Depression, hunger, weakness - 2 weeks postop

Hey Everyone,

Just looking for some support and reassurance that I am not losing my mind!  I am super tearful and feeling useless/listless/sad/hungry/pain.  I had my gallbladder done with my sleeve and I still have a lot of right sided pain from a tendon that my surgeon had to cut and repair.  Every muscle in my body aches and is sore and I am TIRED.  I haven't slept the past three nights - I stopped the pain meds and have only been taking a muscle relaxer and I cannot get comfortable - in a chair, bed, couch, floor.  The swimming pool is the only thing that feels good.  I am walking a lot, but it's not helping with the soreness and pain.  Saw Dr on Friday and he told me I can take my antidepressant as a whole pill (it was NOT working being crushed up and I burst into tears at his office while he was checking my incisions).  I also have to run to the bathroom every 20 minutes - dr says probably side effect of the GB removal.  My family grilled yesterday by the pool (typical for summers in Texas) and I got to "treat" myself to some plain apple sauce while they all had burgers and fruit and actual FOOD - it was torture. 

I am happy that I've lost noticeable weight so early (down almost 30 lbs now) - but I am just feeling exhausted and want to cry.  I've been on liquid for a few weeks now and would kill to be able to eat a piece of honeydew melon or chicken.  I have another 4 weeks until I can start "real" foods.  Has anyone else had this sleeping/depression/pain problem??  I had to start wearing scopolamine patches behind my ear because I am getting bad motion sickness and would prefer to not vomit out the water I've struggled to get down all day.  I know this is what I signed up for, but I didn't expect to be so tired and weak and tearful.  Or hungry!  Anything more than water gives me an upset stomach, so it is not helping with trying to incorporate more protein shakes into my liquids.  My mom and the Dr say everything looks perfect and I am doing very well, but all I want to do is cry and lay in bed comfortably - and eat something. 

Please tell me this will go away soon and I am not the only one who is experiencing this. :/

I hope you feel better soon  My concern is getting into pool so soon post-op.  Every doctor is different.  Mine would not allow me to swim until two months out...once I did I felt so much better.

Oh, I am glad mine told me it was OK when I asked Friday.  It feels so good - none of the pressure on my incisions and my muscles can relax. The rest of the time I am so sore and tired.  How long did it take you to feel closer to 100%?

I can't comment on the surgery end, as mine is tomorrow, but on the life side I KNOW that you will get better.  Think about how much you have been through already in this lifetime and understand that, sooner than you can imagine, THIS day will be a memory that you will look back on wishing you could tell yourself that everything worked okay.  The great thing for you about being a Texan is that, when the time is right, your primary nutrient source is protein!  So you and the BBQ will be besties again.  Sending you all of my positive mojo for a better day...

Were you off your antidepressants for any period around surgery time? If you weren't able to get them in (while crushed), your mental health is going to be thrown off-- if I miss even one day or pills, I feel out of whack for several days after.

What kinds of protein shakes have you tried? Have you tried putting unflavored protein powder into things like soup? Every body is different and some things sit better than others.

The hospital didnt give me my antidepressant for the 3 days I was there and it was a disaster (the pharmacy claimed it couldnt be crushed because it was XR, but it isn't extended release...).  My Psych told me to cru****  I felt better, but after a week of it only getting partially absorbed or not absorbed slowly enough, I was back to the tears.  Since Friday I've taken them whole, but I still just feel tearful.  Kind of sucks to feel like this on top of everything else, very stressful. 

As far as the proteins - I've tried a ton of flavors and like some by unjury, nectar, premier, and isopure.  I have been putting them in my tomato soup and chicken broth soup and making various shakes and even making protein pudding and I have liked and tolerated pretty much all of them, but today I just have zero appetite for them at all.  I am drinking a premier protein and fighting a gag with every sip.  Not sure why??  Even flavoring my water with powerade or CL is not settling well today.  I can tell that I am hungry, this is not just stomach acid - but everything makes me feel like I'm going to be sick. :/ Just having a bad day I guess. 

Oh geez, 3 days without pills and I'd be a mess! (I'm on meds for bipolar.) I wouldn't be surprised if it takes more than a week to get things back on track, which sucks. Any chance you could call your psych and see if you could get it in liquid form (sometimes they can do that at a compounding pharmacy)?

Mental health issues SUCK a big one, sending good mojo your way!!

I talked to him about it - there really isn't an alternative form for what I take.  :/ I am scheduled to see him next week but I may try to get in this week.  My surgeon suggested maybe doubling the dose to take twice a day because it is being absorbed so rapidly (and then not carrying me over to my next dose).  Thanks for the mojo. :)

Any suggestions for the lack of appetite?? 

No great suggestions, really-- for a while, I had to set an alarm on my phone to remind me when to eat. Admittedly, I didn't have much luck hitting my protein goals while on liquids, since there were days when just NOTHING sounded good. I hurt and I was miserable (they didn't give me my psych meds in the hospital either) and eating was the last thing on my mind.

In the end, I kept trying TONS of stuff until I hit a few things I liked. Chicken broth with different seasonings, yogurt, protein drinks that I had to plug my nose and gag down, popsicles, anything that might possibly sound good. In the end, I know I was a bit short on protein for the first few weeks, but I had better luck when I got to mushy solids (so much tunafish!) that I focused more on liquid than on protein.

Lack of appetite is one of the benefits of this surgery. Use it to keep your portions small and always eat high-quality food. Eventually, as I've been told, the body compensates for the lack of hunger hormones, and taking weight off and keeping it off becomes a little more challenging. Use this golden year to take full advantage of your sleeve and get your weight down.

Post-op recovery can be very difficult -- it was for me and many others here. A fortunate few sail through the surgery and recovery, but I think most of us have a few problems along the way. By three months out, you will feel much better.

psychoticparrot