Post-Op Pain

[frogftsh 37]

Hi, my name is Gail and I'm new to the community. I just had my surgery on Monday and was released to come home on Tuesday evening. Pain has been really rough and for some reason I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. I'm a nurse, you would think I would have been prepared, but I feel like a total wuss! My girls started kindergarten today with a one hour mini-session which I made myself go to (I don't think I would forgive myself if I would have missed it) which was rough. I was a big ol' sweaty Betty, walking and rocking myself the entire time, but I was there! I've been walking often, and I'm sipping through the day as much as I can but I haven't been able to get that 48+ oz in that they say yet. Something else I wasn't prepared for was the growling stomach and the urge to eat (I will not break the rules!), but I swear this evening my husband fixed hotdogs for dinner and all I wanted to do was lick one! How sad is that! Anyway, I just wanted to say hi, and vent a little bit. Any and all suggestions/support are greatly welcomed!

[dhrguru 1,238]

Hi! Welcome and congrats on having surgery and making a decision to make a healthier you!

I'd have went to my kids school function too! I probably would have signed myself out against medical advice if I had to!

Pain for me post op wasn't awful, but I wouldn't call it a piece of cake either. Holding a pillow to my stomach to control vibrations helped. And take the pain meds, pain should be managed, not tolerated! My Water goals were 20oz, then 50oz then 64. Remember broth, Soup, Jello and sf popsicles count towards your Fluid intake.

[paintergirl 41]

I'm 10 days post op. It is really hard looking a "real" food right now for me too. I keep rereading this

[aelovelady 243]

Keep up the good work. For most of us, food is an addiction, wanting to lick a hot dog isn't so bad! Just follow the direction of the doctor and nutritionist and you will be great! Keep us posted!

[Veronica_mm 87]

Guilty. Licked cheetoo puffs. : /

it's natural to feel like that. Not eating anything for weeks is really hard. I've done pretty well. I'm 2 weeks out. One more week and I move to puree

[frogftsh 37]

Thank you all! I'm glad I'm not alone in this :-)

[tls1210 25]

I had my surgery, Monday, as well. My pain isn't unbearable, but it is, definitely, there. The though of food nauseates me. I went to the store today and bought some broth from the hot foods department and it was disgusting - I threw it out. But, oddly, your comment about hot dogs made me laugh because I, actually, keep thinking about how good a hot dog would be - and I don't normally like hot dogs. Another weird craving is Kraft Mac n cheese - I I totally hate that stuff, lol.

[Veronica_mm 87]

Hi, my name is Gail and I'm new to the community. I just had my surgery on Monday and was released to come home on Tuesday evening. Pain has been really rough and for some reason I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. I'm a nurse, you would think I would have been prepared, but I feel like a total wuss! My girls started kindergarten today with a one hour mini-session which I made myself go to (I don't think I would forgive myself if I would have missed it) which was rough. I was a big ol' sweaty Betty, walking and rocking myself the entire time, but I was there! I've been walking often, and I'm sipping through the day as much as I can but I haven't been able to get that 48+ oz in that they say yet. Something else I wasn't prepared for was the growling stomach and the urge to eat (I will not break the rules!), but I swear this evening my husband fixed hotdogs for dinner and all I wanted to do was lick one! How sad is that! Anyway, I just wanted to say hi, and vent a little bit. Any and all suggestions/support are greatly welcomed!

I had a lot of pain too. Still do. I'm 2 weeks out. It is lessening though so keep your chin up. That burning, pulling, tearing pain still occurs if I move the wrong way, but not so frequent. It was constant pain and paralazing pain i had. Hope you feel better.

[Sajijoma 1,324]

Oh dear I haven't had surgery yet, but I am totally laughing at the idea of licking a hot dog. My biggest fear is my hunger will get the best of me and I'll lick my baby's face clean after he eats. I hope it doesn't come to that! ????

[epiphani 28]

Gail, you made me smile! We put such big expectations on ourselves as nurses, don't we?

Everyone has different experiences, and different challenges at different points. Make sure that you are taking all of the pain medicine you are allowed if you are really hurting... ask your surgeon about taking more or something different if it's not working. This surgery is a really, really big change for our bodies to adjust to... whether we have a lot of post-op pain or not.

Most people don't experience a lot of pain, but I promise it is worth it even if you do! You sound like a great mom. Take care of yourself so you can take care of yours!