Question:
Has anyone experienced nausea and dry heaves after surgery?

I had surgery on Oct. 9th. Two weeks after surgery I begain having nausea with dry heaves. It is now almost eight weeks after surgery and I am still experiencing this. I can eat and drink most of the time and keep it down. My surgeon said that it will pass in time. I can not do much or go anywhere because of the way I feel. Has anyone experienced this? If so how long did it last for? Was there anything that you did to help yourself feel better during this time? Any help will be appreciated. Thank you.    — Fran S. (posted on December 2, 2000)

December 2, 2000
I had a lot of nausea and dry heaves after surgery too. Mine was only severe for the first three weeks or so. Once I got off all the pain meds, and gave up milk, things improved some. The rest of it just went away on its own with the passage of time. Good Luck!
   — Lynn K.

December 2, 2000
I too, had alot of nausea and dry heaving. My surgeon prescribed prevacid (antiulcer med) and it took about 2 weeks but it has stopped. FEEL MUCH BETTER NOW>
   — kcraig

December 2, 2000
Fran, I had nausea and dry heaves for three solid months. One day I counted 30 bouts of dry heaves and quit counting after that. I slept at night sitting in a chair with my head in the sink because I never knew when I was going to actually vomit. My surgeon's nurse finally told me NOT to drink water that wasn't cold. She said water that had gotten warm caused the stomach to spasm. When I started watching that one thing, the dry heaves dropped in number immediately and within a day or two were completely gone. Hope this helps, good luck. Connie Guy
   — Connie G.

December 2, 2000
For me, Doublemint gum helped with my nausea. There is something that helped me. I have not tried sugerless mint gum, but it may help also. Good luck, Jan
   — Jan M.

December 16, 2000
I had a couple of bouts yesterday. I am 18 days post op and it seems like certain odors bring it on. And the more I think about it the worse it gets. Even brushing my teeth causes me to gag! I will try the colder water and hope it helps because I don't want it to happen again. I am soooo afraid of busting my staple line at this point. When can I relax about this not happening? Am I healed at this point to relax a little?
   — Marilyn C.