having a hard time..

[George Payton Jr. 5]

So my name is george. I am 33 and i had my sleeve done a week ago on july 12. I have had a lot of regrets even though i know the future of my life will be better. I stayed in the hospital for 2 nights and the nurses were awesome as well as the drs. While there i had a problem with peeing so they had to do a straight catheter in the middle of the night(damn did that hurt. Never again)! then the next day i was able to pee but i could not pass gas. But i was full of it, which caused a lot of problems. After a lot of walking and some mirolax we got that taken care of. I came home on thursday in quite a bit of pain. i had no problems drinking Water, getting all the fluids i needed and tried to do as much exercise as i could. On Saturday i started to have a lot of pain. I thought it was the drain they had left in (which was scheduled to be removed on this coming wednesday). i started taking the oxycodone i was prescribed and it didnt really help the pain. Sunday was very rough, i thought one of the staple lines looked red but im colorblind so it was hard to tell. So i went to my pharmacitst and he told me it looked fine. Sunday night i started getting the chills and shaking non stop and pain was 9 out of 10 so my girlfriend call my dr as we were thinking the drain was causing the problem.. he said we needed to make the 3 hour drive to see him the next morning. Sunday night i took the max amout of meds i could. I had chills, sweats, heart rate was 122. next morning i saw my dr and found out the staple line below the drain had serious infection and blood clot. He took the drain and all staples out and cleaned all the bad blood out by shoving gauze in my stomach (dont know if ever been in more pain).My doctor presribed me a heavy duty antibiotic that i will take for 7 days. I felt the relief when i left though not having all the bad blood. Now i have an open wound and home health has to come and change it everyday. Now my pain is below a 5. In the last day i started my full liquid diet and i have run into a few more problems.... I am having a lot of diarreah and im sure the antibiotic is not helping with this. Also, i am having a hard time swallowing, it feels like there is something stuck in my throat- my doctor believes it is just built up gas....but this is making it difficult for me to get all the liquids and Protein that my body needs. I know things will get better from here, i hope... but i cant help but regret having this surgery done.

[karen091866 120]

So sorry to hear that you're having these issues post-op.

I'm right @ 8 months out--and truly was fortunate, in that my only issue was that my IV infiltrated (went bad, the vein collapsed and the Fluid was collecting in my hand, not flowing through the vein, as intended)

The gas pains can be terrible after any surgery...try warm fluids, if you haven't already.

Make sure that you're doing your incentive spirometry, especially since you're taking narcotics..."Splint" your abdomen each and every time you have to get up from your "recovery nest" (bed, couch, recliner...wherever it is you're set up during your down-time)...You do this by "hugging a pillow" close to your tender belly, to offer a great deal of supprt as you get up from being seated/ laying down.

You mention diarrhea...I had this issue directly post-op and quickly found out that it was the Protein powder causing it.

powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury and I don't work and play well together..so I switched to IsoPure--and the problem immediately resolved.

In regards to getting all of your liquids and Protein, when you're early on in your recovery, why not kill 2 birds with one stone---a Protein shake is BOTH! Manage things that way until you get your other issues ironed out...That is how I did things...because all of the sip-sip-sip, no fluids with solids, etc..etc....is a huge learning curve...and you need that protein to heal. Protein shakes covers it for you!

Make sure that you're taking your Prilosec (or whatever acid-reducer med your surgeon prescribed)--skipping that can cause issues, too....Don't hesitate to take your Zofran (or whichever anti-nausea med your surgeon ordered)---those can work wonders when diarrhea is an issue.

I'm by no means a VSG expert...I am; however, more than happy to offer up what I've learned and found to work since starting this journey back in November of last year.

Hope you're feeling better soon...Try not to let a few bumps in the road cause buyer's remorse...I'm willing to bet that you're gonna be beyond thrilled with your results and life-changing choice once things get smoothed out.

[Christinamo7 4,042]

Hi George,

I am sorry you're having a rough go of it right after surgery. This is why I tell people to plan for more time off than they think they need, and to just go back early if all is well. Most of us don't have these issues, but sometimes they happen.

I am glad you went in and got this taken care of, and I hope that this week will see things turn around and you feeling better.

please come back and let us know how you're doing.

[melvin5ft2 56]

George,

I hope you start feeling better very soon! I had really bad gas pain and its all but gone now. I took Gas X meltable strips and I think that helped. Also the thing with your throat. It seemed like every sip I took I could hear air come up right after. One thing I'm still doing (I had my surgery July 12) is that sometimes I sit here and pat/tap my chest from the middle to my throat and help the air come up. Its kind of like 'burping' yourself. It does help get the air up quicker. Give it a try and see if it helps.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

Welcome, George. I am so sorry to hear you have been having such a rough time. I am glad to hear that you were able to get some relief after seeing your doctor and that you are on the mend. As you are able to have an easier time getting in your fluids and Protein it will really help with healing.

Keep us posted on how you are doing.

[George Payton Jr. 5]

thanks everyone for your kinds words and ideas to help me. Especially that splint one that is a pain saver thanks.. I will def try the burping thanks.

[Destinee_1 16]

Hey George,

I had my surgery the same day. Just think there are brighter days after the storm:). Splinting is good, it is very good. I believe a very common side affect of antibiotics is diarrhea. You're lucky you get to go I haven't gone in 3 days lol... I still can't tell when I'm hungry, full or have gas sometime because the pain all feels the same.

I hope all the best for you in your recovery. You got this!!!

[Delia1434 21]

thanks everyone for your kinds words and ideas to help me. Especially that splint one that is a pain saver thanks.. I will def try the burping thanks.

Hi George, I had vsg surgery on July 11, 2016 and I stayed 2 days in the hospital went home in a lot of pain. The pain got worse no better and I finally had to be rushed to the hospital on Sunday morning. I am still in the hospital on major pain meds waiting for someone to figure out what they are going to do I have a bile leak somewhere. I can drink Water fine but since Sunday all I get is ice chips I am really not hungry but I do believe I have to be starving. Since surgery I have eaten maybe 6 taplespoons of broth or Protein shake. I am just waiting

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[George Payton Jr. 5]

Sorry to hear about your situation. Did they do a barium swallow before you orginally left the hospital. That would have showed the leak. I hope your doctor can figure out what to do soon. I was lucky as my dr quickly reacted. Keep me up to date. We can go through this hard time together..

[fit2bme 36]

Hang in there George! I had my gastric bypass on the 14th of July...I'm having a few complications... And that's ok because its worth it all in the end!! Stay strong

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[shellsndreams 41]

George don't give up and we r praying for u sending hugs n postitve energy ur way

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[MemphisWLS 58]

Hope you all having complications get to feeling better. If all else fails, get prayed up. It is well!!!

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