Laurie's Nissen Journey Begins on 9/10/2013

Day 10 post op: Yes Marko, we have made it 10 days!

A minor setback... My mouth was feeling scummy yesterday, by last night it felt like little sores. I felt it might be thrush. I did a quick search, the first link that came up said a dentist can diagnose it. Thankfully, my dentist is 5 minutes away and she was able to see me immediately. Yes, it is thrush. So, I take my prescription to Walgreens, our pharmacy, and choose to wait. Well, it felt good to be out of the house, so I overdid it with walking around and a little lifting. A good nap this afternoon, and I'm feeling better.

Food continues to go down fine. I did fix myself a fish filet today. I flaked it up with butter and lemon and ate it, yum! I'm not ready for ground meat, yet. I'll be having my clam chowder for my next mini-meal.

I wonder if anyone has done a survey on this forum regarding NF types and success. Even though my surgeon has done over 1500 NF's, he always uses a boujie. Could that be related to his success, as well as my doing pretty well with eating?

If a moderator reads this, do you recall this?

Well, it's Friday and there is a lot of fun stuff going on in and around town. My day is coming when I'll be back to enjoying the weekends.

Cheers! with my water :)
Laurie

Set back, I think I did and very discouraged about it, day 10 was probably one of my worst, throat clearing, sinus trouble, with some breathing issues. I thought surgery would have fixed all that. lost 8 lbs. (didn't need it) still blending all my food, bloating and stomach cramps. wife told me her husband was getting skinny (like I can change that right now).
Called my doctors office and they finally called back around quiting time, told them about the throat clearing issue and they responded to me by telling me to write down my concerns and talk about it at my 2 week follow up. guess I wanted a better answer then that. like time will change all that marko. I miss going to the gym, wait I miss being normal ...................

Day 11 post-op: Good news, I can now swallow my split pills with just water. I can replace that 'meal' of applesauce with something more caloric.

My 2 week post-op is 9/27. It will be interesting to meet with the surgeon. It's a long drive there and back, not looking forward to that part.

I meet with my Pulmonologist on 9/26. I'm afraid I won't be able to participate in the breathing tests. taking deep breaths still hurts. I think the discomfort is coming from my diaghram, but I'm not sure. If it's still an issue next Thursday, I'll ask about it.

That will be it for my daily updates, unless there seems to be something important to post.

Marko, are you sure you are not getting sick? I hope you are doing better today!

I find I do so much better if I can lay down for awhile, a couple of times during the day.

I did not have symptoms of GERD before surgery, that I was aware of. I had been taking prescription PPI's forever, but never experienced heartburn. I was treating stomach ache and nausea symptoms for 35 years.

I was forced into the Nissen because I was inhaling stomach acid. I had a bronchoscopy done in June, which clearly showed stomach acid and or bile in the lower lobes of my lungs. Aspirating the acid kept me sick for 8 months up to surgery. They had to intubate me prior to surgery because my lungs are such a mess.

I have not had nausea or stomach ache on an empty stomach, though - so I guess I am better symptom wise.

No ppi's is good, though - you are on your way to a better you.

Marko-- that really sucks about ur setback. I'm still dealing w major bloating and gas ...no throat issues thank god ...I was stupid and started lifting ...lets just say it felt like day 1 all over again ...w the pbs problem try Ensure it has tons of calories ...I've only lost 4 lbs and I actually gotta lose 15 more to make my doc happy but I have an underlying heart condition (CHF) so any extra I get my a*s chewed off....mayb try some lemon tea warm of course and put honey in it k ...oh I also know how u feel about not being able to wrk out I love love love working out but can't I'm use to running and boxing at lease 5x a wk and weights 3x a wk so trust me I'm in ur boat ! 😞 I hope u will continue posting it truly is a blessing having ppl who know the pain and the while situation ...it's kinda strange I did the issue w puffing also even jello -eating too fast is seriously horrible and crying cuz it hurts only digs a deeper hole...I know all about the limited diet even w yummy soups and sweets I feel so Unfulfilled tho my fav is mashed potatoes w gravy good lord is yummy ..life before surgery was hell no easy way of saying it --puking 6-9x a day , bloating to pregnancy level every time I ate , sleeping w 4 pillows god it sucked oh and bending over w consistent acid ..just really bad -my hernia was the size if a baseball nearly:(

Lajenner--sry to hear u have thrush that is terrible...I wish I had a tip or advise but none except call the doc. U r so lucky to b swollowing your meds tho u probably don't have as many as --13 crushed , 3 liquid, 3 in food like yogurt pudding or applesauce & 1 chewable that taste like toothpaste ...I meet back w my docs on the 2nd and the 4th --the 2nd is my reg doc and shrink (I have PTSD) and the 4th is my official post-op ...not too worried about my lungs I have a pulmonary function test (peek) and I'm a smoker (4cigs a day) and believe it or not my lungs r perfect (even tho I've been smoking for 13 years) ...I totally know what u mean by pain in the Diaphragm is possibly the worse pain ever and I've had 2 kids all natural and 1 c-section ...Laurie it will b sad to not get ur daily post it really helps me ..

Everyone no PPIs and no reflux and feeling way better even tho I'm dealing w healing pains ....long msg but I have two more to respond to but I will in the AM or later

I'll continue with quick updates, as apparently there is interest and a lot of views.

Day 12 post-op: I've been hungry all day. Maybe the healing has reached a point that my body is craving more calories, more nutrition. I've been holding at 11 pounds gone for several days.

I am swallowing larger items now, just smaller bites. I had mac and cheese and a side of green beans today. I even had 2 bites of a hot dog, chewed well and swallowed.

Laying down in the middle of the day remains an important part of my recovery. If I had to leave the house for work, I could probably handle 3-4 hours, then I'd have to lay down for awhile. So I suppose if someone had a desk job outside the house, if they were allowed a longer lunch break to recline and put their feet up, full time might be an option at 2 weeks. I would hope you could have a 3rd week at home.

I have my own part time business doing property tax appeals for local home owners. It starts up on Wednesday. With the timing of this surgery, I'm referring much of it out. I'll have to see how it goes - thankfully I work from home and can take breaks. My other job is taking care of the elderly in their homes. I'm a professional health caregiver. I won't go back to that until January, as it involves a lot of lifting, helping clients in and out of baths, beds, etc.

I did wake up with a headache today, which lasted all day. I finally took some ibuprofen (no problem swallowing the tablets whole with water) late this afternoon. It took the edge off. I don't know why I have a headache, I wonder if it's because my lungs are still trying to work to hard to get enough oxygen.

I'll check back tomorrow. :)

I started taking Miralax several days ago, it is helping me. I took senna based on doctor orders, but when it worked it, it made me very nauseous. That scared me. I get bloated easily, gasX helps.

You can purée a bite of pancake in your mouth, I wonder why your required diet is so limiting.

Are you taking any vitamins? You can find them in gummie version which easily chews up and slides down my throat.

I hope your post op appointment is soon. Write down your concerns, as it is easy to forget while there. I go for mine on Friday.

I am still fighting a headache today. My allergies are bad so I hope that is all it is. I see my pulmonologist on Thursday and will discuss this with him.

Day 14 post op: Yeah - 2 weeks, it seems like it went fast looking back.

Yesterday, I began to feel a little swelling at the wrap site. It is not bothersome. I just take smaller bites and wait for the food to pass before taking the next bite. I had shredded wheat cereal with milk and finished the bowl, just more slowly than I might have the day before.

I woke up for the 3rd day in a row with this headache. I'm not congested at all this morning, so really unsure of the cause. I normally do not get headaches, unless a sinus infection is raging. I really don't know what to do about this. I figured I would wait until Thursday when I see my pulmonologist and ask about it. But that is 2 entire more days with this headache. It is sort of dull, pounds though if I bend and hang my head.

It just doesn't seem to be a symptom of the surgery, unless someone else knows of this happening. My medicines are the same, with the exception of liquid postassium vs. tablet form. Oh, but I added Miralax. I'm off to google miralax side effects now. Nope, headache is not mentioned anywhere as a side effect of Miralax. What is causing this?

Post Edited (lajenner) : 9/24/2013 10:05:44 AM (GMT-6)

Hello Everyone, I am a new member to the Forum and is glad to know so many of us is going through the same thing with our wraps. I had my wrap on Aug 5, 2013. I am doing fine not too many problems except trying to figure out what my stomach will agree too today. It's got a mind of its own. I do have less problems and is glad to get a relief I have had my problem since 2004 and on maximum medication. My problem is it's been 7 weeks and I still have my G-tube, How long did you keep yours? My next appointment is 4 weeks away, and it makes me nervous because it seems as if the doctors are expecting something bad to happen. Did anyone have a re lap?

Hi Laurie,

Sorry to hear about those headaches!  Hope you get feeling better soon!

Denise

Day 16 post op: I saw the pulmonoogist today. He thinks my headache is related to sleep apnea, so ordered a sleep study - that happens next Thursday. I needed oxygen while sleeping in the hospital. The nurse said my sleep apnea was bad.

He also said expect 6 months for my lungs and throat to clear completely. That is disappointing, since the asthma is what had held me back for so long. He said I need to stay on all asthma meds for at least 6 months.

So, this is going to be a longer recovery than I had thought. I hope I get good news from the surgeon tomorrow. I am anxious to increase my activity level as my lungs allow.

My appointment was so long that I was very hungry. I ate a part of a chicken wrap with a four tortilla, grilled chicken breast, cheese and mayo, with French fries. I ate this regular meal without any trouble. I just paid attention to each bite and chewed it thoroughly. This means I can start eating sandwiches, again, just made with tortilla instead of bread.

Thank you Denise!

I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea 2 years ago, but more sleep problems were caused by upper respiratory obstruction. I subsequently had sinus surgery to correct it and found myself sleeping great for 8 hours instead of needing 10 hours. The sleep apnea was not bad enough to require a cpap. I guess it got worse. We'll see next week.

I'll give the toasted bread a try, thanks for the suggestion! I believe you said in the past that you, too, could eat this variety this soon after surgery.

I appreciate all you do to keep this forum alive!

Great news!!!!