Question:
I am 3wks out and am having a very difficult time w/ nausea.

The nausea occurs morning and afternoon before and after taking vitamins. I also have an increase in thickened saliva. Can anyone give me and idea of what could be happening? I am just miserable!!!!!!!    — tawanna-oneday (posted on June 27, 2008)

June 27, 2008
I had LapBand and really didn't have the problem of post op nausea, but I do know that it is a common thing with RNY'ers. Most surgeons will routinely prescribe medication for you after surgery. I always hear... "it gets better with time". As far as the thickened saliva... it is called "sliming" in the WLS community. The esophagus begins to over produce saliva to either help you get something up or to make it more slippery to go down. Are you sliming out of the blue or with eating, or just with vitamins. I really only slime when I have something stuck. I would recommend you call your surgeon's office asap to talk to them about it. Dawn Vickers, RN, BLC, CLC
   — DawnVic

June 27, 2008
You should ber on a chewable vitimun to reduce the gag reaction which is a lot like when you brush your teath and too much of the flavor of the toothpaste bets to you. You RNY pouch is still raw and it causes the heavy salavation. It does not like the vitimums as they are desoliving, and you get the taste retransmited up to your mouth. Slowly sip more water. Also try bariatric Vitamins like, www.bbvitamins.com. Best of success toy you. I hope this helps, as by week 6 or 7 it will be more back to normal.
   — William (Bill) wmil

June 27, 2008
It's easy to get a little queasy on the vitamins if it's on an empty stomach, even without the WLS. Try taking them right before you eat. As for the thickening saliva, that's sometimes a sign of dehydration--bump up the water intake. Best of luck.
   — suezahn4me

June 28, 2008
Do you have gel cap vitamins that can be added to a meal replacement shake? I also agree with the poster who advised you to drink more water. It's so dangerous to be dehydrated. Just look up the risks associated with dehydration, and it will scare you into drinking. Water, that is. Nausea in the morning is also associated with dehydration. I haven't had weight loss surgery, however I know a lot of people who have, and compliance with water intake seems to be a problem with some.
   — Ruth Shapovalov

June 28, 2008
I had my bypass on Mar. 3rd. I still get nausea. Not as often as I did at first. I even called the Dr., but she wasn't too concered. I took Tums at first; they helped a little, but what helped the most was Gas-X and Malox. I think it's just part of the deal and it gets better with time. I hated taking my meds, it would take me all morning and a lot of the time I would skip my evening ones. Now I can throw them all into my mouth all at once (10 of them, 2 of which are big) and drink them down with juice. To this day I can't do the chewable vitamins, they're just to nasty and make me sick, but I have no problem with the big ones. I couldn't do this till about 10-12 weeks out though. Just hang in there and it will get better. Good Luck, Paula P.
   — paulajaneb

June 29, 2008
Hi Tawana, I'm sorry to hear about your trouble with the nausea. I was told in nutrition class to take my chewable bariatric vitamin and chewable iron with food because it is better absorbed with the food and helps prevent nausea. I also found in my case after lapband surgery, that eating and drinking more often helped with pain and nausea...go figure. Even if it was just water, it helped to have something in my stomach. I had left side pain if I went too long without eating or drinking. I believe it was a gas issue myself but it may have been my body getting used to the chewable calcium also. I would suggest what you've already heard about asking your surgeon to give you something for nausea also. The only time I really had much nausea was when I had something that had a lot of oil or fat in it. Do you use a high quality protein drink like Unjury? I don't do well with dairy and whey is a byproduct of dairy so I had to switch to a soy isolate protein. I guess what I'm getting at is that it seems alot of this journey is trial and error. I wish you all the best! Regina ([email protected])
   — Bigwyfan1964

June 29, 2008
Hi, sorry you are so miserable. I understand though. I went through the same thing. Chewable vitamins are what you need and with the nausea call you dr. he/she can give you something that will help. I still at times have to have something to help me and I am 10 months out. I hope this helps. Good luck to you and God Bless You! Bev
   — okiegirl

July 1, 2008
I was sick for 6 horrible weeks after surgery. The doc prescribed anti-nausea meds, but they didn't help. Tums helped a tiny bit. I tried a few different b vitamins (including Metanx, by prescription). I now feel fine using Supreme B Complex from Bariatric Advantage BUT I have to take it with food (usually lunch). However, I'm one year out and can handle a bit more food than I could in the first 3 to 4 months. Hang in there!! I promise it gets so much better. Even after the pre-surgery liquid diet and the weeks of nausea afterward, I'd have gastric bypass surgery again!!!
   — mosie555