Re: OH GOD--- HELP

June 27, 2001

> I had my surgery 6/18/01- on monday night 6/25

> I had the worst pain for more than 3 hours than

> I ever experienced in my life-

Hi Sue:

> I am getting very nervous that I will dehydrate-

This early after surgery, if you're having trouble getting liquid

down, just drink ANYTHING you can tolerate, whether it's sugar-free

or not. Coffee, (decaf), tea, milk, juice, Gatorade, anything liquid

will do right now. It's very important not to let yourself

dehydrate. I did, and I wound up in the emergency room with an IV in

my arm. Not a fun way to spend a Sunday night.

Also, when you're having trouble getting enough liquid, it's really

easy to get constipated, which then makes it that much harder to eat

or drink anything. If you're not moving your bowels regularly,

glycerin suppositories work well, (and you don't have to swallow

anything).

HTH

Tom

June 27, 2001

Sue, the drink that I loved in my early post-op days was cranberry

juice cocktail. I'd take a big glass and fill it with crushed ice,

then put about half and half cranberry juice and water. It felt good

going down and tasted good too.

For the gas pains, walking is the #1 best thing to do. #2 is lie down

on your left side. For some reason, laying the left side seems to get

things moving.

Don't be afraid to take the pain meds every 4 hours (or as often as

recommended), so that it stays in your system... you have to stay

ahead of the pain, cuz once you are uncomfortable, it's not as easy

to manage it.

I hope this helps. Hang in there... the first few weeks are rough,

but if you're gentle with yourself you will muddle through. One day

soon you'll start feeling great and each day will be better than the

one before.

Hugs,

M.

---

in Valrico, FL, age 38

Starting weight 299, now 156

Starting BMI 49.7, now 26.0

Lap DGB/DS by Dr. Rabkin 10-19-99

http://www.duodenalswitch.com

Direct replies: mailto:melanie@...

> I had my surgery 6/18/01- on monday night 6/25 I had the worst pain

for more than 3 hours than I ever experienced in my life- it turned

out to be gas I guess but I had to take 2 pain pills to tolerater it-

I finally fell asleep and woke up feelinhg like I had be beaten up- I

am still sore- Dr Gagner said it was most probably from the pain

pills and the co2 from surgery that caused it- I still have

discomfort but nothing like it was- anyway- I am constantly nauseous-

I tried crackers- the thought of eating or drinking makes me even

more ill- I am getting very nervous that I will dehydrate- water

doesnt work- the diluted diet drinks leave a nasty after taste- I

don't know what to do- I called the Drs office and am waiting for a

call back- I am on the verge of tears all day and just feel so sick--

any suggestions out there? I am cross posting this message so as to

get as much input as possible-

>

> Sue-

> " going down " permanently

> starting bmi 53

> post-op bpd/ds w/ Dr Gagner

> 6/18/01

> Mt Sinai- 6.18.01

June 27, 2001

Sue,

Alot of ppl responded to me during my nauseous stages so I thought I

would pass along what is working for me.

First - I stopped all pain pills unless absolutely necessary (as might

have been for you during described pain). I found that they were the

main source of my " constant " nausea. The pain was much more tolerable

and minimized even without the meds each day out.

For my reoccuring nausea I realized it didn't occur when I had

something in my stomach (as long as that something didn't induce it as

well). So I started eating every 2-3 hours really small (NO KIDDING)

meals. The crackers helped here and there but I had a bad experience

eating too many (4) and had to stay still for two hours beggin GOD not

to let me throw up. The intermittent meals work well for me (3-4 tsp

of tuna or egg salad or hummos or 1/2 a yogurt etc.) and I have since

kept that regimen the same.

However since hydration seems to be a looming problem - have you tried

peppermint teas (as was suggested to me) or broths or flavored waters

(Veryfine Fruit 2 0 is great - lemon or raspberry)? Also, I used

decaf tea (the caff will definitely give you nausea as well as other

issues) and chamomile tea just to get some water in and something in

my stomach. If that helps abit you can try eating a SMALL amount

maybe an hour later. Or maybe later down the road more substantive

soups (pea, pureed lentil).

One day I chewed mylanta, ate a small meal, drank an hour later - ALL

DAY. Once I got into this routine, I pretty much kept it, but now

without the mylanta. I also make a concerted effort to drink more

than I would have before. It is slow going but it is coming along.

I hope that helps

Sondra

PostOp Dr. H. 6/18/01

> I had my surgery 6/18/01- on monday night 6/25 I had the worst pain

for more than 3 hours than I ever experienced in my life- it turned

out to be gas I guess but I had to take 2 pain pills to tolerater it-

I finally fell asleep and woke up feelinhg like I had be beaten up- I

am still sore- Dr Gagner said it was most probably from the pain pills

and the co2 from surgery that caused it- I still have discomfort but

nothing like it was- anyway- I am constantly nauseous- I tried

crackers- the thought of eating or drinking makes me even more ill- I

am getting very nervous that I will dehydrate- water doesnt work- the

diluted diet drinks leave a nasty after taste- I don't know what to

do- I called the Drs office and am waiting for a call back- I am on

the verge of tears all day and just feel so sick-- any suggestions out

there? I am cross posting this message so as to get as much input as

possible-

>

> Sue-

> " going down " permanently

> starting bmi 53

> post-op bpd/ds w/ Dr Gagner

> 6/18/01

> Mt Sinai- 6.18.01

June 27, 2001

Sue,

How much fluids are you getting ? Dehydration can also cause you to

feel nauseous. Are you taking any meds for it ? Some ppl have also

recommend a drop of peppermint oil in water to help settle the

stomach.

Hope you feel better soon, if not call the nurse!

*hugs*

Anita

Pre-op in Denver

> I had my surgery 6/18/01- on monday night 6/25 I had the worst pain

for more than 3 hours than I ever experienced in my life- it turned

out to be gas I guess but I had to take 2 pain pills to tolerater it-

I finally fell asleep and woke up feelinhg like I had be beaten up- I

am still sore- Dr Gagner said it was most probably from the pain

pills and the co2 from surgery that caused it- I still have

discomfort but nothing like it was- anyway- I am constantly nauseous-

I tried crackers- the thought of eating or drinking makes me even

more ill- I am getting very nervous that I will dehydrate- water

doesnt work- the diluted diet drinks leave a nasty after taste- I

don't know what to do- I called the Drs office and am waiting for a

call back- I am on the verge of tears all day and just feel so sick--

any suggestions out there? I am cross posting this message so as to

get as much input as possible-

>

> Sue-

> " going down " permanently

> starting bmi 53

> post-op bpd/ds w/ Dr Gagner

> 6/18/01

> Mt Sinai- 6.18.01

June 27, 2001

Sounds

like me when I was pregnant. I’m

one of those oh so “fortune” souls who vomit daily from conception to birth,

and actually lose weight while pregnant.

There were several times when I was threatened with hospitalization and

IV rehydration if I didn’t get my act together. Here are some things that I did:

Look for

mini crackers in the store – they have Ritz bits or something like that – just cracker,

no filling. Eat them one at a time

– with rest in between.

Peppermint

tea does help – and there’s something about warm tea – versus iced, that helped

settle my stomach – don’t know why.

Broths can

be your friend – don’t expect to consume more than a teaspoon at a time – and alternate

sips of water with it.

Evaluate

whether or not sinus problems or post nasal drip are a contributing factor and

if they are, ask the doctor for something to combat it.

Don’t even

get up without popping a cracker – you can even suck on it until it dissolves,

and then swallow – it helps settle the tummy. (My doctor explained that while laying down you may feel

sort of okay, just a little nauseous, but then stand up and you feel like you’re

gonna retch out your entire innards – it has everything to do with your

hydration level and your blood pressure.

Hence, I was told to eat and drink before even getting out of bed I the

morning.)

Ask the

doctor about taking something over the counter for nausea – there’s some sleep

aid out there – it’s OTC – that was safe to take and really helped with the

nausea.

Ask the

doctor if it’s okay for you to pop Altoids or something – they are very strong

and minty flavored – and can really help the aftertaste problem.

Best of

luck to you!!!

Dina in Aloha, OR

Age 37/BMI 61

Waiting for my consult with Dr.

Hoping my new insurance will cover it

all....

-----Original

Message-----

From: Sue

Sent: Wednesday, June 27, 2001

8:28 AM

To: DPost-op eating

Cc: DS GROUP MAIL

Subject: OH

GOD--- HELP

I had

my surgery 6/18/01- on monday night 6/25 I had the worst pain for more than 3

hours than I ever experienced in my life- it turned out to be gas I guess but I

had to take 2 pain pills to tolerater it- I finally fell asleep and woke up

feelinhg like I had be beaten up- I am still sore- Dr Gagner said it was most

probably from the pain pills and the co2 from surgery that caused it- I still

have discomfort but nothing like it was- anyway- I am constantly nauseous- I

tried crackers- the thought of eating or drinking makes me even more ill- I am

getting very nervous that I will dehydrate- water doesnt work- the diluted diet

drinks leave a nasty after taste- I don't know what to do- I called the Drs

office and am waiting for a call back- I am on the verge of tears all day and

just feel so sick-- any suggestions out there? I am cross posting this message

so as to get as much input as possible-

Sue-

" going down " permanently

starting bmi 53

post-op bpd/ds w/ Dr Gagner

6/18/01

Mt Sinai- 6.18.01

----------------------------------------------------------------------

June 27, 2001

Sue-

try sugar free popsicles, juice pops, Ice chips, or make plain old

icicles. because its frozen you have to drink slow, but you do get it

in. Ask for phenergan for your doctor, & if you're still vomiting

after 2 days, go to the ER for fluids!

Hope this helps,

HUGS,

Liane