Re: Sick of being sick

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I don't have any suggestions regarding the test you have to take. But as

far as the nausea, when I had it for almost 6 weeks, no medicine worked if I

had to take it by mouth. My PCP finally prescribed a suppository, and low

and behold they did help. The nausea would never go away completely, but it

was much better. And I was able to get a little bit of liquids and food into

me.

Good luck with the test.

Sheri

9/28/01

Dr Herron/NYC

[Guest guest]

,

First of all, I'd like to send you a huge hug and tell you to hang in

there. Post op is real fun! NOT...but everyday I get a little wiser,

a little thinner, and lately a little weaker! Laughing. I have been

corresponding with a lot of great folks who have honestly told me how

horrible it was post op, and how when you cross that magic line, it

gets back to " normal " .

Everything I eat or drink has the potential for making me get sick or

feel sick and most things hurt my intestines. I can feel every sip of

water move through my intestinal track and its quite interesting as

its then followed by bubbles! Two magic foods I eat never come up,

but I am quite sick of both of em. The first is Cream Of Wheat. I use

that as the glue to keep any medications I take stay down. The other

is beef jerky. Now mind you, I am supposed to be on a soft diet...so,

I am justifying eating it as it stays down and it tastes good been

chewed five hundred times.

As for liquid, I am not a good drinker to begin with, but warm to hot

green tea stays down and doesn't hurt. Because I don't like it, I

know I don't drink as much as I should, but I am drinking a lot more

now than I was. I use the reward system. I eat a fruit popscicle with

a 10 oz cup of tea. No tea, no popsicle! Laughing I bribe myself all

day long that way with different things. 3 candy corns=one cup of hot

tea. Etc. I didn't realize that part of my feeling sick was

heartburn. I've never had heartburn before so I didn't know what it

was. As soon as I treated the heartburn, first with pepcid ac then

with prescription protonix, food is staying down. Now, I might feel

green every now and then, but its better each day.

I had a leak test post op and they gave me 12oz glass of apple juice

with contrast in it. I drank maybe 2 oz's and the tests came out just

fine, so I would dare to surmise that if you don't drink all the

barium, you will be fine. Just give it your best shot.

Oh, and the compazine pills I was given came right up. Hard to

swallow something for nausea. I asked the doc for compazine

suppositories and they DO work great. Also, Liane, my guardian angel

recommended Reglan. So if the suppositories don't work, I will ask

for that. She's a nurse and my hero...and I trust her completely!

If I can share anything else that I have stumbled onto during these

past 22 days, I am happy to pass it on. Feel free to write me at

timarie @ pacbell.net (no spaces).

Best luck on your tests and here's hoping you start feeling a lot

better real soon!

((((Hugs))))

Theresa

Surgery date: DS Nov. 19, 2001

Dr. Gregg Jossart

Highest weight: 293

Surgery weight: 251

Current weight: 227

Height: 5' 7.5 "

> Hi everyone,

> It's been awhile, I have tried to keep up with the posts but its

> been tough. I'm about 2 days behind now. I am still having trouble

> with nausea and vomiting, it takes up my whole day. Its been 4

weeks

> since surgery. I didn't have the nausea or vomiting while in the

> hospital but have had ever since I came home. I have tried

different

> meds and all of the great suggestions and was able to keep in some

> liquids in for a few days thanks to all of you and your great

> suggestions. Well I am in need of some more great suggestions, I

> went to the doctors and sure enough dehydrated with kidney

> infection. Had IV and antibiotic at doctors office. About 4 days

ago

> I started having right quadrant pain, labs came back not great but

ok

> as far as kidney function so the doctor wants me to have a CT Scan

> tomarrow which involves drinking barium(yippee) How am I going to

> keep that down when I can't keep anything else down. I have tried

> compazine and phenergan neither worked and my ins. denied me for

> zofrin so I don't know what I am suppose to do. They say I have to

> drink 8 oz of barium tonight and 8 oz 2 hours before scan. Any

> suggestions and has anyone else had an abdominal ct post-op and how

> much barium did you have to drink? It seems to reason that since

the

> route from stomach to large intestines has been decreased I

shouldn't

> need as much. The pain has greatly increased in the last 24

hours.

> I called radiology but they haven't a clue and said I have to drink

> it and keep it down.

> This is the hard part of having surgery away from home. I am going

> to try to contact my surgeon first thing in the morning to see what

> they have to say about all this and since it was after hours when

my

> PCP called I couldn't contact there office today. I do have a

number

> for after hours but I don't know if I should use it for this or

> not. Any suggestions, please email me ASAP. I know that

someday

> all of this will be behind me and I'll be feeling good and looking

> good because of all I have gone through.

> Happy Holidays

> B

[Guest guest]

,

Go ahead and use that after hours phone number for your surgeon. Most likely

you've paid for it with your program fee, so don't feel guilty about using it!

Having to swallow chalky barium is bad enough, but I don't know how a person

with a normal sized stomach can keep 8oz of it down! I'm glad you got your

dehydration issue taken care of as that makes you feel weak and nauseous as

well. Hopefully once it's completely resolved the nausea will be gone as well.

Are you still taking pain meds ? Many people experience nausea when taking

things like vicodin or darvocet.

Keep us updated!

*hugs*

Anita

> Hi everyone,

> It's been awhile, I have tried to keep up with the posts but its

> been tough. I'm about 2 days behind now. I am still having trouble

> with nausea and vomiting, it takes up my whole day. Its been 4 weeks

> since surgery. I didn't have the nausea or vomiting while in the

> hospital but have had ever since I came home. I have tried different

> meds and all of the great suggestions and was able to keep in some

> liquids in for a few days thanks to all of you and your great

> suggestions. Well I am in need of some more great suggestions, I

> went to the doctors and sure enough dehydrated with kidney

> infection. Had IV and antibiotic at doctors office. About 4 days ago

> I started having right quadrant pain, labs came back not great but ok

> as far as kidney function so the doctor wants me to have a CT Scan

> tomarrow which involves drinking barium(yippee) How am I going to

> keep that down when I can't keep anything else down. I have tried

> compazine and phenergan neither worked and my ins. denied me for

> zofrin so I don't know what I am suppose to do. They say I have to

> drink 8 oz of barium tonight and 8 oz 2 hours before scan. Any

> suggestions and has anyone else had an abdominal ct post-op and how

> much barium did you have to drink? It seems to reason that since the

> route from stomach to large intestines has been decreased I shouldn't

> need as much. The pain has greatly increased in the last 24 hours.

> I called radiology but they haven't a clue and said I have to drink

> it and keep it down.

> This is the hard part of having surgery away from home. I am going

> to try to contact my surgeon first thing in the morning to see what

> they have to say about all this and since it was after hours when my

> PCP called I couldn't contact there office today. I do have a number

> for after hours but I don't know if I should use it for this or

> not. Any suggestions, please email me ASAP. I know that someday

> all of this will be behind me and I'll be feeling good and looking

> good because of all I have gone through.

> Happy Holidays

> B

[Guest guest]

>Many people experience nausea when taking

>things like vicodin or darvocet.

Hi ,

I can vouch for what Anita said; it may very well be your pain meds.

Both Vicodin and Darvocet make me violently ill. It starts with

terrible nausea then progresses to intense stomach pain and almost

non-stop vomiting. And compazine, either oral or suppositories,

doesn't help at all. I learned all this the hard way after some

surgery I had four years ago. After five days of agony, first on

Darvocet then on Vicodin, I finally got my doctor to switch me to

Percocet and I was fine after that.

I'd talk to your doctor about switching you to Percocet or some other

pain killer if the scan comes up normal. How awful that you have to

go through the scan though. I second Anita there, too, call the

surgeon.

I hope things get better for you soon. I've got my fingers crossed

that your scon comes up perfectly normal.

Good luck!

> ,

>

> Go ahead and use that after hours phone number for your surgeon.

Most likely you've paid for it with your program fee, so don't feel

guilty about using it! Having to swallow chalky barium is bad enough,

but I don't know how a person with a normal sized stomach can keep

8oz of it down! I'm glad you got your dehydration issue taken care

of as that makes you feel weak and nauseous as well. Hopefully once

it's completely resolved the nausea will be gone as well. Are you

still taking pain meds ? Many people experience nausea when taking

things like vicodin or darvocet.

>

> Keep us updated!

>

> *hugs*

>

> Anita

[Guest guest]

,

Are you eating at all?? If you are eating almost nothing because you are too

sick to eat, I would suggest that you need to " eat through " the nausea. To

do this do the following:

1. Alternate picking a food item and drinking about 6 ounces of liquid every

hour or so.

2. Pick a food item that is about 100 calories. Set it out and pick at it

until it is gone. A suggestion would be 3 crackers and a piece of cheese, or

a piece of string cheese, or 1/2 cup chicken noodle soup, 1/2 cup yogurt, 1/3

cup cottage cheese, etc.

3. Pick a food item that is least rupulsive to you. Don't wait to find

something you " want " . Pick something that is least repulsive.

4. Get at least 5 of these food items in a day.

5. Stick with that food item until it is gone. Don't go switching because

it doesn't look good. Nothing will look good.

6. Just because the food item comes back up doesn't mean it did you no good.

Continue the next food item when it is time.

7. Stick with it. Often in 3-4 days the person feels much better.

Dawn

Dr. Hess, Bowling Green, OH

BPD/DS

4/27/00

www.duodenalswitch.com

267 to 165 5' 4 "

size 22 to size 10

have made size goal

no more high blood pressure, sore feet, or dieting!

[Guest guest]

Just a great big FYI-

If your doc gave you nausea meds in pill form & it won't stay down,

there IS a way to make it work.. coat them with a bit of k-y jelly and

....think suppository. The only restriction to this is if the pill is

enteric-coated.. but compazine and phenergan are not. Its a bit messy,

but it works NOW (esp. if NOW is 3am and the doc hasn't called you

back). Wish I had more help for .. but maybe this will help... I

hope.

Hugs,

Liane

PS- Thanks Ti... I'm blushing! Love you, girl!

> Oh, and the compazine pills I was given came right up. Hard to

> swallow something for nausea. I asked the doc for compazine

> suppositories and they DO work great. Also, Liane, my guardian angel

> recommended Reglan. So if the suppositories don't work, I will ask

> for that. She's a nurse and my hero...and I trust her completely!

[Guest guest]

Ok Liane,

That statement is about 2 steps from jail for me! Laughing First my

medicine, now if you say I can do my protein the same way...well, I

am picturing a huge tube of ky and a leg of lamb and the picture

ain't pretty!

Chortling and muttering to meself,

Theresa

> > Oh, and the compazine pills I was given came right up. Hard to

> > swallow something for nausea. I asked the doc for compazine

> > suppositories and they DO work great. Also, Liane, my guardian

angel

> > recommended Reglan. So if the suppositories don't work, I will

ask

> > for that. She's a nurse and my hero...and I trust her completely!

[Guest guest]

hi lisa-

" sick of being sick " was my mantra for about 6 weeks after my

surgery. your message could have been written by me a few weeks

ago. however, like everyone promised, one day i woke up and felt

better. now, at 8 weeks, i can eat just about anything...in small

quantities. magically, my energy increased exponentially when i was

finally able to keep some food down.

my only suggestion to you is saltines with unsalted tops. it was the

only thing i could keep down for a while. then i added peanut butter

to them. slowly i was able to eat more and more. you may be able to

handle dry toast too. as my doctor and nutritionist told me, don't

worry about the protein right now. worry about getting some energy

into your body so you can heal. when you are able to hold down the

food, then you can worry about your protein intake.

good luck...and believe me...it does get better.

kim

bpd-dr.ren- 10/18/01 (-35lbs)