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Posted 5/6/2010 8:16 PM (GMT 0)
Hi I had the TIF surgery on april 9th it will be 4 weeks on Friday.   I feel like I am still getting acid reflux.

I am still taking my reflux meds but they dont seem to be working either.

I was wondering if anyone else had this experience and if I can hope that maybe it will stop after more healing?

I am so depressed about this because I think my surgery has failed.

Thanks for listening.

Posted 5/6/2010 8:24 PM (GMT 0)
It hasn't had time to heal. It took almost two months before I was fully feeling better.

Be patient, give it time.
Remember your insides have been shifted around.

Joy
Posted 5/7/2010 12:33 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for answering me Joy

Did you still have the acid reflux feeling.     I have burning in my throat and sometimes in my esophagus.     I have the post nasal drip feeling all the acid reflux things.   

I am trying to hang in there.

Thanks

Arlene

Posted 5/7/2010 11:12 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Mitsie,
I just watched the TIF procedure online, since I wasn't familiar with it. It sounds really interesting. I didn't go that route--rather had the Nissen surgery. From what I saw, although you didn't have any cutting, your esophagus/stomach underwent a big restructuring. There are sutures, etc, that can cause swelling. Swelling in certain areas can open spaces in the new valve that can allow some reflux. Also, as I was told, the esophagus can interpret any discomfort as "reflux", since it's a "dumb organ" and can't differentiate between various discomforts.

Also, you're only four weeks out. At this time in your recovery (if it's anything like the Nissen recovery--and i don't see that it's all that different, minus the laproscopic surgical piece) pretty much anything can happen. Things are still in the early stages of healing.

Try not to overreact to those "reflux" feelings. Many people who are recovering from GERD surgery get them, and all of them worry that their wrap didn't work. Not true. Give yourself time to heal completely.
Best wishes for a great outcome! Be patient!
Take care,
Denise
Posted 5/7/2010 11:17 PM (GMT 0)
Nope, my reflux issues were gone by week 6. ;)

Relax and take it easy. Listen to your body.

Joy
Posted 5/8/2010 12:56 AM (GMT 0)
I had the Esophyx Tiff surgery Feb. 16.  I did have the reflux.  Worried that my surgery had failed.  At my 5 week follow up the surgeon prescribed Carafate.  I took it a few weeks and not had anymore trouble.  Very glad I had the surgery and no longer take reflux meds.

It takes your body several weeks to recover.  Try not to worry so much.

Goodluck with your recovery.

Tracey

Posted 5/8/2010 3:27 AM (GMT 0)
Tracey  I'm glad you answered.    It does help me feel better that someone did have reflux still after the surgery and turned out ok.

I am having reflux and it sure does feel as much as I had before, but could also be because I am not healed yet so I suppose it could feel much worse.

I am still taking my meds were you taking yours when you had the reflux?

Thanks

Arlene

Posted 5/8/2010 3:45 AM (GMT 0)
I took them for about 3 weeks. Surgeon said they would not help the burning and hurting in throat and esophagus. We had major hardware go through there. It irritated throat and esophagus very bad. As soon as it heals I think you will no longer have the reflux symptons. I hope so anyway.

Tracey
Posted 5/8/2010 2:57 PM (GMT 0)
Tracey thanks for answering.

I have an appointment on Monday to talk to the surgeon.    See what he says.

I had some samples of Nexium here so I switched that seemed to help but maybe thats not it at all LOL maybe its healing.    Who knows.     I just need to relax, but kind of hard with all the burning.

I am so glad to hear from someone that something similar happened.

Arlene

Posted 5/8/2010 5:58 PM (GMT 0)
Had the TIF with EsophyX Monday May 4th. Had Gall bladder removed April 12th. Gall Bladder recovery was a breeze compared to the TIF. I have pains in my left shoulder and chest that are horrible. Everything I swallow hurts my chest. I am weak lost 6 pds in 5 days and wondering when I can expect some relief.
Posted 5/8/2010 9:07 PM (GMT 0)
It takes several weeks to start feeling bettter. The first week I had spasms in my stomach. They were pretty uncomfortable. But it passed. I was nauseated for two weeks. Follow the diet plan and give yourself time to heal. It gets better. But I know the feeling, cause I was thinking I should not have had the surgery. My husband asked could it be reversed. Now 12 weeks out, I am so happy I did it. Goodluck with your recovery!

Tracey

ps. I was weak until week 3. Slowly got a little strenght back. I started walking(exercising) again that week.
Posted 5/8/2010 9:27 PM (GMT 0)
I had the Toupet fundoplication and had no reflux at all immediately post-op. I was allowed to quit the PPIs after two weeks, but didn't need them anyway, and I was a worst-case beforehand. I'm glad I had the procedure that was chosen for me. I didn't have any esophageal pain post-op, only abdominal from having to have my stomach pulled down out of my chest (due to auto accident). It did take 3-4 months for everything to completely heal for me (senior citizen and pulling down stomach), but I am so much better now.

The only problems left are difficulty burping and the resulting gas in the gut if I drink anything fizzy or eat gas-producing foods. I didn't need sodas anyway, can drink orange juice at parties, and I didn't like broccoli or beans either.
Posted 5/11/2010 4:06 AM (GMT 0)
Dencha......Denise

I wanted to thank you for answering me.     I meant to reply to sooner.

you have encouraged me alot, and that made me feel alot better.

I was to the Drs today and he said that he was pleased with how the surgery went and said that it is really too soon and I have some healing to do yet.    

So I am hoping the acid reflux feeling leaves soon.    I really do feel better tonight, maybe its my darn anxiety that is causing some of this.

Mitsie

 

Posted 2/4/2012 10:16 PM (GMT 0)
Hi, I just had this surgery four weeks ago on Dec 27, 2011. I'm feeling the same that mine is taking longer to heal and worry about what to eat now and how to go about it. I'm getting some feeling in there I can't explain like spasms the dr. said. It's not reflux I feel but spasms from surgery and just a funny thing I worry what it is. I know it's still healing and I heal slower than others do. I'm feeling the same way that it failed but I think it is just giving it more time. I'm not sure what to eat now that I'm off the 35 day diet. I'm going slow and seeing what I can tolerate now. I really love that I lost 12 lbs on that diet. I had to join and say I'm the same way with this surgery and just had it. Just wanted to say I'm at the four week point now so I understand the worry of the feeling in the throat. My dr. said it was spasms and gas. So it might be it's gas too. I haven't had the acid feeling though. The tightness there worries me. I should have started a new thread but wanted to join in. I have the same concerns as well at this point. Just hoping it heals properly now. I'm Cheryl
Posted 2/5/2012 12:26 AM (GMT 0)
I had the TIF last April and had they same concerns that you are having and my surgeon put me on carafate for 8 weeks. I improved some but still thought that I was having reflux. Four months after surgery I had the ambulatory pH test. The results showed a dramatic improvement, my DeMeester score went from 28 down to 5.8 which my doctor said was normal. I still did not feel right and I had another endoscopy which showed two healed ulcers (never had ulcers before) and that my TIF was in good shape.

On the TIF diet I consumed a lot of dairy products. After the diet I continued with the dairy. When I reduced the dairy I improved, I must be lactose intolerant. By November I was much better and I am glad that I had the surgery. I am off Nexium and can eat a normal diet. I am not uncomfortable after large meals and don't have the bad taste in my mouth.

Sheldon
Posted 2/5/2012 1:20 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for that info Tandem Rider. I'm going to see the dr again and talked to him of my concerns. Maybe I will mention that medicine you got. Carafate and ask what it is. I had a lot of dairy also, on the diet. Lived on ice cream but had a lot of soups and eggs. I'm now trying to get to eating regular food but going very slowly. I don't like the feeling in my throat I get and not sure what it is. Sometimes it is a burning and other times feels like spasms. I just don't know what it is. Maybe I will ask if he can do an x ray or something on it. He let me go after two weeks and I thought that unusual. I don't know why he wouldn't want me back at the end but he said I could come if I needed to. I'm reducing the dairy but I ate more sherbert too. Helped me get through the harsh diet. I might be lactose intolerant too. Sometimes I wonder with a stomach that gets a little upset after eggs sometimes. It's not enough to really be sure though. I just don't know when to get on bread and meat regularly again. It's a confusing thing after the diet. thanks for that help. Appreciate it.
Posted 2/6/2012 7:17 PM (GMT 0)
I'm scheduled for a 24-hour PH test, and esophageal motility test next week... I already know I have a small hiatal hernia, and since I've been on PPI's for 4+ years, I'm hoping I'm a candidate for something surgical like TIF.
One of my questions/concerns is the weight loss--I really can't afford to lose much weight. I'm a 40-year old male, 6' tall, and currently about 148 lbs. I exercise 4-5 days a week, and am on a very high protein diet. I've been as low as 141 before, but would not want to be any skinnier than that for a prolonged time. Is it possible to get enough calories/protein in after one of these surgeries??
Posted 2/6/2012 10:35 PM (GMT 0)
I lost 20 pounds with my TIF diet and have gained about half back. I made no attempt to keep my weight on as I could stand to lose a few pounds. I also exercise several days a week but for the first couple of weeks after surgery I only walked working up to a mile after two weeks. I did not feel like walking much for the first couple of weeks after surgery. I did feel good enough to have a unit of blood drawn 10 days after surgery to treat my hemochromatosis.

During the holidays I did appreciate not having to watch my diet so close and that is how I gained back 10 pounds.

Sheldon
Posted 2/6/2012 11:46 PM (GMT 0)
It turned out I had a bad valve and it wasn't working at all so they replaced my valve. It has stopped the acidity but I'm getting a lot of gas feeling coming up and funny feeling. I'm going to get in to the dr this week and talk more with him on this. I don't know if I'll ever get to have chili again at this point. I hope so for normal diet again. So far I've kept the 12 lbs off I've lost. I needed to lose 10 so it's good for me on that. I'm short and needed to lose the weight. Glad I did and needed a dr to push me to do that too. I'm going to try to keep it off. I didn't feel like doing anything the first three weeks. I wondered if that was normal. I also had an ear infection during it that made things worse. I figure I will gain a few lbs back with eating meat again. I'll cut down on the bread. Don't think I'm ready for it yet. This is my 5th week now. I just hope I didn't trade one problem for another now. I can't do anything about it. If it's messed up, it's just messed up. I continue to hope for more healing and that will straighten it out though. It is frustrating. Difficult recovery thing.
Posted 2/8/2012 4:56 AM (GMT 0)
Mitsie, my dr. said that you could have reflux the first month still. It's what they do in there disturbs stuff and makes it come out still. I didn't have the reflux acidity but had the feeling something is coming up my throat. He said that was spasms and gas. Lot of gas that really bothers me now. I go see him on Thursday and will talk this over with him my worries. I hope you're doing better now Mitsie. Just wanted to tell you what my dr had said on that acid still there after surgery. I bet what I'm having is the gas and spasms but I want to ask him for any help in speeding this along. I still can't seem to eat bread without a problem. It's frustrating for sure. I don't think I drank enough water and worry that messed me up. I don't know how critical that part was but I was too sick to worry on the water that second week. I did drink water but not as much as they wanted me to. I tried though. All we can do.
Posted 2/11/2012 7:05 PM (GMT 0)
My doctor wants me to have the TIF, I am 33 years old. He wants me to have the surgery in April (2012) I wanted to have a baby. I told him that I wanted to try to get pregnant in June and he said no problem you could get pregnant in May... do you think this is possible? I'm seeing that most people are having a long recovery time. Should I wait and have the surgery after the baby? The only problem would be I can't be on any medication like Nexium while pregnant. I just don't know what to do...any thoughts?
Posted 2/12/2012 2:35 AM (GMT 0)
I think you'd be ok with the surgery in April. Some people heal faster than others. I'm a slow healer so that's my trouble. Just my body that way. Mostly it's trouble with food afterwards and bread. I can't eat bread too much now. I hope that is over with. I'm having the spasms and he gave me bentyl to try. It's making me very dizzy and blurry eyed. I don't think I can take it now. I was hoping for some relief but I think you'd be ok with pregnant in June. You're better after two months they say. I'm having side effects problems from it being too tight in there now. I think he over did the tightness on me. I hope that stops in time. I want to eat a hamburger like everybody else again. I have no acidity now so I like that part. It's up to you Reba but just thinking I don't think it would interfere in pregnancy in June. You'll be mostly over it by then. It does wipe you out for a few weeks though. I was dragging around doing nothing. I'm a weakling though. Others might have recovered much faster. Good luck Reba and congrats when you get pregnant. Good luck with that.
Posted 2/12/2012 3:48 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you chertex, I'm very nervous about the surgery, but I think I'm going to go ahead with it. I think what happens after that is in God's hands. Thanks again for your help. I will keep you posted. Good luck with your recovery as well. I hope you start to feel 100% soon!
Posted 2/12/2012 4:24 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Reba. I feel it will go well for you too. Stick to the diet they give you and don't cheat. That's the main thing to do. If you're a fast healer, you'll do great. I've had so many infections with sinus and ear that it hinders my healing I think. Just takes me a lot longer to get it done. I tried this medicine bentyl and made me way too dizzy. I'm afraid to take it again. I might cut it in half and try that. It was much too strong for me. Glad I didn't go out driving after taking it. They warn you not to drive. Glad I came here to the site. Very helpful information here. Good luck Reba. Keep us posted how you do with the recovery. I think you'll be all over it by June. It's different for everybody in healing. I just hope these spasms go away. It seems better each day so that's a hopeful sign. Thanks for the responses here too. It's great to get the acidity gone. It was ruining my teeth and giving me decay. And it was giving me a lot of throat infections so I had to do it. I think I'll really be happy once the spasms end. So I recommend it for sure over all.
Posted 2/17/2012 4:32 AM (GMT 0)
Just an update, think I am doing a bit better on the spasms in the throat or gas. Feeling like there is some relief coming. Since they replaced the bad valve, they can't reverse mine. I just pray it was the right move to do. I don't feel any reflux still. But I wish those spasms would quit. Seems like it is helping to stay away from bread now until it's more healed. Glad to know others had trouble healing from the surgery. I took the whole 4 weeks. Really wiped me out. I'd had an adenoid removal a few months before it and think it was too soon to do it. I hope I'm happy with this over time. I think I will be. It is great to not have so much acidity in there now. I like that part and kept my weight off I lost. They don't seem to tell you that you can't have bread past 35 days either until it heals better. Indefinitely it seems. I don't know if I'd have done it knowing that now. They need to inform you of all side effects that could happen. I asked questions on it too. Just hope for the best.
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