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4/16/2018 Nissen and Hernia Repair

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Posted 4/4/2018 5:53 PM (GMT 0)
New here and my surgery is scheduled for 4/16

I have a 5cm hiatal hernia and Barretts

I will post my journey

My pre testing is 4/9

I have been given the pretty much standard Diet information
Posted 4/4/2018 8:49 PM (GMT 0)
Good luck with your surgery..mine was 2 weeks ago to the day. So much easier that I was expecting. If I didn’t have the 5 stab wounds(😜) on my abdomen and decreased appetite I wouldn’t know I had surgery. My pain level is pretty much zero, except when I woke up from surgery. Easy peazy! Please let everyone know how you do...Cathy
Posted 4/5/2018 11:59 AM (GMT 0)
I have been reading your journey and I so hope mine is an good!

I did get letter from my insurance yesterday that only a 48 hour observation period has been approved rather than being admitted for the night. My doctor wanted to be sure I was able to swallow well because my swallow test showed massive failures and that was one reason she wanted to keep me at least one night and do a swallow test the next morning and then let me go home

I truely do not understand what "observation" status means I googled and got all kinds of medicare information regarding use in the ER but nothing about use after surgery! My insurance is commercial insurance Aetna
Posted 4/5/2018 12:02 PM (GMT 0)
I'm sure everyone's insurance is different, but I charged my Emergency Room copay when I was "under observation." You should call your insurance company directly.
Posted 4/13/2018 5:38 PM (GMT 0)
I had my pre testing on Monday .. chest x ray, labs, met with the nurse and then anesthesiologist

They gave me instructions for the night before which is basically nothing after midnight

I plan to do a liquid diet on Sunday and tonight I am doing a Milk of Magnesia job because I do actually suffer from constipation

They advised me that at the hospital I'm going to the observation is nothing other than just coding on billing it .... said they get paid the same and I'll be inpatient but not labeled per say for insurance purposes. They said I'd receive the same care and not to worry.

The next day my family doctor called and said my chest xray showed abnormal lytic and lucent lesions in my scapula and the surgeon requested I get a set of shoulder xrays immediately

I went on Wednesday for that series and I have not heard anything but my doctor was moving offices to a new location so I'm not suprised no phone call ... I snuck a look at the xray ...oh the tech was haughty lol ... I did see some areas of spongy mothy like cloth areas in my scapula so I guess after this surgery I need to get that figured out I do have severe osteoporosis so I am thinking it is just bone degeneration

My check in time is 6AM on Monday I will post updates as I can
Posted 4/14/2018 8:16 PM (GMT 0)
Test from phone
Posted 4/15/2018 2:45 AM (GMT 0)
In addition to milk of magnesia(yuuuck), my doctor had me take 5 gas-x through out the day before. I had minimal gas after surgery, which I’m sure the gas-x helped with. My surgery was on 3-21 of this year...it has a breeze so far! Have been eating solid food for the last 10 days with zero issues!
Posted 4/15/2018 1:06 PM (GMT 0)
I started the Gax X this morning, got me 5 laid out! Took MOM yesterday as well but I'm constant constipated and the doc knows that so they may suggest something else after I get home to help with that. The MOM doesn't seem too thick so I'm sure it's liquid enough
Posted 4/15/2018 6:07 PM (GMT 0)
My husband and I take psyllium husk every night(1/4cup each) in a glass of water, for years. I was afraid it would become too thick with my wrap as it does gel up..but it’s been no problem and keeps me regular. Metamucil has too many fake things in it, so we buy the psyllium husk at whole foods(Amazon has it as well). I also had ducolax at home for the first couple of days after surgery, and I was constipated but have been fine since then.
Keep xtra gas-X for after surgery. I have only had 2 or 3 times I needed it since surgery, and it came in handy.
I almost vomited taking the MOM..I never had it before..yuck!
So GOOD LUCK tomorrow...I was kept one night as well and had to do a barium swallow before release. I was scared because the one before was a lot of thick liquid, and I didn’t think I could ingest that much after my surgery. The good news is, the liquid they had me swallow at the hospital looked like water and only about 1/4-1/2 cup..but was not tasty. I believe it was to see if there were any leaks and how the esophagus was performing. Please write back when you can and tell us how you are doing!
Posted 4/17/2018 10:23 PM (GMT 0)
I am home .. surgery was yesterday morning at about 8 am Yesterday was pretty much a blur I'm on Toradol for pain in hospital They gave me a block and I thought yesterday about 2pm man this is gonna so swell but once the block wore up I was pretty wacked out with pain

They brought me ALL SOFT food ... I didn't eat a bite of it first day This morning they brought the same thing I drank the decaf coffee my husband got and ate one bite of creamed chicken soup

They took me this morning for the Barium Swallow test and the stuff they gave me to drink gave me diarhea and I'm dealing with that right now ..it's pretty messy but they said its normal for that test with nothing in the bowel system ???

I am SORE my navel is very bruised and they put me in a compression belt that I'm not sure should be there ... it seems too tight I may adjust it to more comfort

I will post more without the next days to give you real idea of my recover
Posted 4/17/2018 11:43 PM (GMT 0)
Good to hear from you! I hope you have a successful journey! I look forward to see how you do over the next few days! Cathy
Posted 4/18/2018 2:24 AM (GMT 0)
Can someone please help me with info????Had Nissen 8 weeks ago and have been very sick since.....4 days after surgery started to have terrible diarrhea ended up back in the hospital on week 4 with they thought was C Diff...two weeks of Vancomycin and still having the same problem if not worse. Have been so careful of diet and have lost over 20 pounds to date. The nurse practitioner in my Gi's office said she has never heard of having diarrhea after Nissen but on most forums, there are many people who suffer from it after surgery. Any info anyone can give me would be appreciated.
Posted 4/18/2018 11:37 AM (GMT 0)
jujube_38

It sounds like you are experiencing what is known as "dumping syndrome." My suggestion is to still eat 6 to 8 small meals a day, and make sure that you don't drink a lot of liquid with your meals, as it tends to move everything through your system too quickly. You can do a search on the Forum, there are a lot of people who have the same symptoms as you. Most people do initially lose weight after surgery, but gain it back as your diet advances back towards normal.

Sharon
Posted 4/18/2018 8:33 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the info, Sharon
Posted 4/22/2018 5:11 PM (GMT 0)
Hii..I am from India and had fundoplication for heartburn,and lpr..3weeks after I still have heartburn , and other symptoms..particularly 1 week after the surgery I got a new symptom, white tongue and sour taste ..I am repressed and feel that I shudnt HV opted for the surgery.
Posted 4/23/2018 12:36 PM (GMT 0)
Vaajurooby:

You are still very early in your recovery, it's still possible to have symptoms similar to heartburn. You should probably contact you surgeon and discuss concerns of the white tongue and sour taste.

Sharon
Posted 4/25/2018 11:52 PM (GMT 0)
10 days out

I'm still on a liquid diet .. met with doctor and dietician today and I still have one more week to go on this phase

I have lost 12 lbs and she wrote me a protein powder today because I was unable to tolerate the Boost and Ensure

My diet has been mostly full liquids but I have had one bit of pancake with soaking syrup and I had mashed potatoes today with lots of gravy

Other than some most of the time nausea I think I am doing well

The tickling in back of my throat I think is maybe due to drinking juices I am trying to stay hydrated becaue I had some nighttime cramps

I have had coffee and tea I am still using 6 oz cups and having several meals per day

I have not suffered heartburn and my bowel movements have returned normally

I still am having a lot of pain in my shoulders and even this far out she said it is possible to still have gas pain

My shoulder xray showed numerous calcified granulomas in my shoulder upper lobe ... never heard of a shoulder having an upper lobe and I'll ask my family dr what he thinks at my next appt I had a car accident years ago and deal with a lot of pain in my shoulders so there is that

I do not regret my surgery at this stage

The hunger though is grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr They keep advertising food at night while I'm trying to rest

I have basically gone back to my pre surgery routine but am not lifting anything I have swept and dust mopped the floors and dusted etc My normal houswork

Still having some soreness in the navel area and still bruised

I don't feel tight in my throat when swallowing

I recommend you follow your doctors diet advice and move through each stage as they tell you, they have criteria that works for them
Posted 5/3/2018 7:18 PM (GMT 0)
Hello all

I am now 16 days out and met with dietician again yesterday
*
I have over the past week ate at a couple of buffets .. eating sweet pot casserole, mac and cheese, scalloped potatoes, bread pudding sweet with the bread off of it, I have had sliced turkey rolled in mashed potatoes with lots of gravy, I had a couple of bites of dressing covered in gravy, I had a bite of turkey chopped up

I had cheeckake without the topping, custard, baked fish with tarter sauce
I had taco mix ...the hamburger ground with the seasoning topped with shredded cheese and sour cream

NOTHING hurt me

I had actually GAINED one pound since my visit a week ago so my dietician is ecstatic cause they do not want me to lose any more weight I am on the low end of my BMI right now

I am drinking my water again and added my slice of lemon back I am drinking Whey Islolate Protein Shakes ...all up to 6 oz at a time now Still on one cup of decaf coffee in morning

The only pain I have is right in the navel which was explained as nerve pain etc I still do however have that slight LUMP in my throat

My dietician says 4 more weeks of my slushy diet and I go back in 4 weeks

I did ask her about when I could eat some REAL meat LOL She said like steak? I said yes and she said NEVER NEVER NEVER .... I told her I intended at some point to have a steak so she said at LEAST order filet mignon medium well and PLEASE douse in lots of sauce with SMALL pieces

I DID LEARN something this visit that I WAS NEVER TOLD BEFORE .....she could be wrong too ... she said my stomach would NEVER produce any gastric juices to digest my food .. HENCE the warning that a big steak would just SIT AND ROT in there ................ I was NEVER told that in lead up to this surgery I was told my stomach would be SMALLER and that I could possibly not eat BREAD

That being said I have had pancakes with lot of syrup and ACTUALLY had small bites of dinner roll smothered in LOTS of butter that one night at the Bob Evans Restuarant .. I had turkey with mashed potatoes and soupy dressing ... the roll was just TEENY bites mainly their sweet butter

Today I have expereinced some REAL HEAVY DUTY fatigue I have slept a couple of hours today but this week has been a busy week I had other doctor appts two days in a row and had to travel overnight for them

I still plan to follow her diet but none of the things I mentioned above have hurt me No gas, no diarhea
Posted 5/4/2018 2:27 PM (GMT 0)
Did you ever find out the reasoning behind this (Malabsorption?) issue that you spoke of (below in quotes)?

"I DID LEARN something this visit that I WAS NEVER TOLD BEFORE .....she could be wrong too ... she said my stomach would NEVER produce any gastric juices to digest my food .. HENCE the warning that a big steak would just SIT AND ROT in there"

In doing the repair, did they remove a portion of the stomach, or was your surgery simply a hiatal hernia repair and Nissan?

Now I know very little about this, but one would think... you would have more stomach acid following recovery from surgery, if you can indeed eventually discontinue PPIs?

I too have a 5 cm HH and am looking into repair.
Posted 5/7/2018 11:40 PM (GMT 0)
my surgery was wrapping the upper portion of my stomach around my esophageus .. I hope I am explaining that the right way I have googled what the dietician told me and found that the upper portion of the stomach produces MUCH of the acid you actually do need to digest food ... hoping I'll see my doctor on my 4 week visit again so we can discuss this again

I am still watching what I eat .. mushy stuff .. today I had meatloaf and ham bites mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes I had green beans the other day fresh from southern gardens and I cooked them I had some "salad" I made with 3 kinds of shredded cheese, peas, ranch dressing but NO lettuce
Posted 5/8/2018 2:27 PM (GMT 0)
I had the Nissen surgery and eat steak all the time, and I can guarantee nothing is rotting in my stomach. I would really start to question a professional that makes such a comment. You should bring this up on your next visit with your surgeon.
Posted 5/9/2018 4:34 PM (GMT 0)
Sharon .. FANTASTIC
I found the dietician comments to be ludicrous lol
I plan to eat steak after my 6 weeks ... I will cut it in small small pieces though and chew chew chew
Sharon do you have salad as well????
Posted 5/9/2018 4:50 PM (GMT 0)
If you have the steak and it doesn't agree with you, you might have to wait a few weeks and try it again. That's true for all foods. I'm not a big salad person, so I can't answer that question.
Posted 5/20/2018 4:28 PM (GMT 0)
Hii..
Are there people who hv hd reflux symptoms many weeks after their fundoplication and then felt better?? I'm from India and had my fundo 7 weeks back..I still HV reflux symptoms like heartburn and burning nose..I thought my fundo hs failed and posted my concerns..SharonZ and Alcie comforted me saying to b patient as I'm in my early recovery..and many people who have hd problems like me cannot be seen posting saying that they are better..they hv just stopped posting..any such experience is appreciated..

Rooby
Posted 5/21/2018 1:35 PM (GMT 0)
I ate strawberries two mornings ago .. cut up on top of a pancake and I have had a TERRIBLE reaction to the strawberries
I am having pain right in the sternum and under my right breast ... so it seems that I find one fruit I will not be able to have at ALL ... or at least for a while

Yesterday I went back to my liquid soups because I feel like I have a lump back in my throat again

This is indeed a trial thing
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