Hi everyone,
I got released last night...finally. I've been fighting nausea like there's no tomorrow. I'm nauseous all the time.
So, now have a whole new list of questions...sorry if some of them are gross...
1) I'm getting in some liquids but then feel extremely full, to the point of burping and feeling sick. But I'm only drinking the minimum required liquids. Did anyone else feel like this?
2) Because I can only get in the minimum liquids , honestly I am not getting any proteins in, should I be worried yet?
3) When can we start to take pills after the surgery. I have my vitamins that I need to get a go on, plus my birth control and would like to take some tylenol. Can't handle the ground up into powder stuff.
4) How do you know when you can proceed to yogurts, cottage cheese, apple sauce, etc. I think once I can start eating those things I'll do much better with getting in the protein.
5) Did anyone have a sensation that your insides are too short. To stand up tall and straight hurts and feels like I'm pulling all my insides.
6) Lastly..ok, the poop question. I've been constipated since the shakes last week. When can I expect to go?
Thanks for everyones candor!
J.

Ok I'm just going to go by number here to answer as well as I can. :P
1) Keep going with the fluids, it does feel weird/yucky for a while. One day you will say "oh that doesn't feel weird/yucky anymore"
2) Protein drinks count as liquid intake. Until you get better with the water make sure you get protein in as well. If you can't handle food yet, just do shakes. Eventually you wont feel like drinking them and will want to eat..that's fine.
3) I left the hospital taking pills. I crushed them up anyways once I got home, mixed it in pudding LOL I was told 6 weeks post op nothing bigger than an m&m. I take my prenatal multi vit with no trouble at all. I took my birth control once I got my first post op period. No problems with it at all.
4) I just tried tiny bits and waited to see how it felt in my tummy. Eggs sat like a ROCK for months!! So did chicken. Now both are awesome for me..I added greek yogurt to my soups for added protein and I mixed vanilla protein into my apple sauce with crushed ice. YUMMY!
5) I did get that pulling sensation, but it felt more like something had been sewn up to a different spot, not that my insides were too short. That feeling was short lived. It's just trauma from someone fiddling with your guts...you'll be alright. If anything is very sharp or painful I would mention to the docs.
6) Well you've been drinking you meals for awhile now..and they say liquid in= liquid out. I bet you're peeing like a racehorse. Once you start getting more solid food in your bowel movements will be more normal. If you truly feel like you're "blocked up" then get some stool softener. I got Colace. I still have a bottle..... I stayed away from Metamucil because it always hurt my tummy when I was normal, never mind after a stomach surgery. Some people are just fine with it post op. Know thyself!..LOL

Anyways I hope this helps a little bit. It sounds like you are doing fine and have all the same questions I did. Just follow the program, go slow and trust your body. 

WELCOME to the bench...ya big LOSER!

Glad your home, everything will get a little easier each day.
I took my Tylenol with apple sauce. Just do whAt you can each day and it does get easier.
Rest when you can
Shan

Welcome home, glad everything went well with you! wishing you a speedy recovery

 you're home! horray! you did it! good for you, now all you have to do is take good care of yourself. be gentle with yourself, let your body heal. i may not have had my wls yet but i have had other surgeries. i found it hard to be patient and just let myself heal, so thats my advice to you. be kind and patient with yourself. really glad to hear from you.
take care
niki

 Hi,

Ensure you get in your fluids- or you will dehydrate. i actually would time my fluids -Every 15 minutes i would drink a med cup (little sips over course of 15 minutes). I found it much easier to drink thin fluids. Have you tried isopure protein?

Available at safeway pharmacy, i think i may have seen it at london drugs too..not sure. Not the best tasting, some people add crystal lite to it to make it more palatable. I drank the fruit punch one. 

I had trouble with protein at first as well. Did you try to thin out the thick protein with milk or water?
If it comes down to the choice of fluid vs protein I would pick fluid or you could end up dehydrated.

I was worried about not getting enough protein in as well, but family doc told me fluids are more important at this point. 

Don't worry, it will come. Some bodies just take a while to adapt.

I crushed all my vitamins and pills for the first while.

I used junior (kids) chewable tylenol for first week or so.

I had alot of abdominal wall pain - esp right larger incision.

Use colace,  or miriiax stool softener, if that does not work, dulcolax suppositories, if that does not work, fleet enema. 

However, of course you should get this all ok'd by surgeon.

I was told 14 days post op by surgeon i could use the above for constipation. 

In the first 14 days post op  i was ok'd for colace. Ended up  with horrible constipation with only colace. Suppositories worked great. did not have to resort to fleet enema.

Stay on top of things and listen to your body- i ended up dehydrated !

Hope this helps.

Hi.  Everyone has really good practical advice.  Don't worry about the protein, get the fluid in.  Everything will come later.  I found that warm fluids way easier to get in, broth & tea we  my best friends.  Are you really constipated?  Cause theoretically, you don't have much in there to come out remember.  The short feeling in the stomach is normal.  You have had nerves, muscles cut and the inner sutures are swollen and are tugging.  This too will dissipate.  You are on track.  Take it easy,sip and keep moving. 

Welcome home and welcome to the loser's bench! As mentioned the most important thing right now is to remain hydrated. You are swollen and will be able to take in more when the swelling goes down. I also used a one once cup and set my timer to about 10-15 minutes to remind my self to sip. At this point I was sipping boost high protein with added unflavored protein powder. I also found broths to be much more enjoyable, they felt good going down and they have some protein in them as well. When I was able to move to cream soups I also added the unflavored protein powder. I added the unflavored protein powder to anything liquid enough to do it, just a small spoonful as to not alter the taste too much.  I moved to yogurts, applesauce, etc when I was able to tolerate my liquids well, probably about a week out. I had found that my pouch told me when it was ready to advance to the next stage.

I was swallowing all my pills right in the hospital. I asked Dr. Andrew about it then and he said there was no reason to crush them. I take all my pills, one at a time and not by the handful as I used to. I've never had a problem with any of them ever getting stuck.

I was severely constipated my first week home. I had a lot of pain relief when I was finallI still struggle with it at times and this was never an issue for me pre-surgery. My doctor gave me a prescription for Lactulose which is a sweet tasting syrup. I works well and is pretty natural feeling. You take it at night before bed and it works while you sleep.

You will feel better soon! The time will go by fast. I was shopping in Grand Forks at 2 weeks out and had cream soup from Subway while I was there! 

Hey...hope you're feeling better.
Everyone has good advice...don't want to overwhelm you.
One of the BEST things I used for constipation was the Herbal Laxative Tea...just got it a walmart near the Pharmacy. It's all natural and very easy on my tiny pouch. It was on suggestion from my doctor.
After that worked (Hallelujah!) I now alternate between the tea and Senekot -S (for constipation with a stool softener).
I took all my pills within the first week...even birth control. They all were fine.

Take care and good luck!

YAY! Back from the hospital. Sounds like you are doing just fine with the usual post-op questions

After trying many different things, I found that the only thing that worked for me was the Laxaday or Restoralax for my consipation issues. Good luck with that. Don't wait too long before you take something.

Welcome to the loser's bench!