How long did you have port pain?

[sockmonkey 0]

As I'm reading through the boards, I'm hearing a lot about port pain, and to my surprise, it's not always just after surgery! Would you please share with me how long you had port pain after your procedure and how it has affected your workouts, sleep positions, etc. Thanks!

[NurseSophie 0]

It hurt for about 4 weeks after surgery and can still get sore if I wear a tighter pair of pants or scrubs. Nothing I need medicine for, though. I've always slept on my side so don't know about sleeping. OH! and if I eat and am full...and then lay down..it gets tender when I try to get up. Still...it's nothing you can't live with.

[sockmonkey 0]

Thanks for your reply, Sophie! My scrubs come back on Aug. 31 (I'm an RN student) and I'm a little nervous for that first clinical. :smile: I hate cutting it so close but if I see other nurses can go back to work and be productive, then it gives me hope!

[pmcw 0]

Ok, since I have not had a fill yet, I was banded on 6/30/2010, I am not positive which incision is for the port, but I think it is the one farthest to the left, since pre-op he told me it would be on the left side. But I can tell you from day one I still slept on my side, and I could lay on my stomach very shortly after that. I have 5 small incisions, most of them are under an inch long, the longest one is where they place the band threw, and it is more like 2 inches, I have not had much pain from any of my incisions, I mean if you rub them they are tender, like you would expect, but they don't really hurt. The one for me that is most tender is the top one, it is maybe two inches above the longer one for the band, and a couple of times I stretched to reach for something and I felt a pull there, so I think it is taking longer for that one to heal, but that is my fault really. I also had a hiatal hernia repair done at the same time so that may be effecting that area too. I only have one incision that is low enough for my pants to bother it, but it is on the right, so I don't think it is the port, I think it is just lower because I already had a scar on that side from a gall bladder & appendix surgery years ago, so I think he was just avoiding that old scar tissue. I can't feel anything particularly harder than the normal incision hardness right now so the port is not bothering me at all:rolleyes2: I only took pain meds after the surgery for the back pain, I didn't need them for the incisions, and the back pain was not horrible. Pam

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,281]

I was banded about two and a half years ago. I have experienced more what I call a slight tenderness. The real pain lasted for about a month, but I was able to sleep on it after about 2 weeks post.

I only really feel it now when I either eat a little too much or my pants are too tight. Other than that, for me it's really nothing to be to worried about. I even asked my Surgeon about it because it had been a few years and I told him I still feel some discomfort there. He said it's perfectly normal and a great deal many band patients do have this.

[Sebastia40 0]

I have had bouts with severe port pain since I got the band 4 months ago. At times the pain has been so severe that the doctor has prescribed pain killers for me. I have tried sleeping with heating pads and whatever else they sugguested and nothing has helped. It will hurt badly for about 2 weeks then go away only to come back in another two week or so. At this point The Chief NP is saying they are going to have to reposition the port because it is causing ulcerations on the muscle wall it is supposed to be attached to. I am very concerned by this because I cant really afford to shell out more money for them to reposition the port when they should have either attached it better or put it in a place that wouldn't hurt. I put in the call today to see how much this was going to cost. So we will see soon.

Craig

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,281]

Sebastia40, I'm sorry to hear your having issues that will cause more surgery for you. Get well soon!

[George R 0]

Now 8 days post op. Extreme discomfort the first 3 days now none if I am eating correctly. But if I miseat, it feels like someone has taken a baseball bat to my gut and a pain as if I am skewered on a spear from the back. Extreme. So, motivated to eat right. Think this was the whole point. Sure most of it bloat but already down 18 pounds post-op. Should one worry that one is losing too quickly?

[LilMissDiva Irene 3,281]

Isn't that interesting? Who'd have thought the port would also help with the eating right?

I never did. This was a good question.

[Drasan 23]

Wow! I was just coming to the site to see if I could get answers before making a call to my doctor. And here is a thread with the exact question I was having! Thanks Sockmonkey!

I'm 4 months out and I've experienced port pain at different times. Once after I sat in an odd position for a long period of time, when I stood up .. ouch! I rubbed and massage where the pain was at the port and that seemed to help it go away.

Now I'm having pain around the port again and maybe even where the tubing is. I just got back from a quick weekend away. I traveled by air. I had no pain on my trip but awakened this morning with pretty bad pain. It won't go away. It may even be getting worse. It's been about 9 hours now. I keep wondering if the airplane cabin pressure could affect the port/tubing/band, sort of like it affects the ears.

Should I give it more time or be concerned?

[sockmonkey 0]

I am really surprised to find so many people having port pain. It's something that was never mentioned to me in the seminar or consultation that I would have never thought to ask had I not seen it on this forum. I had a friend have a port slip/flip (not exactly sure, but the port moved) and our surgeon told her it was from too strenuous of exercise which freaks me out. One of the things that I can't wait to be able to do again is MOVE freely. I guess I can just stack this one in the files of the "this is not a magic fix" folder. Darn.

[quilterlu 0]

I am to be banded next week and reading this thread has scared me. I expected soreness for several weeks but not forever!

[sockmonkey 0]

Awww, sorry Quilterlu!

[sandradee0124 0]

I was banded 5/26. Ironically I thought about this yesterday trying to lay on a lounge chair on my stomach (I have major tan line issues lol). I still can't lay on my stomach for longer than a couple minutes before it feels uncomfortable.

I told my surgeon this today at the fill and he said it could be another couple weeks before that goes away altogether. But now that I had another fill today, it will proably be a couple more weeks.

I don't sleep on my stomach, so I never noticed it before the laying out scenario.

My port is about 1/2 above and to an inch the right of my belly button.

Good luck to you :-)

[pmcw 0]

This kind of scares me too, but I have to wonder IF port pain could be more associated with the position of the port? I haven't had a fill yet, but I was only banded on 6/30/2010, so not even 3 weeks out, and I have been able to lay on my stomach since about day 3, I know I layed on my stomach on day three because my back was hurting so bad I laid on my so my husband could massage my back. And I often sleep on my stomach. I am not sure where my port is yet, I didn't think to ask my Dr after the surgery, but before the surgery he told me it would be on the left side, all but one of my incisions are quite a bit higher than my belly button, Starting in the middle where the larger one for the band is located, their is one about two inches up from that, then straight over to the left from the band one about two inches over their is another small one, them about three inches over from that one only a little lower maybe an inch below the ribs(that's 4 incisions) and the last one is on the right, it is the lowest one, and I believe it is lower to avoid an old scar from Gallbladder/ Appendix surgery in 1980 when they really cut you open to do that. it is still about two inches above the navel and probably 5 inches over. So I am wondering it ports located more in the center near the belly button might be more painful? But then I am afraid that maybe I don't have any pain yet because I haven't had a fill yet? Also I would imagine that as you lose weight and you have less padding lets say, you might feel the port more?