Post-op day 5 and SO NERVOUS!!

Hey Guys,

I had VSG on Friday 1/22 and it has been sooo tough on me mentally and physically. First it was the insane gas pains which were driving me MAD!! and now its the paranoid feeling that i am not even getting enough protein or liquid in my system. I do not want to end up in the ER for dehydration or be driving down the road and get light headed with my family in the car god forbid. I cant seem to be able to get more then 4-6 oz of protein and about 10oz of water. I am feeling down and I am trying to keep a cool face in front of my family since i did this to myself. I just cant consume what is expected of me and just feeling more down then excited. Can anyone give me any advise or help on what I can do? I am pretty desperate. Thanks. God Bless.

Alright, calm down, take a deep breath, you are fine! The first few days after my surgery I could barely eat anything! Drinking water hurt me and gave me gas, and protein shakes, maybe 1 a day if I was lucky. So relax, many of us have had this. Gas pains: walk, walk and walk some more. Water: Try putting some crystal light in your water and if drinking is difficult, eat yourself crazy on ice chips and sugar free popsicles, those were my saving grace in the first week. The guidelines are just that, guidelines, it is different for everyone. The more you stress out about it, the harder it becomes for your body to recover. If you panic, call your doctor or your dietician and ask for advice. 

Hang in there darling, it will get better!

If you literally can't get more than 4-6oz of protein and 10oz of water, see your surgeon. You should be able to get more than that just by sipping on protein shakes. (They can count for both liquids and protein). No, it might not feel great but you absolutely need to get your liquids up there asap. You are at serious risk for dehydration. 

I agree with JJ, just relax and don't pu****  The first week or so sweat the protein....in time that will change. Your tummy just went through major surgery.  I promise it will all fall in place.  Just sip the best you can and walk.  

Best of luck to you. 

Everyday gets better and better! I am now 4 weeks post op. For 2 weeks I struggled to get enough water and protein, but everyday got better! Just in the last week, I have finally gotten 48-64 ounces of water/day! You will be okay. If you do feel like you are really dehydrated, just give your surgeon a call! Someone is always on-call and ready to take your questions! That is why they're paid the big bucks!! Getting some fluids in the ED isn't a big deal. An IV, 1 or 2 liters of fluid and you'll feel quite chipper! I came to the point where I almost had my nurse buddies come start an IV on me at home to give me some fluids, but the next day things turned around. Being a nurse, I got a bit excessive abou****er intake and urine output (I was measuring my urine...and calculating how much per hour I was peeing on average. lol It's the ICU nurse in me.) I totally understand your concerns. Just know, everyday the swelling goes down even more! Walk off that gas pain. :) You'll get there.

I'm a almost 2 weeks post op and had the same fears you did. 3 days after my surgery I had to have IV fluids...it's a standard of care for my surgeon's office. That helped some but I still am unable to drink what's required daily. I had that same questions I posted. From what I have posted and read from the awesome people here is that it's normal and not to stress but get tha****er in. I drink more water than anything cause honestly, I almost passed out when they did the IV therapy because they couldn't get the vein the first poke because I was dehydrated and I DO NOT want to go through that again! LOL

It will get better day by day of what you can ingest. I can get about 30 oz of water in right now but still pushing that protein. I work with patients all day so it's hard for me to stop and go take a drink but I do the best I can. 

Good luck and don't stress!  

Not sure how your doctor is having you do it, but mine recommended 1 oz medicine cups, line up 3 on the table and sip them all down each hour.  after you finish each cup, you take your walk around the living room for the gas pain.  it worked for me.  I'm an accountant, so I also made myself a little chart to check off my cups each hour :-) sort of like the ICU nurse.  gave me a goal and kept me focused, and then I didn't have to wonder, i knew exactly how much I had each day.  and if you are only 5 days post-op - get someone else to drive!  Focus on your water and rest.

I too use little medicine cups for my water, and I drink room temperature water. This helps, although it does feel like I am literally drinking all day long. The protein shakes help with the light headedness for me, so hopefully you can find one you can stomach. Good luck! :)

It's only been 5 days. You're still going strong on the liquids the hospital IVed into you after surgery, but you have to get your water intake up and fast! Do what the others suggest and sip one- or two-ounce cups every 15 minutes. True, you'll be sipping all day long, but it won't last forever. You'll find over the next week or two, as your stomach heals, you'll be able to drink bigger sips less frequently, but measure and keep track of all your liquid intake. Do this for the rest of your life. It's that important.

You won't get light-headed from hunger; your own fat is feeding you now -- that was the point of the surgery. Get your liquid intake under control first; then start upping your protein shakes (they, too, count as liquids for now).

If your pain is "insane," call your surgeon and ask for a prescription for liquid pain medication. Take it, but don't drive -- that will make you light-headed.

All of your problems have solutions -- solve them and your down mood will improve. I'm afraid I don't understand why you feel the need to keep your distress to yourself. You did this for yourself, not "to yourself." You just had major surgery! Ask your family for their help and support. They should be glad to help out or at least understand that one doesn't have major surgery and then just jump up and resume their everyday activity like nothing happened. You will need at least a few more weeks before you start feeling like yourself again.

Be forgiving and patient with yourself. You would do the same for any of your loved ones.

psychoticparrot