Had to go to the hospital monday and get my appendix taken out. What were other people's recovery time? I also forgot to ask the doc if I could have a few drinks for the 4th, though he said no boating this weekend. Meds are just on percocet right now

7/2/2008 9:20:26 AM

it takes a few weeks before you can do much physical activity due to where the cut is. I wouldn't recommend drinking on percocets, but if you aren't on the meds go for it.

7/2/2008 9:45:09 AM

Took less than a week to recover but was told not to do anything physical for two months.

7/2/2008 9:54:59 AM

I had mine out in 6th grade

I don't remember my recovery time, but I went into the hospital on a Wednesday for an emergency appendectomy, spent the night in ICU, my fever finally broke on Friday and I was discharged on Saturday. Since mine ruptured inside of me as soon as the doc cut me open, I was very, very sick.

I do remember laying around for like a week after I went home.

7/2/2008 10:29:43 AM

That's pretty good recovery time considering it burst.

7/2/2008 11:33:06 AM

What are the symptoms of needing your appendix out besides the obvious severe pain in your side?

7/2/2008 11:36:33 AM

nausea, lack of hunger, etc.

my symptoms were only at night. I was fine during the day.

Hell, the morning of my surgery, I ran three laps around the baseball field at my middle school. But I was sick as a dog the night before that.

There is also a certain reflex the doctor checks for. Its called Rebound Tenderness.

Quote :

"Rebound tenderness is pain that is worse when the doctor quickly releases his hand after gently pressing on the abdomen over the area of tenderness."

http://www.medicinenet.com/appendicitis/article.htm

7/2/2008 11:58:50 AM

had mine out a few years ago....i believe there were possibly some complications with mine but i really couldnt eat a full day's worth of meals until about 4 months after surgery.

7/2/2008 5:11:11 PM

ME ME ME!!!!

except i'm old school. did they do a Laparoscopic Appendectomy w/ you?? i have the incision (though not as bad as my mom's. hers looks like a c-section compared to mine).

anyway. i took awhile to get over mine. well mine ruptured AND i was 11 (old school) so that was like 1995. it took me like a week. if they just sucked it out through a hole, then i would imagine your recovery time would be shorter than those of us that had the SLICE. but i don't really know. all i know is i was dying and it hurt like shit. but i think it had to do with being 11 and having it rupture. and the fact that i tricked the doctors into ALMOST discharging me by doing jumping jacks to convince them that i didn't need surgery (that was painful). then i threw up and they caught onto me. eh, probably for the best i suppose.

7/2/2008 7:08:41 PM

Probably. I had a Laparoscopic Appendectomy back in 2001.

7/2/2008 7:19:24 PM

8 days.

For serious.

7/2/2008 8:03:49 PM

Yikes, do you even have your stitches out yet? Even if it was laperscopic, they leave the stitches in a few days, at least, they did with me. Alcohol + percocet = BAD IDEA.

7/2/2008 10:46:16 PM

I was in the hospital for over a week after getting my appendix taken out.

7/3/2008 2:21:03 AM

^ Yuk. Did yours rupture, or was it just that hard recovering from the surgery?

7/3/2008 8:52:13 AM

Just because your doctor didn't tell you to avoid it doesn't mean it's fair game.

Use some common sense.

7/3/2008 9:45:30 AM

It didn't rupture but I think they said it leaked or something. I don't quite remember the details since this was back in 1998. After I got out of the hospital they wouldn't clear me to go back to school for another week. I had so much shit to catch up on by the time I went back

For you other people who've had it taken out, did it hurt like a motherfucker beforehand? I remember for about a day feeling like I had just eaten some bad food. Then about 3am I wake up in agonizing pain, crawl out of bed, and puked bile all over my parents' bedroom door. They weren't too happy about that

[Edited on July 3, 2008 at 9:53 AM. Reason : .]

7/3/2008 9:52:10 AM

Quote :

"I remember for about a day feeling like I had just eaten some bad food."

7/3/2008 10:32:36 AM

Mine ruptured....I was in the hospital for 3 weeks....almost died. It happened Labor Day weekend in 2004. I went to an urgent care place with a "stomach ache", and they told me it was a virus and to go home and rest. Probably the worst medical mistake of my life was following their advice because I had Gangreen all inside. After 3 days, I went to the emergancy room and they rushed me to the ER.

I dont any visible scars. All it took was a few small incisions. The worst part for me was they had to leave a drainage tube in me to suck out the toxins. When they pulled that thing out, it hurt. Then I developed an absess and they had to put in another drainage tube to drain it. They put this one in while I was awake......it sucked. Pulling it out a week later also sucked....even more than the first time.

7/3/2008 10:36:04 AM

Yeah I had mine laperscopically, didnt rupture or anything, but I still feel rough today. This is the first morning I havent gone straight for the percecet. Might try to switch to tylenol or advil today

7/5/2008 11:31:38 AM

yeah save the percocet for another time

7/5/2008 11:34:08 AM

I had my appendix out about 1 yr ago. laparoscopic surgery with 3 tiny scars that are not visable anymore. I had it taken out at 1 or 2 am and left the hospital that same day around 12 hrs later. 2 or 3 days at most for recovery. You are supposed to wait at least a week to make sure the internal stiches do not tear out early. I've lifted weights and wake boarded about a month later. thanks for joining the club

7/5/2008 8:23:43 PM

Quote :

"I dont any visible scars."

Lucky. My scar is about the size of my pinky finger. And that was considered small back then

7/5/2008 8:27:32 PM