Gooserstein's Nissen Journal

Goose-

Well all I can say is we have all been there done that. Remember we warned you this would happen, LOL!

Now back off that diet and let your stomach and wrap heals some more.

Take care,
Bill

Week 10

We'll 2 weeks have passed since my last post. I've slowly returned to where I was. I'm not sure what happened 2 weeks ago. I had the most severe pain. It took nearly a full week for it to be manageable. Currently, I have limited discomfort. It mostly occurs after eating. I've cut back on sweets and some carbs. These I've noticed makes my stomach cramp more after eating. My hypothesis on this is that since simple carbs and sweets are moved out of the stomach quicker, this causes the cramping situation. I've really lost my passion for food. Sure I crave certain things, but I feel like the mouse who gets electrocuted every time I eat the peanut butter. It's just not worth it anymore. I hope that someday in the future I will return to eating my favorite things.

I'm still sleeping elevated. I feel like I'm refluxing when I lay flat. This may just be the result of stomach contents pressing against my lower esophagus, but it's unpleasant. Also, I don't want to inflame my esophagus as that makes everything worse.

Next week I'm flying to LA. This is my first flight since the surgery and I'm nervous about it. I'm already a nervous flyer. The difference now is that when I get anxious or worked up my stomach cramps up. I just don't want to be in pain or nauseous for 5 hours. My doctor gave me some happy pills to get through. So, hopefully I'll be good there. I've recently made some life adjustments to help me heal better. For instance, I've stopped working in the main ER and now work in the urgent care center. The stress levels is so much more manageable, people are more appreciative, and I'm just happier to be there. I'm really hoping this helps, because my stomach always cramps up before work. I think it was high time for a change.

Almost 3 Months

Here I am further down the road but certainly not at the end of it. I thought going in to this that I'd have the surgery, suffer a bit, and then be myself again without all the repercussions of GERD. Well I was right and wrong.

Positives: At this point I'm eating raw veggies which I'm thankful for. I do enjoy salad, veggies, and fruit. I can even eat blackberries with all their rough seeds. I don't regurgitate. I can feel my wrap is in place as I can't force burps. I can exercise, hike, and play sports with no problem (before eating). I'm still maintaining the weight loss for now.

Negatives: I still feeling burning in my chest. I believe that fluid gets trapped in the wrap, as I feel this less when I wake up after 8+ hours of no food or drink. I get these sharp pains occasionally like someone reached in and twisted my wrap a bit. My biggest complaint is that I still can't eat my favorite foods. Marinara is tough for me. One day I can handle a food just fine. The next day it may give me severe cramps. I feel like I'm being punished honestly. What's worse is I still cannot lie flat without discomfort.

I'm still waiting for this Nissen magic to kick in but I'm starting to lose faith in it. I really hope that at the very least I will lose this burning sensation and the occasional stomach pains. I don't mind eating little portions or limiting certain foods but I want to be comfortable in my own body. I know stress plays a role in this, so I need to relax. I hear the senior members report that you're mostly healed by 6 months. So I'm waiting that out. I really wish surgeons would more fully prepare their patients because this is certainly a life altering surgery.

Thanks Bill for the advice. Sometimes we all need a little reassurance. I've been hard on myself lately and sort of regretting the surgery. It's good to know others have experienced the same thing.

Thanks Denise. You're definitely right. There's no looking back. I need to accept that my body still needs time. I do notice that when I listen to my body and take it easy, I feel immensely better. Unfortunately this week is finals week in my grad school. I'm super stressed and don't have the time for myself. It's making my symptoms all the worse. But I know this will all end soon.

Almost 4 months

Hi everyone. I thought I'd update you all on where I'm at in my healing. I've gotten much better. I've even had a few nights where I felt no need to sleep on pillows and slept flat. However, most nights I still use pillows. Every day is a little different.

For the most part I feel normal, but I still have to watch out for a few things. Whole wheat bread is a killer for me and I avoid like the plague. My biggest problem is overeating my favorite foods. It's hard to stop eating something widely delicious when your eating 1/4 of what everyone else is. But that's my own weakness. Other than that, as long as I'm good and avoid red wine, pork, and whole wheat... I'm super.

My biggest fear is getting food poisoning, because I really do fear retching. I always keep some Zofran with me, but really haven't had to use it. I don't have esophageal pain from the wrap very much anymore. Occassionally, if I'm stressed or eat too much I get a lot of pressure there. The thing is that I can be feeling great one day and feel horrible the next. But the horrible days are becoming infrequent luckily.

All I can hope now is for further healing and responsible eating. I really hope this wrap holds up. I really don't want to go through this again.