Question:
Post-op RNY'er's.......HELP am I normal?
I did research this surgery for a very long time and I wanted it as bad as anyone else, but now..... I am 3 wks post-op (Open RNY) and I feel terrible. Not like in pain or anything but just plain YUCK_O! I throw up everyday, I can't keep hardly anything down. I worry I will hurt my pouch heaving so harshly. I have no energy, I'm supposed to take chewable vitamins....NOT, I throw them up before I get them all down. I do drink somewhat moderately, but not near 64oz. My back hurts constantly, but all I want to do is sleep. I have no energy to walk or exercise. If I stand up for over 5 minutes I get dizzy/nauseus and have to lay back down. Is all this normal? I feel like I am just being lazy. Smell kills me, everything smells so bad, my DH thinks I'm crazy. And to top it off at night I can't sleep without having all the weird dreams that are off the wall....somebody tell me I have not went off my rocker. Any advise is appreciated. — [Anonymous] (posted on December 6, 2001)
December 6, 2001
yes sweetie this is pretty normal, but you hang in there it will get
better. Try to at least get your water in or you will really get sick . Try
soups a half cup max. You sound depressed i was too at three weeks it a big
ajustment you dont have that crutch food its depressing . good luck keep
your chin up .
— Julie B.
December 6, 2001
Yep... you are normal all right!!! I think a majority of WLS people
experience symptoms like this, some more severe, some not so severe, in the
first 6 weeks. I can honestly say that if I had a dollar for every message
I read about someone feeling really icky for the first month or so, I would
be a very rich lady!!!
At your stage of the game it is not feasable to get in the full 64 oz of
water. Aim for 48 oz and over the next month work your way up to 56 oz and
then by three months out you might be able to reach 64 oz. I am 3 1/2
months post op and still throw up alot and I only get in around 56 oz of
water a day. I have had a hard time adjusting to food and when I get a day
where nothing stays down, I go back to the liquid phase of my diet for a
few days to let everything calm back down.
What kind of vitamins are you taking? I have tried several different
kinds, but the only ones that I can take and keep down are the Flinstones
Chewables with Iron. I take one, chew it up really good, swallow it and
follow it with a sip of water, then I do it again.
I too had no energy for a long time and would get dizzy easily. In the
beginning, a lot of that is due to your body going through such a drastic
change. Another thing that causes you to feel yucky is the anesthesia that
is still trying to work it's way out of your system. It can take up to 5
weeks before it is all out and in the meantime it can plague you with
nightmares, a general feeling of malaize (tiredness) and other things as
well. Anesthesia is really nasty on the system!!!
As for the smells, it is just your body reacting to the surgery. I can't
tolerate the smell of greasy things like KFC's chicken popcorn and when my
kids get it I have to go to another room just to keep from getting sick.
This will eventually pass and don't be surprised if one week one smell
bothers you and the next week a different smell entirely seems to bother
you.
All I can tell you is that it WILL get better. Most everyone feels a big
difference by week 7 and some even sooner. Listen to your body and if it
needs to sleep, then sleep... if it needs to cry, then cry... right now
your body needs you to try and relax so that it can begin the healing
process.
Hang in there and take care of yourself.
— Kellie Jo B.
December 6, 2001
Well, you're normal. Sounds like saner than some. Some cannot stand the
smell of their own SKIN! LOL! It all settles down eventually. When you
say nothing much stays down, do you mean nothing solid? Nothing liquid? NO
protein supps? No vites? No soft or pureed foods? If the answer is just
"nothing", then you'll need to take that thing back to your doc
for a look with a scope. If your outlet is tight or anything is slightly
whacked, it's easy to fix, once diagnosed. And the diagnosis is not
unpleasant. Rule out mechanical problems and by then, hopefully you will
be out of the post-op anesthesia blues period.
— vitalady
December 6, 2001
Sounds like I wrote your complaint 3 months ago, as a matter of fact, if
you look up "smell" or "stink", you'll find my
posts!!! Every blanket in my house smelled like a wet dog, hot fries
smelled like blanced cat, tap water smelled like a dirty fish bowl.
Nothing stayed down, but I did have a stoma blockage, which the doctor
fixed and it was great to be able to eat again. Water.........?? Two sips
was my tolerance fot the day. I am 3 and 1/2 months out now, and it's
hard to tell if I"ve had the surgery or not, just my watching me. But
looking at my before pics, you'd definately know!! Hang in there........
it gets better!!!
— Phiddy B.
December 6, 2001
Ask your dr for meds for the nausea. The dizzyness is probably from not
eating or drinking, therefore low blood sugar. I went through this too. My
poor husband, I could stand to have him breath around me because to me his
breath was so bad (it wasn't, it was me) I kept asking my kids to bathe,
couldn't stand the dog around me, though she does really get stinky
sometimes with dog smell it was magnified about 1000%, everything smelled
odd, even my ice or water. All I wanted to do was sleep too. I would read
these posts of people jumping off the table full of energy and I would be
sitting here feeling like a mack truck hit me. The drugs helped with the
nausea (I didn't actually vomit) so I could start doing better with the
water. My back didn't hurt a lot but I went over on my side the day of
surgery, even though I had open, so I didn't lay on my back a lot. I know
telling you it will get better is lame right now, because right now life is
stinky and dizzying and tiring and you're weak and in pain, but it really
really does get better. I think it started getting better for me around 4
weeks, every day was a little more progress, and now at 3 1/2 months I feel
terrific! Best of luck!
— Becky K.
December 18, 2002
You are NOT crazy. I felt the same exact way. My doctor says all that is
normal. I had bad breath all the time. Could not stand the smell of food
or perfume. I couldn't get my bowels moving. Take it easy. I am 1 month
post-up and just starting to feel better. You will sleep all day and no it
is not laziness. You are healing. Your body is not used to what you have
done.... MAJOR SURGERY!!! They totally rearranged your digestive system.
TAKE IT EASY>>> If you need to talk keep in touch.
[email protected]
— Regina C.
August 14, 2005
I am three weeks post-op as well and had the open RNY I had the same
problem the first few days with the smell , my mom stayed here to help my
husband and they thought I was crazy everything smelled so foul , I slept
like all the time the first 2 weeks , now I am doing better but I make sure
I drink all the water I can which seems to help and get my protein drinks
in between meals , that has helped with the energy , I am also walking my
treadmill if not everyday every other day so hang it there you no crazy and
it will get better. Eat and Drink very very slowly.
luvang68
— luvang68
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