Even years out, our bodies can surprise us (dumping)

 I am 4.5 years out, have only thrown up food once (except when suffering from some kind of "bug") --some dry chicken i ate too quickly -- and I only dump on fairly large amounts of processed sugar (and never on natural fruit or dairy sugar) so have only fully dumped 3 times.

 We went out to a very nice dinner for my brother's birthday yesterday. I had a couple of bites of salad toppings (I don't eat lettuce), some filet mignon, and 2 bites of a baked potato.  Then we ordered a piece of carrot cake to share.  I have had this carrot cake before, so I know that two bites, if I avoid too much icing, is not a problem. Perhaps I did not avoid the icing enough (I thought I did), but within 5 minutes of eating those two bites, I knew that cake was coming back up!  I ran to the restroom and, sure enough, proceeded to throw up every bit of those two bites of cake.  Fortunately, we had waited long enough between dinner and dessert that my dinner was already out of my pouch so I didn't lose any of that, but I was really surprised to have my body reject the cake like that, since that has not happened before.

So, you just never know...

Lora

Can relate...

I had a similar thing happen last week.  DH made a wonderful steak dinner with a blue cheese sauce that contained heavy cream sauce.  I had two bites of steak with some of the sauce and I started getting shaky and breaking out into a cold sweat.  The nausea hit in waves.  I never threw up.  I haven't dumped before.  I'm not sure this was a dumping episode, but it was a strong reaction to too much fat.  I knew better than to eat it, but I couldn't bear to hurt his feelings.  He was so proud of the meal. 
He doesn't cook often.

Kay

I am sorry you went through it, but glad to read this.... I have eaten a lot of Quest bars over the last couple of month, but the last one I had made me feel wretched!! It was the same feeling I got after eating 1 too many cookies. Now I am too nervous to try it again!

 oh boy... I'm glad you made it to the restroom.

I'm nervous about eating out at all.  I'm 7 weeks post op and so far, knock on wood, so good.  I haven't been sick on anything yet.   Of course I'm controlling what I eat but I did add fresh fruit this morning and had no problem with that.  

I'm also going on the assumption that I am never going to be able to eat sugar... aka sweets again.  That for me is the only way I can do it.  I know if I try to eat a piece of cake and I can it will be the end for me. 

Thank you for sharing with us newbies that this is a lifelong experience and not just a quick surgery for us.  

Can totally relate. I was told that the dumping syndrome went away by a couple of years post op. Unfortunately (or fortunately I guess depending upon how you look at it) that did not happen for me and it has only gotten worse. And more unpredictable.

Still wouldn't trade my surgery for the world, but want folks to know that it's not always a temporary side effect.

Glad to see you're still here and posting Lora. I had to take a few months of a break and it's neat to see there are still some familiar faces - not everyone apparently migrated completely over to proboards =)

people really vomit as a result of dumping? I always thought dumping was explosive diarhia.  All the fluids dump though your intestines and comes flying out - I had it bad after my illiostomy was reversed, everything I ate for months, whether it has any sugar, any dairy or any other things I couldn't figure out but I was on the can all day long for about 8 months  -it was really disgusting.

Not to get too gross but it was massive amounts - not stop but never vomitted, never got nauseous, never got lightheaded or dizzy

Yes, that was part of my point. The times I hd dumped before were traditional dumping episodes, but this time it was just flushing and vomiting... Very odd. I have never had explosive diarrhea with dumping... Just teh heart rate increase, dizziness, shaking, nausea etc..

Lora

that shows how different we all are - I have only had the explosive dairhea. even the few times early out and recently, never any other symptoms.  I also had a weird experience with dumping which I was told was impossible but I know it was.  Back in 1998, I had a Lap Nissan Fundoplication which was surgery for reflux where they wrap the top of your stomach around the  esophagus and make a new tighter sphincter to stop acid from coming back up.  Well, after this anytime I ate anything with sugar, I dumped.  I had no warning because no one told me this could happen but it kept happening so I started keeping  a journal and when I noticed a pattern I told the surgeon and he told me it couldnt' be.  Well, it happened an and it happened in his office after I drank a milk shake on the way to his office - was on liquids.  He still didnt believe - said I must have had a virus.  I was in no way sick.  IT was the same type of diarhea I get now and I connected it when I got the RNY that it was the same thing

My dumping episodes also manifest as severe abdominal pain, nausea, occasional vomitting, hot flashes, shakiness and later "carb coma"; I've never had diarrhea.

And yes, even at 10 years out I still occasionally dump and sometimes it is TOTALLY unexpected.  I DO notice that I dump more on an "empty pouch" then if I have eaten a full meal.

Glad you made it to the BR in time, Lora!!