Prestonandme

I am prone to migraines and tried many non-medication remedies but found immediate relief with Triptan. When I feel a migraine coming on, I take 50 mg of Sumatriptan and within 20-30 minutes, the migraine is gone. I know you stated that you'd prefer a non-medication route, and I hope you find one. But if the migraines become intolerable and are compromising your daily living, you may want to ask your physician about medication alternatives. And just an interesting aside, I found that when my sinuses were dry, the incidence of my migraines increased. So I flush my sinuses every morning with a saline spray and then apply Triple Antibiotic Ointment (OTC) just before bedtime. These treatments were suggested by my ENT and have cut my migraine frequency by about 75%.

You're extremely disciplined and knowledgeable. Plus you are meticulously watching your weight. If you are plateauing or even gaining a pound or so, you can reduce your caloric intake and increase exercise. I know you'll make the necessary adjustments and be fine. Make a list of extremely low calorie snacks (e.g., one red grape is 3 calories) that you can munch on if your cravings won't pass after some time. Really savor the snack. In the end, all of your vigilance and discipline will pay off and keep you at your ideal weight. I'll bet on it.

I didn't try alcohol until nearly a year post-surgery. Everything changed. Before surgery, I could drink wine or mixed drinks and develop a lovely mild buzz that would last for about an hour or two. After surgery, I had to give up wine and mixed drinks because of the new effects they had on me. I'd feel nothing for about 30-45 minutes after drinking, then suddenly feel extremely inebriated -- overwhelmed -- and the whooziness would last for several hours, plus sometimes I'd then get a bad headache. And diarrhea (TMI). These days I only drink one can of beer (Guinness Stout) at home. I wouldn't dare drink away from home because of the possibility of severe inebriation. A blood/alcohol card listing weight and BAC showed that hypothetically, a person of my weight would reach a BAC of .10 after drinking just one and one half glasses of wine! If and when you're ready to introduce alcohol back into your life, definitely drink at home first so you can find out how the alcohol now affects you. About a year ago, a woman posted that she drank alcohol at a party and felt completely fine driving home but during the drive she suddenly became overwhelmed by drunkenness and had to pull over and lie down in her seat. She got a DUI.

My poop suddenly turned black after I began drinking wine again. I had blood work done and discovered that my liver rates were elevated. I stopped drinking wine and other mixed drinks, and within 30 days, my liver levels had returned to normal. Apparently, my post-WLS system does not tolerate and process alcohol well.

Hi, I just returned from having my colonoscopy and fortunately had great results -- no polyps or other problems. But I asked my g.i. doctor about whether my symptoms (nausea, cramping, repeatedly going to the bathroom up to 11 times a day, etc.) could be due to vagus nerve damage from the surgery, and he said yes, it could be. Apparently, during the surgery, surgeons cut the gastric branches of the vagus nerve, "creating damage to preganglionic efferent and afferent fibers." In some cases, the damage can lead to gastrointestinal problems, including slowing of digestion, as well as various neuropathies. Throughout my colon prep, I learned that my digestion had slowed significantly -- what normally takes 30 hours to digest takes up to 50 hours for me. In several medical journal articles, WLS patients who lost weight quickly (reached their lowest weight within a year), tended to experience more health problems than those who lost weight slowly. My surgeon also said this when I had originally consulted him about my g.i. problems. The challenge is that vagus nerve damage causation can't be absolutely pinpointed through tests and exams. And at present there is no remedy for it other than *potentially* an implant called vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), which is really only currently used to treat epilepsy and depression. Noninvasive VNS is now available in Europe, and a noninvasive VNS device was approved last year in the US to treat cluster headaches. But other than that, only exercise and other lifestyle moderations (e.g., meditation, deep breathing) have been known to help ease vagus nerve-related problems.

Monitor your feelings for the first 30 days after you re-start your SSRI. If you notice any changes (heightened depression, listlessness, feelings of loss of self-worth), or even any physical symptoms such as abdominal pains, headaches, or nausea that seem unrelated to the surgery, then have a chat with your prescribing doctor about whether you will need to increase your dosage or switch to another SSRI. Remind yourself that your doctor will work with you to make whatever adjustments are necessary to get you back on track. You'll be okay.

I'm writing this as a follow-up to my prior post. It's 3:40am. I was struck by a painful bout of cramping and nausea about two hours ago. I curled up in a ball to try to fight the pain. Then for about an hour I was in the bathroom experiencing the types of cramping, nausea, and pain that is exactly like what you feel when you've had food poisoning. You feel the materials moving slowly, painfully through your intestines, you sweat, you feel faint, and then you go repeatedly, over and over, until the pain finally ceases. This happens to me about two or three times a week. Sometimes the nausea is low-grade and lasts throughout the day. Other times, it is sudden and explosive like right now. When I was younger, years before surgery, I only had these g.i. attacks about twice a month, and about two or three times a year the pain would be so bad, I had to go to the ER and be administered dilaudid. A medication finally stopped the g.i. problems altogether but they returned with a fury after WLS. Now the medication no longer works. It is scary to think that this will be my life from now on, at least until a medication is found that can treat the symptoms. I'm just really sad that this was an immediate aftereffect of the surgery. But my surgeon said this is a very rare reaction to the procedure.

If you are currently taking XR (extended release), you should ask your surgeon and/or prescribing doctor about whether you should switch to immediate release. I was told that post-surgery XR would no longer work, so instead of taking an XR SSRI once a day, I am taking two pills (half dose each), one in the morning, one at night. As for their effect, I've noticed no difference. They seem to be as effective as prior to surgery.

I am two years out and am struggling with nausea and serious g.i. tract issues that began after surgery and so far, despite numerous tests, blood work, scans, etc., cannot be diagnosed or treated. When I was young, I suffered from something very similar (described as "visceral hypersensitivity") which ultimately was successfully treated through SSRI's. For ten years I was pain- and symptom-free. But apparently the surgery somehow re-triggered it and I've unfortunately had to reject the doctor's only proposed remedy -- Elavil -- because when I took Elavil 17 years ago, I gained 15 pounds within a few months. The SSRI I take now (Wellbutrin) stopped the symptoms for ten years, but it no longer works post-surgery. So until other options arise, I have to live with these unfortunate symptoms. Xanax helps occasionally, though. And post-surgery, I've also had increased dental issues, too. I undertook RNY because I have three friends who underwent RNY ten years ago. All had different outcomes. One friend just regained 40 pounds and has no other health problems except dental issues (tooth loss). A second has lupus, which of course is unrelated to the surgery, but because of her illness, limitations, and medications, regained all of her weight. My third friend is now 75 and was diagnosed a few years ago with spinal stenosis which has caused her to live in severe pain, have numb arms and hands, and serious balance issues (she has broken bones and had concussions from several falls). Is it from the surgery? We'll never know. She religiously takes her supplements and undergoes blood work. She also has serious dental issues (tooth loss). But she is 75 so age may be a big factor. The other two women are in their mid sixties. (I am 61). I am still extremely glad I had the surgery and probably would have opted for it even knowing in advance that I would have to deal with the repeated onset of all these gastrointestinal symptoms, which at times can be disabling. It may be very difficult for researchers to track WLS patients over decades and observe myriad health issues that arise with time and age, and be able to determine which are due to the surgery and which have arisen independently. I would suspect that if clusters of symptoms (e.g., osteoporosis, iron deficiency) arose in large percentages, then they could make such assertions. There are so many medical advances these days that I am remaining positive that our symptoms, whatever they be, will soon be able to be better diagnosed and treated.

I hope this information is helpful for WLS patients who need to have a colonoscopy. I have one scheduled for Wednesday. After telling my gastroenterologist that I had WLS and have significant nausea problems, he prescribed Suprep for my colon prep. With Suprep, you have to drink 4L of water, preferably in one hour. I know I won't be able to do this, so I searched online and found medical articles that said bariatric patients can take longer to drink the 4L since their stomachs are so small. https://consultqd.clevelandclinic.org/which-bowel-preparation-should-be-used-for-colonoscopy-in-patients-who-have-had-bariatric-surgery/ . But the article stated that the authors prescribed a 2L alternative, Moviprep, for bariatric patients because it is much more easily tolerated. What upsets me is that I didn't find out about this until after I had purchased the Suprep. To even make matters worse, I found an article from the American Journal of Gastroenterology showing that of the three most common preps -- Miralax, Moviprep, and Suprep, "Miralax was successful in 87%, compared to 74% for Moviprep and 69% for Suprep" in adenoma detection rates. https://journals.lww.com/ajg/fulltext/2013/10001/comparing_miralax__versus_moviprep_versus_suprep.548.aspx So I am really frustrated and upset right now. Not only will I have to drink double the fluid amount that I could have, had my gastroenterologist prescribed with consideration to my WLS, but I have to take the prep that has the lowest rate of adenoma detection.

Before surgery, I ate lots of sushi. About three months post-surgery, I ate one order of sushi (ikura) and uni sashimi. They tasted wonderful but since surgery, I've found that I don't tolerate rice well. Even a small amount is too much, and I feel uneasy, so I pretty much stick to sashimi -- salmon, yellowtail, mackerel, uni, ikura, and egg cake (tamago) -- for special occasions. Nowadays, I mostly buy ahi tuna slabs (which are frequently on sale) and eat the ahi with horseradish.

Oddly, only Xanax, a benzodiazepine, stops the cramping, pain, and nausea, and does so within about 20 minutes. I've been taking Xanax for anxiety for many years (although lots of medical authorities counsel against long-term use of benzodiazepines) and unfortunately it is the only medication thus far that can reduce these terrible symptoms. I see my gastroenterologist again in two weeks (after a colonoscopy 😞 Maybe he will have other recommendations for treatment.

I'm 1 1/2 years old and have been living with nausea, cramping, and frequent bathroom visits since surgery. They performed an endoscopy, CT scan, and ultrasound on me, and also did a full blood workup. They didn't find anything. I'm now working with a gastroenterologist to find out of there are any medications I can take to stop the nausea and cramping (perhaps like muscle relaxers). The gastroenterologist had suggested Elavil but I turned it down. I had been prescribed Elavil in 2005 and gained 15 pounds over a four month period, even while doing strenuous exercise. Zofran, unfortunately, doesn't work for me. We'll see what the gastroenterologist suggests in two weeks.

I am only 62 but have been really happy with the results of my bypass. However... that said, I didn't realize that I would end up with so much wrinkled skin. I've been reading the forums for two years and haven't seen any other mentions of this outcome for older people. Without clothes, I look about 75. My dermatologist said that there's nothing that can be done -- I should just keep covered up. I'm probably an aberration since this isn't ever mentioned by posters and my surgeon said nothing about it.

Whether or not to eat sugar after WLS is a bit controversial. Some will say "in moderation" and others will say "never again." This has to be your personal decision -- which is right for you. A Cadbury bar is about 200 calories (you'll find a range of estimates if you google, but I'm going by MyFitnessPal's verified estimate). Are you eating just one at night or several? If you're having three, for example, you're adding 600 calories a day to your regular calorie intake. If that 600 calories exceeds your daily maintenance caloric needs, you could gain a pound every six days. In a worst case scenario, that would result in a five pound-a-month gain. So think about taking two steps. First, decide whether sugar will continue to play a role in your life. Acknowledge that it may be *extremely* difficult to give it up and you may need to come up with a substitute -- something you can chew on at night if you are feeling cravings. Second, if you decide you must have the Cadbury bars in your life to some extent, consider keeping a daily log of your calories so that you don't exceed your maintenance needs. In this case, try to eat the smallest amount nightly that would satisfy you, and chew each bite as many times as possible to savor the flavor. Lastly, if you decide you want to lose the regained weight, you'll need to recalculate your daily caloric goals so that you can start losing again. Be practical -- it's hard to shave off 500 calories a day for a one pound-a-week loss -- so set an achievable goal. I wish you the best and hope your husband is doing well.

I love filet mignon! I think I started eating steak about six months out. Over the next months, I found that eating meat sometimes would cause a feeling of "over-fullness" but most of the time would not. To this day, it's unpredictable. For example, two days ago, I ate some chicken and had to go lie down because of the sudden "over-fullness" sensation. But about 80% of the time (or more) I don't experience any problems when I eat meat. As someone else mentioned, it's important to cut the meat into very small pieces.

The three women I know who had WLS ten years ago all drink and eat at the same time. Their WL results differ dramatically: one remains at 125 lbs., one gained 40 lbs. back, and the third gained all her weight back and is now about 240 lbs. I'm 1 1/2 years out and still drink about 20-30 minutes after eating. However, if I eat something that is very dry, I will take a couple of sips of my drink right after swallowing.

I just had a lengthy conversation with my PCP and am feeling much better about my pooping problem. She said she believed it was "highly unlikely" that I had a twisted intestine (volvulus) because if I had, I would only have diarrhea. I would not be able to pass regular stools, which I do, because the stools would be unable to move through the twisted area. She further pointed out that my surgeon had misspoke -- he had said he would refer me to an ENT (ear, nose, and throat doctor), but he should have said I should consult a gastroenterologist. Fortunately, I checked with his staff and they had properly referred me to a gastroenterologist. She said that, in some ways, I am benefitting from this problem of repeatedly having to poop numerous times throughout the day. She said that toxins build up in the stools within our intestines and some of these toxins are absorbed back into our bodies. If I am pooping frequently, I am eliminating the toxins right away. Lastly, she said that "normal" pooping patterns can be extremely varied. If a person is going to the bathroom five times a day, that's still considered normal. She said that in her opinion, I should see the gastroenterologist and continue to use the Xanax if it helps.

YES. Several days a week, I will go to the bathroom five or more times. One day, eleven times. It's not diarrhea. Occasionally, this is accompanied by bad nausea throughout the day. Last week I visited my surgeon to discuss this with him. He said this was rare -- he really didn't see instances of it in his practice -- but he reviewed a CT scan I had done in March, when I was experiencing nausea and the frequent bathroom visits. He pointed to an area on the CT scan and said that it was possible that there might be a twist in the intestines, but he would only know that if I were to undergo exploratory surgery. When he had originally looked at the CT scan in March, he didn't see anything wrong. He offered to refer me to an ENT to determine if there was a gastrointestinal cause for this problem. I am scheduled to see him in two weeks. A friend of mine formerly worked in a hospital and said she didn't think I should undergo the exploratory surgery because when she was still employed (she retired), she observed several patients develop severe infections post-surgery and a few died. So I've decided that unless there is an extremely concerning reason (e.g., life-threatening) for the surgery, I will not undergo it. Just FYI, on some occasions, I have been able to stop the urges to go and the cramps by taking Xanax, which I am prescribed for anxiety. It stops the nausea and frequent bathroom visits about 75% of the time. I mentioned that to my surgeon.

Right after surgery, I burped every time I sipped liquids. It eventually resolved. The only times I burp now is when, for some reason, my stomach doesn't tolerate a food. It's an indication that I am going to vomit -- several burps in a row. This is really rare, though. It happens maybe once every three months or so.

I am currently 121 lbs but my electronic chart shows me as "obese." I called my doctor's office twice to ask staff to remove this classification but they said they can't -- they claim their office's electronic records don't show the "obese" classification, but for some reason it remains visible on my chart whenever I access it. So apparently I am going to be obese forever.

I have had markedly more flatulence than before surgery, and also have had new problems of repeatedly having to go to the bathroom all day (maybe seven or eight times a day) about three times a week. (Not pee). I had extensive examinations done and nothing abnormal was found.

During the first 1 1/2 years after surgery, I weighed myself weekly because the weight was easily coming off. When I plateaued, I then began weighing myself daily. This is to ensure that if there is any micro-trend toward weight gain, I can immediately take action by reducing calories by about 200/day until my weight becomes stable again. That said, I eat 1200 calories or less every day so am sometimes puzzled by weeks when I notice my weight increasing, even by a couple of pounds. For example, there was one two-week period where I gained and lost eight pounds without any changes in my diet/exercise routine. Most people weigh weekly and that's enough to stay on course. I'm a little more watchful because that's my comfort zone.

Absolutely. Even on my worst nausea days, I make sure I take my vitamin/mineral supplements. My nutritionist is fantastic. She makes herself available by email/phone five days a week and does not charge for the updated short consultations. I drink Ensure Plus on nausea days. I prefer the strawberry flavor. It's very inexpensive and doesn't taste too bad.

I think you'll be fine if you are scheduling regular dental checkups and cleanings. We can't predict our dental outcomes but we can prevent many problems by being vigilant, taking our vitamins/minerals, and investing financially in our dental health. As for my weight loss, even my surgeon does not know how I got down to 121 lbs. He had predicted I would end up at about 150 lbs. I did no more or less than any other WLS patient in terms of diet and exercise, but since surgery, I've struggled a lot with nausea problems and noticed that after extended bouts that lasted a few days (when I hardly ate anything) I would drop several pounds. I'm actually in a weird situation right now where I am working with my nutritionist to stabilize my weight by increasing healthy fats, drinking Ensure during nausea bouts, and eating very small meals before bedtime. Don't be discouraged about losing 1 lb. a week. We all reach a point in our weight loss when it slows down quite a bit. Keep up the good habits and you'll reach your goal!