Long hospital stay after sleeve

[james2021 160]

I just wanted to put this out into the ether because I wasn't prepared at all for the length my hospital stay ended up being -- vast majority of people seem to be in and out. My sleeve was Thursday 5/20 at around 11am and I was in the hospital for 4 nights and 4 solid days total.

I had some irregular heart activity coming out of surgery I guess (still don't have much detail on what that was about -- previous EKG was normal, all pre-op testing was normal), so the first day and night, they only let me have ice chips. Then on the second day my potassium was really, really low -- don't know why that was. They had to try a few different things to get my potassium up. Finally was released on Monday 5/24 around midday and after a couple of nights of rest at home I feel like a new person. Trying to recover in the hospital is miserable! Impossible to sleep!

Anyway, I was really expecting a short stay because aside from the super-morbid obesity I didn't have any other health problems and I'm in my 20s, but that did not happen.... be warned. All this said, I didn't pack anything "to do" and didn't need it even with a long stay. I was hardly even on my phone because I was so exhausted.

Did anyone else have a longer than anticipated stay?

Good luck with your procedures if you are reading this pre-op. ❤️

[lizonaplane 1,605]

That's interesting. I'm sure it could happen to anyone. When I had a colonoscopy years ago, they had a hard time getting my blood pressure up after the procedure. I was only there a few extra hours, but no one expected it. At the time I had very low BP all the time (now it's normal). I'm glad you're recovered now. Are they asking you do to any extra check ups?

[james2021 160]

TBD! I'm going to ask about it in my post-op appointment.

[WishMeSmaller 1,270]

Low potassium can cause heart arrhythmias, so that might have been your main problem. Kind of puzzling about your low potassium though. Glad you are out and on the mend! 💕

[james2021 160]

12 minutes ago, WishMeSmaller said:

Low potassium can cause heart arrhythmias, so that might have been your main problem. Kind of puzzling about your low potassium though. Glad you are out and on the mend! 💕

Oh that's really good to know!

[njlimmer 338]

I had a 4 night stay after my RNY on 3/3. I had a freak reaction to the Lovenox shot the day after surgery and started bleeding heavily. My BP went down to 70/34 and my hemoglobin dropped 5 points. I ended up with 5 units of blood and they took me back into surgery. My doc said in 11 yrs, he's never seen that reaction. So....yep... went in on a Wednesday and didn't come out till Sunday.

[aussiescot 26]

11 hours ago, muala94 said:

I just wanted to put this out into the ether because I wasn't prepared at all for the length my hospital stay ended up being -- vast majority of people seem to be in and out. My sleeve was Thursday 5/20 at around 11am and I was in the hospital for 4 nights and 4 solid days total.

I had some irregular heart activity coming out of surgery I guess (still don't have much detail on what that was about -- previous EKG was normal, all pre-op testing was normal), so the first day and night, they only let me have ice chips. Then on the second day my potassium was really, really low -- don't know why that was. They had to try a few different things to get my potassium up. Finally was released on Monday 5/24 around midday and after a couple of nights of rest at home I feel like a new person. Trying to recover in the hospital is miserable! Impossible to sleep!

Anyway, I was really expecting a short stay because aside from the super-morbid obesity I didn't have any other health problems and I'm in my 20s, but that did not happen.... be warned. All this said, I didn't pack anything "to do" and didn't need it even with a long stay. I was hardly even on my phone because I was so exhausted.

Did anyone else have a longer than anticipated stay?

Good luck with your procedures if you are reading this pre-op. ❤️

I am so glad you're home now and are feeling more like yourself. I'm sure it will be onwards and upwards (well, more like downwards for the scales) from here on in. I am scheduled for VSG for Monday and have been told I'll likely be out by Wednesday. I hope it won't be any longer than that.

[james2021 160]

12 minutes ago, aussiescot said:

I am scheduled for VSG for Monday and have been told I'll likely be out by Wednesday. I hope it won't be any longer than that.

Good luck!!!

[weberr24 7]

I had gastric bypass on April 14th 2021 was in the hospital 6 days had to have emergency surgery 2 days after surgery bowels was getting restricted i was in some pain kind a like a stomach ache but about 10 times worse went for my 6 week checkup today 05/28/2021 down to 200 pounds on surgery date 239

[Arabesque 6,565]

We all react differently to surgery (any surgery) & sometimes it’s unpredictable but aren’t you glad you were in hospital though & they were so vigilant post surgery. Imagine if you were at home. 😱

I was going to stay overnight because my surgeon didn’t want me going home to an empty house as a precautionary thing. Then I had a lot of trouble swallowing, my BP was very low & then my back went into spasm. Nothing as serious as you but I didn’t go home until day 4. I was glad my surgeon was concerned enough to want to monitor my progress in case something went south. Though it would have been nice to be in my own bed.

Glad you’re home now & recovering.

[njlimmer 338]

13 hours ago, Arabesque said:

We all react differently to surgery (any surgery) & sometimes it’s unpredictable but aren’t you glad you were in hospital though & they were so vigilant post surgery. Imagine if you were at home. 😱

Yes! The nurses were AMAZING! So glad I was there and not at home when it all started going crazy! Now trying to figure out if I'm allergic to Lovenox or if I have a problem with blood thinners in general. This might be info that saves my life in the future!

[ShoppGirl 3,423]

On the flip side of this they told me to expect two nights and I was able to drink and urinate and everything required after only one so I got to go home early.