I have a question from anyone who had a port for the surgery? Did it leave a *dip* in your stomach? My sister just had this done, and she has this *dip*..its getting better, she is almost 4 wks post op now.....also, I know all drs have different post op diets, but, she has to be on Clear liquids for at least 4 wks, and then she is to call at 4 wks and they will tell her if she can go to stage 2 foods...like the puddings and such...

went to a different dr and my post op diet was 1 wk clear liquids, 1wk solid liquid, then puree'd and so on...iit seems to me to be a bit drastic to have to do 4 possibly 6wks of clear liquids, especially when things are going GREAT for her....or are they going to wait till that *dip* goes away before she is able to progress??

she was told that they had to put a stictch in a muscle or somthing to that effect and that is what caused the dip?

Im just curious if anyone else ever had anything like that too?

Thanks

Why did your sister need a port? A port is typically needed for people who need a med administered to them over a long window of time. I don't think too many people have this issue for this surgery but I could be wrong. Hopefully her recovery continues well.

I did have a drain called a penrose. I had my gall bladder removed at the same time requiring the drain. It was a bit more than I expected and did leave a considerable scar. Ironically my scar from that drain is actually somewhat elevated. Since I'm older I am not that worried about it, but it's pretty significant compared to the little lapro scars that are already barely visible. The place where the drain was (and that's an area that's actually left open to heal shut very slowly after the drain is removed) is about 2 inches long and very thick. Icky looking thing. Oh well....just a supplement to my stretch marks.

Why did your sister need a port? A port is typically needed for people who need a med administered to them over a long window of time. I don't think too many people have this issue for this surgery but I could be wrong. Hopefully her recovery continues well.

I did have a drain called a penrose. I had my gall bladder removed at the same time requiring the drain. It was a bit more than I expected and did leave a considerable scar. Ironically my scar from that drain is actually somewhat elevated. Since I'm older I am not that worried about it, but it's pretty significant compared to the little lapro scars that are already barely visible. The place where the drain was (and that's an area that's actually left open to heal shut very slowly after the drain is removed) is about 2 inches long and very thick. Icky looking thing. Oh well....just a supplement to my stretch marks.

Thanks for clarifying for me...It was a *drain* and it did come out before she left the hospital, its just that *dip* that looks weird...and Im wondering if they wont let her move onto anything other than clear liquids until that *dip* is gone??? 4-6wks on clear liquids seems crazy to me....but I understand all doctors are different and have their own ways of doing things....

She is doing GREAT, and Im so proud of her, you can already tell a huge difference in her

Yes, mine closed up and initially was dipped in too, eventually I lost the fat and it flattened out, I suspect your sis may have the same results.

I don't think the long term liquid should have anything to do with having a drain. My protocol post-surgery was the same as everyone else's. You know it's funny....at the time it was a big deal but now it's actually hard for me to remember but I think I was on full liquid 4 weeks. That wasn't bad. But 4 weeks on clear liquid would have been awful for me. Even w/ full it was hard to get in 300 calories and I was very weak on that little. I hope it's not too difficult for her to get that long out on so little. Frankly, it would have been for me. Pretty sure I was only 1 week clear, 4 weeks full liquid, 4 weeks mushies, 4 weeks soft, then slowly to full food. And that seemed a lifetime!

I didn't have a drain but I had a 1/2 a golfball size divot below the main incision. It eventually went completely away as I lost the fat around it. Tell your sister not to stress to much about it. Good luck to her!

I had the "dip" too but my surgeon told me that was the area he removed scar tissue that I had from a previous surgery. I'm only 3 weeks out and my "dip" has flattened some. I'm confident it will go away as I continue to lose weigh. Tell your sister to be encouraged. She'll be fine. As far as the 4 week liquid diet...hmmm. I did a 2 week pre-op liquid diet. Then 1 week of clear liquids immediately after surgery and then a week of full liquids before moving on to mushies. WIth 4 weeks of liquids I'm assuming she'll lose some major weight!

All the best to you both,

Niki