Is it normal to not be able to drink water without it hurting? I read about everyone feeling no restrictions immediately after surgery and can't help wondering if something is wrong. I'm 3 days post op now and am just starting to feel like I can drink very small sips wihtout it hurting.

Hi Arb,

I'm nearly 2 weeks post-op and for the first week I was sore and so gasy that I too was only able to drink small amounts. I don't recall that I felt "restricted" but I know that I could only drink 1/4 - 1/2 cup of any liquid at one time. Over the first week when everything started to settle down I was able to drink more at a time - albeit, slowly. You will have some swelling which should begin to decrease with each day. If you are worried, give your clinic/surgeon a call to check. Good luck and a speedy recovery to you.

Mary

I am 2 days post op and have very little trouble drinking . I do get chest pressure so have i have to slow down and take deep breaths . it will get better soon .

I don't know if it's normal (call your doc), but I know that I was not drinking much those first few days after surgery. I was allowed to drink up to 1 ounce every 20 minutes. Doesn't sound like much, but I know I was not even doing that much.

Hey,

I am now 9 days post op and my turning point was yesterday. Up until then, I could only sip liquids and even then I could "feel"it. And I was sooo thirsty, I kust wanted to gulp it down. I felt like I could not drink enough! I even had jello get stuck on my third day because I did not chew it. lol But yesterday, was totally different. It was so different that it scared me and called my Dr. to make sure nothing was wrong. As of yesterday i feel no restrictions, I can drink like normal. Dr. said this was very normal that I was healing and that the swelling must have went down. Only problem is now I don't feel the restriction so, I have to be very careful of what I eat. So, it will get better, just take it slow and give it time. (I know that you are tired of hearing that, I was.lol)

I think listening to everyone that everyone is different. Slow and steady wins the race! You are the tortus right now. It's normal! I'm frustrated too, but everyone is here for you including me!

After surgery (for the day of, and probably 2 days after) I was only drinking about 30cc of water an hour (and then at some point it got up-ed to 30 cc every 30 minutes). I think on my 3rd post-op day I drank about a cup of broth too fast, and I felt SO full. It wasn't overly painful but it wasn't comfortable. So I sipped for 2 days more or so, and then all of a sudden, I too could drink as much as I wanted. So I think the swelling had gone down. I have my first fill on July 28th but as of right now, I can gulp water and not chew my bites as well as I should and I'm still fine. Hoping that will change with the fill!