I had my surgery last week. My most uncomfortable area is the port site and it is protruding from my stomach.

Is it normal for it to be protruding like this? I can't even sleep on my side and it hurts to bend over. I have been sleeping somewhat upright.

Will it be like this forever?

It probably won't hurt forever, but it'll be sore for quite some time since it's attached to your abdominal muscles. The swelling will go down and it won't stick out as much, but many people say their ports still stick out. My Realize Band has a low-profile port so it doesn't stick out at all, but if I ever get skinny, I imagine it might.

It depends. Can you actually feel the hard, plastic bump? Or is it just tummy swelling?

It is normal for the port to be sore a week after surgery. After all, they stitched it to your abdomen muscles, and that takes time to heal! So that's totally normal and eventually the hurt will go away.

There are high-profile ports that stick out quite a bit (I think Lap-Band's port is high-profile) and there are low-profile ports that are flatter (Realize has lower profile ports). When you have a lot of fat on your abdomen, it should be very difficult to see the plastic bump of your port. If you can see it even though you have a lot of abdomen, then it could be an indication that your port is not attached properly and is displaced.

The more weight you lose and the closer you get to your goal weight, the more apt you are to see and feel your port. This is normal. I'm going to assume that if you just had surgery a week ago that you are not at that point though.

Ask your doc about the port the next time you see him and express your concern.