katikati

I will show you, but try not to be too grossed out. It's not as horrible as it looks. It only hurt once in a while (bending, sneezing, etc.), and it was painless when it was removed. The surgeon removed it about two weeks after my surgery. I didn't even have to lay on the bed. He clipped the stitch holding it in place, wrapped some paper towels around the exposed part of the tube, and pulled it gently until it was all out. He told me I'd have to clean inside of it with peroxide and a q-tip until it closed up, which did not sound exciting to me. However, I went to clean it the next morning, and it had already closed up. Whew! Was so glad to be off the hook with that one. Oh, and the tube that is outside of you is about a foot long and there is a rubber bulb at the end that is about the size and shape of a large lemon. I had to open the top and empty it twice a day by squeezing it into a plastic cup they gave me that would measure the drainage in cc's. Then you squeeze the bulb and close the top, so that there's a little suction in the tube. When I was in the hospital, they kept the bulb safety pinned to the inside of my hospital gown. At home I did the same and kept it pinned to my shirt. Ugh. It is so frustrating getting pictures to display on this site. Here's a link to it in my gallery: http://www.verticals...17416-img-2224/

Oops. I just deleted everything I wrote because I realized I posted in the male forum. So sorry! *backs away quietly while avoiding eye contact*

I'm really most likely not going to do this, but it won't get out of my head, so I just need to spill it. I was on clear liquid phase for two weeks post-op, and have been on full liquids for two weeks after that. I'm set to start purees on Monday, but part of me just wants to start it now. It's not that I'm sitting here just craving food and wanting to eat, it's more that I'm just still feeling so weak. Don't get me wrong. A bit of mushy tuna or chicken sounds heavenly right now, but it's not torturing me. I don't know if that's normal on full liquids or not to feel this weak. I mean, I get all my nutrients, but everything, even showers, are a battle and I have no energy whatsoever. It just feels time to move on to the next phase. At the same time, I feel like I'd be cheating if I started today instead of Monday, and I know too well the mental impact that can have. Part of me says, it's really not that big of a deal, some people start purees right after the hospital. My surgeon was excellent though. I could not have had a more ideal surgical experience. He did an amazing job and the entire clinic is great, and if they say two weeks, then there's a reason for that and I just need to be patient and wait. It's the tiny steps that lead to big failures, and I feel like if I fail down the road, I could look back at this decision as the one that started it all. So, I'm going to to try and hold out for Monday. I can deal with feeling crappy for a little while longer, and it's not like I ever felt like leaping tall buildings in a single bound prior to surgery. Thanks for listening!

I tried the Unjury chocolate, vanilla, and chicken soup pre-op, as well as Nectar Fuzzy Navel and Strawberry Kiwi. I am one of the few who don't like them. I did tons of research and ordered those because they really are the favorites of many. My personal favorite that has been a Godsend is the Premier chocolate with 30g of protein. I actually enjoy them, and they don't have that funky protein taste that the others did. To me, they taste very close to Ensure, if you've ever had that. In my personal opinion, steer clear of the Premier vanilla. It is completely different and pretty close to nasty. I get the Premier at Costco. If I remember correctly, it's $24 for a pack of 18.

Guilty. Did it today, lost two pounds. No joke. I consider it less OCD and more of just a marvel because I'm only pooping every three days, so it's quite the event.

That's where I am, too. I was so cautious for the first couple of weeks, just taking tiny sips. I accidentally took bigger swallows a few times and realized I could handle more without the pain now. As of yesterday, I've realized I can take about 3 normal sized drinks. If I do get a little too much, it does hurt for just a sec as it kind of squeezes by, but it's not horrible. This has made it so much easier to get all my fluids in. I'm very happy!

Yep, I third that opinion. Classic UTI or bladder infection symptom. Get to the doctor, it's not something to ignore and think it'll pass, and it's easy to diagnose with a simple urinalysis. I didn't even know I had one about a year ago and ended up in the ER with severe vomiting, ongoing nausea, and was nearly delirious.

Fascinating! I've been considering using some kind of scar treatment on mine, and wasn't sure which direction to go. I too don't have plans to model bikinis, but wouldn't mind having less obvious scars. I've never heard of Bio-Oil, I was only considering products like Mederma. Thanks for sharing!

Hey, all, I've seen enough on here to know that it's okay to let fly with the TMI. I started my phase 2 diet on Monday, which is full liquids. Prior to full liquids I had some pretty crazy diarrhea for a while, which was to be expected. If I remember correctly, I've only had two BMs since Monday. I don't feel particularly bloated or constipated. I haven't had the urge to go, and then struggled with it or anything. When I did go, it wasn't bothersome, it was just somewhere in between loose and firm. (Ugh, I just cringed saying that. Sorry!) The thing that's bothering me is that I really haven't gone in a couple of days at least, I think it may be more, I just can't remember. I've gained two pounds, and there is just really no way for that to happen on two protein shakes, the occasional sugar-free popsicle or chicken broth, and water every day. I'm becoming alarmed that I may be facing an, um... impending hour of terror in the bathroom. I've never taken a laxative or stool softener in my life. For some reason they kind of scare me. Would it be acceptable to take some pre-emptive Milk of Magnesia since it's been so long? I'm also trying to up my water, to see if that helps.

Well, people... boy was I right. I won't go into detail, but hours after this post my concern was confirmed and it was an adventure. I took my first Milk of Magnesia dose today and I'm hoping it helps. That stuff is gross, but I'm more than willing to take it if it works. I just mixed it with some of my protein shake and that made it drinkable. Thanks for all of the input!

Could it be the milk? Have you added milk to anything else since your surgery?

The last two nights have been miserable for me. I cannot sleep and at is driving me crazy. My eyes get tired and my body is tired, but there is something inside of me that is just not shutting off and going to sleep. I feel like this has to coincide with my transition to full liquids, which also happened two days ago. I lay here and my whole body feels agitated. My legs are restless, I have little pins and needles here and there. Not the kind that you get when a body part has gone to sleep, but... I don't know how to describe them. Just these little annoyances here and there on my body that make me fidget, scratch, and just want to scream my bloody head off. Twice now I have had a mini temper tantrum out of sheer frustration where I just throw the cover off and flail my legs like a two year old not getting her way. I was up all of night before last, finally fell asleep after dawn and woke up 30 effing minutes later. I did get some more fitful and interrupted sleep after that for a while. I have been up all night tonight, Not one minute of sleep. I do have medicine I can take, and I guess I'm going to have to. I just haven't because between all of my regular medications and my vitamins, I feel like I'm taking something every 5 minutes, and these protein shakes are making me feel so full that it is just work trying to get everything in. I have two things on hand I can take. One is a prescription, and it leaves me so incredibly groggy all day that I'm useless. The other is Tylenol PM, and I just haven't done the research to make sure it's okay to take it. I'm pretty sure it is, so I'm about to just take it and sleep all morning. I'm really wondering if it's something in the Premier protein drink kicking up the restless leg syndrome. It's seriously about to make me kick a wall in frustration. Thanks for listening. x[

I agree! Finding Premier was a major hallelujah moment for me! I nearly cried. :wub:

I have a small numb area too! It's around the center of my stomach, just to the left of where my drain was. I really hate the way it feels/doesn't feel too. Thankfully, I've noticed the last few days that it's not as numb, so I'm hoping that means it will be completely back to normal soon. I thought maybe it had something to do with the drain, but I guess it's just part of surgery. I'm two weeks post-op, by the way.

You are so hilarious. <3

UUUUUUUUUUGH! I'm out of Tylenol PM! *sobs*

It's definitely not fun, but seeing everything that came out made me glad that ick wasn't floating around inside of me.

Can you ask your doctor to send you home with something else? If it makes you sick, then he really should give you something different for pain management. I was on the morphine pump after surgery and it made me horribly nauseous too. They were giving me Zofran and Phenergan to stop it. I felt much better once I came off the pump. After that I had a Tylenol and an Ibupofen drip (The NSAID is okay in IV form). I was given a prescription for Dilauded that I used a few times at the hospital and a few times once I got home. The Dilauded never made me sick.

Oh! And just a bit of advice. Always keep it in the forefront of your mind that that drain is pinned to your shirt! It's very easy to forget and yank it up to pull it over your head. I'm so glad to say I never did this, but I did come close a time or two. I never caught it on anything, and I don't even want to know what it would have felt like if I did. x[ I would not recommend pinning it to your pants, either. My mom suggested this one day, and I decided against it. I realized later when I went to the restroom what a horrible idea this would have been, because I'm certain I would not have thought about it when I went to pull my pants down.

Pinning the bulb to your clothing is actually how you manage it anyway. At least, that's how mine was. At the hospital, the nurses kept mine pinned to the inside of my hospital gown, and that's how I continued at home with my pajamas, except for showers, and then I pinned it to the gauze over the drain site. Here's the thing. You will have a tube coming out of your stomach, which will have a bit of length to it, and at the end of that tube there will be a bulb about the same shape as a grenade and just a little bigger. You always squeeze the bulb after emptying it and replace the cap, so that it maintains some suction. That does make it flatter, so it's not like a ball under your shirt. It may be hard to hide unless you wear very loose clothing. I don't know if they're all positioned in the same place or not. Mine was just to the right of the center of my stomach, so out front and center and hard to disguise. It's not terribly large. The only thing I can think of is maybe if you wear a scarf and keep it on? Something that would hang down. Or a loose-ish jacket would probably cover it. No, the drain does not hurt. Not one bit. I will admit, the first time I really looked at mine when I came home, I became queasy and a little lightheaded. That was only due to the idea of it though. It just freaked me out a tad to see something coming out of me like that. The only time I had a true ouch moment was when I sneezed once the day before I got my drain out. I had mine 10 days, and near the end I think the area was just starting to get irritated and my body was tired of it. I felt absolutely nothing when the drain was removed. No pain, no strange feeling. I credit my awesome surgeon with this.

I do too! It's about a three hour trip to my surgeon. Ironically, I live in Memphis. However, I chose a surgeon in Nashville for several reasons. I'm so glad I did. He is great and well worth the travel time for the excellent work he does.

I've been on Arixtra (blood thinner) sub-q injections since surgery. I'm a big ol' chicken, so I have my Mom give them to me in my arm, rotating the spots. I noticed tonight that I have two hard knots close together on my right arm. They hurt when I move my arm around, and are painful to touch, but not if I'm sitting still. Given how close they are together, it seems we may have misjudged and gotten a couple of injections close together, instead of two inches apart. It's hard to tell from night to night because I can never tell where the last one was. Has anyone else experienced this? Is this anything to be concerned about? Will they go away? I'm seriously sick of these shots. It bums me out when I consider that I have 21 more days of this.