Please...I hurt so bad...could really use a kind word or two...

OMG....I swear I had no idea I would be in this kind of pain.  I mean, it was my biggest preop fear, and I discussed it with my surgeon, who assured me "I'd be fine". and after surgery Monday morning, I'm home today after staying an extra day, and begging to go home b/c honestly, I'm better off here than with some nurses who wouldn't even come for and hour after I called them...late with pain meds while I suffered...and I tried not to call that much.  My liquid pain meds are vile!  Everytime I try to sip, my stomach convulses with dry heaves....Why is it so nasty?  Anybody have anything other than liquid meds?  I bet if I wasn't in such extreme pain, I could move around better and get more rest.  Now, it about feels like my nails are being pulled off one at a time each time I get up or sit down.  Kinda like somebody stitched me up too tight on the inside and when I try to stand up straight, it hurts like hell!  I've had 2 Csections and this beats all.  I just can't deal with hurting like this.  One doc put me on Demerol in the hosp, which helped, until the other doc said he didn't like Demerol's side effects, so doubled my dose of Morphine, which made me wig out on Wednesday...my DH thought I had lost it.  I know I have a very low tolerance for pain, which I thought I'd made clear to him, but still here I am, hurting.  I feel like I shouldn't be hurting this bad, but the docs obviously know what they're doing...I mean I had CAT scans, Hiatascans, and chest xrays b-4 they let me go...I swear they'd have killed me or neglected me to death in that hospital if I hadn't gotten out when I did!  My morning nurse yesterday came on at 5 and I didn't see her till after 9:30....two hours after I was supposed to get my pain meds!  Sorry to whine...but no way in hell will I be having any plastics....my boobs can drag the ground if they want to, but I cannot go through this kind of pain again!

Please...be gentle with me....If you want to flame me, wait a couple of days till I can handle it...but right now I just need some TLC....

Oh Lisa - I'm so sorry that you're hurting. Hopefully some of the others will have really good answers for you that will lead to the right pain medication for you. There's really no excuse for the nurses to have been so late with your meds in the hospital. 

Don't worry, no one's going to flame you. I really hope your day gets better and you're soon back to feelinb better.

Gentle hugs  ((((( ))))))

- Iris 

Oh sweetie.  I feel for you!  Everyone's experience with various surgeries is so different, as is our pain tolerance. 

I have a very high pain threshhold, and have had numerous surgeries (c-section, hysterectomy, appendectomy, etc.), but I had the tonsilectomy from hell about 5 years ago.  They used lasers and I got thrush on top of the laser burn.  Couldn't open my mouth, it was so swollen and inflamed.  I swore I needed to be admitted and put on mega pain meds!  I also swore I would have never had them removed had I known what pain was in store.  I had so many people scoff and tell me they'd had it, it was no big deal, etc.  HA!  My experience was horrible.

Thankfully, time has passed and healed most of the mental agony associated with my tonsilectomy.  Time will help to heal you as well! 

I'm so glad you are home and I hope someone can help you figure out what medication you can request to help you keep comfortable.  Take care!

Hi Lisa,
I am totally surprized you were not hooked up to a morphine pump that you could regulate yourself.
As far as the liquid pain meds yeap it does taste horrible but it is better that you have liquid pain meds instead of pill or capsule form at this time.
I am so sorry you are experincing this kind of horrible pain.
Maybe a phone call to your doctor would be a good thing
As far as care in the hospital it is unacceptible what you went through and when you are feeling better I would make a complaint to patient relations.
When I was at UNC for my RNY the nurse came in at 7am with my morning insulin and another nurse came in at 8am with more insulin.
Thank goodness I was aware enough to bring it to their attention I already had my insulin.
Dont just suffer with pain be pro active and I hope you can get some help soon.
                                       Love & Light,
                                           Annie
Dont forget to sip sip

Flame you?  Girl, there's nothing to flame you for!  How you feel, is how you feel.  This is a serious surgery, and although some come out of it without much pain, some don't.  I had quite a bit of pain myself.  I think I have a fairly low pain tolerance too.  I know the liquid pain meds are nasty, but that's the best thing for your pouch right now.  Try to plug your nose and get it over with as quickly as possible. 

Before I left the hospital, my Dr. told me that day #4 would be the worst.  Don't know why, but she said that's what most of her patients say.  And boy was she right!  Day #4 was murder for me.  But by day #5 I was taking pain meds only at night.  I think I had moved on to tylenol only by day #6.  I will say, I had one pain on my left side that went from front to back that stuck with me until the 4th week.  But I woke up one morning and suddenly it was gone.  

I had one nurse that was absolutely worthless, but all of the others were great (thank God.)  Hang in there.  At least you're home now and don't have to rely on unreliable nurses.  Focus on sipping and moving.  I know it hurts, but gentle movement will help you heal, and will help the pain go away faster.  I've been there, believe me...it will get better, and it will be worth it!

Hi LIsa,

I'm really sorry your pain has been so bad; everyone does have different tolerance for pain and responds to it diffferently.  When I came on I was on Lortab and it worked really good.  The taste is not great but tolerable.  I took 15 cc and downed it in one swallow and followed it with some water or crystal lite. 

Was your surgery done laproscopically or open?

Do call your doctor's office TODAY and let them know that your pain is not being controlled so they can get you something else.  You don't want to go through the weekend in this kind of pain.

Now, another thing you really need to do is get up and move around frequently.  Believe me, it will help with the pain.  You're 5 days out now and the pain should start to get better real soon.

Hang in there sweetie, it will get better and in a couple of months you'll be so happy with results, you'll hardy remember this pain!

Alice

NO ONE WILL FLAME YOU!!! I had the same crappy experience with the pain. The left side of my body felt like someone was dragging a knife inside!! They put me on a Morphine pump which was a total joke because all it did was make me sick as a dog and I was throwing up and screaming at my husband because I could hardly get up or down out of my hospital bed. The liquid Loritabe is totally digusting.. but please take it I promise you it will get better sweetie!!! it sounds like you had a crappy nurse staff, the ones at Pitt SUCKED during the day but the night crew was awesome. I had to fight with the nurse for more Phenagan so I wouldnt feel so damn sick from the Morphine. Try to sip some water and try to use lots of pillow around you. I know its hard... but try to get up and move a little bit so you dont get blood clots. If you lived closer I would come over and help I had my boobs done three years ago and the pain was nothing compared to RNY!!! Chin up girl!!! Im pulling for you!!

((((hugs)))))
Darcie

Did you call and get pills?

Yeah, I called, of course neither the surgeon, nurse nor pharmacist has ever heard of the small pills w/o the tylenol in them....so they're giving me pills to crush up, and first she said to mix will SF pudding, which would be great, but then I said I thought I was to be on clear liquids only, and she said, yeah, that's right...just mix with some clear protein....right! Like vomit on vomit! LOL! They said if I wanted a patch or oxycodone I had to physically get someone to drive to Charlotte b/c they couldn't call those in....

I finally took some antinausea meds...waited an hour, mixed the liquid lortab with DD's Capri sun, which probably has sugar, but allowed me to chug it down, and I feel much better...now if I can just manage to keep getting the pain meds, whether liquid or crushed up, down, I think I will live... I've been able to walk, get to the bathroom alone, and even make some chicken boullion protein to sip on...but I just can't sit and watch TV w/o falling asleep....probably needed it since I got a total of about 5 hours in the hospital all week!

Thanks you guys...you are the best!

I find it difficult to believe the doctor or nurse haven't heard of oxycontin.  I think they lied to you.

Keep in mind that anything that has tylenol in it (lortab, vicodin, roxicet, perccocet) is going to be bitter as all hell.  I tried crushing a darvocet once.. it wasn't a plesant experience.

You may try getting some powerade zero.. there's no sugar in that.  Maybe it would help you chug the rest of the liquid meds.