Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Talk About Caught Off Guard...

For the past five weeks I've been battling some type of weird "stomach" ailment. I'm not sick but, after I eat or during my rides, I get severe abdominal cramping, nausea, and an additional "messy" symptom. My mileage has taken a beating because, after about 15 miles, it takes everything I have to stay on the saddle. I've done some 30 milers and one 40 miler but it has been NOT fun. I get to feeling absolutely horrible. The only bright side is that I've dropped nine pounds.

I kept thinking that it was a stomach or intestinal virus of some type. It would be pretty severe for a few days and then go away for a few days and then come back and go away... It was driving me nuts.

Finally went to see my MD this morning and while she was prodding my abdomen with her pointy li'l fingers noticed a huge bulge running from just below my Solar Plexus to just above my Navel. Hernia.

I have no idea how it happened, lol. Anyway, appt. made for an Ultra Sound and a Surgical Consult. She didn't say that I couldn't ride in the meantime so I'll just take it easy and do what I can do. Absolutely the LAST diagnosis that I expected. I was thinking she was gonna tell me that I'd acquired some strange alien parasite from visiting the Planetarium or something.

Ya just never know.

Good move going to your doc.

Sorry to hear that, but look at the positive, it's not some alien parasite!

Wheels, I should've gone weeks ago but it would quit bothering me and I thought the "bug" was gone. Weird thing.

Vesteroid, I kinda wish it would have been the alien parasite thing. It would have made a WAY cooler Thread Title! lol

Yeah, I can picture the shriveled, dried, sort of green corpse, when the parasite got done with you.

I watched to many x-files as a kid.

Yeah, I can picture the shriveled, dried, sort of green corpse, when the parasite got done with you.

I watched to many x-files as a kid.

HA! Man, I have a jersey that would have rocked that color, too. Dang.

That sucks. Please keep us updated.

Wow, good thing it was found and that it can be corrected, hopefully with ease.

Chef and Geo, thanks and will do. :)

Off topic: Street Pedaler, I just noticed your location. I spent 12 years total at BAFB and Haughton. Where are you?

KJ, I'm in Bossier just about three miles from Barksdale. I ride into Haughton regularly, though. When were you here?

I received the same diagnosis this afternoon. My doc told me to stay off the bike until 6 weeks after the surgery, starting today - we'll see if the surgeon has other ideas.

I also had to tell my six-year-old tonight that we have to drop out of the daddy-daughter dance at her recital in three weeks. I'm gonna be itchin' to get back on that saddle.

Good thing it wasn't this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh1exCwGiY0

I received the same diagnosis this afternoon. My doc told me to stay off the bike until 6 weeks after the surgery, starting today - we'll see if the surgeon has other ideas.

I also had to tell my six-year-old tonight that we have to drop out of the daddy-daughter dance at her recital in three weeks. I'm gonna be itchin' to get back on that saddle.

Wow. 6 weeks is tough. I wasn't "told" to stay off the bike but I kind of have a feeling that she just forgot. Truth be told, I don't really feel up to doing so much, anyway. But, until I'm told different or it just gets impossible to do, I'll sneak a few rides in when I feel like I can.

Even tougher, though, is missing the daddy- daughter thing. That must have broken your heart as much as it did your daughter's. Hang in there and speedy recovery! :)

Good thing it wasn't this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh1exCwGiY0

HA! Classic!! lolol

Look on the bright side: She didn't tell you you are pregnant. ;)

Wow. 6 weeks is tough. I wasn't "told" to stay off the bike but I kind of have a feeling that she just forgot. Truth be told, I don't really feel up to doing so much, anyway. But, until I'm told different or it just gets impossible to do, I'll sneak a few rides in when I feel like I can.

Even tougher, though, is missing the daddy- daughter thing. That must have broken your heart as much as it did your daughter's. Hang in there and speedy recovery! http://www.bikeforums.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

My wife won't let me get on the bike since the doctor has banned it (me and my big mouth!). She wants to go with me to the surgery consult, I think in part to get a better picture of what's involved in the procedure, and in part to keep me from telling her the surgeon said it was OK to ride :rolleyes:.

My daughter was bummed, but OK with it. We have a preview performance on Saturday afternoon, and I told her we'd do that one, but I wouldn't be strong enough to do the recital so soon after the surgery. The moves aren't difficult, and I lift her 43-lb weight only once in the whole routine. We've been practicing for two months without any problems, so a few more times at rehearsal tonight and the preview on Saturday won't make a difference.

Thanks for the wishes for a speedy recovery, and I hope you have the same! :thumb:

Quick recovery to you both!

Look on the bright side: She didn't tell you you are pregnant. ;)

Thank God because THAT offspring would have been even uglier than the alien thing! lol

My MD called me this afternoon and wants me to report to the ER. When she called me, though, I was at another hospital with my mom who was in the middle of a heart procedure. Short story long, I have clearance to wait until first thing tomorrow morning with the PROMISE that, if things get any worse this evening, I'll get over there ASAP. They're concerned over some of the symptoms I've been having and think that I may possibly have something on the verge of constricture. So... There's that.

Steve, good luck at your Consult. If ya want, we can use this as our Shared Hernia Thread. Bet they've never had one of those before! :)

Thank God because THAT offspring would have been even uglier than the alien thing! lol

My MD called me this afternoon and wants me to report to the ER. When she called me, though, I was at another hospital with my mom who was in the middle of a heart procedure. Short story long, I have clearance to wait until first thing tomorrow morning with the PROMISE that, if things get any worse this evening, I'll get over there ASAP. They're concerned over some of the symptoms I've been having and think that I may possibly have something on the verge of constricture. So... There's that.

Steve, good luck at your Consult. If ya want, we can use this as our Shared Hernia Thread. Bet they've never had one of those before! :)

Good luck with your surgery, and I hope your mom's doing well after her procedure.

"The Official BF Hernia Thread of 2012!" I like it!

"The Official BF Hernia Thread of 2012!" I like it!

It does have a certain Panache, doesn't it? I'm heading in in just a little bit. Check back in when I can. To everyone who's innards AREN'T falling out, have a good weekend and ride strong! :)

Latest update: Went to the ER as advised yesterday morning and was greatly encouraged by the fact that they didn't send me to the OR. I've got what's called a Ventral Hernia. They can get pretty serious and mine is, apparently, a pretty big one, but nothing requiring immediate action. I've got a couple of Scripts (One for nausea and one for pain- didn't get the pain med filled, though) and a list of "Warning Signs" to watch for which would indicate another trip to the ER.

I have instructions to call the Surgery Clinic Monday morning to set up a Consult and probably a little further testing and then we'll go from there. In the meantime, I'm getting ready to try to ride and see what happens in about an hour. I was told to just not push, take it easy, and listen to my body. In other words, just be careful.

Would have checked in yesterday but, in the commotion of getting my mom back home after her heart procedure and my own medical shenanigans, things got a little hectic and I just wasn't able to.

So there's that for now. Y'all have a great weekend! Ride strong and ride safe. :)

Latest update: Went to the ER as advised yesterday morning and was greatly encouraged by the fact that they didn't send me to the OR. I've got what's called a Ventral Hernia. They can get pretty serious and mine is, apparently, a pretty big one, but nothing requiring immediate action. I've got a couple of Scripts (One for nausea and one for pain- didn't get the pain med filled, though) and a list of "Warning Signs" to watch for which would indicate another trip to the ER.

I have instructions to call the Surgery Clinic Monday morning to set up a Consult and probably a little further testing and then we'll go from there. In the meantime, I'm getting ready to try to ride and see what happens in about an hour. I was told to just not push, take it easy, and listen to my body. In other words, just be careful.

Would have checked in yesterday but, in the commotion of getting my mom back home after her heart procedure and my own medical shenanigans, things got a little hectic and I just wasn't able to.

So there's that for now. Y'all have a great weekend! Ride strong and ride safe. :)

Good news it wasn't serious enough to require immediate surgery! We're two peas in a pod with large ventral hernias, though it sounds like yours may be a bit worse than mine. My surgery consult is Thursday.

Thanks for keeping us posted!

Called the Surgery Clinic this morning and they gave me a Consult appointment for July 24. My MD isn't happy with the delay and is trying to get it moved up. We'll see what happens.

In the meantime, I took my new friend, the hernia, out for my first ride since last Monday. After having seven days off the bike, my legs felt absolutely awesome. I'd promised to take it easy, though, so I kept the ride short at 17 miles and called it a day. Had no trouble with my abdomen during the ride and am only somewhat "crampy" now so, all in all, I'd have to call it a good day in spite of the short distance. I just tell myself that 17 miles is 17 miles more than I've ridden since last Monday. We take little victories wherever we can, I guess. :)

Oddly enough, I just had surgery to fix a ventral hernia about two months ago. It was only very minor, but still enough that it needed to be fixed. The surgeon fixed it with a mesh screen, so hopefully I won't have any more issues in the future. I made the big mistake of having the surgery on a Friday and then going back to work on Monday! Ugh...I was borderline worthless that week. BUT...once I rested enough, I started feeling better. I was able to start walking the dogs, running, and cycling again three weeks out from surgery. The surgeon recommended taking a daily multivitamin in addition to getting some more vitamin c (apparently that all helps the healing process), but the biggest thing he said to remember was to be careful when reaching for things (i.e. something that rolls to the back of the trunk and reaching to get it and not paying attention to the awkward position you're in). Anyway, I've been out riding and running again, and I can even get back to working out again...so all in all, I'm glad I had it fixed!

Good luck!

Oddly enough, I just had surgery to fix a ventral hernia about two months ago. It was only very minor, but still enough that it needed to be fixed. The surgeon fixed it with a mesh screen, so hopefully I won't have any more issues in the future. I made the big mistake of having the surgery on a Friday and then going back to work on Monday! Ugh...I was borderline worthless that week. BUT...once I rested enough, I started feeling better. I was able to start walking the dogs, running, and cycling again three weeks out from surgery. The surgeon recommended taking a daily multivitamin in addition to getting some more vitamin c (apparently that all helps the healing process), but the biggest thing he said to remember was to be careful when reaching for things (i.e. something that rolls to the back of the trunk and reaching to get it and not paying attention to the awkward position you're in). Anyway, I've been out riding and running again, and I can even get back to working out again...so all in all, I'm glad I had it fixed!

Good luck!

Mark, that's awesome. I'm glad that everything worked out so well for you. It's also encouraging as far as potential down time should surgery be the way they go with me. Thanks!! :)

Some good news yesterday. After what can only be tastefully described as "a very bad morning", I ended up back in the ER yesterday. Waited around for about 7 1/2 hours to have a CT Scan done.

The Scan showed that, while I do have a hernia, the majority of my, uhhh, "difficulties" are being caused by what appears to be Diverticulosis. It was explained to me that this is kind of a precursor to Diverticulitis. It's treatable and only about 20% of the people with Diverticulosis ever develop full blown Diverticulitis. (I sure hope I spelled all of those right).

Anyway, I still have to see a Surgeon about the hernia but, in light of the new diagnosis, I feel fairly comfortable that surgery won't be needed. Once we get the Diverticulosis figured out with meds, I hope to put this little chapter of my medical shenanigans to bed.

Planning on getting on the bike in a few hours. Of course, today of all days, we have a storm system hovering over our heads. No rain, yet, but SERIOUS lightning. Hopefully, it will blow through pretty soon and then it's off to the races. :)

Some good news yesterday. After what can only be tastefully described as "a very bad morning", I ended up back in the ER yesterday. Waited around for about 7 1/2 hours to have a CT Scan done.

The Scan showed that, while I do have a hernia, the majority of my, uhhh, "difficulties" are being caused by what appears to be Diverticulosis. It was explained to me that this is kind of a precursor to Diverticulitis. It's treatable and only about 20% of the people with Diverticulosis ever develop full blown Diverticulitis. (I sure hope I spelled all of those right).

Anyway, I still have to see a Surgeon about the hernia but, in light of the new diagnosis, I feel fairly comfortable that surgery won't be needed. Once we get the Diverticulosis figured out with meds, I hope to put this little chapter of my medical shenanigans to bed.

Planning on getting on the bike in a few hours. Of course, today of all days, we have a storm system hovering over our heads. No rain, yet, but SERIOUS lightning. Hopefully, it will blow through pretty soon and then it's off to the races. :)

Ugh. Those two conditions combined can play havoc on the digestive system, and cause all kinds of random discomfort/pain/other crap. With a little luck, antibiotics will take care of any flare-up of the Diverticuli, and the hernia may be able to 'scape the knife for now.

Sending positive thoughts your way, and offering up a toast to you :beer: because this tequila ain't gonna drink itself!

Steve, thanks and good luck with your Consult tomorrow! Oh, and SKOAL! :)

Surprise! The surgeon said I DON'T have a hernia.

What I do have is a fairly typical (if a bit premature at age 45) weakening of the stomach wall that causes a bulge in my upper abdomen when lifting my head and shoulders from a lying position. The surgeon said that he usually sees ten or twelve of these cases a year, where a GP jumps to conclusions before doing a complete examination.

I'm apparently fine, and cleared to return to full activity. I'm back on the bike tomorrow morning, and the daddy-daughter dance in two weeks is ON.

Awesome! I know you and daughter both are stoked. That's great news!

I suppose that kind of stress and uncertainty is what I get for seeing "the new guy" in the office, who's not far removed from med school, instead of waiting a couple of days for my regular doc to get back in town :)

Follow the post op insructions to the LETTER or you'll be living with a permanent bulging spot on your belly and with pain and tenderness like me!

I suppose that kind of stress and uncertainty is what I get for seeing "the new guy" in the office, who's not far removed from med school, instead of waiting a couple of days for my regular doc to get back in town :)

Well, at least you now know what's going on for sure. Sometimes good news comes at a price. lol