The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star initially thought her symptoms “would just go away” but they only got worse

Denise Richards is on the mend after undergoing emergency surgery to repair four different hernias.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 48, is “getting stronger!” every day, her husband, Aaron Phypers, wrote on Instagram, which Richards reposted along with two pre- and post-operative photos and the story of how it all happened.

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“This was a couple months ago and turned out to be a good lesson for me to always listen to my body,” she said. “Being a mom, wife and having a career, sometimes it’s easier to just be strong and power through.”

Richards said she “thought the pain and my other symptoms would just go away. They did not and got a lot worse.”

The mom of three thought she had just one femoral hernia, but after seeing a doctor, learned she had two femoral and two inguinal hernias. While inguinal hernias sit at the top of the groin and are visible, femoral hernias are lower down, near the femoral vein, and tougher to diagnose.

Image zoom Denise Richards

Richards had all four repaired, and said she regrets waiting.

“I waited way too long and didn’t even tell my husband how bad I was feeling (I know it was stupid),” she wrote. “Gotta always listen to our bodies and take care of ourselves.”

RELATED VIDEO: Denise Richards Changed Her Diet After Fans Noticed Her Enlarged Thyroid: ‘I Thank All of You’

Phypers wrote that he was proud of Richards’ strength through the ordeal.

“To the most incredible woman my soulmate,” he said. “I am always in awe of your beauty perseverance, dedication in all you do. These photos taken a couple of months ago from an emergency procedure femoral hernia, not one but four! 6 hours waiting close by. Love you baby everyday getting stronger!”

This is Richards’ second health scare this year. In August, she revealed she had an enlarged thyroid after a few eagle-eyed fans noticed it during the RHOBH reunion show.

“A few of you pointed out after the #RHOBH reunion that my thyroid was enlarged,” she wrote on Instagram. “You were right, it was something I ignored until pointed out.”

Richards decided to change up her diet, and quickly saw it improve.

“It’s amazing to me in a short time eliminating gluten from my diet how much my thyroid has changed,” she said. “… I had no idea how much our diet really can affect our body and for me how toxic gluten really is…I thank all of you who sent me messages.”