home from hosp -- complication xpost

Hi everyone.
     Well I was released from hospital this afternoon after 15 days in,   I HATED posts like this with a vengence when I was preop so I have been on the fence about posting it, but then I realized that we all have different experiences and they are all vallid and  this is one rare complication and I think I would still go through with surgery knowing what I know now.
     So 1st off since surgery I have had more acid reflux than it appears most people do.  Also had multiple fainting episodes.  Twice daily I was taxing nexium,  3 x a day carafate and when needed tums.  Still was only able to keep down about 60 % of what I ate.  On 12 /4 I developed very sudden severe fever (like 103) while I was at work.  I was also having pain on upper left side of tummy.  I took some tylenol nd hoped that a good night sleep would fix it and maybe I had a tummy flu?  The next morning I had a fever of 104, chills and was starting to get a bit delirious.  My husband took me to ED.  IN ED they did tons of labs, a chst xray and CT scan of my chest and abdomen which showed at that time I had either a spleen infarct or laceration and they believed it was infected.  It also showed an ileus (my intestines werent moving) They put me on a cpl heavy duty IV antibiotics, IV zofran and dilaudid for pain and nausea and IV fluid, and a bunch of bowel  and acid meds.
I had an upper GI a few days in and it showed some sluggishness with draining stomach (gastroparesis).   Unfortunately, I had gone to the kaiser ED nearest my house rather than to the kaiser down in Fremont where my bariatric center and surgeon are which was about an hour away.  I tried to get transferred but Fremont was "full."   My surgeon was pretty good about following up to my calls and consulting with all my physicians (hospitalist doctor, gastroenterologist, infectious disease doctor and general surgeon!)   My hospital C LEARLY didn't have a clue about management of a sleeve pt.  (I HIGHLY recommend having something written that you keep with you about diet/possible complications/vitamin requirements and SIZE of stomach, and surgeons contact info!!!) 
Last week on the 14th I had a endoscopy which I was terrified of but seriously was not a big deal.  It showed the bottom 2/3 of my esophagus had erosions (from acid) and I had "esophagitis" also said I was having spasms in stomach. They put me on IV protonix 24/7 and that was the 1st sign things were improving.  Still couldnt eat or drink but at least I wasnt choking on acid.  They also started something called gi coctail/magic mouthwash which was the best thing EVER!  It had mylants/donnatol/lidocaine mixed together and using that a few times a day helps me not have too much pain swallowing and improves the spasms that make me vomit. .   The whole hospitalization I was having problems with a very slow pulse (35-40 when sleeping) and had issues with very low albumin (blood protein) levels (2.2 was lowest), My hgb dropped to 10.1 (usually mine is 14)  I have also had high b/p issues and normally my b/p is very low.  They decided that my spleen was lacerated (likely during surgery and waited a good 6 weeks to become infected) and that my vagus nerve had been injured during surgery, and that I had severe GERD and a partial bowel obstruction.  Yesterday I started holding down some oral medications and some protein shakes/soup as long as I only had 1 oz at a time.  The GI doc wanted me to go on TPN (IV feedings) and "rest" my stomach a few weeks.  The hospital doc thought since I was tolerating some oral intake I should stay with protein shakes "sipping" through the day.  They kinda wanted to keep me another day or 2 to make sure I was kinda out of the woods... but I was VERY motivated to get home (I have 5 kids and 6 days to get ready for Christmans!!!)  I will just take it easy  and work on shakes or protein soup for now.   All I have to say is that this is one heck of a way to break a stall!!!!!  Besides I am an RN and 10 mins from my hospital so I know what to do and I'm not far away from help.
I am soooo happy to be home.  Have to go see my primary doc in 2 days to come up with a plan for management and a lab check. 

Sorry this is soooo long but it has been quite an ordeal.   Thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers I received.  As well as the offer for a visit!   You guys are wonderful.   I passed my halfway mark with my wt loss while I was in!    :-)   B****hey think the only way my GERD is likely to resolve is to convert to a RNY... but I wanna give it a cpl months and see how I heal and if continued wt loss helps it.    :-(     Amy

Glad you're home, Amy. Great info for folks to read too.

I think most sleevers and DSrs have at least some issue with acid at first (1st year or so) but it usually gets better over time. I'm swinging lizards that yours gets better and you'll be able to keep your sleeve intact.

--gina

ETA: One thing that helped me was keeping a little something on my stomach at all times. Protein shake, cheese, SF pudding, etc. Mine seems to hurt worse when my stomach is empty.

Wow!  What an ordeal....I'm glad you are home and have things "under control" for now!

Please take care of yourself and I hope Christmas goes off without a hitch!  Kids are usually none the wiser if things don't go exactly as we planned!

Ps...thanks for sharing your story/situation!  When I was pre-op I wanted to read the GOOD with the BAD. It's important for people to know that these surgeries are serious procedures that do come with the risks of complications and side effects.

I fully agree with Peyton, I wanted to see the good and bad posts. We are all human and nothing is ever perfect. I am glad you are home and feeling better.Give your sleeve a little longer before switching to the RNY, maybe everything can resolve and all will be well. Good Luck!

Glad your home and doing better. Have a Merry Christmas.

So sorry you are going through all of this!!!  You are a very tough woman (any woman with 5 kids has got to be tough as nails! :) ) so Hang in there and I am hopeful things will get easier for you soon!! 

So glad you made it home Amy!  Like others have posted it is a GOOD thing to share these stories.  I know most people don't want to hear about all the things that can go wrong but I think a person isn't making a very sound decision if they aren't aware of all the risks.  You know this being an RN that's why you chose to post anyway!  I am a CT tech and held off on having surgery for several years because of all the bad I had seen.....which by the way was A LOT......there was a period of time where the hospital I worked at was doing surgeries with a bad lot of staples and we had at least 1 of 5 patients leaking DAILY......Then there were the septic slow leakers that came in to the ER in the middle of the night that I had to scan, and the SBO's, and the anorexics,.......you name it I saw it......we even lost a few which really scared me!  But after several years I realized that I was seeing all the bad and not listening to the stories of the people that came in that were having problems but wouldn't change a thing because they knew they had made the best decision for themself.....
We all have to take the good with the bad.....life is a roll of the dice..........or in the words of the great Forrest Gump........life is like a box of chocolates you never know what your gonna get!

Good for you for sharing your story!  I wish you smooth sailing from here on out!

I am so sorry for your ordeal.  But glad you posted because everyone does need to know the good, bad and ugly.  I so hope your sleeve and reflux can come to peace.  I certainly wouldn't look forward to a second surgery this soon and I know you had reasons for chosing the sleeve over RNY in the first place.  But if you do end up with RNY, it is a great option.  I wanted a sleeve and my insurance wouldn't pay for it.  So I did RNY and haven't been sorry. 
I'm swinging for you.  Keep getting better.

Wow, Amy!  I've been wondering how you are.  

Please don't apologize for sharing your ideal.  I'm sorry that you felt like you'd need to!  :)

I hope that your point about carrying the information with us is very very important, and I hope that everyone sees it.  My program gives us a wallet card that I wrap around my insurance card (they'll find that, I know...)  ;) just in case we have an emergency.  It says stuff about not having NSAIDs, etc.  
Now that you mention it, I'm thinking that it would be a good idea for me to memorize what's on that card, just in case...

I'm grateful that you've shared with us, and I'm grateful that you're back home in time for Christmas, and I'm grateful that you're close to medical care.  

So how are you feeling now?     

awwwww Amyyy,
so sorry u had complications it sucks pretty much when u do but around the holidays yikessss and 5 children to boot mamamiaaaaaa but im so glad ur starting to feel better