minle360 6 Posted December 7, 2016 Hi. New to this site and forum. I had RNY GSB on October 20, 2016. For four weeks I had ongoing cramps on my left side that moved around. One was the pain from the muscle incision someone else wrote about. That resolved. But at four weeks I still had this almost constant sharp pain on the left just under my rib cage. It felt/feels like I suddenly ran and got an ache in my side multiplied by 50. Nothing showed on the scan. My surgeon suspected adhesions or scar tissue to be at the root of it. So two weeks ago, I went under again for an "exploratory" and for her to remove scar tissue. There was scar tissue that she did remove but not as much as she thought would be there. I do feel better (2 weeks later) but I still get these sudden cramp attacks and can't figure out what causes them. At least they stay in one place: left side under my rib cage. It can happen when I eat (nothing in particular), or drink, or be walking. Ice packs and/or drinking hot tea helps as does sitting and stretching out on a recliner but it takes a while. They can last up to an hour or more. Anyone else experience this or have any knowledge what is causing this? And any suggestions to prevent or treat? Thanks in advance! (Pictures coming soon) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
minle360 6 Posted December 10, 2016 Hi....For those that read, thank you. Thought I would give you all an update and maybe this will help someone else. Through trial and error, I narrowed this issue down to a couple of things: 1. Drinking. First, although I wasn't using a straw, I was drinking hot fluids with a "sip top" cover. And I realized, I may have been gulping air when trying to get Fluid through the small opening! Now I just keep the top on to keep the beverage hot (and prevent spills from my mischievous cats who like to run fast and knock things over - lol). But when I sip, I remove the top. This has made a huge difference. Second, although for the most part I mastered the eating techniques (more in a minute), I believe I may be drinking fluids too quickly. This is because a) I'm not drinking enough or consistently throughout the day so when I drink fluids, I'm so thirsty, I go too quickly (old habits die hard, what can I say?) Also, the eating guidelines are pretty clear. But drinking guidelines I've seen are "sip like you would a hot drink". Guess what? I typically liked my beverages ice cold and even when hot, they were typically very warm. As in hot tea, I would add an ice cube so I could drink it. Bottom line on fluids for me: Small sips through an open top cup, swish in my mouth, wait at least 30 seconds (like food) before taking another sip. I haven't figure out yet why I get this pain randomly when sitting or walking. For now, I've accepted it may still be my body healing and relearning to digest food and But if I figure it out, I'll update again. Regardless of whether you read, reply, post, I'm so grateful to have found this site. Reading others' experiences has been helpful and inspiring to me. You also makes me feel like I am in great company and remind me to laugh at myself now and then - even if laughing still hurts my tummy (but less than it did one week post-op). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cz.99 20 Posted December 12, 2016 I'm having same cramps. Calling doc tomorrow. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cz.99 20 Posted December 13, 2016 I sipped my Water today, had no side pain at all. I guess gulping is not good. . Doc orders did say, sip Water. Lol Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App Share this post Link to post Share on other sites