I had my surgery on 08/20/07, I lined up one of the best doctors of Bariatrics in Missouri. 5 weeks later I awoke from a medicinal induced coma in ICU. My Laproscoptic procedure failed when my surgeon accidentally cut my colon and didn't know it. I was in recovery when my wife asked a nurse if the drainage bag was supposed to be red like blood. Yes yes she answered, at three the next morning my surgeon called her and said I was in trouble and he doesn't think he'll be able to save me. However I suppose it wasn't my time, I kept right on breathing, my wife said my blood pressure got down to 60/32 but it was there.
The surgeon, of course, had to open me from sternum to belly button and for five weeks they just used some kind of hose to temporarily close me up, because they packed and changed salt packs in me about three times a day the 5 weeks I was out. After sewing me up the final time, I developed leaking fistulas, meaning I could drink a glass of Water and see it leak out of my tummy after it's trek down my gullet.
My surgeon sent me to a rehab facility soon afterwards to die. Even the most seasoned doctor was surprised I hadn't kicked the bucket. One young dynamo told me they had just gotten back from a large doctor gathering in Phoenix the night before, and I was the topic of conversation!
Anyway, the rehab hospital had never had a bariatric patient before so with my leaking fistulas they had me eating the same thing as everyone else. I got stronger, they pulled the god awful trach thing out of my neck, I must've sounded like a monster to my children! However, the fistulas continued to leak my bile from my innards and being horizontal, the bile kept my skin from healing. Two emergency surgeries at a large famous hospital next door (w/out) my wife's permission or knowledge led her to talk my original surgeon to transfer me back to University of Missouri Med Center.
While there I was visited by Dr James Kraatz (my absolute hero), he said he thought he could fix me up, stop the fistulas, 50/50 chance. Okie dokie, when do we get started. This was in December of 2007. He transferred me to the Burn and Wound ICU (wonderful place!). I had my first surgery in December, stay in hospital thru January. He sent me home with intravenous feeding, (nothing by mouth for 5 months), and a drain (nasty). Lots of great medicine!! In June of 2008, he operated and fixed my fistulas and sent me home with a wound vac, I never leaked again but was fearful for months and uber careful. (He had to wait for 6 mos. for the final surgery because of the trauma inside me from the previous 25 surgeries.)
I never had the dramatic weight loss that most people experience with gastric bypass. Today I weigh 280, 100 pounds lighter, no diabetes, but hypoglycemia. No joint pain, reminders are a big honking scar on my gut, I've thought about tattooing it as a tree of life. People ask me if I'd do the surgery again, of course I wouldn't knowing how it turned out, if I told you it wasn't hell I'd be lying. Am I satisfied today, I'm satisfied with living.
