4 days post op

I am amazed at how well I feel 4 days after the surgery.  The incisions cause me almost no pain at all.  I have been out and about, but after a trip somewhere, I do feel exhausted and need to take a few hour nap.  Today I am starting my protein - I handled the clear liquids fine.  My only big issue so far is that I have diarrhea - it started yesterday and I am hoping it is just a temporary issue.  Does anyone have any suggestions as to how they dealt with it? Did anyone take fiber or anything to bind them up a bit?

Another thing I have realized, which I could never understand before, is that I was eating when I was not hungry.  I have not been hungry at all since the surgery, but yet I have triggers which cause me to want to eat; simple things like driving past a diner we eat at a lot or seeing a pizza commercial.  I am realizing that I was not eating food just to survive, but it was a huge part of my daily routine and very much a social activity.  In a way I feel like I have extra time now and I don't know how to fill it.  It seems almost intuitive to me that at certain times I must stop to eat - and now when I don't, I feel frustrated and empty (not my stomach - my being).  This is a very interesting development because before the surgery I would have told you I was always hungry.

I am hoping over the next several weeks I will be able to find peace with eating being something I need to do to survive, as opposed to something I need to do to entertain myself.

I wish you all well on your journey!

Glad all went so well.  Welcome to the losers bench.  The diarrhea is quite normal post op. Water in water out.  Don't worry you will be constipated like the rest of us soon enough.  And to that I say Mirralax.  Pleasant journey.

Hi Jodie -

Glad you're doing so well so soon after surgery! I'm two weeks post-op today and had a rough time the first week getting liquids in.

I'm not hungry but have an emotional reaction to certain foods, but it passes pretty quickly and isn't nearly as strong as it was pre op. This weekend, I was with friends at a cookout. They were eating grilled steaks while I was eating pea soup just to get my protein in. The smell was great and I wished I could join them, but I was really fine. Before surgery this NEVER would have happened.

I'm home from work and by the end of the week, I felt like I got into a routine. A walk in the morning, picking up the house. Get out of the house in the mid afternoon and a nap in the late afternoon. 

So over time, you may get used to this feeling. I think it's different for everyone.

Good luck to you!

Lisa

Hi Jodie,

Sounds like you're doing well.....just don't overdo on activities as you need to give your body time to fully heal. I know how you feel though, because I'm very impatient with being "sick".....which we aren't....just healing. I gave myself plenty of time to heal and it's paid off as I have tons of energy now - today is two weeks....woo hoo!!!!! and I feel strong and healthy. I'm still being careful to not push myself beyond my limits, mostly because of my age.....but I'm figuring another week and I'll be ready to take on the world - or at least part of it.

I also realized that eating had and has become habit more than hunger many times. I was away for the weekend and while we were traveling home, my boyfriend asked me if I was hungry.....and I realized that I wasn't...not at all! How weird that felt..... I had a scrambled egg with a little cheese for breakfast and a protein shake several hours later....and of course lots of water....... and it just seems to be so odd (and quite satisfying) to not be hungry after so many hours. So I told him to stop whenever he felt the need and that he should not go by my stomach. We finally stopped about an hour later and even though I was not particularly hungry, I knew I needed more protein. I ordered a burger (no bun or fries) and I ate about a quarter of it....took the rest home and will make another two or three meals out of it.....how strange does that seem?? I actually think I took about one or two bites too much because I was uncomfortable for about an hour til it finally settled....but that was okay...this is definitely a learning experience for us.

I believe that all of us have been conditioned to eat at certain times and to allow ourselves to be tempted to eat even when not hungry. I know I'm guilty of this. What I'm working on is to learn to eat to live, not the other way around.  I'm a big believer in the mind - body connection and hypnotherapy, so I'm trying to find some tapes to use to achieve that goal. I went to a hypnotherapist recently and she was terrible....and being a hypnotherapist (who is incapable of self-hypnosis.....  ) I know what I need.....oh well.....

Anyhow, keep up the good work!