Feeling Woozy in the Evening

[ouroborous 519]

So, this isn't serious enough for me to bother the doctor with (yet), but I was wondering if any other sleevers have this same experience.

For the most part, during the day, I feel fine. In the past few days I've had a few bouts where I feel flushed, and my BM's (sorry, TMI) have been very loose -- bordering on diarrhea. But I only go once a day, so I dunno if that's it.

Edit: I should mention that the nut. had me taking Colace (a stool softener) for a while due to hard Constipation right after surgery. Obviously I've been off that for a few days now.

I've been trying really hard to stick to all the nutritionist and surgeon guidelines. For the most part I'm eating 800 calories a day. There was a day when I ate 950, there was a day when I ate 650, but mostly I'm right around 800 calories. I'm getting >60g of Protein per day, maybe closer to 80-100. I'm taking my recommended bariatric Multivitamins.

Most of the time, during the day, I feel fine. At times, I feel better than fine -- when I'm exercising I feel like I'm king of the world.

The problem is when I lay down to sleep, I generally feel icky -- shaky, a little queasy (not enough to throw up, just a little... off), and generally like something's "not right." I know I tend to get anxious over little things, but this is disrupting my sleep a little -- just when the reflux calmed down, this popped up.

I've been brainstorming for solutions, and here are a few that I thought up. I'd like input.

• Due to the loose stools, I'm losing Water. When I'm drinking 80 oz of Water a day, I may be losing enough so that I'm mildly dehydrated by the end of the day. It's a challenge to drink too much more, because it tends to flare up the reflux. "No more than 80 oz" was what the nut. recommended to avoid reflux, but maybe I can tweak that.
  
• I'm not getting enough of some nutrient. But for the life of me, I can't think of what. I THINK I may be a little low-carb since almost everything I eat is Protein, but MyPlate (my food tracker) says I'm actually over on carbs 80-90g/day. If I'm malnourished, I can't think of what. Again though, the loose stools could be causing me to lose out on nutrients, too.
  
• I'm undernourished. I may be eating the recommended calories (800), but according to LiveStrong, I'm also burning 250-400 calories per day in exercise. I wonder if I'm just running low on fuel?
  

I'd really like to nip this in the bud before I have to see the doctor/nutritionist, but I will definitely talk to the nut. about it on my next appointment (on Wednesday). I'm just curious if anyone has gone through this -- feeling mostly fine during the day, but then feeling run-down, shaky, and a little nauseous at night.

Edited May 27, 2010 by ouroborous

[deletedsally 8]

I took half of a sublingual Zophran at bedtime for about the first 4 weeks. Same symptoms you describe. Felt OK during the day, but I would wake up during the night feeling very queasy. I never knew what caused it, it just gradually improved. My MD prescribes the Zophran for all his patients (with refills) and encourages his patients to take it as needed.

[ouroborous 519]

From what I understand Zofran is an antinausea medicine. My nausea hasn't really gotten bad enough to need that, and I'd like to attack the root cause of the wooziness, not just the symptoms.

Thanks for the advice, though!

[JillianMarie 0]

I have been feeling the same as you. I feel fine during the day, am able to eat and drink just fine, but then at night i get cold sweats and i actually get quite nauseous. I wake up thirsty and hungry, and drink down some of my shake, then i get awful stomach cramps and have to get out of bed for about an hour and pray that i wont throw up. It's very strange because this does not happen during the day. I have started taking a phenergen and a zofran, and 2 tbsp of anti nausea liquid, as well as chewing up a few (2 or 3) cherry chewable Rolaids at night. It seems to do the trick. The Rolaids seem to help more than anything, especially if you have acid. And they taste great.

Is it safe to take a stool softener right now? I feel blocked up and feel cramping (down there) but am unable to go (sorry for too much information!). If it is safe to take them i will go pick some up.

[JillianMarie 0]

Oh, Katt- Is it safe to take Reglan for Nausea? I have a RX for that as well, it especially helps if i have eaten too much as it helps empty the stomach faster. Have you tried taking it? It seems to work for me however i experience a very weird side effect from it.

[ouroborous 519]

Honestly, your symptoms sound like reflux, aside from the cold sweats. Stomach pain and hunger sounds VERY much like acid reflux. Are you taking a PPI?

[educationrulz 18]

Why are you hesitating to go straight to your surgeon with this issue? You don't seem to think it's a clear cut case of typical post-sleeve symptoms, so let him figure it out. That's what they get paid the big bucks for! :001_cool:

[lmmore 0]

I notice the insids of my tummy all the time. How it feels depends on what I have or have not eaten. Yesterday I felt icky and uncomfortable. But I was sure it was because i ate too much. I had turkey, vegies and mash potatoes in small amounts, but it felt heavy. when i woke up this morning it still felt heavy, and unfortunetlye i had to get ready pretty quickly. I made the mistake of taking all my meds at once on an empty stomach, and then went from feeling icky, to weak and tired. I could barely finish my shower without have to rest. i took a nap. woke up an hour later and felt great. The way i see it, is that I am two months out and my stomach has not settled down yet. It will, but not just yet. At night I take a half an ambien if needed to help. and i am usually comfortable. tonight i feel good. I hope some if this helps. i know i am just rambling.

[deletedsally 8]

Oh, Katt- Is it safe to take Reglan for Nausea? I have a RX for that as well, it especially helps if i have eaten too much as it helps empty the stomach faster. Have you tried taking it? It seems to work for me however i experience a very weird side effect from it.

My surgeon writes all his patients a prescription for Reglan prior to surgery and asks them to take it for 6 weeks postop. It helps with motility in the digestive tract, helps keep food moving through your system, and can help reduce nausea. BUT there is a class action lawsuit that is being advertised right now because Reglan can cause irrreversible problems with tardive dyskinesia that may develop as late as 7 weeks after taking the medication. It now has an FDA black box warning.

I talked with my MD and told him I was not comfortable taking Reglan and he said that the problems generally were only for people who had taken it longer than 6 weeks. Maybe... but I'd rather take my chances with a little short-term nausea than end up with permanent tardive dyskinesia.

[jerryvic 3]

Have you considered, since you are on a very low carbohydrate meal plan, that maybe you are experiencing low blood glucose levels. I am a diabetic and when my blood sugars get too low, I get shaky, nauseous, jittery, and can't seem to focus on things clearly. If you have a friend that has a glucometer, ask to borrow it one night and when you feel the "shakes"; test it. It may not be the problem, but at least that can be ruled out. If it is the problem then simply take a bite of something with a carbohydrate in it prior to bed. This works for me.

[CraftyChristie 62]

How long before bed do you eat? I was told to always eat within an hour of waking up, and within an hour of going to bed. If you are stopping your calorie/protein/water consumption earlier in the evening, you might be feeling weak by bedtime. If this is not the case, sorry, that's all I could think of!

[M_Bigga_M 0]

I felt the same way yesterday around 1030. I drink a Protein Shake wand the feeling went away. I think I hadn?t had enough Protein in. Again I?m still not getting as much in as you, I?m fighting to get about 40/50 grams a day @ 1 week post-op.

[JillianMarie 0]

I agree with Jerry about the low glucose levels, because you aren't eating as much during the day, you need to have a more steady supply of energy. Keep a cold Protein Shake next to your bed, i put one in a bottle with a lid and put a few ice cubes in it to keep it cold all night. Then if i wake up during the night i can take sips. It helps to keep the blood sugar up. :tongue_smilie: