Question:
Am I headed for trouble?
Just read a couple of questions/answers about taking meds. When I talked with my NP one of the things I asked about was all the medications I have to take..if it was going to be a problem. She said no. But now I'm worried, it sounds like it is hard to take pills right away. Is there a difference depending on the type of surgery you have? (I have MS and am on about 15 different meds and can't stop taking them or I'm in trouble) HELP Please! — angelvh2 (posted on September 5, 2008)
September 5, 2008
Nooo need to be worried - you will be just fine! If there is anything that
your doctor or surgeon think you need to take in a liquid form for a while,
they can give you prescriptions before your surgery or when you are
discharged from the hospital. For the first few weeks after my surgery, I
took my pills one at a time every day, with just enough water to get each
one down. The further out I got and the more healed I was, the more pills I
was able to take at once. I am 18 weeks out now and I can take all five of
my pills every morning in one shot, and I'm able to drink plenty of water
to get them down. Be careful with crushing pills and do not do that without
explicit permission from your doctor or surgeon - taking pills in that form
(crushed) can cause ulcers depending on the type of medication. Best wishes
and keep us posted on how everything goes for you!
— lauren_marie
September 5, 2008
Since MS is an Immune System illness (at least USUALLY from what I have
seen in my research). The probable BEST surgical procedure for you to get
would be the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy. It would allow you to take all
the medications that you are currently taking with NO modifications (except
temporarily as your stomach is healing from the surgery) since you are left
with a fully functioning STOMACH and a fully functioning INTESTINE. The
only thing that is done with the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy is that the
STOMACH is REMOVED and what is LEFT is sewn back TOGETHER into a TUBE, or
"SLEEVE." Everything you eat is metabolized just as it was
BEFORE the surgery, so you do NOT need to alter the way you take your
medications. You STILL can eat the same FOODS that you did BEFORE the
surgery in many cases, although it would be WISE NOT TO since THAT is what
got MANY of us INTO the trouble that we are in, in the FIRST place! As
long as we are going through the trouble of making such a DRASTIC CHANGE in
our lives, we should ALSO make a change in our DIETS as WELL! Change our
LIFESTYLE as WELL as our body and do the job RIGHT! The Vertical Sleeve
Gastrectomy has been proven as a SAFE and EFFECTIVE way to lose weight
through YEARS of operations that have been done for OTHER procedures. It
does NOT have data that proves it for WEIGHT LOSS in the US (YET!) but it
has been done for years in both Central and South America and in Europe for
weight loss and in the US for Ulcers and Cancer removal for DECADES and has
been shown to be one of the SAFEST surgical procedures in the US. It is
also nearly statistically as effective as the Gastric Bypass at helping
people lose weight. It is within 2 or 3 percentage points of the Gastric
Bypass in effectiveness, and it is MUCH safer. Couple that with a MUCH
lower incidence of side effects, and you have a Grand Slam in MY book!
Many surgeons who perform BOTH procedures will suggest that patients with
immune system problems get the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy due to the
medication issues. Doctors that DON'T, often will NOT due to issues with
INSURANCE or because they to not PERFORM this type of SURGERY. Many
insurance companies are reluctant to PAY for the Vertical Sleeve
Gastrectomy because the Certifying Agencies In the US have not yet given
their BLESSING to the procedure. They still consider the surgery
"Experimental" since it has not been DONE in the US for the
purposes of WEIGHT LOSS for over 10 years! While the surgery has not been
done in the US for WEIGHT LOSS for over 10 years, it HAS been done for the
OTHER reasons I mentioned. It has been done for the removal of CANCER and
ULCERS. The data that have been seen from THOSE SURGERIES regarding WEIGHT
LOSS is NOT CONSIDERED VALID by the certifying agency because the surgeries
were NOT done primarily FOR weight loss! Data from South and Central
America and from Europe is not allowed because it is considered unreliable.
As if US data were sacrosanct. We have had a NUMBER of medications PULLED
OFF THE MARKET due to manipulation of DATA by the MANUFACTURER in THE USA!
You would think that DATA from someplace like GREAT BRITAIN would be
considered at least AS reliable as data from HERE! Great Britain has been
doing the VSG for quite some TIME now! They have been using it as a low
cost alternative to the Gastric Bypass in their Socialized Health Care
System. One would THINK that the INSURANCE COMPANIES would get WISE to
this and get on BOARD, but they seem to stick their head in the sand and
play dumb. Instead of paying for a procedure that they only have to pay
for ONCE and then DON'T have to WORRY about the patient again, they pay for
a procedure where they pay for the SURGERY, the FOLLOW UP CARE, and the
SUPPLEMENTS for LIFE! One would think that this could get EXPENSIVE after
a while! While many insurance companies are LOATHE to pay for this
procedure, you may STILL be able to GET it if you can get a doctor to tell
them that it is MEDICALLY NECESSARY! Find a surgeon that performs the
Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy and that takes YOUR insurance. Talk to him and
explain your situation. Tell him that you WANT this procedure and WHY! He
will most LIKELY agree that it is the BEST option FOR you. If your
insurance company BALKS at the procedure, have him deal with them and have
him write a letter explaining WHY the procedure is MEDICALLY NECESSARY for
you. You will NEED to have THIS SPECIFIC PROCEDURE so that you can take
your medications. Any OTHER procedure will INTERFERE with that or cause
your body to have an immune system reaction. People with immune system
problems are NOT recommended to have the Lap Band for instance because the
foreign objects placed in their body can cause immune system reactions.
The same problem can occur with the Vertical Banded Gastroplasty. The
Duodenal Switch is in the same class as the Gastric Bypass when it comes to
causing trouble with taking certain medications. Both procedures require
modifications of medication regimens for some people. Only the Vertical
Sleeve Gastrectomy Leaves the gastric system basically intact and without
foreign objects that can cause immune system problems. This is why it is
best for people like you and me. While I do not suffer from MS, I too have
an immune system disorder. If you want to find out more about the
different types of surgical options available, go to my profile page
(http://www.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)tp://www.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)w.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)tp://www.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)w.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)w.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)tp://www.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow)
and check out the post titled "Surgical Comparisons." If you
don't see it on the main profile page, look for it in the March 2008
archives. Use this as a foundation for your own research. DO your own
research! It is IMPORTANT that EACH of us be as informed as we POSSIBLY
CAN about something as important as our health. This type of surgery will
affect us our WHOLE LIFE! Let's make sure we get the RIGHT ONE. Do your
research and then consult with a COMPETENT DOCTOR! If you don't like what
you hear from the DOCTOR, GET A SECOND OPINION! Surgeons are NOT gods! I
hope this helps, Hugh.
— hubarlow
September 5, 2008
I was taking 19 meds a day when I came home from the hospital. I used to
take a handfull and swallow with water, but it was for almost 6 weeks one
pill at a time and a small sip of water, wait a minutes of 30 seconds and
take another. That caused the pill taking time to go from just as I was
going to bed and getting up to a 10-15 minute process as I watched TV or
read something. Today, I only take one of those meds, but I have all my
suppliments, which I take like I used to, one handfull and water and I am
on my way. Best of success to you.
— William (Bill) wmil
September 5, 2008
Taking pills is not an issue with everybody. If the pills or capsules are
small, then there should be no issues with swallowing. You may want to see
if some of your meds can be obtained in liquid form, or speak to your
doctors about malabsorption issues of your script meds. Liquids tend to be
absorbed better. My surgeon gave me liquid Vicodin for pain meds after my
RNY surgery. I also take liquid vitamins, for better absorption, and LESS
PILLS to swallow daily. My script meds are not an issue with swallowing,
but the larger dosed vitamins and calcium citrate tend to give me problems
at times. So I opted to take liquid vitamins, and one ounce satisfies my
daily needs. Calcium citrate is available as a liquid too. DAVE
— Dave Chambers
September 6, 2008
I don't know about MS or the medications you are on, but I went from 22
scripts to 3, so perhaps you will find you have to take less than you do
now. It won't be a big problem at any rate, just take it slow and you'll
do fine. Dusty.
— Dusty Ray Vaughn
September 6, 2008
I TAKE 6 MEDS FOR BI-POLAR. THEY ARE NOT SMALL. I TAKE THEM FIVE MINUTES
APART SO THEY DONT GET STUCK. I TOOK THEM THE DAY AFTER SURGERY WITH NO
PROBLEM.
— cecilie
September 6, 2008
I got a pill crusher (from Kroger @ the pharmacy for $4.00) and that helped
me wth taking my medications. I'd just mix them (after crushing) in with
yogurt or pudding or something like that. That worked for me!
— pattschiele
September 6, 2008
I have to take many pill a day for several conditions and it is NOT easy!!!
I feel as if I am taking pills all day and they feel like a lump in my
pouch. Many of my pills can not be crushed or taste soooooo bad crushed
that I can only take them whole. Don't forget that you'll need a lot of
new vitamins too! I can honestly say that getting in ALL my meds is the
hardest part of WLS for me. I used to be able to take 8 pills in one pop!
Not any more. Now I can only do one at a time and need to time others
throughout the day.
You'll find a way, but don't think it's going to be easy. Not much about
WLS is!
— [Deactivated Member]
September 8, 2008
I took pills right away. I just had to take one at a time make sure that I
gave my stomach enough time to settle before I took another.
I am 7 months post op now and take 4 pills at a time in one swallow now.
Just hang in there. You'll know what you can handle. Just take your time
and be patient.
God Bless
Angie Kimball (sillyguts)
— Sillyguts
September 21, 2008
My sister has MS. But I actually just want to comment on taking meds after
surgery. It is very important that we all stay on our meds after surgery
(whatever they are for be it depression or PCOS or MS or anything). I
struggled A LOT the first 2 months after surgery. In hindsight I know it
was IN PART because I had a hard time taking my medications (zoloft,
buspar, etc) and that just made my "body changes" that much
harder to endure. It was a very hard time. Make sure you take your meds
ALL OF THEM everyday. BEST OF LUCK TO YOU!
— Fluffee
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