Question:
2 weeks post op

Hi everyone. I am going to ask a question that has probably been asked a million times before, but sorry. I checked the library and found a few that were KIND of like this but not so soon post op. I am only 12 days post Lap RNY and when I came home from the hospital I was having really loose BMs (sorry for the graphic content!) but now I haven't had one at all for more than 5 days. Am I doing something wrong or could it be the liquid multivitamin I am taking? Maybe I should try prune juice. Any suggestions? Thanks.    — RedHeadBeauty (posted on February 21, 2003)

February 21, 2003
I am 21 days post op and for the first six days I was in the bathroom 4-6 times a day, which was almost always clear liquid. At five days I asked my doctor when it would go away and he said soon and that eventually I may need to take some sort of fiber. Well then came the next treat...from day 10 to day 18 I had no BM at all. I checked other Q&A and it seemed that Milk of Magnesia was the product of choice so I bought some and after two doses, I was finally able to go...but there was hardly any even then. So maybe try the MOM, or prunes/prune juice seems to be another Q&A favorite. But if your anything like me and only getting in around 200 calories a day...and excercise at all (I walk one hour a day) then maybe your body is just grabbing on to what ever it can and there aren't much "left overs". Good luck and happy losing!
   — eaamc

February 21, 2003
Call your doctor's office and ask them what they suggest. They probably have a standard answer.
   — Esse

February 21, 2003
Hi, I am 10 days post-op and I had very loose dark stools on the fourth day post-op until the sixth day post-op. Now my stools look and smell like baby poop. Light beige and sometimes loose and sometimes very little. But not going to the bathroom for five days does not seem normal. I would call your doctor as soon as possible. You may have a bowel blockage. By the way I have lost 21 lbs since surgery. I feel like a new woman. Good Luck!!!
   — Robyn W.

February 21, 2003
I had the exact problem. I also couldnt choke down the MOM. Call your doctor since your only 2 weeks post. I am out 3 months now and every time it starts to happen to me I just take a fibercon pill before I go to bed. It does the trick. Please call your doctor though - I ended up in the ER with severe constipation because I let it go too far. I was in so much pain, I thought I had an obstruction. Hope this helps and good luck! Kandi
   — kandi S.

February 21, 2003
Hi Melissa. For me, the pain medication that my surgeon prescribed was causing my constipation early on. I think it was called oxycontin (or something similar). As soon as I stopped taking it, I was back to normal (or as normal as new post-ops can get). Good luck to you - better days are ahead. Kevin
   — meilankev

February 21, 2003
I had the same problem and in fact I went almost 2 weeks without having a normal BM. I battled with this problem for quite sometime before I found a routine that worked for me. When I got so backed up I ended up using a glycerine suppository to get things moving initially but for a routine that keeps me regular I take 2 Sugarfree Fiberchoice chewable tablets each morning and a cup of Sunsweet Prune juice every night. Everyone is different so you have to find what works for you. But the previous post is right about painkillers making you constipated. Not to mention rerouting your insides tends to slow things down a bit for a while. Good luck!
   — Laurel C.

February 21, 2003
Hi, it's Melissa again.. the original question poster. I just wanted to say thanks for all your answers. Only thing is, I haven't been on any painkillers since day 3 in the hospital. I've been fortunate in that I haven't needed them (even when my 6 yr old decided to jump on me - ugh!) But I will call my doctor. It's funny, I feel fine and everything, just think it's weird to go 6 days with nothing. Thanks again and keep posting!
   — RedHeadBeauty

November 5, 2009
I find the same thing. Try yogurt or Frozen Yogurt. I ate that and then all of a sudden I was blessed. But agree - call you Dr's office. Blockage could be happening.
   — LittleBlackDress