Post Gastric Sleeve Plication Surgery And Sleeping

mednar · June 17, 2011

I had my plication done last Monday, June 6. Other that significant discomfort coming out of anesthesia and a bit of nausea the first couple of days, I've been pretty amazed at how little recovery time I've seemed to need. Based on my experiences so far, I'd like to hear what you others with the surgery have experienced in regards to my question below.

1. I slept in a recliner for the first two nights in a reclined seated position. I've since slept in my bed, but I definitely find that my stomach seems to dislike me sleeping on my side, and I can't lie on my stomach (not that I expected to be able to at this point). I've always been a side/stomach sleeper, so this change has made sleeping less easy. When I lie on my side, it feels like my stomach must be contracting or trying to move in some way. It's not painful, but it's definitely a strange sensation when I try to fall asleep. I really can't tolerate sleeping on my stomach at this point.

I have a good supply of hyoscyamine (supposed to reduce contraction of the smooth muscles in the digestive tract) that the doctor prescribed for after the surgery, but I don't find that it seems to do all that much.

Did anyone experience this? How long did it last? Was there anything you found helpful in preventing this?

Thanks in advance.

chowchows · June 17, 2011

I had my plication done last Monday, June 6. Other that significant discomfort coming out of anesthesia and a bit of nausea the first couple of days, I've been pretty amazed at how little recovery time I've seemed to need. Based on my experiences so far, I'd like to hear what you others with the surgery have experienced in regards to my question below.

1. I slept in a recliner for the first two nights in a reclined seated position. I've since slept in my bed, but I definitely find that my stomach seems to dislike me sleeping on my side, and I can't lie on my stomach (not that I expected to be able to at this point). I've always been a side/stomach sleeper, so this change has made sleeping less easy. When I lie on my side, it feels like my stomach must be contracting or trying to move in some way. It's not painful, but it's definitely a strange sensation when I try to fall asleep. I really can't tolerate sleeping on my stomach at this point.

I have a good supply of hyoscyamine (supposed to reduce contraction of the smooth muscles in the digestive tract) that the doctor prescribed for after the surgery, but I don't find that it seems to do all that much.

Did anyone experience this? How long did it last? Was there anything you found helpful in preventing this?

Thanks in advance.

I had the same experience post surgery. I never sleep on my back, so it was a strange experience. I ended up sleeping on my side, but putting several pillows around my body to kind of support my stomach when I was on my side. It seemed to work. I noticed issues with the sleeping for the first three weeks or so, then after that things seemed pretty much like normal.

TijuanaPlication · June 17, 2011

I slept on my back for the first 4 nights in a recliner/hospital bed with the knees and upper body up in a recliner-like position. From my 5th night I went back to sleeping on my front, no pain at all.

I did experience that weird sideways on pain/discomfort. I've not tried for months as I didn't like the feeling.

I'm sure you'll be able to sleep on your stomach soon. Good luck!

lauraleigh · June 20, 2011

I slept on my back for the first 4 nights in a recliner/hospital bed with the knees and upper body up in a recliner-like position. From my 5th night I went back to sleeping on my front, no pain at all.

I did experience that weird sideways on pain/discomfort. I've not tried for months as I didn't like the feeling.

I'm sure you'll be able to sleep on your stomach soon. Good luck!

i am a tummy sleeper also.i had my plication done in January and have no problems at all sleeping in any postion now