Surgery 7/14 ... thought I was prepared but...

I spent 9 months of NUT counseling, food logs, psych visits, reading blogs, books, forums.

I was sure this surgery was what I wanted.. my health problems on top of the weight made my life miserable and made me miss out on life.. I wanted a second chance.

I had surgery 7/14 RNY and surgery was fine according to hospital staff.. First day post-op was great and from there is went down hill.  I had so much pain in my left side.  Could control with the big drugs but then just slept.  3 days post-op they injected numbing agent into the area of the most pain (omg this was horrible), pulled my drain and sent me home. 

In the hospital I was clear liquids.. I had a teeny amount of jello.. who eats YELLOW Jello??  Everything else made me gag.   Drinking water was no problem.. it's all I drink anytime.

Home...so much pain can hardly get out of bed or up out of a chair.   Taking Perc as little as possible.  Here is the huge problem:  I cannot eat a full liquid diet... even things I ate before surgery gag me.. Sugar-free pudding.  I have been eating a little tomato soup.  

Emotionally, I'm a wreck.  I cry all day and night.  If I dont eat I hurt.. If I eat I hurt more and on top of all this my blood sugars are bouncing all over making me have all those nasty side effects. 

Any words of wisdom?  

Mine was one day before yours, my left side also ache when I had the drain once they took it off things got better. Doctor told me that there was a possibility to have pain for the next days after tooking the drain off, maybe that's what's happening to you.

As for the diet this first week I've been on clear liquids diet, tomorrow I'll start with milk and yougurts for 2 weeks.

Be patient, it's a lot of work and sacrificies but long term it would be worth it.

So sorry you are feeling bad!! It sucks! No sugar coating it, it sucks! Your body doesn't know what to do with its self. Blood sugar after major surgery can go all over! Antibiotics, stress, surgery, little"food" all play into the blood sugar issue, IMO. The pain in the left side maybe what I had. It burned and hurt so bad! Percocet 10mg every 4 hours did nothing, flexeral did nothing! It started for me two weeks out, which the surgeon said I was lucky, most start way sooner. He also explained that no pain meds help, where the big stitch is in your side there are tons of nerves and the stitch is in them. Helps to reduce a hernia from happening. The nerves are not happy by this and until the stitch dissolves around 4 to 6 weeks it is HELL! Mine was a bit over 5 weeks when it stopped hurting. I went to bed hurting and woke up a whole new person!!!!! The pain went from my spine around to my belly button on the left side.   As for food, I was told don't pu**** Get your water in and as much protein as you can. If you think it is a real problem, talk with your NUT! Hopefully yours is very helpful and can give you ideas! I was home a couple days and found out I was lactose intolerant and told to get my water and whatever protein I could. A short period of time without all that protein was fine, according to my surgeon office. Hope some of this helps you and you feel better soon!!! Hang in there, it will get easier, it just seems like it won't.

Thanks for this info!  I don't have a drain and am 6 days out but KNOW I'm not getting in all my protein and barely feel like I have room in my stomach to breathe!  Also, thanks for the original post question!  It always helps for a little validation at least for me, knowing in my head that alot of my issues are "normal" is very different than how they feel physically.

Some people get buyers remorse and it's very common to get the blues after surgery.

My advice?  Get up and get on - get showered, get dressed and get out of the house.  Frequent ambulation will help enormously with any discomfort you have.  There is great truth in the WLS manta - walk,  walk, walk, sip, sip, sip

This is so true what Kim said. It does get better. I swear it does.

Yes to what Kim said. Most important thing is getting fluids in... you don't want to get dehydrated and it makes you feel worse... the rest will come. The first couple of days are the hardest. For me the lifesavers were SF popsicles, the cold and being able to bite something, and also peppermint Tic tacs- I bit them and let them melt in my mouth, - it helped with nausea.... yes it is common to have emotions all over - hang on!

It took my blood sugar about a week to stabilize.  7 weeks out and I am completely off meds!  My sugar was not at all controlled with oral medication.  I know people find it hard to believe, but my fasting numbers averaged in the mid to upper 300s. I chose surgery instead of injections.  I am only 44 years old!  As the anesthesiologist was wheeling me into surgery he said, "You don't look like you need this surgery."  As good as that may sound, I thought it was a little insensitive.  I had said the same thing to myself many times.  Many people lose the amount of weight that I needed to lose without surgery...why couldn't I? 

I can't help a lot with the nausea since I didn't have that problem after I left the hospital, but I can assure you the pain will get better.  I stopped trying to stretch out my medicine a few days after I got home, and was able to stretch it out more naturally over time.  I eventually stopped looking at my watch constantly waiting for the next dose.  Then when I was mostly off meds, I didn't beat myself up over the fact that I needed one again.  I also tried to time my walks around the meds, since there were times I had trouble making my way home in the middle of a walk.  Apparently the pain is very often gas and walking helps.  I didn't think it felt anything like gas, and I honestly can't say I noticed the walking helped the pain.  It did, however, give me a sense of accomplishment!

Everyone's journey is different, so I can only speak from my own experience.  Best of luck...keep us posted!

I had my surgery July 10. The hospital kept me two days on clear and then sent home on full liquids. Honestly, if that wasn't enough, I had pain but didn't want to take the Percy's because I heard they constipated. The pain has been almost unbearable until today. I seem to be finally passing gas. Drinking lots of protein water to keep lubricated and truly laying on a heating pad for three days. Yesterday my blood pressure went so low because of the pain, I talked to the hospital about coming back in. They walked me through having a little soup with a tiny bit of salt. My headache went away a blood pressure low but not critical. My blood sugar is all over the place too. But you know what, we have gone through the worst. I am sure your emotions are a wreck because of pain killers. You will be fine as soon as the pain subsides. Just post what you are going through...there is lots of good advice. You and I, we can get to the next level. I absolutely hate vanilla pudding cups and jello. If I only get in 1/3 cup of soup and a protein shake ... So be it. I already vomited three times since I got home. Small light amounts but I do not want to pu**** Enjoy protein water and take your vitamins. You will feel so much better.

May I ask what "protein water" you use??  I can't seem to find ANYTHING I can get past my gag reflex :(  Shakes and powders just make me not want to eat at all because of this...