James Marusek

The largest incision point is the longest to heal. I am 5 years post-op. I think it took about a year or two before I could no longer feel it.

Good luck on your surgery. Here are 3 bits of advise. 1. Take a good before photograph of yourself, so that you have something to compare to after surgery. Many times we are blind to our obesity. We do not see ourselves. Therefore when the weight begins to drop off rather dramatically, we question if this is really happening. Photographs are a good visualization of our success. Many people carry a before and after photo with them, just to remind themselves of their success. 2. Walk 30 minutes each day, every day until surgery (or equivalent exercise). Walking helps the recovery process go smoothly and minimized the pain levels from surgery. 3. Wean yourself from caffeine and carbonated beverages now. After I gave up my 6 diet coke a day habit, I suffered from a week of severe withdrawal syndrome consisting of severe headaches and body aches. I was miserable. You don't want to combine the effects of caffeine withdrawal with the effects of surgery. In my case this change alone resulted in a 20 pound weight drop in the pre op stage.

I did not experience much pain because the operation was done laparoscopically. I refused to take any pain medicine after I left the recovery room. I didn't really need any because my pain was low. (Also I have a high pain tolerance). The important thing to remember is to Walk, Walk, Walk, every 2 hours round the clock after surgery. Most of the pain that patients experience is gas pain and walking helps you pass the gas.

$600 seems a bit excessive for your first visit. My monthly visits were in the $150 range as I recall. When you see the surgeon for the first time, you are charged for that and also when you go for the mandatory psychologist visit, that is also not covered. But the monthly visits to the doctor who specializes in weight loss through diet and exercise is a lower costs.

The worst part of bariatric surgery was dealing with my health insurance company. I noticed that they covered some of my visits to the doctor during this 6 month phase but not all. Generally it was every other visit. When I asked the insurance company why - they said medical visits for obesity were not covered. And since they had paid for some of the visits -Oh! you don't have to worry about paying us back. I said I am going to these visits primarily because my health insurance company is mandating them as a prerequisite to getting gastric bypass surgery. But that didn't seem to phase them. The whole process is totally illogical.

Congratulations.

Congratulations on your weight loss. Are you getting in your required daily protein? A lack of protein can produce hair loss. Eating meats can be difficult after surgery. I found that softer foods such as chili and soups went down much easier than harder food such as steak and chicken. It also gave me quite a bit more flavor in my meals. I have included some recipes at the end of the following article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

Congratulations.

Your diet look pretty bland as you said. You are taking Prilosec, which is a proton-pump inhibitor, so that is good. Could be an ulcer. According to the internet: Nausea and vomiting are the most common complaints after bariatric surgery, and they are typically associated with inappropriate diet and noncompliance with a gastroplasty diet (ie, eat undisturbed, chew meticulously, never drink with meals, and wait 2 hours before drinking after solid food is consumed). If these symptoms are associated with epigastric pain, significant dehydration, or not explained by dietary indiscretions, an alternative diagnosis must be explored. One of the most common complications causing nausea and vomiting in gastric bypass patients is anastomotic ulcers, with and without stomal stenosis. Ulceration or stenosis at the gastrojejunostomy of the gastric bypass has a reported incidence of 3% to 20%. Although no unifying explanation for the etiology of anastomotic ulcers exists, most experts agree that the pathogenesis is likely multifactorial. These ulcers are thought to be due to a combination of preserved acid secretion in the pouch, tension from the Roux limb, ischemia from the operation, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use, and perhaps Helicobacter pylori infection. Evidence suggests that little acid is secreted in the gastric bypass pouch; however, staple line dehiscence may lead to excessive acid bathing of the anastomosis. Treatment for both marginal ulcers and stomal ulcers should include avoidance of NSAIDs, antisecretory therapy with proton-pump inhibitors, and/or sucralfate. In addition, H pylori infection should be identified and treated, if present. So the other two things they recommend is (1) stay off any NSAIDs, such as aspirin and Excedrin (which contains aspirin) and a host of many other NSAIDs and (2) make sure you were tested for Helicobacter pylori infection. This is a common infection that is hidden, so you may be a carrier and not know it. It can also be a hard bug to kill. I would make your surgeon aware of the difficulties you are experiencing.

I haven't noticed any change in my dream state as a result of surgery. But on the other hand: As you lose weight, the chemicals and hormones that were stored in your fat cells are being released into your body. These will pass through your kidneys and are expelled in your urine or through your sweat glans. But they can generate a flush of hormones during the weight loss phase. They should simmer down once you transition into maintenance. It is important to meet your daily fluid requirements, because it take fluids to flush these hormones from your system.

It sounds like both you and your husband are planning to have surgery at the same time. Sounds like a bad dream. I hate strange dreams. So tonight dream that your husband was approved and you were denied. How does you husband act!

I had RNY gastric bypass surgery around 5 years ago and did not experience any leaks. Some people have drainage ports put in after surgery, I did not. I don't believe leakage from your incisions are a common problem. According to my discharge instructions, the time to contact your surgeon after you are release to go home include: * Changes to your incision - new pain, swelling, redness, cloudy drainage. * Cloudy output in or around drains. The other part to your question is internal leaks. Generally these are detected by the hospital staff while you are in the hospital.

I am 69 years old and I had RNY gastric bypass surgery 5 years ago. One of the best decisions I ever made.

Congratulations on your surgery and progress thus far. Many people find it difficult to meet their daily fluid and protein requirements. This is because there bodies are in a major heal mode. Just keep working towards those goals and at the end of the first month you should be there.

I had RNY gastric bypass surgery which is different from gastric sleeve. I found the transition to solid foods such as chicken and steak to be difficult. As a result I relied on softer foods such as chili and soups. I have included a few recipes at the end of the following article. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf There is no need to rush the transition to solids. It is best if your partner just take his time. [19 st. = 19 stones = 266 pounds, 14.5 st = 203 pounds]

Congratulations.

After surgery I found that I could no longer swallow large or even medium size pills. So I used pill splitters and pill crushers. After about 2 months post-op, I regained my ability to swallow and then life was great.

After sleeve surgery it is common to hit stalls. Someone on this site even coined the slogan "Embrace the stall". Eventually you will pass from the weight loss phase into the maintenance phase. I had RNY gastric bypass surgery and I transitioned into the maintenance phase at 7 months. Sleeve patients lose weight at a much slower pace but they can eventually achieve almost the same amount of weight loss. Many do not transition into the maintenance phase until 2 years post-op. Weight loss is achieved during the short weight loss phase through meal volume control. The two operative words here are short and volume. So if you want to maximize your weight loss during this phase, you need to adhere to the program guidelines.

Right after surgery, your body is in a major heal mode. Many people find it difficult to meet their daily protein and fluid requirements from the get-go. Just keep working towards that goal and you should be able to get there within the first month.

Wow. I never really even measured my uric acid levels. How is that done except in a medical lab? High uric acid levels can lead to kidney stones. Kidney stones (renal lithiasis) are not only painful like gout but both are developed due to high uric acid in the blood. ... Kidney stones are basically crystalline minerals that form in the urinary tract causing severe pain in either the stomach or groin area and usually causes blood in the urine. High uric acid levels can also lead to gout. Gout, a painful form of arthritis, occurs when high levels of uric acid in the blood cause crystals to form and accumulate around a joint. Now I have heard that some patients that had gastric surgery experience can experience problems with kidney stones. Research points in that direction. Treatment for gout according to the internet is: The general principles of a gout diet are essentially the same as recommendations for a balanced, healthy diet: * Weight loss. Being overweight increases the risk of developing gout, and losing weight lowers the risk of gout. Research suggests that reducing the number of calories and losing weight — even without a purine-restricted diet — lowers uric acid levels and reduces the number of gout attacks. Losing weight also lessens the overall stress on joints. * Complex carbs. Eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, which provide complex carbohydrates. Avoid foods such as white bread, cakes, candy, sugar-sweetened beverages and products with high-fructose corn syrup. * Water. Keep yourself hydrated by drinking water. An increase in water consumption has been linked to fewer gout attacks. Aim for eight to 16 glasses of fluids a day with at least half of that as water. A glass is 8 ounces (237 milliliters). Talk to your doctor about appropriate fluid intake goals for you. * Fats. Cut back on saturated fats from red meats, fatty poultry and high-fat dairy products. * Proteins. Limit daily proteins from lean meat, fish and poultry to 4 to 6 ounces (113 to 170 grams). Add protein to your diet with low-fat or fat-free dairy products, such as low-fat yogurt or skim milk, which are associated with reduced uric acid levels. Either way, I would probably work this problem out with your surgical team and see what they recommend.

Nope.

The incisions will take awhile to heal. They can take a year before they entirely disappear. According to the internet: Wound healing also elicits mechanical stress that activates itching. ... This process creates a mechanical stress that activates the itch nerves and tells the spinal cord to scratch. These nerve fibers can also be activated by chemicals secreted by the body, which is how wound healing causes itching. So itching is a natural sign that things are going in the right direction. Although your stomach looks bad, that is the way it looks after surgery.

Pureed foods are necessary following surgery to allow the staple lines in your stomach to heal and to prevent nausea and vomiting. Generally pureed foods can be soups with the solids strained out. They can also be soups that you process through a blender to make a pudding like consistency. Think of baby food. According to the internet: A purée is cooked food, usually vegetables or legumes, that has been ground, pressed, blended or sieved to the consistency of a creamy paste or liquid. Purées of specific foods are often known by specific names, e.g., applesauce, mashed potatoes, hummus.

Congratulations on your surgery.

Welcome. The three things to focus on in this stage if you haven't already done these. 1. Take a good before photograph of yourself, so that you have something to compare to after surgery. Many times we are blind to our obesity. We do not see ourselves. Therefore when the weight begins to drop off rather dramatically, we question if this is really happening. Photographs are a good visualization of our success. Many people carry a before and after photo with them, just to remind themselves of their success. 2. Walk 30 minutes each day, every day until surgery (or equivalent exercise). Walking helps the recovery process go smoothly and minimized the pain levels from surgery. 3. Wean yourself from caffeine and carbonated beverages now. After I gave up my 6 diet coke a day habit, I suffered from a week of severe withdrawal syndrome consisting of severe headaches and body aches. I was miserable. You don't want to combine the effects of caffeine withdrawal with the effects of surgery.