Sounds like a hernia to me. All the hacking can cause it. I'm up there with Glenn and Mark - get it checked.

You're supposed to check into the hospital when your temp goes above 100.5 degrees.
The rash could be from heat or reaction to pain meds. The immune system gets pretty beat up in the post Tx. Let your doctor know what is happening.

I wouldn't get discouraged. Healing from this is a slow tedious process measured in three week increments. Be patient. It sounds to me like you are doing pretty well overall.