vitamins and pills

[Wenniegirl 1]

Hey I'm almost 3 weeks post op. I was told to take chewable vitamins, quick dissolved B12, and to crush all meds. Has anyones doctor told them to do this?

[JeanZ_RN 378]

Chewables: My surgeon did prescribe chewable Vitamins (and calcium), plus nasal spray B12. The only mineral he prescribed that I don't take fully in chewable form is magnesium. There's 100mg of that in each of my chewable multi, plus I take an additional 250mg tablet.

Crushing pills: I can't remember if it was the surgeon, the NUT or a sleeve-veteran co-worker who has been advising me, but someone did tell me to crush all pills. Thing is, I misunderstood the reason for that. I ASSumed it was due to possible difficulty swallowing pills. Since I've never had difficulty with pills, I just took my BP pill, my anti-depressant and my cholesterol med same as always, without crushing them. Then, at my 1-month checkup I discussed w the surgeon whether I should now resume my 81 mg aspirin tablet I'd been taking pre-op. He said ok to resume, but take a chewable variety. I said the tablet is tiny, and I wouldn't have any trouble swallowing it. He said his concern was that the tiny pill would get stuck in the staple line.

In the car on the way home I realized THAT's probably the reason I was supposed to crush those meds all that time. Some days I just have to shake my head at myself.

Plus, there's the possibility that whole pills will pass through the sleeve without being dissolved, due to the quicker transit time and / or less contact with stomach acid.

So I advise that you clarify with your doc WHY he/she wants you to take chewables / crush pills - and specifically which ones, for how long. Don't make the same mistake I did, which was to ASSume I knew... Best wishes!

Edited December 14, 2013 by JeanZ

[joatsaint 2,814]

I never tried chewable Vitamins because of all the complaints about the taste. I used liquid B12 until I found a better tasting tablet, one that dissolves under the tongue. I get it at Walmart. I started taking Vitamin tablets and Calcium tablets at around 1 month. I was able to swallow them by then and Frankensleeve didn't act like a garbage disposal filled with rocks. :-)

I would check with your doc about the crushed meds and verify which ones can be crushed. Some meds are not supposed to be crushed because they are time release - crushing messes that up.

[Jdub 109]

My surgeon didn't say anything about crushing my meds either, and some of them specifically say not to be crushed. A few of them are pretty large in size but I just space it out over 10 minutes or so when taking my Metformin and Uridisol. The others are fairly small. I was sleeved on December 9th too, so I'm pretty early out of the gate. I was only two days NPO and by day 3 they were resuming me on my blood pressure meds, and by day 4 giving me my acid reflux and pain meds in pill form too! I guess everyone is different though...this is just my experience. My only difference is pre-sleeve I used to jam the lot in my mouth and take a big swig of Water to down them...Now it's one at a time and a sip!

*edit* - I am also on a chewable multi-Vitamin as per his instructions, and as per my NUT I'm taking NutraSea herring oil (liquid form) for my omega's.

Edited December 15, 2013 by Jdub

[chanelle102 173]

Wish I would have got chewable Calcium they are huge Oscal is the brand

[E2013 31]

I was instructed to take chewables/liquid or crush what can be crushed for three months.

[mistysj 1,940]

And I was prescribed and given fairly large tablets in the hospital the day after surgery and had no trouble. Always best to go by your own surgeon's guidelines.

[Chelsi 107]

i'm almost 3 months post op and my surgeon doesn't want me taking the large "horse" pills. even for an antibiotic i needed last week, they suggested liquid instead of the regular pills. i asked if i could take the Calcium pills because i'm not overly fond of the caramel chews from the doctor (sweet is like SUPER sweet to me now) and he said i should be taking the petite calcium pills. so small pills 3 months post op are alright, i suppose. i think every doctor is different, though.

[Fluffnomore 1,235]

I'm still crushing or opening every pill except a D3 gel. I wasn't told otherwise and I figure I can ask in January. I'm at almost 8 weeks.