My Ongoing Story :)

[Katie713 423]

Yes Becky, are you doing better these days? Its been awhile since we've heard from you.

[SlenderAmy 1]

Alright' date=' today was my nutrition class...very helpful! She went over a lot of things that I already knew but talked about supplements which I didn't know much about. There were a few other people at the class and they were clueless! One lady's surgery is in a week and she didn't know the first thing about it. She didn't even know she had to drink Protein shakes and was complaining! I can't believe you'd be signed up for such a life changing surgery without doing any research.

So, my Gold Standard 100% whey Protein by Optimum Nutrition came in the mail today. I have:

5 lbs of Cake Batter flavor

2 lbs of Mocha Cappuccino

2 lbs of Caramel Toffee Fudge

I tried the Cake Batter with Water tonight for fun, it'll taste MUCH better the second week when I can have skim milk but it's definitely not bad for being mixed with Water. I'll blend some ice with it during the first week and it'll be all good.

My powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury chicken broth and Unflavored protein tubs are on their way.

I ordered all of my Vitamins except the B-1 (thiamine) because I had a lot of trouble finding a sub-lingual version. (No pills for me for 6 months! My daily meds are going to be a pain but I'll manage)

I got Celebrate brand for the Vitamins that I could, I read pretty stellar reviews on the taste and quality so I ordered:

Multivitamin chewable in Grape, Mandarin Orange, and Strawberry-pineapple (I'll figure out which I like best and re-order that when I need them)

Iron+C 30mg Chewable Grape

Calcium Plus 500 Chewable Cherry-Tart

They didn't have a chewable or sub-lingual Biotin or B-1 so I ordered this from VitaCost:

Nature's Way 1000mg Biotin Lozenges (I've heard they have a yummy fruity flavor)

I'll probably call my nutritionist tomorrow about the B-1 and see what she says. I picked out a comfy pair of Joe Boxer Pajamas, am getting liquid Tylenol and Gas-X strips from Walgreens tomorrow then I think I'm about set. My nice boyfriend moved up my SUPER comfy over sized chair from the basement to the living room so I can sleep comfy without trying to maneuver steps. How nice of him <img src='http://www.bariatricpal.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> (I helped too, it was heavy!) I've got to get some Jello and probably some chicken broth from the store, take 2 more finals, throw one last party, then pre-op then surgery! One more week, I got this <img src='http://www.bariatricpal.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />[/quote']

Where can you get the Celebrate Vitamins?

[Beckyyb93 225]

Where can you get the Celebrate Vitamins?

www.celebratevitamins.com

After a while I got tired of the Calcium, I like chewy ones better than I liked the ones I got there. Good luck!

[Beckyyb93 225]

Alright guys, I haven't forgotten about you. Here's my update:

It is now over two months post op for me, I was sleeved on December 19th. After 3 endoscopy dilations, 4 hospital stays, and two different medications I'm just now starting to eat soft food. These last few months have honestly been hell. I've been on the Lortab since the day I left the hospital the first time and I went through about 360 milliliters a week which is a LOT! It was the only way I could get down enough food and Water to stay out of the hospital. About once every two weeks I'd get frustrated with all the pain and my surgeon would admit me back to the hospital to try to figure out what was causing the pain. We figured out that I was having spasms of the cardia which is basically right where your esophagus meets your stomach. They did that nasty swallow test a dozen times which basically showed the liquid going down, my cardia spasming, and then the liquid shooting back up my throat which as I'm sure you can imagine is extremely uncomfortable. It feels like your having a small heart attack when it spasms, and then it feels like you have something stuck in your throat that may or may not come back up. My surgeon couldn't figure out why this was happening, it's just some kind of freak accident. It's extremely rare to have these spasms at all much less have them start right after this type of surgery. My doctor was puzzled and was in way over his head because no one he talked to seemed to have any experience with this or know what to do about them. Most people have heard of esophageal spasms but what I have is different, it's lower and therefore is treated differently. We tried dilating through an endoscopy a few times, but that didn't seem to help much. We tried a medication called Amitriptiline which is an anti depressant and a STRONG sleep aid, but that didn't seem to help either. All the while I'm trying to make it through my semester at school with no energy, doped up on painkillers which if you guys remember I'm a nursing student and that was extraordinarily difficult. To put it into perspective, I could manage to get down about 20 oz of Water a day and 1-2 pudding cups. That was it, everything else I tried was unbearable even on the painkillers. I missed classes, missed quizzes, had trouble focusing on studying, etc. It was terrible. My grades were starting to suffer and I was completely miserable. I wasn't losing any weight because my body was sure that I was starving it so it held onto everything I put in my mouth. I was starting to regret doing the surgery towards the beginning of February but there was nothing we could do about it. We tried one drug as a last ditch effort before doing something surgical like putting a stint in which may or may not have helped. We tried Diltziem which is a Calcium channel blocker and is supposed to help with smooth muscle contraction. We started that on the 18th of February, within a week the spasms got about 10 times better. I was so excited, I started getting more water down and more pudding, it's still not better to the point of eating normally but i can get down almost all soft things I try which is amazing! I'm starting to have more energy, I'm catching up in school, I'm starting to hang out with my friends again, my life is getting back to normal after two months of crazy stress. I'm still having trouble with the painkillers because after two months of constant use I have a little dependency issue. I'm getting off of them slowly and am starting to try new foods. Right now, I'm eating a lot of carbs because not only are they soft and go down easily, they give me energy which I need badly. We are slowly upping the dose on the medication and I start getting a little better every day. Eventually I'm going to stop the carbs so I can lose more weight but for now the energy is more important than the weight loss. Luckily, I didn't blow this semester so badly that it's not fixable so I'm slowly fixing it and bringing my grades back up. My teachers were awesome about the missed classes and are helping me a lot. My surgeon is extremely happy, my boyfriend and mom are extremely relieved and happy and of course so am I. I've lost a total of 24 pounds in the last two months but I know I'll start losing more once I can eat more healthy and start exercising.

It's been a really rocky journey, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I'll probably be around a little more now that I'm feeling better. I'll keep you guys updated on my progress. Thanks for checking in on me

[abetterme4.2 268]

Thanks for keeping us updated! I am glad to see things are slowly going up for you and there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Take all the time you need to get to your goal for yourself. You deserve it and you've been through much.

[Katie713 423]

Glad to hear from you. Sorry to hear about your complications. Sounds like you found the right meds to calm down the spasming. Thank goodness, and now to gently start to introduce healthy foods is such a blessing. Take care Becky.

[lessofmeismore 1,405]

So glad to hear from you. Thank goodness you found a medicine that works! I'm so sorry you went thru all this... Please keep us updated on your progress.

Wishing you all the best!

[Beckyyb93 225]

I posted in a new thread but figured I'd put an update in this thread too in case any of my loyal followers here are still around

It is now May of 2014 and I don't eat real food, I'm on 40mg of Nexium twice daily which is double what's usually used, I'm still on the Calcium channel blocker and the Amitryptiline but I have bad spasms whenever I eat or drink anything. I barely manage pudding and ice cream so get no Protein or much Water. I'm tired all the time and I haven't lost any weight. I can't eat anything other than carbs without pain so bad it lands me in the emergency room so I just eat what I can here and there, it's pretty miserable. I gave up on my surgeon until recently when I went back for one last ditch effort at fixing this and he was totally shocked that I'm still having these spasms...it's insanely rare. He wants to put a stent in but said 70-80% of people can't tolerate the pain and have to remove it right away and even if it does work it's only temporary. The second option is a revision to a bypass to eliminate the acid which is what the main cause of the spasms is. I was adverse to the idea of another surgery but after doing lots of research I decided I'm going to schedule the revision. I have to have a permanent solution, I'm 20 and am on so so much medicine so I feel like I have to give that option a try. It will be scheduled on Monday for sometime either next week or the week after. I'll try to keep everyone updated with a date. This has been a pretty awful experience for me so hopefully the bypass will fix things for me and maybe I'll even be able to lose some weight. If only I could tolerate Protein or anything besides super super soft moist foods

[barbb3 115]

Hi Becky,

I just read your story and you have sure been through a lot! I hope your revision goes through and resolves your issues. Thanks for keeping us posted and for sharing your story! Good luck

[chsmith23 12]

How much weight have u lost?

[dreamscometrue 262]

I posted in a new thread but figured I'd put an update in this thread too in case any of my loyal followers here are still around It is now May of 2014 and I don't eat real food, I'm on 40mg of Nexium twice daily which is double what's usually used, I'm still on the Calcium channel blocker and the Amitryptiline but I have bad spasms whenever I eat or drink anything. I barely manage pudding and ice cream so get no Protein or much Water. I'm tired all the time and I haven't lost any weight. I can't eat anything other than carbs without pain so bad it lands me in the emergency room so I just eat what I can here and there, it's pretty miserable. I gave up on my surgeon until recently when I went back for one last ditch effort at fixing this and he was totally shocked that I'm still having these spasms...it's insanely rare. He wants to put a stent in but said 70-80% of people can't tolerate the pain and have to remove it right away and even if it does work it's only temporary. The second option is a revision to a bypass to eliminate the acid which is what the main cause of the spasms is. I was adverse to the idea of another surgery but after doing lots of research I decided I'm going to schedule the revision. I have to have a permanent solution, I'm 20 and am on so so much medicine so I feel like I have to give that option a try. It will be scheduled on Monday for sometime either next week or the week after. I'll try to keep everyone updated with a date. This has been a pretty awful experience for me so hopefully the bypass will fix things for me and maybe I'll even be able to lose some weight. If only I could tolerate protein or anything besides super super soft moist foods

Holy crap, girl! I just read your entire story as well and I am in absolute shock. I just turned 28 and was sleeved almost 5 months ago, and as I was reading the initial part of your story, I saw so many similarities in us! Then when I noticed your posting had slowed down (which mine did too, as I documented on my own thread pretty often in the first few months), I assumed you were out living your awesome new life. I am so so sorry to hear all of these struggles you have gone through. It definitely sounds like you've been put through the ringer. Did you end up graduating from nursing school or did these health issues prevent you from finishing? I'm sending prayers your way that this revision to bypass will be the answer/solution you've been looking for. Also, are you still with your boyfriend?! I'm so curious to hear how things (other than weight/health) are going. Please keep us updated! I just subscribed to this thread so I can read your updates.

[Beckyyb93 225]

I posted in a new thread but figured I'd put an update in this thread too in case any of my loyal followers here are still around It is now May of 2014 and I don't eat real food, I'm on 40mg of Nexium twice daily which is double what's usually used, I'm still on the Calcium channel blocker and the Amitryptiline but I have bad spasms whenever I eat or drink anything. I barely manage pudding and ice cream so get no Protein or much Water. I'm tired all the time and I haven't lost any weight. I can't eat anything other than carbs without pain so bad it lands me in the emergency room so I just eat what I can here and there, it's pretty miserable. I gave up on my surgeon until recently when I went back for one last ditch effort at fixing this and he was totally shocked that I'm still having these spasms...it's insanely rare. He wants to put a stent in but said 70-80% of people can't tolerate the pain and have to remove it right away and even if it does work it's only temporary. The second option is a revision to a bypass to eliminate the acid which is what the main cause of the spasms is. I was adverse to the idea of another surgery but after doing lots of research I decided I'm going to schedule the revision. I have to have a permanent solution, I'm 20 and am on so so much medicine so I feel like I have to give that option a try. It will be scheduled on Monday for sometime either next week or the week after. I'll try to keep everyone updated with a date. This has been a pretty awful experience for me so hopefully the bypass will fix things for me and maybe I'll even be able to lose some weight. If only I could tolerate Protein or anything besides super super soft moist foods

Holy crap, girl! I just read your entire story as well and I am in absolute shock. I just turned 28 and was sleeved almost 5 months ago, and as I was reading the initial part of your story, I saw so many similarities in us! Then when I noticed your posting had slowed down (which mine did too, as I documented on my own thread pretty often in the first few months), I assumed you were out living your awesome new life. I am so so sorry to hear all of these struggles you have gone through. It definitely sounds like you've been put through the ringer. Did you end up graduating from nursing school or did these health issues prevent you from finishing? I'm sending prayers your way that this revision to bypass will be the answer/solution you've been looking for. Also, are you still with your boyfriend?! I'm so curious to hear how things (other than weight/health) are going. Please keep us updated! I just subscribed to this thread so I can read your updates.

Well, I'm 20 and am a junior in college so haven't graduated yet but I have managed to stay afloat which is very difficult. The first thing to go was the sorority because it was demanding too much of my time and I was missing tons of events. I was just in and out of the hospital so much that I could barely keep up with schoolwork much less anything extra. My teachers have worked with me so much which has been amazing, I've managed to keep my GPA around 3.0 which sounds good but I was a 4.0 straight A student before I had surgery. I'll take it though, at least I've not had to drop out. I keep pushing back clinicals because it will consume so much of my time and effort that I can't possibly be in the hospital frequently. Those take 2 years and I also have a trauma studies/psychology minor so I will probably graduate a little late but with all that's gone on I'm pretty proud of myself. I'm hoping and praying that the revision will fix things and I can stay healthy so I can start my clinical work. I'm still with my boyfriend, he is amazing as ever. Him and my mom hate watching me go through all of this and just want me to feel better. They are very nervous for the revision because it's not a guaranteed fix and could have complications. They do support me 100% though and will help me through this surgery because they love me and want me to feel better. I'm just hoping and praying that things go well and I can start contributing more to the household again. I can't manage a job with school because of the constant fatigue so they are basically supporting me which makes me feel awful. They both love me so much though and tell me constantly to just focus on school and not to feel bad about not being able to work. I'm so so lucky to have both of them!

I have zero social life outside of study partners and family just because I don't have the time or energy to go out much. If we can just get this eating problem under control life will be perfect! Here's to hoping!

[Beckyyb93 225]

Alright, I saw the surgeon today and here is what he said..

He is going to make me have a manometry which is going to be traumatic but he wants to make sure I don't have an underlying motility disorder. Assuming that comes back showing no achalasia or other serious esophageal issues then he will go through with the bypass. He just wants to make sure that they bypass will indeed fix things. I understand his logic but this means at least 3 more weeks of waiting which feels like years because I'm in soo much pain. I'm just going to keep trying to get in my fluids and as many ounces of Protein shakes I can stomach.

I'm scared of the manometry because I know it's going to be extremely painful. It's on Wednesday morning the 7th and then the surgeon can't get me back in until the 19th..ugh. But, after that we can either schedule the surgery or treat the motility disorder.

So, the problem is bile reflux versus acid reflux which I honestly thought was the same thing but apparently not. That does explain while all of the antacids don't work. The worst thing for it is fat so I'm going to stick to skim milk shakes and tea. Hopefully I'll survive these next few weeks, the pain is just so bad.

I have one more final tomorrow morning so I'm going to start studying for that then I'm done and I can focus on getting some rest and getting things figured out over the summer.

[Beckyyb93 225]

So, I survived the manometry without throwing up or passing out...go me! I was so scared and I'm not going to lie it was pretty awful. I'm just hoping it helps the doc figure out what's going to fix me! I have an appointment with him on Monday so I'll post an update then. If anyone is curious about the manometry let me know and I can describe it but I don't want to unnecessarily scare people that most likely will never have to get this test done.

I'll let you all know on Monday afternoon!

[Beckyyb93 225]

Alright, I talked to the surgeon yesterday and here is what he said..

The manometry measures 13 swallows, my lower esophageal pressure was abnormal in all 13 of the swallows and my lower esophageal sphincter malfunctioned 9 out 13 swallows indicating that I'm bordering on the edge of achalasia which is what leads to esophageal cancer...bad! He thinks if we change the anatomy of the stomach (revise to bypass) the pressures will equalize and hopefully that sphincter will go back to normal stopping the achalasia and stopping all the horrible pain I'm having.

So, I have to jump through all the same hoops as I did the first time to get the revision which I think is stupid because I don't even want this surgery, I just want the pain to stop. Regardless, it's their policy so I have an appointment for medical clearance on Thursday morning then an appointment for a psych evaluation and a nutrition consult on Friday morning. Then, the insurance has to approve the revision which could take up to 30 days so I suppose now it's a waiting game.

I'll update you guys when I have a date, in the meantime I'm ordering Vitamins and more Protein powder since my stuff is expired.