Thursday, July 26, 2007

Melancholy hernia

I'm in a melancholy mood anyway (for a couple of reasons, but the news from le Tour certainly doesn't help) and now I think I've herniated myself.

I quickly hoisted my commuter bike up over my shoulder to carry it upstairs and *ooohg!* dull but quick pain in my groin and lower abdomen. ~30 pounds isn't all that much, but I didn't pay attention to technique.

A half hour later I still feel a little tender. What does a hernia feel like, anyway?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Place three fingers firmly over tender spot and cough. Does it feel like a ballon? Try the other side. Does it feel firmer? If yes to both you may have hernia, but have probably had it for years.

Anonymous said...

I had a right inguinal hernia when I was 21 or so but I never felt any pain at all and I have no idea when it happened. I just noticed that I could feel something soft and squishy in my, umm, inguinal area. At first I thought it was a tumor. Turns out that was a bit of intestine that was poking through a rupture in the muscles of my lower abdomen.

The type of hernia I had, though, is not due to strain but due to the way the abdominal muscles form as a baby. It tends to show up in the late teens or early twenties.

There's this at the Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/inguinal-hernia/DS00364

But whatever it is, I recommend seeing a doctor if the pain continues.

Rob said...

I got one a few years ago it started with a pulled groin muscle while playing in a racquetball tournament, which I felt a wonderful burning sensation for a few days. A month later on thanksgiving day I played some touch/light tackle football and felt it pop out that night. New Pain. Sounds like you might have a moderate hernation or had one for a while. I still get twinges from mine at strange times even after it was fixed 7 years ago. Mine got so bad that I'd have to spend an hour or two a night awake from the pain and pushing it back in....:) That was a painful month between it happening and surgery.