Post Surgery Nerve Pain (inner middle quad)

Hi

I am interested if anyone has had severe pain, immediately after surgey, then after 4-5 days, still so painful. I was told it was due to nerve damage.

It is my Inner Middle Quad. After coming round from surgery & announcing my tremendous pain (with a few swear words) they gave me 2 more shots of Fentanyl, which didn’t touch the pain, then I was given 30mg codeine, still no better.
With help I padded my bra out with breast feeding pads (handy tip for small breasted women) which supported my breast more & is a little better. The lymph wound was & is not painful at all, ok a little uncomfortable but never any pain.

The way I would compare the pain is like the last 20 minutes of childbirth with no painkillers (I can say that as I had my 2nd child with nothing, no gas & air ‘nowt’ - so I feel I have quite a high pain tolerance)…
I digress - the post surgery pain was similar, hot, stingy, raw, “GET OFF ME” acute type of pain.

I am now only on Pregabalin & wondered if anyone else has had this type of nerve pain.

To finish my post on a lighter note, I thought I had an allergic reaction, or rash, as the surgery side on my arm, chest was a red, mottled angry looking colour. I now know it is the pink wash they clean with after. I think I shall mention at my ‘results’ appointment, that maybe they should warn people about this and it is not a rash or allergy. DOH!

Take care all - Sam

I can remember being in agony after my partial mastectomy in 2003. The docs were all in the operating theatre operating on the next person. I waited until a nurse came back and she said I could have a painkiller - up my bum. I felt they were testing how much pain I was in and I just said “get it up there!” Then I conked out and came to hours later on the ward. I had more pain there and the nurse said I could have another painkiller up the bum. I didn’t like the idea but she said I could put it up myself.

No I couldn’t - so she had to do it. The whole experience was awful. Especially as I had been told in July that I didn’t have breast cancer after waiting what seemed like ages to get a diagnosis.

After having the benign lump out in November I had more surgery in December a week before Christmas and it was after that I woke in agony. On Christmas Eve I was back in hospital with a wound infection. I had absolutely no faith in the all male team of surgeons and anaesthetists I had the misfortune to be under.

Things have changed a bit since 2003 but then they were driven by NHS performance targets despite a lot of fiddling going on to meet them.

One example I saw a lot of was writing to patients to say they weren’t eligible to go on the waiting list yet.

This was done when staff knew they wouldn’t meet it unless they had the staff, operating theatre and organisation in place to do so.

Oh you poor thing… that sounds awful. Yes things have changed a lot, thank goodness
I hope it was all worth it now?

If it tool the pain away, I’d have any pain killer up my bum (after having a colonoscopy previously for a separate medical issue, with all young male junior drs, one female nurse, I have not much dignity left, so not bothered. A case of seen one, seem them all, for me).

Did they find out if the pain was nerve related?

Take good care :sparkles: Sam

Bottoms up to you Sammy! You are a lot less self conscious than me but I must admit when I am in pain I can endure anything they do whether I am lying with my fanny open or my anus on display to the world.

Seagulls

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Charming reply - thank you for that.

I was in so much pain a week after surgery that I asked my surgeon when she checked me 2 weeks after if she used a crochet hook to pull my lymph nodes out! :persevere: She didn’t see the funny side :laughing: x