Dry heaves for no reason?

[Miserable 27]

Background: I am 12 weeks post op from RNY gastric bypass that was uneventful. No complications. No hernia repair or gallbladder removal at time of surgery.

My recovery has been uneventful, progressed on schedule from liquids to solids right on schedule

Problem: I've had this weird thing happen to me twice that scared me and I can't figure out the cause. It happened 5 weeks apart. Both times in the morning.

I get rather strong, want to double over "bad gas" type of pain in my lower intestines, I go to the bathroom to release what I think will be trapped gas, but just as I sit down on the toilet, I start dry heaving uncontrollably with nothing but saliva coming up and simultaneously having a regular bowel movement...but a lot of it. I never did pass any gas. Sorry to be gross. After my bowels were finally empty, the uncontrollable dry heaves and gagging stopped. The stabbing pains in my intestines ceased. But I felt pretty crumby the rest of the day and wiped out.

Both times It has been in the morning. The first time, was about 2.5 hours after having my normal Premier Protein shake and morning Vitamins. The second time was this week on a completely empty stomach...the pain woke me up at 5 am...I ran to the bathroom and it went on for an hour.

After both incidents my stomach/esophagus just ached all day and I was unable to eat anything...just didn't have an appetite. But the gagging and dry heaving stopped after about 45 minutes both times and I was fine the following days.

Have any of you experienced anything like this before??

Any clue what causes it?

[Sosewsue61 3,185]

Oh sooo sorry you are having this experience, you poor dear. Have you mentioned this to your surgeon? Were you constipated before these two events? I would review your food journal with your doctor and to maybe rule out some offending item(s) or get some tests/labs. Good luck.

[Miserable 27]

Thanks for the response. I have not spoken to him yet. I thought after the first time that maybe I had been exposed to a stomach bug and that maybe I was spared the actual vomiting because of the bypass. Since it didn't happen again, I didn't think about it.

I have never been constipated since surgery, gratefully.

I will see my surgeon for my 3 month check up on April 9th. He was that booked up back in December, that is the first time they could schedule me.

Good idea about keeping a food journal. I was not given any instructions other then what to eat the first 6 weeks and what not to eat and what type of Vitamins to take. I have felt lost with little direction on what life is supposed to be like after those first 6 weeks. I don't even see the nutritionist for the first time until that second week of April!