Scary scary week - very long post
Sunday was my baby shower/family celebration. It actually turned out amazing and was so much fun. The food was good. A lot of people ended up not coming but it made for a bit more of an intimate setting. I was able to visit amply with everyone and emotionally it was fulfilling to celebrate our special baby (and Hubby's upcoming birthday) with loved ones. Physically, I didn't hold up so well for most of the day. Food wasn't going down the way it was supposed to and until later in the evening, I was sneaking off to the bathroom quite a bit. It did calm down so I chalked up to whatever and moved on.
Monday was my first day of my new position at work. By lunch time I was in no bueno world again physically. I didn't even get to eat a real lunch because the few cucumber slices that I had came up with such a vengeance that I didn't dare. From there on out I had major nausea/vomiting issues until I left at 5:15pm. I had to pull over three times on the way home because I had such severe upper abdominal pain and I was still throwing up/dry heaving.
I called the OB/GYN on call when I got home. He recommended that I take some Prevacid and wait for 20 minutes. If it got better then it was most likely severe acid reflux, if it didn't - he said I should go in because it could be my gall bladder. I threw up the medicine and did feel a bit better but went in just to be safe. Hubby had gotten my frantic call at work and made it home in record time. My beautiful cousin who was in town visiting us was keeping the girls occupied by shopping and such. I ended up in Labor and Delivery for six hours on monitoring equipment. The baby was totally fine and my blood work came back normal for my gall bladder but the pain started getting super intense. They ended up giving me a morphine shot in the hiney and sending me home. We discussed that I would call my Bariatric Surgeon and get in to have any remaining fluid removed (there wasn't much left) from the lap band. The assumption was that the baby is getting bigger and pressing on things potentially causing severe acid problems.
At 7am yesterday morning, I called the surgeon's office. The doctor was out for the day (in surgery at the hospital) but they scheduled me for today at 3pm with the nurse practitioner to have the unfill done. I waited a few hours in excruciating pain and then called back. They worked me in for 3pm yesterday instead. I arrived early and they got me right back. I must have looked a fright. They got the fluid out and I was praying praying that it would solve the problem. Then they had me sip on water. Violent nausea. It was horrendous. So it was off to the ER with me. After getting an IV set up, they took me to radiology and did an upper GI. I was worried about the radiographs and the baby. They reassured me that the risk at this stage in the pregnancy was very minimal. They only took the least amount of xrays they needed and were very careful to cover her up with a lead apron. The results of the xrays were worse than I thought. My lapband had slipped out of it's position and was the root of all my problems.
The surgeon had finished up his previous surgery by the time I was taken back to my room. He came in and told me that he had to operate to fix the problem. I am 32 weeks pregnant, people. Visions of all that comes along with that started floating in my head. Because the Bariatric Surgeon works out of a different hospital than my OB/GYN, I had a consult with the OB on call. She seemed alright but lacked a bit in the bedside manner. Not rude, just off. At any rate, we discussed the risks of preterm delivery and the plan of action if that happened. I was scared ****less. Before I knew it though, I was off to surgery.
When I woke up, I found out that they were unable to correct the positioning of the band. Due to the slip, my stomach had actually herniated and they had to take out the band to correct the hernia. Damn it. The good news is that the baby is doing just fine and I got to get a little peek at her this morning. They did a mini-ultrasound of my abdomen to rule out any internal bleeding (there was none) and my baby Gabriela is doing just fine. God is so miraculous. When it doesn't hurt so bad, I am going to have a good cathartic cry about all that I've been through this week. For now, I am going to hide out and try to get better!
Monday was my first day of my new position at work. By lunch time I was in no bueno world again physically. I didn't even get to eat a real lunch because the few cucumber slices that I had came up with such a vengeance that I didn't dare. From there on out I had major nausea/vomiting issues until I left at 5:15pm. I had to pull over three times on the way home because I had such severe upper abdominal pain and I was still throwing up/dry heaving.
I called the OB/GYN on call when I got home. He recommended that I take some Prevacid and wait for 20 minutes. If it got better then it was most likely severe acid reflux, if it didn't - he said I should go in because it could be my gall bladder. I threw up the medicine and did feel a bit better but went in just to be safe. Hubby had gotten my frantic call at work and made it home in record time. My beautiful cousin who was in town visiting us was keeping the girls occupied by shopping and such. I ended up in Labor and Delivery for six hours on monitoring equipment. The baby was totally fine and my blood work came back normal for my gall bladder but the pain started getting super intense. They ended up giving me a morphine shot in the hiney and sending me home. We discussed that I would call my Bariatric Surgeon and get in to have any remaining fluid removed (there wasn't much left) from the lap band. The assumption was that the baby is getting bigger and pressing on things potentially causing severe acid problems.
At 7am yesterday morning, I called the surgeon's office. The doctor was out for the day (in surgery at the hospital) but they scheduled me for today at 3pm with the nurse practitioner to have the unfill done. I waited a few hours in excruciating pain and then called back. They worked me in for 3pm yesterday instead. I arrived early and they got me right back. I must have looked a fright. They got the fluid out and I was praying praying that it would solve the problem. Then they had me sip on water. Violent nausea. It was horrendous. So it was off to the ER with me. After getting an IV set up, they took me to radiology and did an upper GI. I was worried about the radiographs and the baby. They reassured me that the risk at this stage in the pregnancy was very minimal. They only took the least amount of xrays they needed and were very careful to cover her up with a lead apron. The results of the xrays were worse than I thought. My lapband had slipped out of it's position and was the root of all my problems.
The surgeon had finished up his previous surgery by the time I was taken back to my room. He came in and told me that he had to operate to fix the problem. I am 32 weeks pregnant, people. Visions of all that comes along with that started floating in my head. Because the Bariatric Surgeon works out of a different hospital than my OB/GYN, I had a consult with the OB on call. She seemed alright but lacked a bit in the bedside manner. Not rude, just off. At any rate, we discussed the risks of preterm delivery and the plan of action if that happened. I was scared ****less. Before I knew it though, I was off to surgery.
When I woke up, I found out that they were unable to correct the positioning of the band. Due to the slip, my stomach had actually herniated and they had to take out the band to correct the hernia. Damn it. The good news is that the baby is doing just fine and I got to get a little peek at her this morning. They did a mini-ultrasound of my abdomen to rule out any internal bleeding (there was none) and my baby Gabriela is doing just fine. God is so miraculous. When it doesn't hurt so bad, I am going to have a good cathartic cry about all that I've been through this week. For now, I am going to hide out and try to get better!
Love, Riah
I'm glad they got you fixed up! It sucks to have a slip so bad that a simple unfill doesn't fix the symptoms. Just focus on recovering and having a baby now, and worry about your next step later!
Banded 03/22/06 276/261/184 (highest/surgery/lowest)
Sleeved 07/11/2013 228/165 (surgery/current) (111lbs lost)
Mom to two of the cutest boys on earth.
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