Looking for help after second laparoscopic surgery.

I just had my 2nd laparoscopic surgery Friday.  Quick story on why I had it:  I started having chest pain about 8 weeks ago.  I thought at first it was my heart and I took my Nito pills, but I got no relief.  I went to my Cartiologist and he scheduled me for a nuclear stess test.  The results of the stress test were that they thought they saw where one of my "stents" were closing up.  Next day I had a angiogram (sic), you know where they shoot the dye up to your heart.  Everything came out fine, no heart problems. 

Next I go to my pulmonary doctor because the pain is still there and I only get relief from Percocet, which I really don't enjoy taking.  He has me take an ultra sound of my legs looking to see if I have any blood clots.  No clots and everything seems to be OK with my lungs.

Pain is getting worse so I turn to my RNY surgeon's office for help.  I speak to the surgeons assistant and after giving me the third degree about smoking and drinking (which I have done neither) thinking I have an ulcer, they schedule me for an endoscopic exam on 4 Sep.  No ulcer, but the surgeon sees an excess amount of bile and thinks I may have a hernia.  So Friday they poke 3 more holes in my stomach wall that brings me to 10 holes where I look like a pin cushion.  No hernia, but he does clean up 4 or 5 places where I had scar tissue.  I don't remember everything he told me as I was still feeling the effects of the gas.  I have a follow up on Oct 2nd with him.

Meanwhile, 2 days after the procedure I am going thru my usual pain and suffering because my systems disposal unit shuts down from the gas.  I spent 3 extra days in the hospital for my RNY in May because I couldn't pass the gas out of my system.  I came home Fri as the procedure was outpatient and I've been walking, drinking water, walking, drinking prune juice, and more walking.  Any home made suggestions on getting rid of the gas and also opening up the exit hole?

Tomorrow is my 4 month surgiversary.  I was hoping to be 100 down from my high weight of 341.  Fri morning I was 243, but when I got home 5 hours later after the procedure I was 249.  I guess it'll be another week or so.

Jim      

Jim,

Sorry you are going through this bud... I take 3 Colace capsules every evening without fail, this is the only way I found to keep the system moving after my RNY. The Percs will also bind you up so if you have been using them after this surgery you might try getting by with fewer of them. No advice on the gas, I had a bad time with it too and time is I think the only solution there. I hope the cleanup the surgeon did eases your pain and you get back to where you want to be health wise real soon.

Thanks for the comments Brian.  I take 3 stool softeners, and sometimes 6 a day, which I believe is what Colace is, right?  I take them during the day.  Does the time matter?  I haven't had a pain pill today because I know they also can increase my backup.  I've had some relief since I started to write my original post.  I've also checked my scale and I'm down 1.5 lbs.  I guess the prune juice is also helping.  LOL  
Now if I could just get rid of the pain in my chest and stomach.  I know it all takes time.

Thanks, again.

Jim 

Hi Jim,

Sorry you have had so many issues post op. Only advice I can suggest is to ensure to follow doc's orders in their suggestions for post op care.

Congrats on the weight loss, sure beside all else you feel better having that close to 100 pounds off and movin in the right direction.

Yours in WLS,
Bill

Thanks Bill for the response.  Believe me I am following everything my surgeons told me.  I'm 67 yrs old and I don't have time for all this crap.  LOL!  I see my surgeon next Tues and I'm sure hoping that this pain in my chest is gone by then.

The weight loss is amazing.  I can't believe that I have lost almost 100 lbs in just over 5 months.  There's no way it would have happened without this magical tool.

Jim

Been there on a lot of that stuff.  The cath lab and me are good friends (I've been in there about 5 times).  Six months post op I thought I was having a heart attack.  I spent a couple days in the hospital getting all the test...It was acid reflux.  Also 13 years ago this month I had a heart attack and heart bypass.  Over the years I've had 2 heart attacks, 1 heart bypass, and 1 stent.  After my heat bypass my system wasn't moving the food...ileus.  They pumped my stomach.  I'm fine now...no reoccurances.  You may want to look into tramadol for your pain med.  It's a narcotic but a milder one...Without the system backup.
Concerning the weight...It's a ton of water weight from the IVs, you'll be peeing that out over the next few days.  Just my thoughts...

Man, I look like a "piker" next to you.  I'm tired of the cath lab too, especially their "haircuts".  LOL

 I "had" acid reflux before my surgery, but my surgeon took me off of my Zantac right after my RNY.  The first 2 months after my RNY I didn't have any chest pain.  I don't believe this strong pain in my chest is from acid reflux.  My chest actually hurts as much, or more, as my stomach since Fri.  We'll see what the next few days do for me.

I'm going to talk to my surgeon next week about this drug (tramadol) you mentioned.  Anything that doesn't slow the disposal unit is good.

Thanks,

Jim