It has been 4 days since my surgery and I still am having horrible gas pains & indigestion. I am even scared to leave the house because of the diarrhea. Is this normal & how long should it last? I am following the clear liquid diet to a tee because I am so scared to mess up. But I feel miserable :frown:

you got to get up and walk around as much as possible...that is what my surgeon warned me to do to prevent/resolve gas and indigestion issues. if you are already doing this or it does not help, please call your surgeon's office for advice.

i do hope you feel better soon.

Its completely normal!! I had the same issues. I didnt leave the house for a week. It only took a week for most of it to stop. Im almost 4 weeks post op and rarely get gas pains anymore. Dont worry give it a week or so! Hang in there...just the perks of surgery :frown:

I am sorry you are having a difficult recovery. Mine was a difficult, as well. But, now I am glad I had the band surgery.

My surgeon said if we diarrhea for 3 days, to use something like Imodium A-D.

For gas, use a heating pad on your lower back and/or shoulder, depending on if you have pain in your shoulder. Don't use a straw. When you use a straw, you suck air into your stomach. If your gas isn't in your digestive track, but it's from the air introduced during surgery, heat and movement are the only things that will help. I felt like I had an elephant standing on my shoulder, it hurt that bad. I thought I was going to cry, sometimes. And, believe me, I am not a crier. Between the fibromyalgia and endometriosis, I have a high tolerance to pain. There were times I'd rather someone cut my arm off than move it, but I knew if I didn't move it, the gas wouldn't go away as fast.

I would just hold my arms out to the side and do small circles. And I'd hald my arms out to my sides and slowly move my arms slowly towrs the front, until my plams were touching, then slowlt back out to the side ... NOT FAST!

If you are vomiting or dry heaving, DO NOT BE AFRAID to call your surgeons office. On the weekend, they have answering services for a reason. The answering service will relay your messege to the surgeon and (s)he'll give you other direction and/or call in a prescription for nausia and/or pain.

Also, my nurse told me to drink warm, not hot, fluids, as this helps relax the esophagus and this can help gas move, as well.

Hope you feel better quickely

I'm very sorry for your difficult recovery time. I had sort of a nightmarish recovery myself. I remember going into the doctors office for my one week check up and seeing all the people that had had surgery the same day as mine. One lady was in her seventies and she was practically dancing there in the lobby. I, on the other hand, was still getting help to use the restroom.

I read Kristine's response to you, and I think she covered most things that you can do to help alleviate your symptoms. I would agree with her advice entirely.

I would like to add, or empahsize, rather the importance of calling your doctor if you are not sure.

I also had diarrhea for a long time, and the nurse had even assured me that it was because of the liquid diet; however, when it persisted for more than a week, I returned to the surgeons office and wound up being rehospitalized for c-diff. Apparently, the antibiotic shot that I was given post op for preventive reasons had wiped out all of the good intestinal flora leaving me very susceptible to infection. I was in the hospital for 2 weeks with that infection.

Now, of course this is a very rare occurrence, I'm sure. I don't mean to scare you by any means. But, I would like to restate the importance of notifying your doctor of any symptoms that do not seem normal, or OK to you. He cannot help you if he does not know what's going on with you. Most of us are so afraid of bothering our docs, that we don't call, and the truth is that he works for you. If he is a good doctor, he will not mind the call even if its nothing, and he'll be very happy you called if its something he needs to help you with.

Good luck, I hope you feel better soon. I believe if you do all that Kristine has offered in her letter you'll feel better soon.

Wynn

I'm almost 2 wks post-op and the gas has given me an issue as well. Heating pad and tums has helped me as well as Imodium Ad. Like eveyone else has said walking,following your diet and do not hesistate to call your Dr.'S office for any questions or concerns.Hang in there each day will get better and better.Cece

I agree, call your doc Monday if you aren't feeling better, earlier if you have a fever over 100 or so. But I had loose bowels for about a week; it can partly be anesthesia (believe it or not) and of course, liquid in = liquid out.

People who take an opioid pain med (like Lortab or Vicodin or Hydrocodone or Darvocet) may not have the issue, because opioids are constipating! They have a whole different problem!

Just hang in there. It will improve. Walking and time will take care of the gas. Gas X will help if your body is making gas, too. (won't help with the post op gas but that should be gone soon)

One caveat:

Don't just take something like immodium without your doc's approval. Usually we have diarrhea FOR A REASON...our body is trying to expel something. It's the digestive system's way of getting rid of bad stuff and if we STOP that, well, the bad stuff is happy and really gets to thrive.

So sometimes diarrhea is a good thing, sometimes not.

Let your doc make that call.