For those of you have been there . . . how long until you feel normal? (almost 4 weeks post-op) - Colombia, CO

I've been reading posts on this site for months and can't quite believe I'm adding a post now. I've always had lax stomach muscles and developed a large umbilical hernia over the last year (following surgery to remove my appendix). I looked into options for repairing my hernia and opted for a tummy tuck. My surgery is the day after tomorrow! Two nights ago I couldn't sleep because I was so nervous. Last night I had a hard time sleeping because I felt like I could get a cold and was worried about having to reschedule my surgery. I stayed home from work to rest today and am doing my best to be healthy for the surgery! I will post "before" pictures soon . . . and "after" pictures in a few days (I hope!).

I'm 3 days post-op and beginning to feel human again. I was even feeling well enough to take some pictures! I have a lot of swelling and my doctor says I won't acheive my final results for about 6 weeks. I'm hernia-free and have a nice belly button again! I think I'm going to be really pleased with the results. The only thing that concerns me a bit is that I have a large keloid-ish scar below my belly button (obviously not a new scar, but I had never seen it before). I believe it is the result of my old umbilical hernia and the doctor probably wasn't able to hide it (He told me it was going to be a challege to rebuild a belly button because of my large hernia. After my surgery, my doctor said I had the biggest hernia he had ever seen!). I'll see the doctor again tomorrow and will ask him about it. Most of my pain now is at the drain site. Have you guys had a similar experience with drains?

My surgery went very well and I was healing very well. Last friday night, however, I woke up at midnight with some pain behind my right knee (not too bad). The next morning, I had a post-op appointment and mentioned the pain to my doctor. Even though I had no swelling, redness or warmth, the doctor decided to be cautious and have me tested for a blood clot. Sure enough - I had one! I've been in the hospital since Saturday, getting painful anti-coagulant shots twice a day (I have to get them in my arms - which really hurts - but it's safer than getting them in my stomach, where my hernia repair took place. I will be released from the hospital when my blood thins enough, but it's not clear when that will happen (so far, my clotting is still normal - 6 shots later).

My surgeon operated on me with compression socks and used the most up-to-date equipment to keep my circulation going strong for the first 24 hours. Everything was done right by my surgeon. I tried to walk as much as possible the first week after surgery . . . but I sometimes wonder if I walked enough. Everything should turn out well in the long run, but I wanted to share my story so you can all be vigilent and report any blood clot symptoms to your doctor. All surgery patients are at higher risk for clots for several months - so KEEP WALKING!