7/21 is the day!

[pinkhiker 18]

How'd the surgery go? I hope well

[stacyann 11]

That's good ... I have had some pain and I hope to go home today. I am drinking Water and mushing sugar free Jello. But the procedure itself went great! Just having some bumps on recovery. I ran fever last night but it's gone today. Who knows! Yay to us!

[CrashNCamsMom 58]

I'm having RNY on the 29th. I'd love to hear (read) how all of your recovery is going.

[stacyann 11]

Please remember that everyone's recovery is different. I am post op day 4 and I am starting to feel alive again. I had lots of pain and gas pains on top of fever. It's been a rough couple if days but it's all part of the journey. I am ready to see the scale start dropping!

[prrite 9]

I had RNY 7/21. Was fine while in hoapital. But wheezing, fever, shortness of breath 7/23 & 7/24. Went back to surgeon, had blood work & chest xray done. All signs point to pneumonia, but nothing prescribed. I can get fluids down but i feel like crap.

[CrashNCamsMom 58]

I know there is no way to predict how my surgery or recovery is going to go. I'm just one of those people who likes to hear all the angles. For some reason it calms me. I feel like it prepares me for the worst case scenario and keeps me hopeful for the best. hope you all feel better soon!

[Dawnakers 40]

Hi all....

My surgery was Monday...I am on my 5th day out. Surgery went well.

The first night was rough, I cried and had a moment of remorse.

Everyday has gotten a little better than the day before. I CONSTANTLY am sipping something, Water, tea, broth, sf Powerade and am trying like hell to drink my Protein shakes. I was only able to get down 30 grams of Protein yesterday. I ate 1/2 of a small Jello. I am taking my Vitamins and supplements. It is all very daunting but it is the only thing I am focused on.

The last two days I have been running a LOW grade fever. 99.2 - 99.9, the doctor said if it gets to 101.3 then I have to be seen. Woke this morning to no fever ...YAY! The gas pain has been bearable. I have moments where it settles in the middle of my back and doesn't move - NOT a good feeling. I am burping (a good thing) and passing gas (another good thing). I had a partial BM (sorry if TMI -but it is par for the course), when having a BM you do not want to push. I am definitely going on a stool softener today.

My incision sites are beginning to itch...good sign that they are healing. Second day home I showered.....oooh the best thing ever.

My only gripe and something everyone must be made aware of...my doctor did not discharge me from the hospital until 7pm! I was then given my prescriptions. This was unacceptable! I live 45 minutes from the hospital my pharmacy would have been closed and I would have had to spend my first night home without pain meds. So my mother and I scrambled to find a pharmacy on my way home from the hospital. I wasn't happy. Please ask for your RX's prior to being released and have them home waiting for you.

All in all so far it has been pretty good. A LOT of rest with intervals of walking.

It is a slow process right now, but one I am NOT regretting. I am looking forward to my future and a lot less of me!

Good luck to all ...and remember SIP, SIP, SIP your liquids!

[stacyann 11]

I keep having moments of remorse and tears... Day 4 post op with a kidney and bladder infection.

[stacyann 11]

Also... My hospital filled all Rx before we left. Make sure to ask if they will!

[Dawnakers 40]

Oh damn Stacyann..... I am praying for you.

I couldn't imagine having this AND an infection (never mind BOTH infections).

Stay strong.....this is temporary and will pass.

Take care of yourself.

[stacyann 11]

Thanks today has been long .. Keeping my chin up. Has anyone gotten on the scale yet?

[prrite 9]

Went back to dr again today. Had CT scan done. Dr called in antibiotiic to fight borderline pneumonia. If i dont get better soon, iim going to ER. Coughing fits, nausea, fever. Im sick of being sick.

[stacyann 11]

Praying for you. I am struggling taking the antibotics .. The pouch doesn't like it!

[Dawnakers 40]

I got on the scale the day after i got home (last Thursday) and was 16 lbs heavier than my surgery weight. I went to my doctor today and am back down to surgery weight.

I was not given any antibiotics (which I questioned).. do not get them.

I could not imagine coughing....with my stomach like it is...my heart.goes out to you though. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

[justmel2003 10]

7/21 was my surgery date, and everything went very quickly, very smoothly. I woke up pretty quickly and felt really good almost immediately (thanks, Morphine!) My surgeon used an On-Q pain pump - it's a subcutaneous line that constantly drips pain med directly to the sight of surgery; I had to carry around a little 'hand-bag' for a couple days, but it's totally worth it! Up several times the first day. Had the catheter out the second day and didn't have any problems urinating after that. Had an x-ray with contrast (yucky stuff) on second day to check how everything was running. Stopped using Morphine and went oral on pain med the Wed morning after surgery, and other than one right before they pulled the Q-pump and the Penrose drain, as well as the central line IV in my neck, the afternoon of discharge (Wed afternoon) I really haven't needed pain medicine at all! I have some soreness, to be expected, but nothing I would even want a Tylenol for. I still had quite a bit of drainage in my Jackson-Pratt drain (the one with the bulb) so I went home with that - it was finally removed on my post-op appointment this last Wednesday (10 days with drain). I'm healing up really well, still a little bit of oozing from Penrose drain site, really nothing from the Jackson-Pratt drain site, and I'm itchy itchy itchy. I got oxygen delivered when I got home, I was needing just 1 liter of O2 during exercise and 1 liter at night; now I'm just 1 liter at night for another couple weeks - I've been sleeping really well, so it's helping me heal faster. I was sent home with Enoxaparin, an injectible blood thinner, and had to do that twice a day - here's a tip: be sure to let the alcohol dry before you inject, and keep the fat pinched for a few seconds after you're done injecting, it eases the burning.

Prior to my post-op appointment I had to take a nutrition class, and there were several other people that had surgery the same day. I'm graduated to soft foods (yogurt, cottage cheese, scrambled egg, soft fish, etc.), and in another week or two I'll be introducing more soft foods, with solids in about 6 weeks.

The day of surgery I was down 5lb from the start of things, and at my post-op I was a total of 20lb down (10 days out). Definitely the first couple of days I felt like I was sloshing around with all the liquids they put in my IV and what I was drinking. I was warned that I could gain Water weight right after surgery and that the scale is not your friend right now! I have noticed a change already, not so much with my clothes, but I can walk down my apartment stairs now without my knees crying - and that's at 20lbs! I would seriously counsel you all to NOT WEIGHT YOURSELF the first few weeks. In fact, I don't think the scale is a friend at all - you should be trying to eat right, drink right and exercise; working the program will guarantee weight loss, but focusing so much on numbers might just discourage you.

I went back to work the Monday following surgery, I've been part-time this week but have had zero trouble driving (I have a 5-speed).

FYI - the three things I only used from home in the hospital were my small fan, my Android cell phone with charger, and an extension cord for both. With my phone I had relaxing music playing at night, and with the fan I really did rest well - when I wasn't being woken up by nurses! lol

Honestly, this exerpience has gone so smoothly and couldn't have gone better. I felt well educated going in, the doc and nursing staff were amazing and I feel a billion pounds lighter already! The only thing I'm pretty disappointed about was that I could not post anything on my cell phone! I have an Android and am using Bariatric Pal Pro, and everytime I tried to post I was kicked out - so annoying.

Anyone that is going into surgery, I wish you all luck and good health.