Jennifer's update

Quick update...
I have been feeling really good lately, have been able to eat FINALLY - food goes down and stays down and I don't feel sick from it.

Then yesterday afternoon I received a call from Missouri Bariatric. The nurse reviewed my chart from my hospital stay at the beginning of September and found out my stricture was more narrow than it has ever been (have been dilated five times already) and they want to put a stent in. AAUUGGHH!! She informed me it does cause nausea and I will have the stent for approximately four weeks. I asked if I could keep my feeding tube during that time so I am able to keep up on nutrition and she said yes that they weren't ready to take it out just yet (so my hope for tube removal on September 17th was smashed).

I am so hoping that this is the end of all of this. Maybe, just maybe if I keep on eating the way I have just recently the stricture will be non-existent when they do my EGD on the 17th. Please send some prayers my way!! I DON'T WANT A STENT!

Okay, putting my big girl pants back on and suckin it up. I will do what I have to do to make this surgery successful!

Jennifer,

    Prayers are on the way for your health.  At least they found that and the Lord will guide them in the decision.  Hope you dont have to have the stent but if 4 weeks prevents any further problems it will be worth it.  So you can be well once and for all.  God Bless!  Colette

I'm sorry that you have been having such a hard time with things but you have a positive attitude which will go a long ways to bettering your health!

I'm puzzled though.  If you are now able to eat, keep food down and not have nausea then why to they want to subject you to yet another procedure?  I can see this if you are having problems... but I always adhered to the camp of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!"....  

Not saying that you might not eventually need another procedure....but if things are working now why subject yourself to it and possibly irritate it even more...  

..not trying to step on toes, just curious.

Jennifer i too would have to question them about ifyou are able to eat right now and keep it down. i would probalby tell them to wait till i was having trouble. ....i know you looked well and you ate well at the meeting the other day. take it slow , just because they say so doesnt mean you have to do it right now. tell them you want to see if it will heal on its on right now. will be praying for you. and your decission.  

Oh I know, I am in total agreement with you. I don't want to go through this again or even have a stent. The thing is, is that after my fourth dilation, the nurse said that they didn't have to dilate me much that time and unless I had trouble anymore then I was fixed. That was August 6th. On August 29th, I had another stricture and an ulcer. Wow, just when I thought I was fixed...

It seems that every time I think I am okay, I go back a few steps and back to the same stuff. So I decided to wait it out and see if I can keep eating like I have been the past five days. They did say "possible" stent so I hope if everything is going well when they get in there and I am not strictured that they will forego the stent.

The way everything has been going, it makes me think that one of the reasons I am stricturing is that every time I'm dilated they put me back on stage 2 diet. There is nothing going down the hatch but liquids so wouldn't that affect the anastomosis not staying open - nothing solid forcing it to stay open? I'm not a nurse but that seems logical to me.

No toes stepped on...no worries. I appreciate everyone's advice/opinions. Thanks for your input!!

I was just talking about the placement of the stent.  I was also talking about the EGD itself.  You might end up being a person that forms scar tissue everytime your body is "violated" with a surgical procedure , whether or not cutting is involved.  There are some folks that are just that way.

Whether or not you have the stent placed...having the dilation might prove to be irritating enough that your body reacts again and herewegoagain....   just a thought. 

Again, if you are eating fine now, not having nausea and not having issues why mess with it. 

We are just wanting you to have as an uneventful period of time with this WLS as YOU want.......  so we are just playing advocate here...

..let us know what you find out!