Feel Like Progressing Backwards 1 Month Post Op

[BeaJ0913 6]

I had the Vertical Gastric Sleeve on January 23rd, and beside a bit of nausea from the anesthesia the first few days I was doing relatively well for the first 2 weeks. That all changed drastically on week 3 and now week 4. I can come nowhere near the amount of Protein or liquids or calories my Dr. wants me to consume daily. The reason being that Thursday of week 3 I began having excruciating pain in my lower abdomen and back and it starts within minutes of taking a sip of anything... It feels like someone is taking my mid-section and wringing it out like a wet cloth... It truly will take my breath away when it is happening... I also had to go back from creamy liquids to just Clear Liquids and that is very disheartening. On the plus side, I don't have any vomiting (YET), but this other pain is truly making my life miserable... I also, have severe pain in my left shoulder and I have seen in other posts that can be from gas that is trapped there... I have had 2 C-sections and numerous other surgeries, including a gallbladder removal in the past and THIS has to be by far the absolute worst pain that I have ever experienced in my life... Also, my Dr. did order labs on Monday of this week (week 4) and a swallow test and that did show that there was a bit of an issue with the angle of my esophagus to my stomach, but he wasn't overly concerned and put me on protonix... Nothing has changed... Is there anyone out there that has had these same symptoms that can possibly give me any hope that this won't last forever? I am literally in tears every night because I am regretting this decision... Even though I have been successful with weight loss so far... What is weight loss if I feel like death??? Any information or advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you.

Edited February 17, 2023 by BeaJ0913

[Arabesque 7,615]

Go back to your surgeon & demand, if you have to, help. There must be a reason for your pain. Ask for an ultra sound, X-ray, &/or a scope. Some pain is to be expected after surgery but not four weeks out. The odd twinge, yes, but not pain like you’re describing.

Gas pain is usually gone or almost fully gone after a week. Surgical gas rises so it can escape through the lungs. It settles behind the lungs & puts pressure on the phrenic nerve causing shoulder pain.

Some people talk about an occasional shooting abdominal pain which is often caused by internal sutures or muscles pulls & strains.

I’m wondering blockage, gall stone, …. Excess stomach acid can cause sharp cutting pain - are you on a prescription PPI?

Hope you get an answer soon.

Don’t worry too much if you’re not exactly meeting goals to begin. As long as you’re close you’ll be okay. It can be a struggle at first but your pain will be hindering your ability to reach goal as well.

[susanjane111 6]

I’ve been having almost this same exact problem but my surgeon doesn’t want to see me again til may even though I’ve told him and the team I worked with everything I’ve been through and I got mine a day after you i cannot keep anything down liquids solids anything it’s hard just getting Water down these days I’m not sure what to do I went to the hospital and they said I was fine I have no clue what to do / say I’m at a complete loss..

[BeaJ0913 6]

Well, make sure you keep telling the Dr's bc after I made that post last week I ended up and am still in the hospital as of today.... they found infection from a perforation of my stomach... last night they cleaned out infection and I currently have 2 drains... also, they found a hiatal hernia that had to be removed from my esophagus... if you aren't getting better, don't let them tell you nothing is wrong... listen to your body!

[learn2cook 639]

I’m so glad you stood up for yourself! You are worth it! @susanjane111 how’re you doing?

[susanjane111 6]

@learn2cook I’m not doing to well I can’t keep down a Protein Shake but I’m only 18 and my mom won’t take me down to a doctor saying how I’m find cause she got a vsg in Mexico and came back better then I’ve been doing for the past month I can’t drink anything and it’s not good

[pintsizedmallrat 475]

I did; it almost entirely sprung from an incident that happened about a month after my surgery.

I woke up in the middle of the night, and I always keep a cup of Water by my bed. In my groggy sleepiness, I drank several large gulps of water because I momentarily "forgot" I can't drink like that anymore. 30 min later I woke up choking on stomach acid and went through the most violent vomiting episode I've ever experienced (because I was fighting it; I hadn't vomited yet after my procedure and I was half-awake and terrified.). I THOUGHT that was the end of it. Apparently some of what I coughed up got into my lungs and kicked off a nasty infection that landed me in the hospital with bacterial pneumonia on IV antibiotics for a week and almost killed me. That's not an exaggeration; my husband has since told me he didn't know someone could get that sick and not die. He didn't think I was going to make it.

Some of the symptoms you're describing sound like some that I had early in the infection; if you start coughing up anything that smells or tastes gross/yeasty/cheesy/smells like an infection or start running a fever, go to the ER. Immediately.

[Lisa XO 117]

10 hours ago, susanjane111 said:

@learn2cook I’m not doing to well I can’t keep down a Protein Shake but I’m only 18 and my mom won’t take me down to a doctor saying how I’m find cause she got a vsg in Mexico and came back better then I’ve been doing for the past month I can’t drink anything and it’s not good

Good morning, susanjane. When you say you can't keep anything down, are you vomiting Water? Or is it just hard to drink?

Edited February 26, 2023 by Lisa XO

[susanjane111 6]

On 02/26/2023 at 10:04, Lisa XO said:

Good morning, susanjane. When you say you can't keep anything down, are you vomiting Water? Or is it just hard to drink?

Both kinda there’s days when I’m doing good but just feeling all out terrible I have no clue what to do my motivation is starting to shrink.

[BeaJ0913 6]

@susanjane111 You have to go back to the Dr. or another Dr. If I had continued to wait, then I could have become septic from the perforation in my stomach. You need to let your mom know that just because she had a great experience doesn't mean it's the same for everyone. It is very scary to continue to play with your health. It could lead to something that isn't reversible.

[susanjane111 6]

On 02/28/2023 at 16:20, BeaJ0913 said:

@susanjane111 You have to go back to the Dr. or another Dr. If I had continued to wait, then I could have become septic from the perforation in my stomach. You need to let your mom know that just because she had a great experience doesn't mean it's the same for everyone. It is very scary to continue to play with your health. It could lead to something that isn't reversible.

Thank you very much for your concern I’m actually feeling a whole lot better since my original comment and finally been able to get Protein Shakes down the proper way! I’m not sure what that episode was but I’ve got an appointment just to tell my doctor my concerns since I did have that scary episode but other than that I’ve been feeling so much better!

[SleeveToBypass2023 2,682]

On 3/2/2023 at 11:55 AM, susanjane111 said:

Thank you very much for your concern I’m actually feeling a whole lot better since my original comment and finally been able to get Protein Shakes down the proper way! I’m not sure what that episode was but I’ve got an appointment just to tell my doctor my concerns since I did have that scary episode but other than that I’ve been feeling so much better!

Good!!! I'm really glad you're doing well. I was getting concerned reading through this post, but I'm glad you're able to get Protein in a lot more now.