Back On Track Together
Been a long time...
Well... it's been a long time since I posted. I just have so many problems with my RNY that I get so depressed seeing people doing well and happy with theirs. My journey is so different and complicated. I feel alone in this struggle. Weight wise, I stopped losing and bounce around with the same 10 pounds (between 305 and 315 pounds). I started at 356 and get down to 305 on a good day. I posted this in my blog/profile, but I'll post it here so you guys know why I just "jumped ship" so to speak...
"Well,
It will be one year post-RNY (Revision from lap-band to RNY) on July 24th. I'll write closer to that date too. I figured it's been a while since I posted a blog and I figured I'd update you guys on how I'm doing.
I am still sick all the time. I wake up nauseated every day. I stay nauseated all day. It doesn't matter what I eat/drink, I'm sick. I have to take antiemetics all the time still. If I don't put on my Scop patch on day 3, I start dry heaving. If I try and taper down on the Aciphex (take it only once a day instead of twice), I start to salivate constantly and then dry heaving follows. I was eating solids ok for a while, but now, I can't tolerate meat or vegetables. I try to eat 1-2 meatballs and they sit in my pouch for hours. I chew my food better than most (thank you lap-band for teaching me that!) and when I vomit, it's only liquid/foam/mush. Nothing solid comes up. Most nights I wake up aspirating on food/fluids. I stop eating long before bed (4-6 hours before bed most nights) and I will wake up choking on "gunk" that comes up from my stomach. It is remnants of dinner, saliva, and post-nasal drip. Lovely. I hate being sick. I am always sick. The kicker, for how little I eat, I am not losing weight. I dropped about 50 pounds (out of 200 that I needed to lose) and that is it. I am also ravenous, constantly. I will start phenteramine (sp?) soon. I'm trying to get the insomnia and GI trouble under control before I attempt a large pill like that. I see a GI doctor in a couple of weeks. My surgeon hasn't been all that helpful. He basically said what I am dealing with is not normal and left it at that. The dietitians can't offer advice. They actually said, "With your endocrine problems, hunger, and inability to exercise, you're not going to lose any weight". Thanks (sarcasm obviously). I did have a barium swallow done and the radiologist said, "you have an incredibly small pouch. No wonder you are sick all the time". But, nobody has been able to help me feel better other than push drugs. Now, after I eat (anything that is thicker than yogurt), I will get horrific abdominal pain for a good 30 minutes. It is horrible and feels similar to when I had a small bowel obstruction/stricture. I hope the GI doctor will scope me and look for another stricture. My surgeon believes the barium swallow is all you need when diagnosing a problem while the surgeon I saw for my bowel obstructions thinks that only 40% of strictures can be seen with a barium swallow. He's in Michigan (I live in Florida), so I'm trying to find a doctor that will work to get me feeling better.
I am exhausted but thankfully no longer deficient in Vitamin D or iron. They are low, but not in the red anymore. I haven't been cleared by PT to exercise yet, but hopefully soon I can try some water walking soon.
If you look at all the "pro's" of RNY surgery, I have not had one single "pro". This surgery has been nothing but trouble, misery, and illness. Nightmare... sheer nightmare. Honestly, nightmare is the best word to describe this surgery experience for me. I know so many out there that are happy and healthy, but for me, it's been a year of hell and I can only hope that my new GI doctor can help me feel better. This is depressing to feel so miserable for so long. Yes, things were worse (aka, 4 months in the hospital) but I am still sick and feel worse in the last 2 weeks and the abdominal pain is getting worse. I feel like I should just go to a liquid diet but I hate full liquids and with my bladder disease, the protein shakes don't work so well.
Sigh... I guess that is all for now. Still living in a nightmare. I rarely visit OH.com because I can't eat what most of you guys eat. My experience is so negative that I don't want to be a downer on the boards and frankly, it's depressing to see so many happy RNY stories and then think about how the RNY has only been negative for me.
Like I said, I'll post more near my 1 year mark and I'll hopefully have good news (especially GI doctor wise and exercise/PT wise)."
So, I've been pretty miserable and just couldn't bring myself to write on OH.com let alone read posts. I promise that when I get the GI stuff working better, I'll be back and back on track. I refuse to give up, but I have to focus on getting over being sick before I can think about my lack of weight loss...
Thanks for always being here and a great source of motivation. I will be back!
"Well,
It will be one year post-RNY (Revision from lap-band to RNY) on July 24th. I'll write closer to that date too. I figured it's been a while since I posted a blog and I figured I'd update you guys on how I'm doing.
I am still sick all the time. I wake up nauseated every day. I stay nauseated all day. It doesn't matter what I eat/drink, I'm sick. I have to take antiemetics all the time still. If I don't put on my Scop patch on day 3, I start dry heaving. If I try and taper down on the Aciphex (take it only once a day instead of twice), I start to salivate constantly and then dry heaving follows. I was eating solids ok for a while, but now, I can't tolerate meat or vegetables. I try to eat 1-2 meatballs and they sit in my pouch for hours. I chew my food better than most (thank you lap-band for teaching me that!) and when I vomit, it's only liquid/foam/mush. Nothing solid comes up. Most nights I wake up aspirating on food/fluids. I stop eating long before bed (4-6 hours before bed most nights) and I will wake up choking on "gunk" that comes up from my stomach. It is remnants of dinner, saliva, and post-nasal drip. Lovely. I hate being sick. I am always sick. The kicker, for how little I eat, I am not losing weight. I dropped about 50 pounds (out of 200 that I needed to lose) and that is it. I am also ravenous, constantly. I will start phenteramine (sp?) soon. I'm trying to get the insomnia and GI trouble under control before I attempt a large pill like that. I see a GI doctor in a couple of weeks. My surgeon hasn't been all that helpful. He basically said what I am dealing with is not normal and left it at that. The dietitians can't offer advice. They actually said, "With your endocrine problems, hunger, and inability to exercise, you're not going to lose any weight". Thanks (sarcasm obviously). I did have a barium swallow done and the radiologist said, "you have an incredibly small pouch. No wonder you are sick all the time". But, nobody has been able to help me feel better other than push drugs. Now, after I eat (anything that is thicker than yogurt), I will get horrific abdominal pain for a good 30 minutes. It is horrible and feels similar to when I had a small bowel obstruction/stricture. I hope the GI doctor will scope me and look for another stricture. My surgeon believes the barium swallow is all you need when diagnosing a problem while the surgeon I saw for my bowel obstructions thinks that only 40% of strictures can be seen with a barium swallow. He's in Michigan (I live in Florida), so I'm trying to find a doctor that will work to get me feeling better.
I am exhausted but thankfully no longer deficient in Vitamin D or iron. They are low, but not in the red anymore. I haven't been cleared by PT to exercise yet, but hopefully soon I can try some water walking soon.
If you look at all the "pro's" of RNY surgery, I have not had one single "pro". This surgery has been nothing but trouble, misery, and illness. Nightmare... sheer nightmare. Honestly, nightmare is the best word to describe this surgery experience for me. I know so many out there that are happy and healthy, but for me, it's been a year of hell and I can only hope that my new GI doctor can help me feel better. This is depressing to feel so miserable for so long. Yes, things were worse (aka, 4 months in the hospital) but I am still sick and feel worse in the last 2 weeks and the abdominal pain is getting worse. I feel like I should just go to a liquid diet but I hate full liquids and with my bladder disease, the protein shakes don't work so well.
Sigh... I guess that is all for now. Still living in a nightmare. I rarely visit OH.com because I can't eat what most of you guys eat. My experience is so negative that I don't want to be a downer on the boards and frankly, it's depressing to see so many happy RNY stories and then think about how the RNY has only been negative for me.
Like I said, I'll post more near my 1 year mark and I'll hopefully have good news (especially GI doctor wise and exercise/PT wise)."
So, I've been pretty miserable and just couldn't bring myself to write on OH.com let alone read posts. I promise that when I get the GI stuff working better, I'll be back and back on track. I refuse to give up, but I have to focus on getting over being sick before I can think about my lack of weight loss...
Thanks for always being here and a great source of motivation. I will be back!
~Alyssa
Band to Bypass (Band May 2005 --RNY July 2008)
"Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try." ~Yoda
(What is Interstitial Cystitis)
Evolution of Dance :)
Meet my pouch... The Gremlin:
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Cathy W.
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