt like I was as big as the kool-aid man for 3-5 days! then FINALLY I cleared up. however the burning pain from the place they cut me lasted over a year. and I was in a job with frequent lifting...you will be lifting a baby! so REST when you can and let others do the heavy work for ya! trust me on this one!!!!!!
Good luck!

Walking is the best way to pass the gas and reduce the pain. You don't have to take the narcotic pain meds prescribed, but use what OTC pain med the OB doc said was ok for pregnancy. Use your abdominal muscles even though it is uncomfortable (gently of course)
L., RN
Mother of 3, grand of 2

Hi, K., You should feel a little better every day. Good luck and best wishes! N.

Hi K.

I read the last 2 responses and they advise you to walk around and do some gentle exercise and that you don't need to take the pain meds , neither of them say whether they have been through the same thing.

I had an appendectomy last summer , I was 34 wks pregnant at the time , not sure how long between you getting pain and having a diagnosis was but that could make the difference. I went into hospital in agony after feeling unwell all day not knowing what wrong , after 4 days in the hospital and my OB insisting it was kidney stones they finally did an MR scan to find that my appendix had ruptured. I was taken down for surgery where they delivered my daughter and also removed the ruptued appendix and cleaned me up. My incision is vertical and 10 inches long down the centre of my stomach , I stayed in the hospital for 10 days after the surgery , they left the incision open so it could heal and close from the inside , I had to have it packed and redressed every day and for it to close took almost 3 weeks.

So what I am saying is that I did need the pain relief but I was no longer pregnant , yes it caused constipation which is painful in itself , I could not walk properly or upright for a few weeks and I was tired all the time and slept a lot.I also was not allowed to drive for 6 weeks.

As you are still pregnant then it sounds like your incision is not as big as mine so you should heal quicker , but you are right to try and move around as much as you can manage , and also try to eat foods that will help with bloatedness and your BM's.

I hope you feel better soon!

K.

Hi K.,
I am so sorry to hear this happened to you! I am 21 weeks pregnant and I have had a C-section so I know what abdominal surgery is like, but I cannot imagine it pregnant! I know you must be so uncomfortable. Do you have a Lazybooy in your house? Or, a reclining chair with a footrest? It may help to sleep in those? In a week you will feel a ton better, of that I am sure. My sister had the laproscopy and she was much much better after a week. I hope the incision is at least small?? The pain meds definately make the gas worse, and the cause constipation so its good you stopped taking them, too bad you can only take what, Tylenol? And when you are pregnant your digestive tract does not work well - I have horrible trouble with mine! I would maybe walk around once in a while to help get things moving (if you know what i mean : ))My doctor told me last time that gas/bloat can cause alot of the pain you feel the first week and it should be delt with first if the pain is bad. Hopefully if you can feel better there, the incision will not bother you so much.
Keep letting your husband help you and help yourself heal quickly! xxHugsxx

Danielle

Wow! I have no experience with this but wanted to send some possitive thoughts your way. What a thing to have to go through! Good luck.