Too Pooped to Post!

[CloserToFine 172]

Hi y'all . . . it's Day 5 after surgery. Thursday 6/18 was the day!

I've wanted to write, but the energy just isn't there yet. So don't be surprised if this posting is a tad incoherent.

My surgeon is awesome and the nurses on my recovery floor were pros. Still, I couldn't wait to get home on Saturday! (Bonus: no more crazy roommate who whined all the time -- not sure what her malady was. Worse still, she couldn't stop talking to her visitors/callers about the food she wanted to eat. I sat there fuming while she was talking about eating Lo Mein.

Still, my takeaway is that all the hassle will be worth it -- and saying that on a day when I'm pretty uncomfortable is saying a lot.

I had a sleeve and hernia repair. Let's not mince words here: this is major frickin' surgery. My abdomen feels roughly like 35 mules kicked me there (owww!) That being said, I only used painkillers for one day. My major problem in-hospital was nausea, and they used 3-4 drugs to control that. Taking variants of oxycontin and codeine make me very ill.

The main reason I'm posting now is to get some of that incredlble support that I've seen on these boards. My mule-kicked abdomen will get better, yes? How soon? (I'd love to hear from a combo sleeve/hernia case, but anyone is welcome.) I will eventually be able to drink more than 2 ounces at a time without having pain, yes? I surely hope so.

My post-op appointment is this Friday. In the meantime, I'm laying low, pampering myself, resting a lot, and will check these boards.

xoxo

[JamieLogical 8,708]

I can't help you with the hernia repair, so I don't know how long your abdominal pain will last.

But I can promise you that you will be able to eventually drink more Water without pain/discomfort. Twp ounces is a LOT post-op. I was supposed to aim for 1 oz. every 15 minutes in those early days and even that was a challenge. But I really turned a corner with Water consumption at about 2 weeks post-op when most of my internal swelling had gone down.

Everything in these early days is about patience. You WILL feel better little by little and soon enough you will look back and be surprised at how FAST you felt better. It's just that in the moment, it seems like eternity!

[zonetracy 53]

Hi, i'm 12 days post op and had both a sleeve and a hernia repair. I also had some stomach polyps so i had an endoscope during surgery as well. My mule kicked abs were quite a bit better around day 7-8 then i thought i could pull a weed in the garden and had another day or 2 setback. At day 12 i can slightly feel my abs when going from sitting to standing but hardly at all now. You're almost past the pain. My doc puts everyone on a liquid ibuprofen/tyleonl regimen after surgery and that worked for me so I had one oxycodone as i was leaving the hospital and maybe 1 more a couple days post op and that was it. I didn't want to get backed up like i did after my shoulder surgery which was 6 weeks before my sleeve so i tried to stay off the narcotics.

[antigone40 30]

Hi C2F,

I'm 5 weeks out. I had VSG and my gall bladder removed and I was feeling okay after 6-7 days. After the second week, I felt fantastic.

Sometimes when I have other things going on, I forget that I'm sleeved and take a big gulp of ice Water ('tis summer after all). It still hurts when I get up in the 2-3 oz. range. I think it's bothering me the most, because chugging Water used to be so fun, and that's how it became a habit!

Best of luck; you'll get there!

Summer

[no onions 258]

My energy comes and goes. I have a follow-up on Friday as well. I'm overly cautious about amounts of water/protein (liquid) intake speed so am not getting enough of either probably - but doing better each day.

Updates on Friday?? Best wishes!

Edited June 23, 2015 by no onions

[no onions 258]

C2F - wanted to add this to my original post and couldn't figure out how. I think we may have similar cats.

[Daisy Girl 38]

I had a hernia repair as well. I am now 12 days out. It felt like spasms right in the middle of my breastbone. When the pain would come, it would take my breath away for about 20 seconds and then go away. It lasted till just a couple of days ago. The doctor had told me it could take up to two weeks to go away. Good luck!

[CloserToFine 172]

Thank you so much for your insight @@JamieLogical, @@no onions; @@Daisy Girl; @antigone40; @@zonetracy!!!

I really am in a "brave new world," and I'm grateful for your observations, advice and support.

It really sounds like the 2-week mark is key!! Can't wait!!

I'll update after Friday's doctor appointment. Thanks again for everything.

[DIESELD47 9]

Surgery was yesterday and I felt great (other than having to urinate but couldn't and had to be cath'd). Today, I feel pretty awful. Difficult to swallow anything and feeling weird discomfort all over my torso (from the CO2 and incisions). I'm sure it will improve over time but today I'm feeling pretty low...

[CloserToFine 172]

@@DIESELD47, so sorry about yesterday's discomfort. I can tell you that, without a doubt, I felt my absolute worst on Day 2. I really did. I was in surgery one week ago at this very moment, and each day after Day 2 has gotten better.

The swallowing gets easier around Day 3-4. You will get pretty confident about how much you can drink without wondering whether you'll get sick. The best, best thing is just around the corner: taking in Protein. Protein is the key. When I started on Protein shakes yesterday, my whole self (body, mind, soul) felt better.

Hang in there!!! We're all here for you.

[DIESELD47 9]

Thanks so much. I really needed to hear that. I'm hopeful that relief is around the corner so hopefully I'll be able to get around better pretty soon. Thanks so much to all for the support. My husband is awesome but there's nothing like hearing from folks who have been down the path.