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Vomiting a month post-hernia repair?

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Posted 11/27/2007 12:15 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, I'm new here, closing in on 6 weeks post hiatal hernia repair. I didn't have the fundo, but from what I can tell my surgeon did a pretty tight diaphragm repair, so I imagine she might as well have done the wrap.

She put me on a graduated regimen of 2 weeks clear liquid, 2 weeks full liquid, and 2 weeks soft food (which, for those interested, led to a loss of around 15 pounds, most of it during the first 2 weeks). When I graduated to soft food, I started having trouble with suddenly throwing up while eating. I even threw up a small amount of blood, which the ER seemed to feel was due to irritation caused by the other vomiting.  I did report this to her, and we are scheduing a barium swallow sometime this week. I will also be seeing her for my second follow-up next Monday.

One problem is that I can't seem to get an answer from her nurse (the person I have most contact with, since the surgeon is an attending at a major university hospital) on what in the world could be causing this?

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I'm supposed to be on a regular diet as of today, but I'm not celebrating with a hamburger or steak just yet.... :)

Thanks for anyone's thoughts... I just want to know what the range of scenarios might be. Anything from "just give yourself time" to ??????

 

Posted 11/27/2007 2:52 AM (GMT 0)
Wish I had something witty and comforting to say, but I don't. I'd be worried about throwing up blood, too.
I can't imagine what would cause that after a hiatal hernia repair.

Sorry you can't get through to your surgeon; when you finally do speak directly to her, I do hope you voice your concern that you cannot reach her when you have a problem. I guess the only thing you can do is to consume only liquids you know don't give you grief and wait for that barium test.

I hope someone else has some words of wisdom to share. Good luck.
Posted 11/27/2007 2:51 PM (GMT 0)
Hey there kdavis...and welcome to healingwell. I too would be worried about throwing up blood, that is never a good sign. The best thing to do is do whatyou can to get through to the doc and express your concerns there. Unfortunetly, I cannot say much more here. I do invite you to stick with us, as you can get so much information and support here! I hope you stick around, and learn with us! Let us know what you find out, please!
Posted 11/28/2007 11:31 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks, you two. I've had a bit of an exchange with the nurse since then, who just "hates to speculate" other than "it might be too tight." The barium swallow is scheduled for a couple of weeks from now, which is longer than I wanted to wait, but it'll be OK. I do see the doctor on Monday so I'll see if she's more forthcoming than the nurse (the nurse may simply be trying to avoid overstepping her role by diagnosing).

Since it hasn't happened again, and wasn't all that much blood to begin with, I tend to agree with the ER docs that the blood was from simple irritation. That doesn't help with the general problem, which is really annoying. It seems like if I'm going to throw up, it's going to happen after the first couple of bites. I can sometimes deliberately relax my throat, slow myself down, and get through the rest of the meal without incident, but I'd like to be able to eat in public!
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