andi7411

Hello my name is Andrea and I am brand new to the group.  I found this webpage via a group I am linked to on Facebook.  I am 3 years post surgery and still struggling almost on a daily basis.  I had the surgery because I had tried everything under the sun it felt like to lose weight and keep it off.  I could lose it but just couldn't keep it off.  I had 3 other family members who had the surgery prior to me and they all had great success.  2 of them had minor complications but nothing that something short term couldn't fix.  The worse part of surgery is I fell in that 1 in less than 100 patients that had major complications and when I say major I mean MAJOR.  I was in and out of the hospital for 13 weeks after surgery because of all of the complications.  I had 11 strictures which required having a balloon like procedure done on my esophagus to get it to expand back to where it was suppose to be, I had internal bleeding, I had a feeding tube, I had a drain tube, I had a leak, I had fluid around my lungs which required the fluid to have to be drained off and probably came close to dying more times than I really care to think about.  By the time I was finally able to come back to a semi-normal life of not having to stress about doing something which would result in my having to be readmitted in the hospital I was regretting my decision almost on a daily basis. My outlook on life has not changed since having surgery I still am able to lead a normal life just with food restrictions.  I know that my stomach itself is smaller than what it was prior to surgery but I still have the same food issues that people who are just newly out of surgery have now.  My tolerance for certain foods changes a lot still, something I eat today and do just fine with I can eat tomorrow and be sick.  I did not have the "normal" after surgery process obviously because I had the feeding tube and drain tube for almost 7 weeks I had nothing by mouth during that time.  I was allowed to have those "wonderful" little sponges on a stick to wet my mouth but was not even allowed to have water. I went from the feeding tube to whatever food I was able to tolerate which mostly was yogurt and mashed potatoes.  I see the complications of my surgery daily with all of the scars I now have from the feeding tube, the drain tube and the actual surgery incisions.  What I am hoping to find in a forum like this is others who have at least some of these complications.  I have yet to meet anyone who has been down the path that I had due to all of my complications.