Survivor

I do truly feel blessed I have had so many wonderful days and so many amazing experiences since this happened. I have had chances in my life to make amends and do the right things not only for myself however also for my children so i am showing them the correct way to handle eating and being healthy .... One thing i can tell you Waking in the morning is now to me a blessing. I view this as one of life's greatest blessings. I wake each morning thanking God for the fact I am awake. So every day is a wonderful chance for a new experience in my life.

It is wonderful to hear . I had my surgery almost 3 yrs ago. I will tell you now I wish I had known then what I do now ... My surgeon was a good surgeon however was a lousy doctor. I woke after a flawless surgery allergic to soy. Every supplement they gave me all meds were soy based ... needless to say it was a rough time. When I had been vomiting nonstop for 2.5 months and had been in the hospital for 2 months with fluids running open into my body, not vitamin bags plain saline. The surgeon had run so much fluid through my body that I was beginning to show extreme effects of vitamin deficiencies as vitamin B is water soluble. The one that finally caused a halt was Pellagra. I had so much vitamin B run through my body I was now niacin depleted. Normal level for a woman is 700-900 my level was 40. So I had begun dying from vitamin deficiency. It happens that the effects of pellagra in the end stages are delusional thinking … so the wonderful surgeon through IV ran an antipsychotic through my poor body called Seroquel. This horrid decisions lead to two heart attacks and a stroke. I was in a coma for 5.5 months. I woke up after a concerned family member had sent a nutritionist into see me. Thanks be to God this woman had worked in a 3rd world country and had spent years tending those that were suffering from the effects of pellagra she told the psychiatrist that she believed I had pellagra and he was interested because when he had spoken to the two Psychiatrists and the psychologist I was required to see for a year prior to surgery that I had not had a nervous breakdown. She saw the horrid rash over 98% of my body and had heard me telling everyone I was 16 and wanted my mother. She told the psychiatrist I was suffering from pellagra and he asked what the testing was and sure enough that very afternoon all the IV lines were pulled and I was put on a lead tube and had niacinamide run into my body and then the nutritionist came in and sat with me daily. She brought me these funny cracker things that were niacin tablets however to a silly dizzy headed nearly dead woman they were snacks with a friend. I am still not fully recovered however I am alive and I am working hard at putting back together my life. I have also been diagnosed with pernicious anemia. Vitamin b-12 deficiency because one thing the RNY does is upset the digestive system. So my body can no longer make intrinsic factor. So I can no longer digest b-12 from food... I get shots every few weeks so I am able to live. I never understood vitamins before the surgery. After the surgery J I certainly do understand vitamins and exactly what they do in your body.

You could use some help with nutrition from a professional. With me I use liquid protein. I have gotten extremely creative with making liquid protein so my body can get the energy needed to keep working. For one thing things you could eat before the surgery may not work for you any more. Give you an example I was able to eat soy before the surgery. Had hot and sour soup with regularity however post surgery I am allergic to soy and can not have anything with soy. I also am not able to eat bread and it took me 22 months before I could eat meat and cheese in the same meal. For salt I have nuts salty and protein. Mayo is another past food I can not eat it. I have mostly liquid protein, vegetables, and meat. Carbs are something I can not eat. However I also have more energy than I had in years at over 300lbs

Hello I am new to the group had rny 2yrs 10 months ago total weight loss of 231lbs. I have had a lot of complication and my life has changed 150% so I am now in rebuilding mode and hoping there are others that would like to talk