ARP surgery and recovery

hi Erica, i had apr surgery five months ago,and yes the first two months are the worst,i never had any night sweats but found it impossible to lay on my sides until about the ten week mark, and i have been in touch with quite a lot of people on the other platform and it seems like three months seems to be when most people seem to really start getting back to some form of normality,but you must understand that everyone will have different levels of fitness, and some people heal quicker than others,you are still in the early stages of recovery at five weeks, so go easy on yourself and listen to your body, if you are sore or you can't lay a certain way that's just your body telling you not to,it will get easier, take care cheers john.

Hi Erica,

Welcome! You are well on the road to recovery now, but I have to say that the road can be bumpy at times! You should be on pain medication, especially since you are in pain. When I left hospital I was on tramadol and didn't realise that you just can't stop taking those, so had a bit of a job coming off them. I found that as time went on, everything settled down but I did have some pain if I sat for a long time. Try and speak to your surgeon's team, and let them know about your pain and night sweats, and how you are generally.

My surgery was mid-September 2012, and I returned to office work January 2013 - I did have a year of infection after infection, but it wasn't bad enough for me to take time off work. 

Things do get better over a few months, but do get in touch with the colorectal team.

Linda :-) 

Thanks for your reply means a lot x

Thanks for your reply means a lot x

Hi Erica, This is a bit of a long shot as it might not be applicable for you, but this is my experience. I had extreme night sweats after my APR and had quite a few investigations. However I realised eventually it was a hormone imbalance and all a bit menopausal! I went onto HRT and the sweats stopped completely in two weeks. as I said you may not be of the age etc. for that but it certainly solved my problem. I had some chemo after my APR as well which may have caused it. Any other questions let me know. I am three years post op now.

Helena xxx

Hi,

I just realised you replied.  Thanks so much!

I am 40 this year and also have had breast cancer so I could be in the menopause due to the chemo rad I have already had!

I am 8 weeks post surgery and still having bad days and need pain medication every day.  Looking forward to the day when this is a distant memory.

Any tips or hints be useful.

Erica