Swallowing Pills After Surgery

[Andrea8967 25]

Every morning I have to take an estrogen pill and a thyroid pill. Then at night I have to swallow two high blood pressure pills (and one's as big as a Buick) and an anti anxiety pill. I know that eventually the blood pressure pills wlll be eliminated, but not soon enough.

My question is this: if it's almost impossible to swallow immediately following surgery - how the heck did you guys take your medication? Even if I dissolve them - that's alot of Water to get down your gullet.

Help please. Any suggestions??

[UXgrrl 29]

I was very concerned about that as well, as I had/have a number of regular, non-weight related meds to take on a daily basis.

First, you want to ask your surgeon about his/her specific policy regarding swallowing pills. Every one is different. Some say yes, some say not until X weeks, some say yes as long as they are smaller than a M&M, etc.

Once you have that info, see if you can request an appointment with a pharmacist where you usually have your meds filled. You can explain what you are having done, and ask if there are any other alternatives... some drugs come in liquid form, some come in smaller dosages per pill (you'd have to take more pills, but they'd be easier to swallow), some come in non-extended-release form so you can crush them and add them to applesauce or pudding. You need the pharmacist to help you in case the dosages are changed.

If you do talk to pharmacist, make sure she s/he understands you are having a VSG, and NOT a RNY. There are some significant differences between the two (as you know) that affect medication dosages and delivery mechanisms, and most medical professionals are not as familiar with VSG as they are with RNY.

Swallowing is a challenge after surgery, for some people more than others. I'd say I couldn't swallow much for the first 3 days or so. Taking pills was an all-day project which required concentration. I carried my bottle of Water and my dish of drugs around with me all over the house and I felt like once I got my morning ones down it was time to start my evening drugs. That, combined with the supplements I now had to take, made it a bit exhausting. But I got through it.

FWIW, they had me back on my usual regimen of meds as soon as I was switched to full liquids (about 24 hours after surgery & still in the hospital). The only drug I was worried about was my anti-depressant/anti-anxiety drug, because I have to take that every 12 hours and I CAN TELL when I miss it. I took my last dose in the middle of the night, right before my 8-hr limit of no food before surgery, and I didn't exactly miss it with everything else that was going on... but I did feel a lot better once I started taking it again.

The only drug that was disallowed to take right away was my NSAID, which I couldn't take for 4 weeks post-surgery. I just started it again yesterday, and WOOO I feel loads better already!

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

hi andrea,

The one thing that is the same about all of us, is that we're all different.

In my case i was able to swallow my pills right away. I was a little afraid to drink so much Water since it was only a few hours after surgery, but i managed to get all my meds down.

good luck to you

kathy

[Less of Leslie 90]

My surgeon wanted pills crushed. He would check with the phX and see what could be crushed and what needed to be switched to accomadate. Pain meds post op were liquid.< /p>

[lml32937 65]

I have a total of 10 pills (including my Vitamins B12 and d) that I take every morning plus 4 Gummy Multivitamins and 2 Calcium chews- When I was first home- i had to take 2 pills at a time- it took about an hour to take all of them- Beleive me my Breakfast was my pills for about 2 weeks- Now almost 6 weeks out- I am down 3 of those 10 pills and can take about 4 of them all at once with no pain... IT gets easier-

None of my pills could be crushed- Most doctors dont reccomend that because you miss alot of the "powder"residue- It's best to just go slow and either ask for a liquid substitute or a gummy version-

[DebiC 181]

I was fortunately able to swallow even my largest pill after a few days. But before that my doctor suggested cutting the pills into halves or quarters (a pill cutter is only about $2). For the capsules, he had me open them and mix the contents with a spoonful of applesauce. The texture was kind of like little round sprinkles, but it was doable. Thankfully tho I could take them normally after just a few days. I still usually take them 1 at a time (7 in the morning-so it takes awhile).

[LoserMama 37]

I am not having any issues swallowing pills. They did tell me to discontinue metformin for now, not sure if that is due to size, not eating much or potential tummy upset...

[TexasTina 5]

It's great to know that maybe at some point I can swallow whole pills. My Dr. said all meds had to be liquid or chewable. When i came home from hospital I had liquid Tylenol with codeine and Nexium capsules I had to open n place on my tongue. My chewable Multivitamin and Calcium are huge and tiring. The Iron pill is also chewable. I am so amazed that doctors have such different rules for such an important surgery. Wonder if there's a reliable medical website that gives us a breakdown on diets, meds/vitamins, Water intake and differentiates between VSG and the other 2 surgeries. My Dr.'s diet rules state at the top that it's for VSG/Gastric Bypass/ Lap-Band. They are so different, so why the same rules?

[Gaylebco 11]

my surgeon actually had them give me a pill in the hospital and within a week He had prescribed Bactrim DS (cut in half it's still bigger then an M and M) and i took them all with no problems at all.

[Indymom 132]

My doc preferred that any pill larger than the size of an aspirin be in capsule form. Luckily my colitis meds are a capsule, and I chose a multivitamin that's a softgel (they were OK with that too).

I didn't take meds in the hospital (so missed 3 days) but was OK to start taking everything on day 4, and I had no problems swallowing the pills. Early out I had to space each pill out by about 10 minutes (made it pretty time-consuming since I take a bunch!) but now I can take one right after another with no problem.

I do have to make sure to take my meds before I eat, though - I made the mistake once of trying to take meds about 15 minutes after I ate (forgot my pills at lunchtime) and it was painful!!

[jewelwithin 13]

I had my surgery Thursday, and all my meds have to be crushed or the capsule opened to take powder directly. These are NASTY, nasty nasty! I've tried eating with Jello (and will try applesauce), but some of the pills are so bitter that nothing cuts it. I had tried to get liquid of an Rx that came in that form, but nothing did. Since I take all my meds in the morning, my plan now is to chase them with gummy vitamins.< /p>

[leo39 15]

I know this was started awhile back but this is one of my questions as well.... I take meds that are not related to my weight. Most are for fibromyalgia. Two are in capsule, so I guess they can be taken out of the capsule in applesauce. The other three are smaller than an M&M so maybe I can give them a go. I know they don't have a liquid formation. I take most before bed so I guess I will start in the afternoon

Any other tips? On a full tummy or not?

Also what temperature of water/liquids is easiest? Can tea have milk in it right away?

I do have GERD already so I'm nervous about it getting worse. Does having a different sized bougie make a difference?