Facing NF Alone

Hi Everyone,
Im due to have my nissen fundoplication in 10 days time after many years of suffering with gerd and all of its effects, Surgery has been cancelled twice, due to my getting Breast Cancer twice.I am 51

So, my surgery is now going ahead and I am going it alone, I live alone with my little dog and there is nobody who can help, so I want to get really, really prepared beforehand so that I can try to take some of the pressure off myself.

My surgeon has said that he will probably keep me in hospital for two nights as the hospitals policy is not to send people home after a general anaesthetic if there is no one at home.

So, I would like to ask, in all of your experiences, what would you advise in my situation please? Is there anything I could do beforehand to make the experience easier on myself? kind regards

Post Edited (Xinte) : 5/1/2015 11:32:24 AM (GMT-6)

My experience was I came home the day following the surgery and was able to do everything by myself. My husband went to work the day after I got home and I was fine by myself.I would suggest you buy all your groceries before the surgery and ask your doctor for a prescription of liquid pain medicine along with nausea medication to be filled before surgery as well. I didn't really need either of those but I was prepared. I am very lucky that my surgery went so well and I didn't encounter any difficulties. I'm hoping the same for you. Just take it easy. Oh, a few things I did do that I think really helped me feel better quickly were I walked a lot and used the sparometer as often as possible. Laying down can cause very swallow breathing and I found myself out of breath and tired very quickly. So I walked around the house and outside quite a bit, the sparometer was difficult at first but after a few days I felt myself having more energy.
Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Firstly, apologies for not responding sooner, but my internet has been down for two days and I was only able to get online for a few minutes .

Thank you for your replies, I feel really reassured by your comments that I will be able to manage, I just need to be prepare in advance. I have had my pre-op consultation with a nurse but she wasnt very helpful as she had been bought in to cover holidays, and was from gynecology so knew absolutely nothing about gastrointestinal surgery and just handed me booklets on diet etc, which advised me to eat only meal replacements and fruit juice for 3 weeks, then semolina and fruit juice afterwards until i see the surgeon at 6 weeks. sounds very boring!

How soon do you think I can take my little dog for a walk? or would it be better to find somewhere for him to stay for a little while? Also, I take medication regularly in the form of pills, will I still be able to swallow the pills?

Pat, you have put forward a good suggestion, I will call my GP tomorrow and ask about aftercare.

thank you again for your replies x

Xinte you asked about swallowing pills--ask the pharmacy if they might be available in liquid. The pharmacist can work it out with the prescribing physician. Also, ask if they can be crushed ( some can and some can't). If okay then you can place the tablet between two spoons, one pressing down on the other, and it becomes somewhat powdery. I would not swallow it without first being stirred well in an acceptable liquid as you don't want the particles sticking above the wrapped area. If they are capsules, I've found they can be opened or tip cut off and stirred in the liquid foods. Get the docs okay for all of this.

I'd insist on more guidance suggestions on what you can eat and when and how much and how often. It is the most important part of your recovery in my opinion. There is a post fundo diet guide shown in the above guide. I'll locate it and post it here. It will give you suggestions. Most importantly whatever it is, it must be chewed to a watery liquid before swallowing. If there are lumpy bits, then spit them into a tissue and throw away. No big gulps. The choices will be boring but I would not divert from the eating plan. It will be worth it in the long run and you will be pleased with it all and the results. Kind wishes for you.

You dog will be good company but not jumping on your tum and bending to pick up might not be comfortable for you initially. Perhaps telling neighbors about your surgery- - I believe they will be checking up on you without asking. Pat

It seems everyone will be sent home with different instructions from their dr. upon release, as it should be because we all don't go in with the exact symptoms.
Assuming you have the typical operation (not open) you hopefully will experience the same recovery results as many of us who consider our procedure successful.
I was allowed to drive once I was off pain medicine for 24 hour. I did have someone drive me home but two days later I was good to drive on my own. I have a 20 lb dog and was able to walk him without a problem. I was tired faster than he was on the first couple of days.
Taking aspirin for the first was scary. I had a coated pill and drank water before and after each pill. It went down fine but you my have to break it down into powder form if you're having any swallowing issues.

Xinte. Please come back after your surgery and tell us about your healing progress. Ask questions if you need suggestions. You have friends here and we will learn from you too. It will soon be in the past. We wish you the best and you will be in our thoughts and prayers. 🌺

Good luck!
I'm sure everything will be okay - the first week may seem horrible but with laparoscopic surgery you should be back to feeling like you pretty quickly! I'll be thinking of you - it sounds like you have been through a lot.
Xxx

Hi Xinte,

Welcome to the Healing Well Wrapped Club! It is good to hear that you've come through the surgery and are home recovering. You're on the other side, and on your way to a better life!

I wonder if you can get someone to help you with your sweet doggie! Do you have any responsible kids in your neighborhood whom you could pay a small stipend to play with your dog and take him for a walk? Just a thought.

Glad you remembered to refuse the straw. Straws, carbonation and iced drinks are all no-nos. Here is a guide to post-Nissen eating you may have missed:
www.oregonsurgical.com/pdfs/Nissen_Fundoplication_Diet.pdf

I expect the sore throat is not just from the NG tube. The intubation/anesthesia were also contributing to your throat irritation. Hopefully, things will heal and settle down soon, and you'll have a comfortable throat again.

Walking is definitely an important thing to do. I don't know if you have the shoulder pain, but I sure did. Walking was the only thing that helped. Pain meds didn't touch the pain. The walking will also help you get your strength back.

I'm not sure if you've already seen my early recovery journal, but if not, it might give you some helpful insights.
www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=45&m=2183443

Can you crush your pills? If so, it would be good to do that. Put them in yogurt or applesauce, rather than swallowing the whole tablet and having it stay in your esophagus/sit at the wrap site. Follow any medication with many sip of room temperature water.

FYI...iced water/drinks can cause spasms.
Medication that gets held back at the wrap site can cause painful irritation of the esophagus. You want to make sure to get the medication past the wrap and into your stomach.

Keep in mind that your wrap will become increasingly more swollen during the first two weeks or so. My surgeon warned me that my swallowing would get worse before it got better, and that is exactly what happened.

This surgery takes six months for most of the healing and a year for the rest. If you can go with the flow, and patiently give your body the time it needs to heal, you'll do fine. When you surrender to your recovery, and follow its lead, you'll find it much easier.

Be sure to ask any questions that come up! I hope you're feeling comfortable tonight!
Happy healing,
Denise

Good Morning Xinte:

Great news on your surgery - here is the diet that I followed after my Nissen.

www.upmc.com/patients-visitors/education/nutrition/pages/diet-after-nissen-fundoplication-surgery.aspx


Made link live...

Post Edited By Moderator (dencha) : 5/13/2015 8:04:57 AM (GMT-6)

Hello Everyone,

Its day 3 after surgery and I'm not really noticing too much improvement just yet, but I guess its early days.

Im completely surprised by how much I'm sleeping, I wake up for an hour only to eat and drink and take medication then Im exhausted and back to sleep for another 4 hours or so, Ive had some major surgeries in the past and have never been so tired as I am with this one.

Im also suprised by how hungry I am, especially craving strong savoury flavours, I guess this is because my diet consists of mostly sweet liquids (apart from the soups) and Ive never been a sweet person anyway.

I still have wind but I guess thats because Im not moving around as much as I should be, when I do wake up and walk around, the gas releases iotself in the natural way.

One of my dressings came off and I was suprised to see I had metal clips closing the incisions, never had these before either, but feel they are more restrictive than the usual stitches.

You guys really dont know how much I appreciate you being here to talk to, I certainly am not lying in my own pit of despair and being a victim, but life has been hard in the last few years and the place I live doesnt help, I live in the countryside at the end of a very isolated village, my nearest neighbours are 2 miles away and are very elderly, in fact I usually look out for them, doing shopping, driving etc. so there is no one to help out with my dog, but he is amusing himself chasing the rats in my back garden! I know, I know, not a good pastime, but he needs to go toilet and he sees them.I havent spoken to one person since I came back from the hospital, so its so very kind of you to reply to my posts.

The reason I cannot seek help from the NHS (I am in the UK) is that before my husband died, his job included a private health insurance, which they kindly included me on, so this meant that I had my surgery done in a private hospital. In the UK, if you do this, you cannot then go back to the NHS for aftercare and my insurance wont pay for aftercare.

Dencha, your diet sheet sounds really appetising, I have been told to stick to my liquid/pureed diet for 2 weeks until I see my surgeon, it is very boring and limited and I have been looking at the online tesco store to see if I can substitute anything, do jars of baby food taste nice I wonder?lol

The story behind my little dog is quite sad, throughout my life I have always owned German Shepherd dogs and I lost my last one 3 years ago which broke my heart. I decided not to get another as I was going through the cancer treatments. Anyway, last year some old friends invited me to go to Portugal to stay with them whilst they overwintered there. I got quite bored as they are elderly and took to walking in the fields behind the hotel complex, one day I heard whimpering coming from the huge commercial bins at the back of the hotel, I was curious, so lifted the lid and there was two dead dogs and little Freddie, I took him to the vets and later bought him home to the UK, he is a toy poodle cross and very hyperactive, very different to my German Shepherds, but loveable and good company, anyway Ive rambled on enough, will check in again soon xxxxx

Hi Sweetie,

Lovely to hear from another UK'er, sometimes things are done a lot different here to other parts of the world and its good to hear your experiences and also that you know what Tesco stocks, lol.

Im in Lincolnshire and had my NF done at St.Hughs by Mr.Tilston, who is very experienced in the surgery, however Im not sure the nurses at the hospital are too experienced in the surgery aftercare, maybe I just got unlucky or maybe Mr.Tilston does most of his work for the NHS.

I was sent away from the hospital with a one sheet diet plan which is very limited and says more about what I shouldnt eat!

So its really helpful to hear your suggestions for foods you enjoyed, but Im a little confused regarding the mashed potato, on my diet sheet , In large red capital letters, it says foods to avoid AT ALL TIMES!!!!
white bread
wholemeal bread
cod and haddock
mashed potato
rice
pasta
sago
porridge
beans and peas
rice pudding
cakes and sponges

even on the pureed diet these are prohibited, I have phoned the hospital and they said to just follow the diet until I see the consultant in 2 weeks, so Im none the wiser. Strangely I am also told to not drink before,during or after eating, which is hard as I feel that it would help food to go down.

Its lovely to hear from you x

Post Edited (Xinte) : 5/16/2015 3:25:22 AM (GMT-6)

Hi Xinte,
It seems everyone gets a different sheet on discharge.Mine was very aggressive and I was scared to try any meats that were slow cooked or chopped very small. I followed the advice on the website referenced here and those suggestions offered by members.
Mashed potatoes were my friend. I drank a few sips of water to coat my throat before eating and during if I felt I needed to. I like avocados so I added those to my diet by mashing them up. Go slow, chew it and chew again and see what works for you. Always soft foods at this point.

You mentioned you were sleeping a lot, your body has been through a lot of trauma and needs recovery. You'll start to gain more energy in the next few days. Please try to do some breathing excercises as we tend to have very shallow breathes while recovering. Did they send you home with a sparometer? If so, try to breathe into it a couple of times a day. I know I felt much better once my breathing was back to normal.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

You poor dear! As much as I'm sure your prefer being home, I'm glad you did you back into the hospital where you are taken care of and watched over. Are you still there or back home again? VERY good to know your NF held after all that. That's the most important thing. Rest!
Peg