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51/2 weeks post-op (gotta get things moving)

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 4/30/2012 2:18 AM (GMT 0)
I have been doing pretty good since my surgery 5 1/2 weeks ago. I was able to stop at a Ice Cream shop and have a ice cream dipped in chocolate. ( minus the cone ) It was so good! First time I have had somthing like that in over 5 years. It seemed to agree with me just fine.

I have got a problem I need some help with. I have been eating soft foods like mashed potatoes and cutting my chicken REAL small and adding some to my potatoes. I also eat a lot of cream soups and yogurt plus a protein drink in the morning.  Last night I got so bound up and uncomfortable and yes bloated. I cooked some prunes tonight and wonder if they agree with you after this kind of surgery. I know they were always kind of gassy before but they do seem to get things moving. Has anyone tried taking a suppository at this point after surgery? I am just curious as we run in to this situations and do not know what to do about it. Seems like we get over one hurdle and another pops up.

I am so glad I found this web site with others that have experienced the same situations as I am going through now.

One other thing. I am having trouble keping my weight stable. I have lost 12 lbs. since surgery. It is hard to not lose more when you feel full all of the time.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you.

Ida Mae

Posted 4/30/2012 3:18 AM (GMT 0)
I am only 9 weeks post-op myself, but in a way, my healing was quick. I was able to eat most foods by about 6 weeks.

That said, I started taking psyllium husk fiber about 4 weeks post-op for the same reason you mention. I found that the fiber, in the form of Metamucil, went down past my wrap just fine, and it did not cause my stomach to have issues. Mind you, I was taking it in smallish amounts a few times a day, not all at once as I had at times prior to the surgery.

Best of luck!
Posted 4/30/2012 4:05 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks so much for your help. I had thought about trying to take some kind of fiber like Metamucil but was nervous about it swelling and not knowing if it was a good thing to do after just having this surgery.

We had  potluck today after church. They had some homemade chicken noodle soup and vegetable beef. I ate a little of each and some jello salad as well as 1/2 deviled egg. Also had a small spoon of ice cream and a slice of a strawberry. This is the most regular food I have ever ate since having the surgery. I am bloated tonight and have had a few pains here and there. Probably because of being bound up.

It is encouraging to know you are able to eat most foods now at 9 weeks post op. Are you eating bread too? The nurse did tell me I would not be able to eat bread for at least 2 months. Does the diet I mentioned ablove sound like I am pretty much on target for this time period?

Thanks for your help.

Ida Mae

Posted 4/30/2012 10:28 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Halo2000,im just over eight weeks post nissen and often get bound up aswell,it seems to come and go,somedays im regular then a day later its back.It definitely related to your diet as when i started introducing more normal foods about 4 weeks in it sorted the problem out then i was overeating and feeling nausea,bloating etc so i went back to more liquid type foods and the problem is back.Cant win lol just hope with time it will all sort itself out. All The Best! Barry
Posted 4/30/2012 8:41 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for your reply Barry

It is so nice to have someone that has been down this same path to help us when we have a problem.

This Wednesday I will be at 6 weeks post-op. I had both the Nissen Fundoplication and my gallbladder removed at the same time.

I have lost 12 lbs. and really don't want to lose anymore. I find if I try to eat more I get sick and pain in the stomach area. One time I over ate and thought I was going to end up in the ER room. The pain was horrible went clear across the whole chest. That was at about 4 weeks post-op. I didn't think I over ate but evidently I did. I walked and walked to try to get rid of the pain. Finally after about two hours it let up. Yesterday, I tried a few soft foods at a pot luck. I was fine while I was there but after I got home I started to not feel good. Everytime I took even a drink of water or anything I ate after that I got that gurgle I had in the beginning right after surgery. This is definately an adjustment. Sometimes we don't know what to do or what not to do.

I always ate healthy before with plenty of salads and fiber. Now I am eating lots of dairy, mashed potatoes and very small amounts of meat. When I have a problem I go to pureed soup. This is a struggle but hopefully we will get better one day at a time. One day I will think I am doing pretty good and then  will have a day not so good. I guess this is all normal.

As long as we can keep things moving along we should be ok. lol

Wishing you a speedy recovery,

Ida Mae

 

Posted 4/30/2012 11:15 PM (GMT 0)
You might try to puree some chicken with chicken broth if you have a good blender. It will give you more calories with less bulk. This will help you feel more like you've had a meal, without having a hard time digesting. I would forget bread for a while, if I were you. I still have some difficulty with soft breads more than a year after LNF. Toasting it helps.

Peggy
Posted 5/1/2012 2:19 PM (GMT 0)
halo, go down to sunflower natural foods and buy a few ounces of senna leaves. they are in the back of the store in jars. take a teaspoon full and let it steep in a cup of hot water for about 20 minutes. strain and drink. do this at bedtime. in the morning you will have a couple of easy bm's. this has really saved me in the last 3 weeks. even though i am not eating a lot, not being able to "go" made me feel bad.
Posted 5/1/2012 6:07 PM (GMT 0)
Hi halo,

My wrap was done on the loose side. I'm still struggling with a bit of reflux, so it's unclear that my experience is indicative of your; however, I am able to eat bread. I started with very toasted bread about 4 weeks ago, and in the past week or so, I have successfully added untoasted and even freshly baked bread. I take smaller bites than before surgery, and I chew more thoroughly, but I do not feel any real problems at the wrap site anymore. In fact, when I'm careful about chewing, I now can eat anything that I've attempted.

I don't know if you've been doing it, but Gas-X is a must-have! I prefer the new Gas-X strips that you dissolve on your tongue. I take several each day, and it really reduces the pain and bloating.

With the Gas-X, I was able to take the Metamucil gel-caps, and starting having regular BMs. Since you've had some real problems with pain from eating, I'd suggest trying a single gel-cap and test how well you tolerate the fibre. If you tolerate it well, you might want to start taking more over a few days, and I'm sure that things will start to move normally again soon :)
Posted 5/1/2012 8:26 PM (GMT 0)
You can also try stirring some Benefiber into your soups, etc. It dissolves clear and has no taste.
Posted 5/2/2012 5:14 AM (GMT 0)
horsecrazylady

Thanks for telling me about the Senna tea. Sounds easy enough. I will check that out the next time I am at Sunflower.

Hope you are doing well. Are you able to eat more foods now? I wanted to stay in touch with you since I met your at the doctor's office.

I am not sure how to send a note to you other than a reply to what I posted. If there is another way please let me know.

I am so glad you told me about this web site. It has been so helpful.

Take care.

Your friend,

Ida Mae

Posted 5/2/2012 5:28 AM (GMT 0)
Obsidian99

Thank you so much for your response.  I have not tried the GasX. I am so glad you told me about the Gas-X strips and that you take them several times a day. I am going to get some tomorrow. I need to be doing something to cut down on this bloating.

Also glad to know about the Metamucil gel caps. I didn't know it even came in gel caps so I'll be looking into that as well.

I am surprised that you are able to eat bread toasted. I have not attempted any kind of bread yet. It is nice to know though as I love bread.

Just curious. How did you get a loose wrap? I ended up with the full tight wrap. You can probably burp a little. There sure are a lot of us that suffered from GERD and needed to get something done to stop it. I was afraid of eschopocal (sp) cancer.

Ida Mae

Posted 5/2/2012 5:34 AM (GMT 0)
Pegster

Thanks for the advice on the chicken and broth. Sounds like from time to time I may have to go back to this. I need more calories to keep from losing so much weight.  This sounds like good nutrition to me.

Glad to hear about your experience with breads too. That is going to be a tough one as I do love bread.

Ida Mae

Posted 5/2/2012 5:37 AM (GMT 0)
ChevyVan

Thanks for the idea about stirring the fiber into soups etc. Good idea. It is so nice to have all this support. Sure helps out a lot.

Thanks,
Ida Mae
Posted 5/2/2012 1:16 PM (GMT 0)
ida mae, i am doing very well. thank you for asking. yes, i am able to eat several things now. baked potatoes, hard boiled eggs, potato salad, etc. just have to make sure all is chewed well and i always have a glass of something handy to wash it down. this senna thing is a godsend right now. oh, they also have senna pods. don't buy them. make sure you get the leaves. senna is what they put in laxitives, only this is just the natural leaves with none of the chemicals. works like a charm. not sure how to send private message's. i live out in hallwood. where are you located? we farm rice and prunes out in dist 10. maybe one of these days we could meet up somewhere for a cup of coffee or non-carbonated drink. lol. i have had to give up my diet pepsi and now enjoy crystal light. off to oroville today to pick up a cable [they will load] as we have a big tractor really stuck in a newly leveled field. time is short this year with all of the late rain we have had. not a lot of time to get the rice in!!!!!! you have a great day! love, judy
Posted 5/2/2012 6:38 PM (GMT 0)
Judy,

So nice to hear from you. I love this web site. Thanks to you for telling me about it. I get so busy reading all the posts and helpful information I am spending more time on the computer these days. lol I don't even check my email. I am to busy over here learning all I can about this surgery. Even before my surgery I was always looking for a forum or just someone that was going through the same kind of struggle with GERD as I was but never really found what I was looking for. This one is just great!

We are going to take a run to Chico today. I will check at S & S produce for the Senna leaves. Thank you so much for telling me about this. I would rather take the natural source. Believe me I need to be doing something to get tis under control.

I live in Gridley. I would love to meet you one of these days for a cup of tea etc. I love carbonated drinks. Looks like I won't be drinking them now though. Well we will see as time goes on. I am like you I love diet pepsi.
I used to love coffee but when I got severe GERD 5 yrs. ago I had to give it up. Then I turned to green tea. Well, I still got it. The doctor told me that I needed to switch to decaf green tea so that is what I have been drinking for the past few years. I have not went back on caffiene yet becase I am wearing a heart monitor for 30 days. I will have that off on May 16th. So, I figured I had better wait to see what the cardiologist says on May 30th. I never knew of EVER having any problems with my heart before. I passed all my pre-ops just fine. In the hospital after surgery my blood pressure dropped extremely low and my heart rate went real high. They said it may have been caused by the surgery since he was operating right up close in the area of the heart. Just hope and pray that the results of this test will all come back good. Then I'll know if I can go back on caffiene. Although I had a chocolate dipped cone yesterday. It was so good! No side effects there. It was so nice to be able to eat something like that again.
I have lost so much weight I am trying to eat things with calories to maintain my weight or gain a few pounds. Never been in this situation in my entire life. Always was on the healthy side wanting to lose a few pounds. I lost 45 lbs. with suffering with the GERD for 5 yrs. Now another 12 lbs. since the surgery 6 weeks ago today. Starts making you look old when you lose to much.
Better get busy. I am so glad you are doing real well. You are eating real good too. We'll probably stop up in Chico and have lunch. So we will see how that goes. Not only have we got the surgery behind us and on our way to recovery but now we have a new friend. I am so glad to have met you in the doctors office. Take care. Have a great day!

Love,
Ida Mae
Posted 5/2/2012 9:11 PM (GMT 0)
ida mae, so sorry you are loosing so much weight. you did look very thin when i met you. in my case i would love to loose about 40 lbs that i put on in the last 5 years with this gerd, hernia and nexium. today is 3 weeks since surgery and i have lost about 12 lbs. i am tickled. we used to farm rice just out of gridley. farmed with paul shore. do you know him? nice family. maybe sometime this summer when we can eat like a normal person, we could meet at betty's in live oak. i just love that place but have not been able to eat spicy for 5 years. i too will miss my carbonated drinks, but it is a small price to pay to get over this gerd. talk about a life-controlling mess! i feel like i have lost 5 years. stopped being social as mine affected my voice and no one could hear me. went only to church, sat in the back then left quickly so no one would try to talk to me. i have quarter horses [5] and have just spent the last 5 years with them. my riding and horsemanship have improved sooooo much. one young gelding, born here, i have trained with hand signals since i couldn't speak loud enough for him to hear me. people are amazed when they see what he can do with just a move of my hand. hope your trip to chico was nice and your lunch delish! i probably passed you on my way to oroville. take care and we will talk soon, judy
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