1 Year Post Nissen Fundoplication

Hi Kim,glad to hear your surgery has helped you,sorry i cant help you with your question as i have only had nissen done in March this year.You say it took you 8 months to feel better,hope you dont mind me asking what sort of symtoms you were experiencing during your recovery.Im asking as im having a few problems myself. Hopefully someone will come along with a bit more experience to answer your question.Thanks Barry

Hi Barry and Dave,

As far as symptoms I had throughout the first 8 months or so, they mostly were centered around the feeling of eating too much at one time or something that was difficult to eat like bread. It would slow down around the wrap site and take a long time to go through into my stomach. Therefore, I would feel a discomfort around the area of where I'm pretty sure the wrap is, sour taste, and sometimes the feeling of heartburn. Also, some things would not go down too easily. I could eat something and it felt like it would take forever to be completely swallowed. I think, but not sure, that it might have been esophageal spasms. Almost felt like that anyway. Hope this helps.

Dave, I found out that soft foods are important from time to time to give your esophagus a break from working so hard to swallow foods that are dryer or thicker or just difficult to chew up as well as others. I have learned from this that the esophagus is a very delicate organ. This surgery takes a long time to recover from. A lot longer than I realized when I decided to have it done. But, I have to say, I'm glad I did it. Even if I am having a few symptoms right now, it's so much better than it was. My hope is to make sure I'm doing what is right in my eating habits and if need be, down the road, I need to get back on some medication to keep it under control, I"ll do that if I feel it's necessary. Before surgery, my meds did nothing for me.

I hope this helped a little for you two. I'll be praying for your progress and healing!!

Kim

Hi Kim,

Welcome to the forum!  Your "choosingjoy" handle says volumes about your positive attitude. I've no doubt that attitude helped you through your Nissen recovery!  Happiness is an inside job, and definitely a choice requiring some hard work at times!

Interestingly, I had a very similar experience at the year mark.  I wish I could tell you what caused it, but I can't.  I can tell you that it wasn't long lasting.  It lasted several monhs, but didn't cause me any other problems to speak of. 

I did start taking Carafate suspension again at that time to protect my esophagus and wrap.  I suspected bile reflux, as did my GI doc, but it didn't persist, so I have my doubts about that.  Still, if your wrap feels irritated from it, and you have good prescription insurance, consider discussing the possibility of a prescription of Carafate suspension to get you through.  It coats and protects the esophagus and stomach.  I have a very reactive stomach that irritates easily and often and I always have it on hand to help me through.

I'm three-and-a-half years post Nissen, and am doing great.  The issue that led me to surgery was severe, severe lung symptoms.  My reflux wasn't that bad, but it was enough to cause my asthma to become uncontrollable.  My lungs are great now (except for some allergy reaction), and I just wish I'd had the surgery a lot sooner.  I suffered years needlessly.

The information you shared with Dave and Barry was great and extremely helpful!  That's how this forum works...through shared experience and support, we help each other!

Glad you've joined us!

Hope your sour taste leaves you very soon!

Best wishes,

Denise

 

Hi Dave,

I've never used slippery elm, but from what I've read, they both have a similar effect--to coat the esophagus and stomach--kind of a liquid band-aid.

Denise

Hi Kim,

I'm no doctor, but have been participating in this forum for over 3 years, so I've seen a lot of issues crop up over that time.  I also had the surgery three and a half years ago, and have had a variety of issues both before and after.

I have a very sensitive stomach, and since my wrap is created out of that stomach, it often gets irritated.  That irritation can definitely mimic heartburn.  Also, even after surgery, heartburn is very possible--it's just less frequent and severe.

If I were to guess, my guess would be that you've irritated your wrap and it's reacting.  Try to be careful with what you eat and drink.

If you have good prescription coverage you might ask your doc for a Carafate suspension prescription.  It coats the esophagus and stomach and makes it more comfortable as the healing occurs.  If you don't have good coverage, there's a generic pill version (Sulcrafate) that you can put into a shotglass or medicine cup, and mix with a bit of water.  You throw it back to your throat like people who take shots.  Then the liquid can coat as it goes into your stomach.

Give it some time, and it'll probably clear up.  My reactive stomach flares up every so often when I overdo it with my eating and drinking (coffee, wine, etc.)

Hang in there,

Denise

 

Hi Anathema,

Welcome to the Healing Well Wrapped Club! You'll definitely be able to eat both those things, but not for a while.  At 2 weeks post op you're in the thick of early recovery, and your wrap is pretty close to peak swelling. 

I don't know if you're noticing it, but you're likely to be having a harder time swallowing now than you did earlier in the recovery.  This is because the wrap becomes increasingly more swollen over the first two weeks.  After it reaches peak, it begins to subside and your swallowing will improve again.

You will definitely be able to eat those foods again.  There's really nothing I can't eat now.  I'm three and a half years post op, but as I recall it was about at the four month mark that my eating was pretty much normalized.  I remember that because we went on vacation and I was eating out a lot.

That said, you'll always have to eat more slowly, take smaller bites, and chew more thoroughly.  That's not a bad thing, though!  You're less likely to want to go back for seconds!

You'll want to stay away from steak and untoasted bread for quite some time, but if you toast the bread you should be able to manage just fine.  Cook your veggies more than usual...softer than you may like.

Here's a good eating resource for you to check out:

http://www.upmc.com/patients-visitors/education/nutrition/Pages/diet-after-nissen-fundoplication-surgery.aspx

Also, here's a link to my early recovery journal:

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=45&m=2183443

Never fear.  You'll be able to eat your old favorite foods once again.  For now just try to surrender to your recovery and follow it where it takes you.  Don't struggle against it...instead, go with the flow.  You can't hurry it, you can't change the fact that you've got a lot of healing to do.  Everyone's body adjusts differently, and although certain things are universal, you'll have your own special recovery experience.

This recovery takes 6 months for the majority of healing and a full year for the rest.  You can't rush it, so just relax and enjoy the ride.

Glad you've joined us!  Be sure to continue to ask questions.  We're here to support you through recovery and share our own experiences. 

Why not start your own thread on the main page?  Just introduce yourself and share where you are in recovery.  That way it'll be easier for your posts to be noticed.  Here's the link to the main page:   GERD - Heartburn

Best of luck,

Denise