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My Nissen Journey- Surgery Friday August 9th 2013

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 8/9/2013 6:14 PM (GMT 0)
Hoping everything goes well! I had my NF surgery July 15 (also in OH), and I feel amazing.
Posted 8/9/2013 7:49 PM (GMT 0)
Stephanie,

Hopefully your procedure is over by now and you're resting "comfortably numb". I hope your recovery is uneventful and that you're up and around sooner than later.

Welcome to the Wrapped Club [an elite group, mind you ;)].

-Tony-
Posted 8/9/2013 9:16 PM (GMT 0)
Hi guys. Made it to my room. Surgery went well. Just wanted to check in. More later
Posted 8/9/2013 11:55 PM (GMT 0)
SJ-

Well good to hear from you so soon! Welcome to the Wrapped Club!

Now be sure to rest and stay hydrated.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 8/10/2013 9:03 PM (GMT 0)
Glad the surgery went well StephanieJean. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Posted 8/10/2013 9:06 PM (GMT 0)
Hello all. Just a quick check in from the hospital. They have done a great job managing my pain and nausea. It's really not as bad as I thought. I'm also on a lot of morphine and itd hard to type right now. More soon
Posted 8/11/2013 10:51 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone!
I am now officially a member of the wrapped club!
I was able to be released from the hospital today. I am still pretty drugged up and woozy but at least I am home an comfortable in my own bed now.
I promise I will share more detail after a nice uninterrupted sleep
Posted 8/11/2013 11:24 PM (GMT 0)
SJ-

It does feel good to get out of the hospital and not be bugged every half hour. Get some good rest.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 8/12/2013 4:00 AM (GMT 0)
SJ,

One of the best feelings in the world was to sleep in my own bed again after I was released from the hospital. Get some good rest; we look forward to hearing about your recovery!

Be well!
-TonyG-
Posted 8/12/2013 10:45 AM (GMT 0)
SJ,

I hope all is going well with your recovery! I had my surgery the day before yours so I am looking forward to following your progress :)
Posted 8/12/2013 5:07 PM (GMT 0)
Hello everyone. I am resting at home with my grandparents watching movies. My biggest complaint as far as pain is that my throat is all torn up from surgery. It's getting better but it's still very dry and scratchy. Moving around is a lot easier than. I thought I would be. My incisions don't hurt too much. I keep wanting to check back in and tell more of the story but all the pain meds and fatigue make it hard to read and type.
Posted 8/12/2013 5:32 PM (GMT 0)
SJ,

I wish you a speedy recovery. I meet with my surgeon in less than an hour to discuss options and a surgery date. Please keep posting if and when you are up to it.
Posted 8/12/2013 5:58 PM (GMT 0)
I will say that the surgery and recovery has been a lot easier than I expected. Let me know how your meeting is with your surgeon... You will be just fine if you get the surgery.
Posted 8/12/2013 7:42 PM (GMT 0)
Hi SJ,

Welcome to the yeah yeah yeah Wrapped Club! yeah yeah yeah Glad to hear that you have your grandparents to give you some TLC during your recovery.  Just rest and relax (don't forget to walk to keep the shoulder pain at bay)!  Once you're feeling better, we'll all look forward to hearing your story!

Happy healing,

Denise

Posted 8/14/2013 12:24 PM (GMT 0)
SJ,

My surgeon sent me for another Barium test on 12 Aug to ensure I do not have any swallowing issues. He really wants to perform the full wrap versus the partial wrap but I cannot stay off my PPIs long enough to undergo the other swallow tests. I am so ready for surgery.

I hope you are still recovering quickly. Look forward to your update.
Posted 8/14/2013 2:24 PM (GMT 0)
I'm "Grams" and had my wrap on the 9th of Aug. in Ohio too. I wanted to ask a couple questions of the experienced pros in the group. I feel like I am still having reflux, it seems worse when I lay down and my tongue is so coated it looks white. Have any of you experienced this after your surgery?
Posted 8/14/2013 2:49 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Grams,

Welcome to the Healing Well yeah yeah yeah Wrapped Club! yeah yeah yeah I'm a grams, too, and am actually watching my two and a half year old as we speak!  This is a great place to get information and support after your Nissen surgery.  I had mine done four and a half+ years ago, and can speak from experience.

I didn't have the white coating after surgery, but have had it several times, as I take inhaled steroids, which can be a cause.  I found this online:

Thrush and Yeast Infections

You may notice a white, cottage cheese-like coating on your tongue after surgery. Your tongue may also be very red and inflamed. Most likely you have thrush, which is a yeast overgrowth in the mouth. Often, this is due to large amounts of antibiotics taken before surgery. Call your primary care doctor if you have an oral infection or a rash on your skin.

Taking Lactobacillus acidophilus in addition to following the regimen prescribed to you after surgery may help prevent thrush.

Here's the link where it came from: http://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/recovering_from_bariatric_surgery/  It's not a Nissen site, but the Nissen is stomach surgery and shares many recovery issues with bariatric surgery. 

Be sure to call your PCP and report the thrush symptoms.  You're not alone in getting it post-surgery.  I've read other posts here with similar issues.

As far as "reflux" symptoms, take a look at my response to oldnurse regarding perceived reflux.

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=45&m=2817312

You don't have to worry about the reflux sensations.  They're very normal.

Again, welcome!  Keep asking questions, as there are quite a few wrapped friends here on the forum!                  

Happy healing,

Denise

Posted 8/14/2013 5:54 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone,
I am finally feeling strong enough to update from my computer. The medications and the anesthesia made it really hard for me to see things up close and also feel clear headed enough to type a coherent update.

My surgery went really well, as I said. I got out of the Hospital on Sunday. Much of it is a blur because of the medications and because I constantly had so many people coming over to the hospital to see me.

I am currently feeling super bloated and I have a sore throat that is lingering. Has anyone else experienced that sore throat? When I first got out of surgery it felt like they really tore it up with the breathing tubes and stuff, i lost my voice a bit, but now it just feels dry and sore.

Hiccups really hurt and so does coughing and the sensations I feel in my stomach and stuff are so alien to me I cant even describe them...not all of it is painful, but mostly weird.

I ate some really runny mashed potatoes today along with some pureed chicken noodle soup. I cant really ever tell if I am hungry so I just make sure I eat a little bit whenever I take my medications.
I just wish the sore esophagus would go away.

My grandma took me to the supermarket so I could walk around yesterday. That was really nice, but I was really really worn out from it.

I expected to feel worse after surgery, I was surprised it was not as bad as I thought it would be.
I am trying to space out the time in between pain medications so I am not so loopy, so sorry if this message is jumbled. If anyone has any specific questions I would be happy to answer them.
Talk to you all soon
Stephanie
Posted 8/14/2013 6:36 PM (GMT 0)
Hey SJ,

Glad to hear that you are up and active. Several others here in the forum really advocate walking as much as you can tolerate, just do not overdo it. I just received a call from my surgeon wanting me to come by and finalize the paperwork for a full wrap. I am so nervous but your recovery journal keeps me motivated.

Are you still on pain killers? Also did the surgeon give you an antibotic as a precautionary measure to combat infection? Thanks again for posting your recovery.
Posted 8/14/2013 6:47 PM (GMT 0)
Hey TXMAN. I was walking around the day of my surgery, I even impressed the nurses by changing my clothes. Walking does feel good, but I definetly overdid it yesterday. I tried to do to much.

Dont be afraid, really. I wish I would have known how not bad it would be before my surgery. It is challenging, but its not horrible. You will do great!

I am still on pain killers for sure. I have liquid lortab, that burns going down and is pretty gross, but it works, it actually worked better for me in the hospital than the morphine they were giving me.

They gave me antibiotic and anti nausea in my IV prior to surgery and they kept me on dissolvable zofran. The worst of it all are the hiccups. they kind of hurt and the stomach spasms feel funny, like you are going to heave or belch or reflux all at once its odd.
Posted 8/14/2013 7:23 PM (GMT 0)
SJ!

So glad to hear you're on the mend. Hiccups, sneezes and coughs will hurt for a bit and feel strange for even longer. Best bet is to have a pillow or rolled up blanket nearby so that you can give that a good hug up against your stomach when it happens. That will help support you a bit and will help eliminate most of the awkwardness and pain.

I could never figure out if I was hungry or if I was in any sort of pain or discomfort in the beginning. What worked best for me was to try to eat scheduled meals even if I didn't feel noticeably hungry. It was far easier to eat small meals every couple of hours (a small milkshake with protein powder added, some mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, etc) instead of trying to eat a full meal.

Oddly my throat didn't hurt as much as I expected it to. I was super thirsty for the first couple of days so I found myself drinking an incredible amount of ice water so that could have helped keep the soreness down. Sucking on a cough drop might help some of that soreness. A popsicle or some ice cream would, too.

It's good that you're getting up and walking. That will only serve to help the swelling go down as it gets the blood pumping and keeps the healing tissue well hydrated. You now know your limits so be careful.

I'm so glad to hear you're on your way to feeling like yourself again. I found I felt my best when I wasn't taking the liquid lortab any longer. That was about a week to week and a half after the operation.

Take care of yourself!
-TonyG-
Posted 8/15/2013 4:13 AM (GMT 0)
SJ-

I had a horrible sore throat after my 1st redo. It took about 2 weeks to go away completely. I figured it was from the breathing tune also. I still had it in when I woke up and then they removed it.
Throat lozenges helped a lot. I also found ice and heat made my belly feel better.
As for the not hungry thing. That;s because the area of your stomach that tells you that you are full is what they use for the wrap. It's tight and swollen now, so it thinks you are full all the time. This will change as it heals. Be sure to stay hydrated.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 8/15/2013 11:11 AM (GMT 0)
Almost a week in, I woke up this morning in quite a bit of pain, my stomach and everything is feeling gurgling and twitching, very odd sensation, but pretty painful. I think it feels like my whole esophagus is swollen, it doesnt feel like a normal sore throat. My boyfriend wants to call the surgeon tomorrow if it doesnt start to get better, because really that is my biggest complaint and pain right now.

I just keep telling myself that its all normal and will get better, over and over....
Posted 8/15/2013 12:15 PM (GMT 0)
SJ:

Sorry to hear about the pain. I wonder if you are experiencing the swelling that many have mentioned here? I hope it is nothing serious. My surgery date is Aug 20. I already called the hospital and they said I would definitely be there overnight.

Please keep posting so we can follow your progress. I hope you feel much better today and that the pain subsides.

Posted 8/16/2013 1:39 PM (GMT 0)
Good Morning,
Its been a week since my surgery. I am doing pretty well. I keep having spasms though, those are normal right?
I have been sticking with a very plain mush diet, my boyfriend doesnt want me to try anything else yet especially with the gas and the spasms I have been having. other than the spasms there really isnt any pain, except that one incision everyone says hurts the most. Thats not even that bad.
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