Chicadee

I didn't see this thread until now. I was sleeved in May by Dr Ehrlich. He used to be in practice with Dr. Floch. Had a wonderful experience with him thus far.

if your pain is on your left side it should not be your gallbladder. I had what they thought was a leak 2 weeks ago. For three days I had a random stabbing pain on my left side under my ribs and every time I took a deep breath I felt sore inside. When I had my CT scan they did not see a leak but what appeared to be air surrounding my stomach, they think perhaps I had a pinhole that sealed itself. I did not have a fever, nausea or vomiting which would be typical symptoms for a leak. I was admitted and given IV antibiotics in the hospital for 48 hours and they had me go back to the liquid diet for 2 weeks. I feel great now, like nothing ever happened. A lot of people report having that pain under the left ribcage and it turns out to be nothing. Just make sure you follow up with the doctor as soon as you can. And if your symptoms get worse especially if you have a fever, go back to the hospital.

My surgeon said the time when leaks show up most frequently is in the 3 to 4 week range. After that it would be rare however in my case I had what they think was a pinhole leak that fixed itself around week 11.

I never had the gas pain that a lot of people talk about. I was fully expecting it, then nothing happened. You should be good at this point.

I am almost 12 weeks out and today I had: When I woke up: Protein shake Breakfast: Chobani strawberry Yogurt Snack: 10 pretzels (not a good choice) Lunch: all of the broth and half of the stars in chicken and stars Soup. Dinner: meatloaf, green Beans Snack: 2 Popsicles

I get them randomly i believe when I am full as well, not with every meal though. It drives my husband crazy but there is nothing I can do about it. Even before surgery I probably got them more than the average person.

I've been eating beef and shellfish since I could eat regular food so after week 5

Update: SN..............Starting Wt........Current.......Goal.......Lbs to Goal Chicadee..........326..................315...........299............16

I am taking the Prilosec OTC and even though the caplet is slightly larger than a tic tac I still swallow it just fine. My Dr told me it was ok to take pills no bigger than a tic tac.

I like the Bariatric Advantage Chews as well. I have lemon and berry and they are great, like eating a starburst. I have never tried the caramel but I am a caramel lover so I may have find them and give them a shot.

are you taking an acid reducer? Most of us are sent home with a script for one after surgery. I am supposed to take one for at least 90 days. That could be the issue if you aren't taking one.

Glad to be back home again. The doctor doesn't know what caused it. With me being so far out it was a really weird situation. I went to the grocery store right after I left the hospital and it was a bit much walking all around the store so I decided to work from home today and tomorrow so I can rest some more, I didn't want to overdo it. Thankfully I have that ability with my job. I might work from home every day if I didn't have my team at the office that I needed to be there for. I feel pretty good today. All of the stabbing pain is gone and it doesn't hurt to take deep breaths anymore. I am totally on board with the liquids because it seems like I still might be a bit irritated or inflammed. Too big a swallow hurts going down and I don't think solids (or anything bigger than a tictac as my dr would say) would feel good going down right now.

So ever since Friday i haven't been feeling all that great. I was feeling a bit swimmy in the head and my insides actually felt sore. It almost felt like I was coming down with something. Last week I found out my thyroid was way out of whack so instead of hypo i was hyper. My Doc changed my dosage and the swimmy feelings went away. I still felt sore inside and it hurt mildly to take a deep breath. I was thinking because I started taking Iron may be I was constipated, I took some miralax. Friday I felt so full and couldn't eat anything after my attempt at lunch. Well it doesn't appear as though I am constipated and I still feel sore inside and randomly without warning I get a pain in my left abdomen that makes me cringe. It really has me baffled. I don't feel full anymore and am able to eat normally. I am not one to freak out but I can't imagine what it could be. I will be calling the surgeon's office tomorrow. I am 11 weeks out. Does anyone have a similar experience? Just looking for clues.

Not trying to scare anyone but I just got out of the hospital for a similar pain on my left side under my ribs, it was a sharp stabbing pain that randomly came and went and I felt sore inside when I took a deep breath. A CT Scan showed my stomach was irritated that I may have had a small leak that had already healed itself. I was on a heavy duty antibiotics for three days at the hospital as a precaution and now I am back to liquid stage 1,2,3 for the next two weeks. I posted about it here

So I went over a friend's house I haven't seen in many many years and we took a photo before I left. I decided to compare it to the photo I took the day before surgery. I can't see much of a difference yet but I definitely feel a lot different now. My feet don't hurt and I don't get winded easily anymore. I am still wearing the same size clothes although some things are getting a little baggy. Just thought I would share. I also chopped of 8 inches from my hair since then too. Edit: Whoops the photo should say day before surgery 363, sorry typo.....

Saw my surgeon, he was surprised i had a small leak, it could have been something I ate that caused it. I am back to stage 1 clears post-op diet and I will stay on stage 1,2,3 clears/full/puree for the next couple weeks. I am being released tomorrow.

I have a friend who was 425 lbs and went to the Duke diet and fitness center for 3 months and when he came home he subscribed to diets to go.com and had all of his food delivered. He had the money to do it but that is not an option for most of us. He was down to like 180 i think and has kept it off. Also at the time he did it, he wasn't married and had no kids which makes it a bit easier as well.

thank you for the well wishes. The interesting part in all of this is i don't at all feel sick. The only issue is that random pain really. So here i sit, waiting for my surgeon to show up. I've seen several of his PAs and today is a surgery day for him so he is in the building. They said he should be here before noon more than likely. Still can't have anything by mouth. I never imagined having a small leak at this point, this far out. I guess anything can happen.

well I called the doctor this morning and he said to go to the ER. I did and that is where I still am at the moment. they did bloodwork and a CT Scan with contrast and see that my stomach is a bit irritated and it looks like I had/have a micro-perforation. They said they saw some air outside of my stomach. My surgeon decided he wanted to admit me and give me antibiotics for 48 hours (that was unexpected). So here I sit with an IV and nothing by mouth all day today. They are watching me for increased pain or fever. I probably should have come to the ER on Saturday. Will let you know what happens.

Wow you look great, Congrats =)

Congrats!!

Thanks everyone. There was a typo in the before weight which I noted when I edited the post. I was 363 the day before surgery.

My hair is coming out quite a bit as well. I luckily had a lot of hair to begin with. At the hairdresser today I had it cut to my shoulders probably about 8 inches off and she looked and said it she didn't see any large patches that is it coming out all around. Hopefully this will stop sooner rather than later.

So I went to my 2 month follow up today and the doctor is concerned about the things I have been eating for Breakfast, he wants me to get more Protein. I did explain to him that my stomach is a bit more temperamental in the morning. I have been eating cream of wheat or yogurt and he thinks I should be eating more protein rich foods. Half of an english muffin with Peanut Butter on it works for my stomach well but I can't eat that every day and I doubt my doctor wants me eating half of an english muffin. I cannot eat eggs, my stomach doesn't like them or breakfast sausage at this point. Bacon works but again I can't eat that every day. I do not like greek yogurt or cottage cheese. Any ideas? perhaps someone will mention something I didn't think of.