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Tif surgery scheduled 9-26-11

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Posted 10/4/2011 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi

Almost anything can be blended to a puree and drank like a cup of soup once it is cooked well. I think everyone here knows that my favorite was beef vegetable soup blended to a puree. Yummy.. Try to blend anything that you would normally eat like veggies and chicken broth.. anything with flavor and nutrients.

Janice is right, your 2 weeks on full liquids will be past in no time.. I started the week 3 with baked fish.. very soft and chewable to a mush. Once you get past week 2, it's better...Listen to your body and pay attention to what it tells you.

Please continue to come to HW and share with us and others your recovery. We will be happy to be here for you and support you in any way possible. You have one unique thing that we didn't have... Your recovery.. everyone recovers at a different rate and in a different way. We may have recovery in common but how it comes about is usually unique to the individual. Kind of like the same but different.

Now that I have totally confused you ;-), please stay with us...

Reach for the Sunshine.. Rainbows will follow
Sandi
Posted 10/4/2011 3:16 PM (GMT 0)
Day 8

My shoulder pain is gone! YAY!!! I just have 1 sore in the back of my throat but it is healing. My biggest complaint and I hope some of you can shed some light on it is...I have a thick coating over my tongue. I can't taste because of it. :( Have any of you had this? What is it and when will it go away? It doesn't hurt...I scrub my tongue with a tongue brusher and brush twice a day. Just wondering if I'm the only one?

Day before yesterday my husband vomited all night and felt achy all yesterday. I am very worried I might get sick. Hope and pray I don't. It's a little depressing around here.

Yesterday I accidently lifted my 3 year old off a chair. She was crying and it was instinct. I think I am fine but it has worried me a bit.

Well, that's me checking in. :)

Have a good day,

Kristi
Posted 10/5/2011 6:53 PM (GMT 0)
Glad your shoulder pain is gone! Seems you are getting better and better each day. Not sure about the tongue coating.

Hope you don't catch the flu. I had my flu shot Monday to be sure. I work in a hospital lab, and it seems that employees catch illnesses from their children and pass them around to everyone else. I get a shot so that I don't pass it around to my husband. He makes the worst patient! Ha ha.

It is hard to break old habits. I want to do things I normally do but have to catch myself before I do any heavy lifting. I am up to 25 pounds lifting now. Hopefully your didn't do any damage by picking up your little one, but instinct does kick in. I will keep my fingers crossed that all is well with your TIF.

Am trying to eat pasta now. Tried a Pasta Roni, but it was too heavy. Had cooked egg noodles with a little squash puree mixed in. Very bland, but hopefully it will sit well.

Take care, keep positive, and keep in touch!

Janice
Posted 10/6/2011 1:10 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi

Really happy to hear that your shoulder pain is gone. I do hope you do not get sick along with your hubby.. Did you get some anti-nausea meds from your doctor?? if not you need to. I carry mine with me every where.

As far as your coated tongue goes, the only thing I can think of that it might be is Oral Thrush. This can be caused by a taking antibiotics and a few other things.. might be worth calling your Dr about.. if it is thrush you will need an oral swish (prescription) to get rid of it.. just a thought..

When it comes to lifting.. I know you just automatically pick up your babies.. if they are crying.. you pick up and comfort.. Just try to remember to be careful.. consult your dr if you feel there is a problem.

Stay with us and I love your attitude.. it's great...

Reach for the Sunshine.. Rainbows will follow

Sandi turn tongue yeah yeah tongue turn
Posted 10/6/2011 1:36 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi-
Some people have a reaction to the plastic tube used while under anesthesia. My wife is and has this problem when she has had surgery. She did get thrush once and her tongue actually peeled like a sunburn. The other times she just had the annoying coating on her tongue for a couple weeks. If it starts to get painful I recommend seeing your doctor about it.

Take care.
Bill
Posted 10/6/2011 2:37 AM (GMT 0)
Day 9

Feeling better and better everyday! :) The hardest part is sticking to the diet. I am, and will stick to it...I'm just hungry all the time. I wake up about 4 every night starving even tho I'm trying to eat every two hours. :/ I talked to my sister and she suggested a raw egg (I will get organic, scared of samanilla ?sp) I'm eating what I can but I am small and my stomach is really small. I am not over weight so I need to keep my weight up. (5 foot nothing and 110 pounds now) I miss pizza, chocolate, MEAT...I could talk about that for awhile but will stop. :) I'm eating cream of chicken and a chocolate shake from Jack in the Box. It was the first time I went thru the drive thru since the surgery. The pictures were killing me! :)

One question...will melted cheese be ok to eat week 3?

Thanks for your thoughts on the tongue coating. Maybe you are right Bill. Today I am noticing it getting a little better. Thank goodness. I will talk to my Dr tomorrow about it.

I'm so thankful I have people to talk to that understand and are supportive! Thank you Thank you!

Kristi
Posted 10/6/2011 8:01 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi-
Good to hear your tongue is getting better. Since you can have icecream I would recommend getting some type of supplement powder to add calories and nutrients, Add that to the shake. My sister and I did this for my mom when she was battling colon cancer and the only thing she could stand to eat was ice cream. So we made her shakes at home and added a supplement powder to them to help her keep her weight up.
I was given the okay by all three of my surgeons to drink shakes to keep my calories up when recovering from the nissen surgery.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 10/6/2011 3:22 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Bill...I will start that today. :) Very sorry about your Mom. How are you recovering from your surgery?
Posted 10/6/2011 11:29 PM (GMT 0)
Kristi-
I am recovering quite well and am actually better at this point in my recovery than I was the 2 other times. Of course it can be because I haven't had any complications that will effect my recovery as I had with my first redo. It also isn't done incorrectly as it was with my first nissen, so I am sure that is effecting my recovery in a positive way. Thank you for asking. Mom is doing very well now, they were able to get all the cancer with good margins.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 10/8/2011 3:57 AM (GMT 0)
That is great news Bill! You deserve to heal best on the third go around!

Day 11

Things are ok. I have resigned myself to the diet as I really want the results of the surgery successful! I'm frustrated because I have heart burn right now. :/ Been noticing it a little worse everyday. Of course, it doesn't compare to the heartburn I was having before the surgery but it has me worried and a little discouraged.

I hope I don't annoy anybody by my constant postings...I researched this surgery for a year before I got to have it and I longed to detailed experiences. Everybody is different and it's good to know kinda what to expect. ;)

Hope all are well!

Kristi
Posted 10/8/2011 6:27 PM (GMT 0)
Kristi,

My doctor said that a TIF could continue to tighten for 3 months and after having the surgery I agree with him. After 4 months I thought that I was having reflux but the second pH test showed that my reflux had been reduced considerably. The problems that I was having were mostly from gastritis and not reflux. I did have barbeque last week and I had acid reflux from that. I think that the TIF will significantly reduce reflux but it will not totally eliminate it. I went off my PPI after 3.5 months and I seemed to have less reflux without the PPI but it does not make sense.

Good to hear that you are still following the diet. I found the second week on the very limited diet difficult and the fifth and sixth week were also a challenge. I never realized how many food commercials are on TV until I was on the TIF diet.

Sheldon
Posted 10/9/2011 1:35 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi and Sheldon-

In case you haven't been told by your doctors, the esophagus is considered a "dumb" organ and may sense "normal" amounts of acid or bile reflux as heartburn. It takes quite some time for it to heal from the prior damage and the worse the damage the longer to heal.

Kristi-

At 11 days I would believe this would be similar to the nissen and that the swelling will continue for 2 to 3 weeks or so. Then it has to recover from the max swelling. Once the swelling is gone you should have better reflux control. Since the way that surgery is done there maybe a different amount of swelling, not sure if more or less. Isn't it similar to being stapled in the esophagus?

Sheldon-

I agree it probably doesn't stop all the reflux and I am sure the nissen doesn't either. The LES doesn't stop all of it either. That is why they have an amount of refluxes that is considered "normal". Seems strange to have a "normal" amount of reflux to me.
I did have heartburn a few times after my first redo had healed, but I ate something I knew had a chance of causing heartburn. I am a sucker for hot peppers, but they don't like me! LOL!

Take care,
Bill
Posted 10/9/2011 3:19 AM (GMT 0)
Bill

Thank you for your reply. My endoscopy 6 weeks before my TIF did not show any damage to my esophagus. I wonder if I could have had damage that would not show on an endoscopy? I had not thought about the esophagus having to heal.

Regards,
Sheldon
Posted 10/11/2011 5:28 PM (GMT 0)
Howdy y'all!
I go in for TIF surgery on Monday! I am very nervous needless to say and stumbled across this thread while googling for additionl information. I have had chronic heartburn for years but the main reason I went to see my Dr. was becasue I had trouble swallowing and it is getting worse as I age. (I am 48). My surgeon recomend repairing my Hernia and installing the TIF devise.

I most just take a rantadine every day for my heartburn. I love to eat but I do need to shed some weight. I found this thread to be very informative so I joined the site so I could join in the conversation and share my experience with everyone as well. I hope I feel glad that I went through the procedure like most of you!
Posted 10/12/2011 1:32 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you Bill and Sheldon!  I appreciate your remarks!  Sheldon, I can completely relate to the food commercials.  They are a killer of hopes and dreams!  Haha...jk  Thank goodness for tivo and being able to fast forward thru them. 

I hope that the reflux I'm experiencing is going to stop.  It is depressing.  Maybe I'm part of the 20% it doesn't work for tho I don't know why?!  I'm not over weight and unhealthy.  I hope and pray I will heal correctly. 

Hi Griller!  Good luck on your surgery Monday!  Keep us posted on how it works for you.

Kristi

Posted 10/12/2011 2:10 AM (GMT 0)
Kristi - I understand about the reflux being depressing. I had reflux after surgery and I was upset and discouraged. It did improve with time and it takes up to 3 months.

My surgeon is confident that the TIF works well. Where did you get the 20% it doesn't work for? I am asking because I continue to wake up at night and I wonder if it is reflux although the after TIF surgery pH test said it was not reflux.
Posted 10/12/2011 3:31 PM (GMT 0)
Day 16 - I still have what I believe to be thrush in my mouth. :( Annoying!!! I'm tired a lot still. Maybe I'm not eating enough calories...Not sure. The heart burn comes more in the evening. I'm not eating anything acidic and following the diet. Frustrating.

Sheldon, I just googled it and looked at some clinical website. I don't remember which one but remember reading the statistic.

I talked with my husband last night and he explained to me it will probably take the 3 to 4 months to truly know if it will work for me, because my body needs to form the tissue around the ring of stitches which hopefully will keep the acid down. I hope and pray!!!

Sheldon, I'm sorry to hear you are experiencing pain at night. Do you think it's the gastritis?
Posted 10/12/2011 6:54 PM (GMT 0)
Kristi - I agree with your husband that it will take 3 to 4 months for your TIF to work. I thought many times that mine was not working but the pH test showed that it is working. At 16 days I also did not have much energy and continued to lose weight even with the more relaxed diet. I think that it took me 3 - 4 weeks to feel like doing much.

I went to see my surgeon today and he is confident that my problem is gastritis. The biopsy from my endoscope in Feb. showed erosions and gastritis which I did not know.

Sheldon
Posted 10/13/2011 5:46 PM (GMT 0)
I had the TIF surgery two and a half weeks ago and everything seems to be going just fine.  I was curious how soon I could drink alcohol.  My doctor said it would be fine after the first week, but just wanted to check and see what anyone else thought.  I would like to have a few drinks this weekend, but want to make sure it will be ok.
Posted 10/13/2011 10:29 PM (GMT 0)
The TIF diet said no alcohol for 7 weeks. At six weeks my surgeon told me to start eating more. I drank MDG64 which is 2.7% alcohol after he told me that. Alcohol increases stomach acid which could be a problem. Drinks with low % alcohol and eating at the same time would help. Good to hear that your TIF is going well.
Posted 10/18/2011 4:36 PM (GMT 0)
It's been 3 weeks and 1 day. I called my Dr yesterday and finally got something to make the thrush in my mouth go away. I asked him if having heartburn at this point is normal. He said maybe the thrush is down my esophagus and causing the problems. He said that all of his patients have been successful and they have significant improvements at this point in recovery. He said maybe he should do a scope and see what is going on. I said I will wait until month 3 and if there is no improvement then I will allow a scope. I really thought I would be better at this point. I am depressed but trying to hold on to hope. I pray everyday that I might heal. I am continuing the liquid and soft diet.

How is everybody else doing?

Kristi
Posted 10/18/2011 4:45 PM (GMT 0)
Kristi - I thought that I had reflux after my TIF and I was also frustrated and upset. But the second pH test showed that I was not having much reflux. My doctor thinks that I have gastritis and pain is from the gastritis and not reflux. I am going to have another scope next week to see about the gastritis. My doctor has probably done 70 TIFs and he mentioned that I was the only patient to have a second pH test so he must be having success. Good to hear that you are staying on the diet and that you are waiting 3 months for the scope.

Sheldon
Posted 10/19/2011 5:49 PM (GMT 0)
  Howday Y'al. Well I had my surgerey on Monday afternoon. Took 3 hours. My wife was getting worried. I have 5 holes in my stomach where they went in to repair the hernia ahead of time as my hernia was very large. I felt terible when I came too in the recivery room and for hours after that. They tore the lining in my esophagas with the TIF tool but the surgeon said it was a good thing as it dialated my restriction that was making it hard fro me to swallow.

They took me ICU but only so I could get the proper attention overnight. My wife stayed ith me and the first night was miserable. I was hooked up to all the monitoring systems and just about the time I would dose off the blood pressure machine would fire up and scre me and wake me up. Very long night.

I was released the next day around 1pm and am at hime now. The insicions for the laprisocy are quite sore and every time I swallow I feel like I have a lump a throat. Normal? My whole chest is ore and sore when I take deep breasths and aslo get winded easily. I have not had any reflux though since the procedure was done and I used to get bad heartburn after taking my normal medications as they would get hung up in my hernia. That seems to be gone. I am still on hydrocodeine for the next couple days. I aslo have a lot of gas that causees me to feel bloated but I have not have any solids since Sunday night so much there to have a bowel movement with. The doctor says they blow you up with CO2 for the lapriscopy and that walking will help make that gop away in the form of the gas.

Bryan

Posted 10/19/2011 6:15 PM (GMT 0)
Man Bryan, you were put through the wringer!!!  The gas was not fun but very normal.  Gas X helps and walking as much as you feel comfortable helps as well.  I didn't experience heartburn for the first several days either but if your Dr tells you to stay on your heartburn medications...do it.  My experience...I wasn't having heartburn so I didn't take my medication (I've taken nexium for 9 years) I don't think I had heartburn in the beginning because everything was still really swollen.  I am now 3 weeks out of my TIF surgery and experiencing heartburn (I went back on my nexium about day 3 or 4).  Not to discourage you...hopefully you will continue on the right road.  I hope so.  I still have healing to do and hopefully my symptoms will go away.

Hang in there!!!  You will feel better every day.  Just be patient in healing...That helps.  Keep in touch!

Kristi

Posted 10/19/2011 6:29 PM (GMT 0)
Griller-
welcome to Healing Well.
Glad your surgery is working. I do have a question about them tearing your esophagus. Was it torn as in a hole or like when they dilate it?

I am asking because I had a torn esophagus after an EGD Feb. 28th and the only way it could be repaired was to do a thoracotomy (through left side chest) to repair it and was in the hospital for 3 plus weeks. Had 2 chest tubes for 1.5 months also.

Take care,
Bill
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