What "musts"should I purchases pre op?

[tomi71 581]

Ok going shopping tomorrow and want to know what you will have preped and ready at home for the beginning of post op. Also for you post op people things you had or wished you had ready and waiting at home.

Post-op....just have a small, firm pillow on hand to hold against your tummy when having a bm, riding in a car and whatnot. The hospital gave me one.

My husband was really great so I didn't need or want for much.

Oh! Maybe a pitcher or thermos to keep by your bedside filled with Water. I would wake up in the middle of the night thirsty. Also, a nice comfy warm robe and socks cuz you are going to get cold!

Best of luck and congrats!

[Cococat 119]

"Latisse" is the cosmetic name for "Latanoprost" which is used not for a cosmetic enhancement but for glaucoma. Latanoprost has the side effect of making lashes longer. I take Latanoprost for glaucoma. I was issued a new bottle at the hospital, so I did not take it with me to the hospital. The nurse tried to put the drops into my eyes but could not do it, so I took the bottle from her and did it myself. She had a noticable reaction when I touched my eye with the dispenser - an unusual, "Oh, nuts" reaction, which in retrospect is understandable if she had wanted to keep it sterile for someone else's use. If the med was only for my use, and only for my hospital stay (2 days) there should not be a reaction no matter how I used it, or how much I used, as long as I got it in my eyes.

As far as lashes falling out if Latanoprost is not used continuously: maybe that was the reason she (or someone she knew) needed it! She needed a new supply? Hmmmm? When it went missing, her previous reaction became understandable. She apparently had plans for that med. As I was issued the Latanoprost by the hospital and had paid for it, it was mine. I did include that episode in a report made in a routine hospital questionaire. I found the episode to be an all too human, but significant breach. Do I condemn all nurses because of it? No. Do I totally trust all nurses - I trust all nurses and hospital employees to be human - with all the virtues and vices common to that station.

One writer here said that if one writes everything down that it would have the effect of making nurses attend to the patient even less. How can that be if all nurses are perfect? Wouldn't they remain total professionals no matter what? A pad of paper should not discourage anyone of clear conscience from doing the work expected of them. Even ostensibly sweet people make mistakes. I do not like subterfuge.

Hospitals do have a significant missing medications problem. They know it. You know it. I know it.

[BitterSweet* 835]

@@Cococat, Bless your heart.

You contaminated your hospital issued Latanoprost when the bottle tip made contact with your eye. Perhaps she didn't have her sights set on longer lashes at all, but removed the bottle from your room to prevent you from infecting your eye. Nah......that could never be the case. Perhaps her oversight was just in forgetting to get the pharmacy to issue you a new, sterile bottle of drops before your short stay was over.

Even if you've always administered eye drops in this improper way and never developed an eye infection, does not make it right. You've vented plenty about your "stolen" drops, so seek "justice" from those that wronged you so terribly. Patient questionnaires don't do much. Make your complaints with the appropriate personell at the hospital itself, and dispute the charge for the drops with the insurance company..........and then move on.

You should start your own thread about your pen & pad suggestion since you advocate for it so vehemently. I'm sure the good folks on this forum would be grateful for your helpful tips. Don't forget to advise them to take down the names of the tellers next time they're at the bank too. It'll keep those thieving tellers at bay.

Happy holidays to you and best wishes for continued weight loss success. =)

[ProjectMe 909]

Ugh...my daughter is in her Freshman year of college and is getting her BSN....so that she can be an RN & deal with suspicious and rude people. Yes, I think the suggestion of writing everything & everyone down is rude and begins a negative relationship with your medical staff.

Isn't it exhausting to carry previous negative experiences into new experiences?

[Cococat 119]

She looked for the med, or so she said, so she did not remove it and discard it for my own good, as you suggested. She went to great lengths, or so she said, to find the misssing med. You were not there, so you do not know. You choose now to defend another person with whom you share merely an occupation, and on that basis only. Bless your heart for being so loyal to a colleague you have never met, no knothing about and would rather give the benefit of the doubt rather than me, the person who experienced it all. The hospital contacted me several days later to ask about my experiences there and I related both positive and negative incidents (in a message that was also recorded), so it did go to the supervisor. Aside from that incident, every other aspect of the hospital stay was good. As far as paper and pen are concerned, I did not take any as I was advised to do by a friend. But I can see the merit of it now. I sense you take my observations personally. I can't help that. I can only relate that the angel complex that some people have (and want to maintain) apparently can feel threatened by an experience which challenges it. Get over it. Everyone is human and subject to human failings. I suggest you open up another thread and rhapsodize about your profession. I am sure neither you nor any of your colleagues ever gossip, complain, goof off, make mistakes, or even tread less than two inches off the ground. I am sure they all eat healthy food, and are slim because they know so much about human nutrition and health. Wait ... maybe not. Oh, and yes, have a lovely holiday.

[tomi71 581]

That's a first. NSAIDs are a definite no no. Tylenol yes, asprin or advil? No. Prednisone is still allowed as is benedryl.

My understanding is non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as asprin, ibuprofen, Advil, Motrin, Aleeve, Naprosyn, Vioxx and Celebrex increase your risk of developing ulcers. This one I would would double check with your medical team on. I thought is was a pretty universal rule.

ETA: I googled some info on how NSAIDs work and why they make not be good for sleeves. This article explains it the best.

As I read through these boards I've noticed that some input deviates. Case in point...NSAIDS. I was told by my surgeon that the first few months NSAIDS are off limits. Later its ok to take ONLY if a) prescribed by a medical professional who is aware of the fact that a procedure was done, closely monitored & c) only short term.

This. From my surgeon. Board certified. Licensed. Excellent tract record. UPenn/Boston med grad.

Just saying at the end of the day I take what my medical team says under serious advisement over folks who aren't medical professionals.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

Did I miss something? This was a thread asking what to get in prep for post op. Someone suggested a NSAID, hence my reply. You info actually supports that so....? The only additional info you have included are the exceptions which would be under doctor supervisor and not a recommendation from folks here.

[Kindle 8,667]

NSAIDS.... My surgeon actually sent me home with a five day supply of a sublingual NSAID. He said the benefits of decreasing the inflammation caused by surgical trauma outweighs the risk of potential gastric ulceration for such a short time period. He also OK'd me taking NSAIDS and/or steroids for a compressed nerve in my neck as long as I took a PPI at the same time and monitored closely for gastric upset.

Steroids (including prednisone) have just as much risk of causing ulcers as NSAIDS. The very physiological action of any drug that blocks prostaglandins (which are the root cause of inflammation) also decreases the prostaglandins that protect our GI tracts. Without further pharmacological advances, you can't have one without the other and it's a matter of weighing benefits and risks in any given situation.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

@@Kindle - I understand that. What I'm trying to say is in a post where people are asking for general info about things to have on hand post-op, a NSAID might not be something another WLS patient could advise another to have. If you've discussed it with your doctor and they okay it that's an entirely different story.

[tomi71 581]

Ok going shopping tomorrow and want to know what you will have preped and ready at home for the beginning of post op. Also for you post op people things you had or wished you had ready and waiting at home.

Wait til you shop after you start losing! Its gonna be fun, fun, fun!

Add---sugar-free pops for post op. They were a big help with staying hydrated.

Edited December 23, 2014 by tomi71

[BitterSweet* 835]

..............@@Cococat, please YouTube the theme song for the Disney movie "Frozen".

I'll be sure to use my angel wings to make patient rounds instead of walking like regular folks, and I'll keep my eyes open for that bottle of drops. =)

[lucky1228 24]

..............@@Cococat, please YouTube the theme song for the Disney movie "Frozen".

I'll be sure to use my angel wings to make patient rounds instead of walking like regular folks, and I'll keep my eyes open for that bottle of drops. =)

bwahaha! I personally use my devil horns to hold up my slightly tarnished halo....evil grin....; o)

[Packerfan61964 293]

Don't buy anything for home post-op and I say this because your taste buds change after surgery. Before surgery I loved the liquid Protein shots. I mixed them with my crystal light, and BOOM I had 42 grams of Protein. Now I cant stand any of them.....so I wasted $125. Good luck finding what works for you!!

[MyssJones 84]

@ Try ginger tea. It really helped me with my chronic inflammation.

[MyssJones 84]

Headphones. My hospital floor was so loud during the day, I could rest at all. If I had to stay more than one night I thnk I would've cried.