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Livin' with a Hernia.
halkun
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
A little about myself - I live in the U.S., I'm 33 year old male, 5"6' and a little around 170 pounds. A few days ago I noticed a small "bubble" near my belly button. Some quick research and it appears I have an umbilical hernia.
The probelm:
I make about $900-$1200 a month, with $400 going to rent, $375 going to my car payment, and another $300 going to student loan payments. This leaves me with not much left over for food, much less health insurance. (I don't even have *car* insurance because I can't afford it)
I'm going to need to get this looked at. I know that. The problem is I'm am most definitely not going to be able to afford it. I barely make ends meet as it is, and surgery is waay not in my budget.
Now how am I supposed to approach this? According to the hospital, I have to get the work done first, and then go to them with the bill. I'm really weird about debt, and try and be as responsible as I can about it. I don't own any credit cards, and I only get loans in case of some needed long term investment. (Car/School).
No I'm not a student anymore. My student loans are killing me. I had no idea that they would be as expensive as they are. I also assumed that I would be in some kind of high-paying job by now. (I graduated May, 2007) and the only thing I've come across is an assistant manager position fixing computers at $8.00 an hour plus a bonus for systems fixed.
That's either here nor there, I'm just letting you know I'm at least *trying* to be responsible.
Is there a way out of this? Anyone have any advice?
The probelm:
I make about $900-$1200 a month, with $400 going to rent, $375 going to my car payment, and another $300 going to student loan payments. This leaves me with not much left over for food, much less health insurance. (I don't even have *car* insurance because I can't afford it)
I'm going to need to get this looked at. I know that. The problem is I'm am most definitely not going to be able to afford it. I barely make ends meet as it is, and surgery is waay not in my budget.
Now how am I supposed to approach this? According to the hospital, I have to get the work done first, and then go to them with the bill. I'm really weird about debt, and try and be as responsible as I can about it. I don't own any credit cards, and I only get loans in case of some needed long term investment. (Car/School).
No I'm not a student anymore. My student loans are killing me. I had no idea that they would be as expensive as they are. I also assumed that I would be in some kind of high-paying job by now. (I graduated May, 2007) and the only thing I've come across is an assistant manager position fixing computers at $8.00 an hour plus a bonus for systems fixed.
That's either here nor there, I'm just letting you know I'm at least *trying* to be responsible.
Is there a way out of this? Anyone have any advice?
halkun on
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Is there any way you can get some kind of deferment on the student loan? Call them and explain the situation. They'd generally rather you healthy and capable of paying them back than not.
Regardless of the size, you need to get this looked at. Yes, debt sucks, but dying because you were too bloody stupid to go to a doctor when you noticed holes in your belly is infinitely worse. This isn't something that will go away on its own, and the sooner you get it looked at the less likely major surgery will be needed. Schedule an appointment now.
I can't even find out how much a hernia operation costs online. It's like some super secret. I need to have some kind of idea so I can make a long-term plan to pay it off.
I want all my ducks in a row so no one is surprised and I do the right thing.
Of course you should research this kind of thing before you decide on it, and it may not be right for you. It's also probably more dangerous to get this kind of thing done in a non first world country.
I'd suggest Estonia. They have first world medical faculties at non first world prices. Scandinavian/nordic people go there for all kinds of operations from eye lasering to cosmetic surgery, because of the huge price difference.
edit: of course, when you factor in the price of actually getting there from America, it might not be so great for your budget after all. Dunno.
I should also note that while living in Thailand I often saw advertisements promoting India as a medical services destination. I think I saw these on BBC, it was either that or Bloomberg. So I'm sure its growing in popularity, at least.
Also, Thailand itself is a common destination for plastic surgery. I met a group of Australian women who'd gone there and gotten their eyes and boobs done. Also, I saw a lot of northern Europeans in various states of sex change operations (apparently my city was big for this).
For the long-term: the reason you're having trouble with your student loans is because you're living in Wisconsin, where there's a shit job market, and low cost of living. Sell your car, move somewhere you don't need one (like, a major city), where cost of living is higher. Yes, this means it's more expensive to live there, however it also means that you get paid more, so your student loans are going to be much cheaper, relatively speaking (i.e., you'll pay $800 a month in rent, no car payment, and twice as much for food, but you'll be pulling in $15 an hour instead of $8 an hour, and your student loan payments remain static, regardless of your cost of living, so instead of being 25% of your income, they're 12% of your income).
The cool thing is that I don't have to worry about it now, nothing bulging out yet. I have to keep en eye on it and not lift heavy things. I'm at a stage where it can stay like that, or get bigger, (it does not heal). As of right now. I can put it off for three months, just keep an eye on it. I'll have it fixed within six.
It's not a jam. I'm in a good position where I can get if fixed later. The cool thing is I'll lose the bellybutton. I won't have a navel, just like my mom ^_^
That would be so........weird.
It's because they remove your brain and put it in a flash-cloned version of yourself.
2) They do the surgery through the navel. They put a lattice over the hole under the skin so the muscle grows on it. Then they sew it back up. The old navel is replaced with the incision that was sewed up. After the stitches heal, no more bellybutton.
I just found out last week I have one too (inguinal hernia) and am waiting to get my appointment with a surgeon. From what I've read/been told you can delay the surgery for a while as long as there is no pain. You do run a risk of it strangling though which would require emergency surgery to fix it
I had two inguinal hernia surgeries this past year. The first one was family related, as both my dad and brother have had the surgery. I was sore as hell for two weeks, as my hernia was quite large.
The second one was my own fault. I started working out WAY too soon. Doc was pissed at me. Was even more sore because he went with a double sided patch the second time, which is a bit more invasive.
Now I have a 9 inch scar on my lower abs/pelvis. This time, I waited a few weeks longer than what the doctor said before going back to the gym. No more surgeries for me!
Though I will have to say, I got a TON of video game playing in.
Murphy's Paradox: The more you plan, the more that can go wrong. The less you plan, the less likely your plan will succeed.
Or I can just get a real job.