Officially 1 week post-op
on 9/27/19 10:49 am
Well I've made it to 1 week post op! I'm feeling great. Haven't had any real pain since about day 2-3. I go back to work Monday and I'm brainstorming about how to get everything in(fluids, protein etc). I'm a cardiovascular surgical tech and my day starts at 5:45am and I work 10hr days. I can't just be in surgery and be like "OK TIME OUT, I need to sip" lol. Anyone else in my field? Any advice?
As far as everything else, I'm great. I haven't had any issues getting my water or protein in. Honestly, I don't think I've even reached or felt myself getting full. I can drink nice sized gulps in moderation, or I just haven't tried more. And my soft foods are going down great with zero discomfort. I WILL say I'm getting sick of sweet drinks. Oh and genepro DOES have aftertaste which I'm sick of as well lol. I hear a lot of people have trouble getting their fluids in and I just hope I'm not pushing too far!
as for stats I've lost 9lbs as of this morning. That's not including the 6lbs I gained from surgery that I lost too I figured that's a "gimme" lol
I felt great after surgery and was afraid that the "other shoe would fall", but I kept feeling better every day. I went back to work in a week. I did work at a desk and could sip all day. It sounds like that is not an option for you, so be very careful about not getting dehydrated.
Real life begins where your comfort zone ends
Congrats Jen! Your experience sounds identical to how mine was. I find that I'm walking around with water constantly. I can't sit there and down a 16 oz bottle like I used to be able to do. So instead, I'll nurse a bottle for an hour or two, will eat, wait, drink another bottle, rinse/repeat.
Once you start introducing hard foods into your diet, you will get full. I was so damn ready to get out of that liquid/soft phase! I didn't get full either. Some people were completely fine eating that way and I'm sitting there like, "ok this soup is not satisfying my hunger..." The doctor did give me some bariatric high protein oatmeal that worked great.
on 9/28/19 1:45 pm
Lol, no I meant I haven't hit the point where it hurts to eat more. I stop around 5 bites only cuz I feel like I SHOULD be full just listening to other people's posts. I'm scared to death to eat till I feel full as I haven't experienced dumping and seriously don't want to lol I don't feel hungry yet at all.
I don't want to be pessimistic, but I do want to warn you about some things. Based on your job, you're far more fit than I was when I had my surgery, so maybe you won't have these problems. Also, I'm 59, and I bet you're younger. But going back to a job that requires you to be on your feet all day one week after surgery seems ambitious.
I felt great after surgery, and I often overestimated my ability. Part of the problem was that I would feel fine one minute, and then the next minute I needed to sit down NOW. Once I had to sit on the floor in the supermarket, which was embarrassing (although the staff were lovely and rushed to get me a chair). Most of those episodes were due to dehydration, which you may be able to avoid if you're very careful. But I also found that I needed to pee frequently from all the water I was drinking, which may also be a problem for you when you're in surgery. I hope you can avoid all these problems, but I just want you to be aware that you may be trying to do too much too soon. I have a desk job, and my surgeon told me to take a full month off. At first, I felt guilty, but that first week back at work was exhausting. If you need more time before you can go back to work, don't feel like a failure!
Regarding being tired of sweet things, for those first few weeks after surgery I really enjoyed oatmeal with no sweeteners in it at all. Maybe try that. Also, things with an aftertaste (like some protein bars or protein drinks) often improve if you chill them in the freezer for a bit.
