What am I doing wrong?

CarlaG · March 16, 2008

I was banded on 3/13 (also hernia repair). I tried to drink my Protein on 3/14 and it made me feel really bad and I had a lot of shoulder pain. I didn't drink any Protein drinks yesterday thinking maybe the milk was bothering me. I also didn't take the prescription pain meds to eliminate that also.

This morning I got up and had absolutely no shoulder pain. Felt pretty good actually except for soreness.

I made a cup of Protein Drink with Water instead of milk and now again I am in agony. I took about 30 minutes to drink it (it was very thin).

What am I doing wrong? I'm so afraid I'm going to run myself down since I have absolutely no desire to eat or drink and I'm forcing what I am taking in.

Please help!:confused2:

sfeiner · March 16, 2008

First, take your pain meds please. Why suffer needlessly. Then do the walk, walk, walk, sip, sip, sip. Thing. Sip slower and almost constantly when you are awake. 30 min might be too fast for you now. Slow down..tiny sips. As soon as you start to feel any discomfort, stop for awhile and walk. Don't rush anything. I hope you feel better soon. Don't forget to take that pain med.

shortgal · March 16, 2008

Try thinner (clear) liquids instead and take very small sips. You probably have a little more swelling around the band from hernia repair. I had a hernia repair as well and I could barely drink Clear Liquids the first few days. Some warm chicken broth might go down ( I couldn't tho") there was something about it that bothered me for the first week.

I was told no Protein powder for the first couple weeks. Try light apple juice or sugar free Jello or Isopure CLEAR pre-mixed drink. They have lots of flavor and lots of Protein. You can get them at GNC store or Vitamin shoppe.

CarlaG · March 16, 2008

Shortgal, were you told no Protein for the first couple of weeks because of the hernia repair? At my pre-op appt. the doctor said to start them the next day but that was before he knew about the hernia repair.

Did you have shoulder pain? I read in another post that one person was told the shoulder pain was something to do with the hernia repair.

shortgal · March 16, 2008

Shortgal, were you told no Protein for the first couple of weeks because of the hernia repair? At my pre-op appt. the doctor said to start them the next day but that was before he knew about the hernia repair.
Did you have shoulder pain? I read in another post that one person was told the shoulder pain was something to do with the hernia repair.

My pre-op diet was not different (for my Dr.) b/c of the hernia. But while they allowed clear Protein drinks, they do not want their patients to have protein powders for several weeks.

Yes, I had a lot of shoulder pain. I think the shoulder pain is worse with swelling in general and we might have more swelling b/c we had more surgery.

The heating pad helped a little, but time was what helped the most.

After one of my fills, I had a very mild version of the shoulder pain, again probably related to swelling after the fill.

I really believe some of that pain is related to the vagus nerve that runs in that area.

By day five, I was feeling much better and second week went much smoother. I was able to tolerate Clear Liquids in the first few days, but had very little appetite. Hang in there, but don't let yourself get dehydrated.

CarlaG · March 16, 2008

Thanks Shortgal.

This is what I've done today. I went to the store and got some boneless, skinless thighs. I boiled them with bullion and some yolk free egg noodles. I cut the chicken up and then put the broth, some chicken and noodles in my Bullit pureed it. I then strained it to make sure there weren't any big pieces of chicken.

You would not believe how much better I feel. I was so sick of all the sweet stuff since I'm not a big sweet eater anyway.

I also went to Sonic at the suggestion of HarleyNana and purchased some of their ice. Its very easy to chew and I have gotten in a whole 20 ounce cup today so far.

I know we are not supposed to have carbs, but I figured with the small amount of noodles I put in there and they offer 8 grams of Protein, I'm not being too bad.

The pain has also eased up some. We went and walked around Walmart and I could just feel air moving all over the place. I thought I was getting enough walking in around the house but apparantly not.

Thanks for listening!