5 surgeries that some healthcare professionals prefer to avoid based on their experience.
After more than two decades practicing medicine, there is a reality that is repeated all too often: people who enter the operating room looking for a solution and leave with more pain, more limitations and a question that comes too late: what if I had not had surgery?
Within the medical field there is a phrase that many know, but few explain in depth: the best surgery is the one that is not done. Not because the surgery is negative, but because it is often indicated when there are still less invasive, smarter and more respectful alternatives for the body.
A surgical intervention always leaves a mark. When a tissue is cut, a structure is altered or an internal scar is generated, there is no going back. Therefore, before making an irreversible decision, it is essential to analyze the full context of the problem and not just what appears in a study.
These are five surgeries that, as a doctor, I would avoid in most cases, except in serious, well-justified and clearly necessary situations.
1. Herniated Disc Surgery
Herniated disc surgery is one of the most common… and also one of the most hurried.
There are cases in which surgery is essential: when there is severe compression of a nerve root, significant loss of strength, neurological alterations or pelvic organ compromise. In those scenarios, surgery may be the best option.
However, in most patients chronic low back pain does not originate in the disc, but in a global imbalance of the body. The lower back is usually a victim, not the main cause.
I’ve seen patients with decades of pain improve without surgery by correcting:
- Mobility of the pelvis
- The condition of the hips
- Ligament strains
- Persistent muscle stiffness
Even old trauma, including blows to the skull, can disrupt body balance and overload the spine without the person noticing.
A key fact: if we take 100 people without pain and perform an MRI, many will show protrusions or hernias. So, the problem is not always in the image, but in the constant mechanical overload.
Operating without correcting the cause is like changing a tire without aligning the vehicle: the problem reappears, only in another place.
2. Hemorrhoid surgery
It is often considered a “simple” surgery, but recovery can be long, painful, and very limiting to daily life.
Not everyone knows that after this operation they can spend weeks with pain when sitting, moving and even sleeping. For an active person, this is not a minor detail.
In many cases, hemorrhoids have a clear mechanical cause: the descent of the internal organs. When organs press on the veins in the pelvis, the blood stagnates, the veins dilate, and inflammation and bleeding occur.
To this are added:
- Blockages of the sacrum or tailbone from old falls
- Lack of pelvic mobility
- Head injuries that affect global posture
The body functions as a unit. What is blocked above, is reflected below.
When working by elevating the internal organs, releasing tension, and restoring mobility, many cases improve markedly without surgery. Even when the operation is unavoidable, preparing the body beforehand completely changes the result.
3. Surgery for diastasis abdominis
Surgical suturing of diastasis abdominis is too often indicated, especially in women, without first exhausting conservative alternatives.
Hearing that the separation measures 6, 7 or 8 centimeters generates immediate fear and surgery seems inevitable. However, in many cases, diastasis is significantly reduced with well-indicated exercises, activating muscles that are asleep.
Surgically closing a separation does not restore the natural function of the abdomen. Stability, strength, and body confidence come from actual muscle work, not a suture.
Before accepting surgery, it’s key to ask yourself:
Can my body really not correct this on its own if given the chance?
4. Varicose vein surgery
Varicose veins do not appear overnight. They develop slowly due to increased pressure in the veins, often caused by the descent of the internal organs.
Pregnancies, childbirth, chronic constipation, weight bearing, and nutritional deficiencies weaken the venous walls and speed up the process.
Surgical or cosmetic treatments can improve visual appearance quickly, but if the cause persists, the problem usually returns within a few years.
Reducing internal pressure, improving circulation, and strengthening the body from within can slow the progression and even prevent surgery in early stages.
5. Surgery for descent of genital organs
Prolapse does not happen suddenly. It develops slowly when the pelvic floor weakens and the tissues lose support.
Caught early, many cases can improve by strengthening the right muscles and returning internal support to the body. Ignoring early signs often leads to surgery that could have been prevented.
The key is to act before the damage is irreversible.
Tips and recommendations
- Never make a surgical decision just because of an image or study
- Always seek an informed second opinion
- Ask for conservative alternatives before trading
- It works the body as a unit, not as isolated parts
- If surgery is unavoidable, prepare your body before it
- Prioritizes function and quality of life, not just quick symptom relief
Surgery is not the enemy, but it should not be the first option. Having surgery only when absolutely necessary, with the body prepared and with full awareness, is a decision of health and personal responsibility.
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