When Should You Consider Surgery for a Hernia?

Hi, I am new here and I had my colostomy in July after an accident on a jet ski , I have since got a hernia the size of a grapefruit next to my stoma , it's becoming uncomfortable and painful when I go a poo, ( sorry for tmi ) I am having to use laxatives a lot as I can't go on my own , it is also constantly bruised around my stoma , any advice would be welcomed x

Hello and welcome to the site, a hernia is fairly common among ostomates. Anytime you cut the abdomen you make it weaker. A hernia can be left alone as long as it doesn’t cause any problems with normal bowel activity. I had one for several years until it started interfering with my irrigation. I had it repaired and my stoma moved higher up to the “rectus “ muscle in the abdomen which is less likely to reoccur in that location. Quite a large number of hernia repairs fail, since it involves another cut in the abdomen. See a surgeon and get a good one. I would follow his advice on when and if it needs repair. I am now extremely careful about lifting but still lead an active life. Good luck

I just had hernia surgery 2 wks ago. I have had hernias for years but when I had a big surgery due to cancer they got worse. Hernias DO NOT get better on their own and require surgery to fix them. It all depends on the type you have. I had a big ventral hernia in the middle of my abdomen with a portion of my colon protruding thru which was causing me to have blockages and obstructions a lot. That is dangerous. I guess it is an individual thing, if you are ok and not hurting too much then you probably can wait a bit but keep in mind that hernias only get bigger with time, especially if you are overweight or lift a lot of stuff.