Huggies123

I'm completely baffled and furious about this and cannot find a logical answer anywhere online. Background story of my WLS adventure is I had my sleeve on Aug 26. Had an absolute awful time (had hernia repair at same time). Between muscle spasms and dehydration multiple times for first three months, it's been one of the hardest things I've ever done. But I'm a lot better now. (SW was 249 current weight 176 - yea!) So, I recently took a pre-employment drug test and was shocked to find out it came back positive for amphetamines. Even tho I was surprised, after reviewing all meds I had recently taken (for head cold/allergies), I found out some active ingredients from those meds can actually cause a false reading. Therefore, I asked for a second test of same urine sample to confirm the active ingredients in those meds. The second result showed it was actually Adderall! I've never taken Adderall before in my life! A high school friend of my daughters has told us some horrific stories about this drug (addictive, people stealing it, insomnia, etc). She had ADHD and is 22 years old now. Besides the awful stories I have heard, the amount they detected in my urine was really high. One of my first thoughts was I can't take a lot of ANY medication because it makes me sick (side effect of surgery). Add the fact this is a highly-potent drug, the amount sounds like it would have landed me in the hospital (since I'm not prone to taking strong medications). My question is how on Gods green earth could this have shown up on my drug test? I know our bodies absorb medications differently because of the surgery but I never asked additional questions about it since I do not take anything above and beyond what my surgeon/nutritionist instructed me to. I'm not sure how the active ingredients in these meds absorb into a stomach that's been reduced by 80%. Or maybe it could be a combination of the meds I recently took (cold/allergy meds). Add another layer to this story, when I went to do the drug test, the first time I tried to pee it wasn't enough (still having dehydration issues). So I had to drink Water for an hour straight while standing where they could watch me until I could pee enough. Not sure if this means anything but wanted to add it to provide a better pic of the situation. The MRO (dr who reviewed the drug test) does not deal with a lot of WLS patients so he's going to review everything and get back with me. I'm just terrified he's going to mark it as a positive and I won't get this job. If you think "I'm screwed", please don't tell me. I've been told that by a couple people this weekend and since I'm already completely stressed about this, it just adds to it. ) Thank you so much, if for anything else, just listening (well, reading) )

I will do that. Thank you again for your help, I really appreciate it!

Let me ask you this, how would it look if I suggested taking another one. I'm trying to put myself in his shoes and wondering if that would tho make me look guilty. But I haven't taken anything since I took the drug test as I am no longer sick (other than my daily pills I take from the surgery). But, like I said, I do not want to say anything that may look "suspicious". Also, as I mentioned in my original post, I couldn't pee enough to get a full sample. So I drank for an hour straight right before the test. Do you think that could have played a factor in all this? A friend of mine who had the surgery five years ago was shocked it was still in my system after drinking so much. Maybe I drank too much and it set off some red flags.

Oh really? Okay, then I won't. I thought maybe it would provide more another resource to explore in order to prove I do not take that medication. Never thought how it might look on his end (he's probably heard all sorts of stories). Thank you for letting me know.

I didn't know there was a database for those type of medications, it definitey makes sense that there is tho. I would have thought he would have checked that right when it came up as Adderall. I'll call him tomorrow morning and ask him about it(thank you for letting me know!!) I also didn't realize Sudafed could stay in your system that long. I hope he lets me take another test. If he does, he'll at least know of the medications ahead of time. Thanks again for your responses, I really appreciate it!!

Thank you for responding. Yes, sudafed was one of them. I also heard a nasal decongestant was one that can cause a positive test. And of course I took that too (off brand of it). If I had known these could cause issues, I would have waited until the end of the 48 hours I was told to take the test within (took it within three hours I was offered the job). I never heard about the authorities part. He didn't say that, thank goodness. I gave him my regular dr and my surgeons name, told him I'll sign whatever authorization he wants me to to talk to anyone, I've never been an addict or had issues with these type of pills before. Thank you again for your responses, I appreciate it.

I am four months post surgery. I'm located in the columbus/Powell area. Had my surgery at riverside (dr sonnanstine). Are there any support groups around this area?

I am six weeks out and for me personally, sugar makes me sick. Don't get me wrong, I can have a small cookie (which I just tried last week for the first time since the surgery). But anything over that I deal with the dumping issue. It doesn't hit right away.......I get nauseous first then it hits. I think it affects people different but I try to stay away from it since sugar is one of the reasons I had to have this surgery in the first place. Good luck to you!!

I had the sleeve and a hernia repair on Aug 26, was in the hosp for five days and have regretted it every day since (was on medical leave from my desk job for a month). This was the most painful thing I've ever gone thru. It's gotten better, however, I still deal with a pain right under my breast every time I drink. It feels like what I'm drinking gets stuck for a minute then it goes down. Because of this pain, I now have a fear of drinking/eating. I've lost 37 lbs (most of it muscle mass). I haven't once got my Protein in (most I get is maybe 40 grams). I'm getting better with Water, I just fill up so fast. And I hate every Protein powder and shake out there. (Don't get me started on all the Vitamins I should be taking.....bought them all and they sit unopened). What has happened to me??? My doctor says I'm "wired" different than any patient he's ever had. My absolute biggest fear is that I'm going to lose my hair. I know there's something wrong with me. Has anyone else gone thru anything like this? Any suggestions or ideas to help me thru this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you everyone!

Thank you!!!

I am so glad it helped. I was just Hoping to connect to other people who haven't had a fast recovery. To be honest, while it was wonderful to read about people recovering so fast, it was also frustrating knowing I couldn't relate to them. I would think "did I do something wrong" or "maybe I shouldn't have done this". But once you start feeling better, a light goes off and you're like "ok, I get it now". It's re-learning your body and figuring out what it's trying to tell you. Once you have that figured out (in addition to no more pain from the recovery), you will see that light at the end of the tunnel. Good luck!!!

My mother stayed with me for two weeks. I also had my husband and kids (22 and 16). But they had work and school so my mom helped me (thank goodness). I needed her every day. I had a bad recovery (off work for a month). So I definitely needed help afterwards.

Hey everyone, since I started this thread, I wanted to provide an update on my condition (especially for the ones who are going thru a rough time). For some reason (and I used to read this in other posts and didn't really believe it), this last weekend I finally felt SO much better. It literally happened in just a day or two. I just felt so much better. And I was finally able to get in my 60 grams of Protein (first time). I even went to the gym to start the strength and toning part of my workout. I think the biggest reason I started feeling better is I wasn't in anymore pain. Pain from the surgery, pain from drinking too fast, nothing. Now, if I experience something uncomfortable, I know what it is and fix it. But the biggest thing that finally clicked was the mental adjustments I had to make, they finally fell into place. It took a few weeks but I am finally learning what I need to do to help my new body adjust to this. People, doctors, whoever can tell you you need to mentally prepare yourself for this surgery beforehand. I'm sorry but there is absolutely NO WAY you can mentally prepare yourself for something like this. You don't know what type of recovery you'll experience, you don't know what mental battles you'll endure. So you don't really know what to prepare yourself for. I can tell you it's going to get better but that doesn't help you now when all you want to do is self medicate yourself and just sleep the day away. All I can say is it does suck right now and it's ok to regret what did at this moment. I had people tell me to write out my feelings or talk to someone. But when all you want to do is crawl under the covers and not talk to anyone, those are the last things you want to do. Honestly, there is nothing anyone can say that is going to make your situation better right now. You have to get thru this part yourself. And only you can figure out the mental adjustments you need to make. It's your recovery......you complain, whine or vent as much as you want. You have gone thru a major surgery, you now have to get thru the mental changes. One nice thing is I'm now able enjoy the small victories like the 40 lbs I've lost in the last two months. And in a few more weeks, I pray you will be able to too. Thank you to everyone for your stories, suggestions and advice. This site and everyone on it has truly been a blessing. No one can truly understand what this journey is like unless you've gone thru it. Good luck to my "Sleeve Sisters" and PM if you need anything.

Thank you so much for sharing your story. I just wanted to see if anyone else had gone thru the same thing. It sounds like you are doing wonderful. I think I've hit the depression phase. I'm grieving the loss of food. I'm hoping I can get thru it quickly. Thank you again for your story and support. I really appreciate it!!

I think you're definitely right about it being a mental battle. I do have a counselor and am going to make an appt with her. I've had two kids (one vaginal and one c-section) and a hysterectomy (one of the reasons why I had the surgery was the weight gain from post-menopause). At 43, I would have thought this would have been a little easier. lol thank you!

I agree, the hernia repair was very painful and completely unexpected. I've also heard about an unflavored Protein from unjury. I'm going to try that. I just hope I'm not too late to where it affects the hair loss.

Mine did it thru the surgery too.

CW 226 GW 206 Sleeved 8/26/14

I'm one week post op and still dealing with muscle spasms and the normal "burning" pain every day. I'm still taking Dilaudid (pill form) for the pain but not as much as I was when I was initially discharged. My dr is not having me take any pills until my two-week follow up which is next Tuesday. Condition is slowly getting better but the pain is definitely still there. I'm trying to stay positive about it but if I had to do it over, I'm not sure if I would do this again. Having said that, I've really only experienced the bad with this surgery, I haven't yet experienced the good. Ask me in six months and 50lbs lighter, I may be teaching a class on it somewhere lol. I just wanted to make sure you understand that each person has their own unique recovery. I was like you, I learned as much as I could about it beforehand. You definitely need to do that but the whole thing will still be shocking and very hard. It's a mental battle every day. There's really no way to prepare yourself mentally for it. And that's the biggest challenge. Once you get that down, you'll be fine. Good luck and keep us posted!!!

Is this normal? I had my sleeve done 8/26 including a hiatal hernia fix. Was in the hospital for four days. I walked as much as I could to the point the nurses were telling me not to overdo it. Which I'm now afraid I might have done. Has anyone experienced a burning pain on one of their incisions? (And of course it's the main one.). Thank you!

I'm wondering if bending over might have been the cause. I was feeling pretty good this afternoon and picked up a few things off the floor (my children of course lol). Since then, it's like I've pulled something behind the big incision and the burning kicked in. I try to hold it with my hand whenever I'm moving. That tends to help. I'm also putting a heating pad on it for the swelling. Not sure if it worked, just trying all sorts of things to see what works.

Is it normal to gain weight during your hospital stay post-op? I'm wondering if the fluids and the narcotics has caused this. It's not a huge amount (six pounds), however, it's making me second-guess the surgery itself. Has anyone experienced this before? And when did you actually start losing weight? Thank you!!

When you think you're going to lose weight from the liquid diet you've been on for the last three days, it's a little disconcerting to see that number go up. I figured it was from the saline and narcotics, I just wanted to check and see if anyone else has experienced this too. Thank you!!

Count me in! This will be my first one, so I'm excited. I get sleeved in five days, I'm pretty nervous but ready for it! Thanks for putting this together!!

My GP informed me my metabolism level dropped significantly after I went thru menopause which was causing the weight gain at such a fast rate. Don't get me wrong, I also wasn't moving like I had been (workouts went from 3-4/week to just walks around my neighborhood). This was due to the unexpected fatigue that hit me hard at that time. So I started Weight Watchers, followed everything by the book for seven weeks. Not only did I not lose anything (weight or inches), I actually gained a little. My GP said it was because I was post-menopausal. This is why she recommended me for this surgery. I recognize my fears are creating these negative thoughts, therefore, I think I'm going to create a scrapbook of this amazing journey. I'm hoping it will keep me busy and motivated while I conquer this thing called obesity.