Nice hernia belt. Does what its supposed to while I await hernia surgery in 1.5 months. It keeps a small cushion firmly placed where the inguinal hernia is (in my case left side), it alleviates pain and/or the prospect of hernia getting worse. I'm pretty active and this seems to work perfectly to keep everything "in check" as I frequently need to bend over or crouch down to pick up my 3 small dogs (9-15 lbs), go on walks, or ride the exercise bike. I'm not doing weight lifting or playing golf with it (that can wait for post op after recovery), but life is more manageable again. FYI I'm 6ft 205 lbs male and the small/medium fits great as you'll want it to be tight. Velcro holds nicely. Had to buy some boxer briefs to help with that strap around the leg, which I'd say is optional. If youre experiencing an inguinal hernia and waiting for surgery, you'll wish you had this, this is a life saver. Not sure why my doctor didn't recommend one but glad I found it on Amazon. Edit after surgery: After hernia surgery, you will not need this belt anymore, which is fine, bc you'll be on the road to recovery. I'm on week 5 post op and here's some tips to get thru it. Days 1-3 are the worst, bending over is an absolute nightmare, so if something drops on floor (like even a sock, etc) I'd recommend having a grabber tool handy, you can get one for $9 on Amazon. Also learn from me bc I had a setback at week 4, I was hunched over to clip my toenails and my lower back went out. Its because they cut thru the deep core abdominal muscles to do the surgery. So just watch out with leaning and bending over. Its technically called acute lumbar back spasm and its excruciating. I'm still healing from the lower back now at week 5. So watch out and use that grabber tool to grab things down low. Raise your foot up to a bench or chair to put shoes on etc. Docs didn't warn me about this but I am. I was healthy/athletic b4 this and meant nothing. Good luck people. You can do this. Read more
I developed a left side inguinal hernia for which I am now awaiting surgery. Being an avid exerciser, I wanted to continue my workouts while keeping the hernia from developing further. After looking at all the options on Amazon, I settled on this belt as it is wide with plenty of room for adjustment. I have now worn the belt for about a week, and it keeps my hernia from protruding while being comfortable to wear. The egg-shaped pad can be placed precisely where it needs to be. The pad is bulky, but necessary to be able to deliver the pressure required to control the hernia. The belt is awkward to put on. I found the best way is to put it on is to place the pad over the hernia and adjust the tightness of the belt. Then, to remove it, slide it down your legs without releasing the tension. Then, you can easily pull it up without the hassle of re-tensioning the hook and loop. I can exercise, walk, and sit in comfort with this belt. The strap under my groin was annoying at first, but I quickly got used to it. Now I don't notice it. The belt is well made with quality materials and looks as if it will last I found that when I wear the belt, the egg-shaped pad protrudes in a very obvious bulge inside my pants. To prevent some people from getting the wrong idea, I always wear loose-fitting untucked shirts or sweaters. That way, the apparatus remains discretely hidden. This belt is the perfect solution for hernia control as I await my surgery. I highly recommend it. Read more
It will work for anyone as long as you follow the instructions to a "T" or you may choose to use my method/technique; which I find it to be much better for my particular situation. My hernia is on my right hand side. If your hernia is on your left hand side, that's fine. If you like my method/technique, just follow the steps; but everything's going to be the opposite of course. My way is: I only wear the belt over my boxers and do not use it directly over my skin this helps keep it much cleaner instead of being soiled with sweat etc. (Though it is washable) then what I do is: I insert the thick pad with the tapered part going in first into the Pocket/pouch you may insert it all the way in, or you may leave it extended outward an inch or two this allows you to have full control over the placement of the pad anywhere on your body.If it sticks out of the pouch a little because of the hernias location, not to worry. No one's going to see it anyway while helping your hernia at the same time. Prior to putting on my belt, what I do is: I place not some, but rather all of my junk inside the pant leg of my left hand side boxer leg opening; I do this for easy access for when I need to go #1 without having to remove the belt. At which point, all I have to do is, lift the bottom of my left hand side pant leg from my boxers and do my business.As far as going #2, I really don't know? I assume you temporarily remove it, and then put it back on. I then open up the belt,and lay it flat on a flat surface. Then what I do is: I make sure that the strap attached to the back end of the belt has the smooth surface of the material facing outwards; if not, slide it out, and reverse it to where the dangling part of the belt has the smooth surface facing outwards. Then, what I do is: I pull out the front of my boxers slightly to take a peek down below much how a baby does when he or she pulls out his or her diaper and checks out his or her pee-pee to see exactly where my hernia is located.Then what I do is: I position the thick pad pocket/pouch right over it and don't move it.Then with my left hand, because the hernia is on my right hand side, I get the end of the belt (that's closest to the pouch) and wait until I get the other end of the belt with my right hand going around my back towards my right hand side and attaching it to the velcro piece that I am holding with my left hand. As far as all the belts on the market, this is the only one that I know of that has 8 &1/2 inches that you can play with so that you may connect it to the velcro for a nice snug fit should you need to. Other brands only have an inch or two max and won't fit properly. Then what I do is: I don't use the original instructions by having the belt go through my legs between my cheeks and coming out through the front and attach it to the pouch. Being that I'm a guy, I don't think I'll get used to wearing something like a thong. And to be honest with you, I don't know how some women do either. Anyway, what I do instead is, I place the strap closer to my right hip and I allow it gently to follow the bottom or the side of the contour of my right cheek much like wearing a jockstrap instead of being like a g-string like the original instructions. And then right before it goes through my legs, it follows the contour of the left side of my right upper thigh over my boxers of my right upper thigh. When the strap comes out through the front end, I thread it through the little plastic buckle that's attached to the pocket/pouch but going upwards instead of downwards like the original instructions.By doing so, it allows the pocket to stay firmly in place. Then I get the rest of the material that has the Velcro attached to it, and I place it anywhere on the belt on the right hand side, the left hand side of the belt, at an angle, straight up or down, it doesn't matter at this point; it will stick to anything unlike their method which is to go through the buckle and attach it underneath. By doing it my way, it prevents the strap from being twisted and be uncomfortable. But you don't have to do it my way you could just follow the original instructions that comes with it.The beauty of this product is that they stand behind their product 100% and yes! You may return it should you need to. It comes with all of the instructions, a card with an email address to where you could ask them questions or if you need to return an item etc. It also includes: a special code for 15% off for future purchases. Read more
