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6 Weeks after Nissen Fundoplication

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Posted 7/16/2014 1:37 PM (GMT 0)
Hello all

I'm new to this forum so be gentle :)

I had my Nissen done 6 weeks ago and all has been fairly good so far. However on Sunday night I had what used to be a definite bout of severe reflux. Now though, I'm not 100% sure whether it was reflux or something else.

It definitely felt like the old symptoms - sharp chest pain, radiating out to my throat and jaw as well as my lower rib cage. I took a couple of spoons of Gaviscon, and a Zantac, and it eventually went. However I couldn't honestly say that acid came up my throat... PAIN did, but acid... maybe not.

On top of that, since Friday or Saturday I have felt as if I have air trapped in my chest. The surgeon said it would be OK to have beer now as long as it wasn't too gassy, so I sipped at a bitter on Friday night and I think it did indeed start the same evening. The pain remains though, and intensifies if i take a deep breath. It's not bad pain - it's not a reflux or heartburn pain - it literally feels like there's an air pocket stuck somewhere in my pipes!

Could air be trapped? Could that air be keeping my wrap open and allowing acid up?

Does any of this sound normal? Should I hope it just goes? I must say I'm feeling somewhat depressed since Sunday, with the thought that maybe I'm not fixed after all and there may be further complications to worry about.

Has anyone experienced the same problems and what was the outcome?
Posted 7/16/2014 5:11 PM (GMT 0)
Hi,

This could be spasm, trapped wind or food trapped momentarily in the wrap, I think this is quite common after the op and doesn't necessarily signal a wrap failure :) mines 18mths out and I get this on occasion. Sipping a warn drink helps, as does stretching and moving around a little.

Surprised to hear what your dr said about beer, I know some people can tolerate a few bubbles but many can't. At this stage I can cope with a fizzy drink if I bash most of the gas out first and only have one. Some people can drink it with no issue, some would say my level of bubbles is too much? It could have been caused by this, I went a little ott with champagne at christmas and suffered for about three days. I can burp to a good degree too.

I hope you feel better:)
Posted 7/16/2014 5:19 PM (GMT 0)
Hi peachy, thanks for the reply! I think I'm probably overreacting but as we all know, that feeling of impending reflux instills horror ☺.

I guess i just wanted someone to reassure me that this could be normal.

Hey even if the wrap fails, I lost 2 stone... Well worth it!
Posted 7/17/2014 2:22 AM (GMT 0)
Reverend2100

Welcome to Healing Well and the Wrapped Club!

I 2nd Peachy's comments. It's a very common issue at your stage in recovery. I too get it if I over do it at times, like around the holidays.

Remember this recovery is a marathon, not a sprint. You will have some set backs, but they will be fewer and farther between as time goes by.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 7/18/2014 8:29 AM (GMT 0)
I guess when my surgeon told me that I was a very fast healer I assumed I was 'back to normal' ...

People's stories on this (extremely helpful) forum often have a running theme - the surgeon knows nothing about the recovery!

I was lucky that I had no pain right after the op. In fact the only pain I had was a migraine that I'd had since the morning of the op, right through until a couple days after. So when I get these sudden pains like I have this past week I assume it's reflux whereas of course it could just be recovery pains, that until recently had been absent.
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