You will notice a great difference in feeling better at about 2 weeks out. Don't worry about the food, just make sure you stay hydrated. Sip sip sip your water and walk walk walk
Oh goodness! Two weeks? I was hoping it would only take two days. Haha. Ughh, well as I sit here sipping my broth and water, I'll keep thinking about the road ahead and what a positive outcome this surgery will have.
Good! focus on the positive! The two weeks will crawl, just do the "one day at a time" thing and it will get there (sometimes its one moment at a time), and after that, things start flying!
I'm glad everything came out ok! So sorry to hear you are so dizzy and nauseous. I didnt really have those issues after my surgery, but I can imagine it would be hard. I had been given Morphine before when I was in the hospital for cellulitis back in March, so I knew it gave me intense headaches and didnt do much for my pain. I told them about my intolerance and they gave me Fentanyl instead. The Fentanyl did nothing for my pain, all it did was make me sleepy, which was nice because if I could sleep I wasnt in pain for that time. I was in a lot of pain with my back because I have a herniated disc and my surgery took 2 1/2 hours and I laid flat during that entire time. The next morning after my surgery I was in tears from the pain. THEN--they came in with Lortab! That helped SO much more! Hard to believe that everyone talks about what a God-send Morphine and Fentanyl are when you're in pain, but they did nothing for me! If your pain is really bothering you, ask them if they can give you Lortab or something that is not intravenous. If you can drink fluids you should be able to drink liquid pain med. Something that helped me was putting ice on my incisions. I had one on my left side that hurt a lot more than others because they inserted a tube there to drain fluid and kept it there for the 4 days I was in the hospital. Putting ice on it that tube site really helped my pain.
Hugs to you, and I hope you are feeling better soon! What you are doing is very brave and very unselfish to want to do whatever you have to do to be around for your son!
Thank you! I'm so appreciative for the outpouring of support. I had a lot of people (like family) tell me how "stupid" my decision was and to be able to come to the computer and get support from people who don't even need to know me makes me feel like I made a good choice, and perhaps the family members who showed no support are just closed minded or miserable in their own lives. Thank you all so much for going through this tough time with me! <3 I definitely needed and NEED it!
Most likely you are weak and dizzy because you just had surgery. But in the next few weeks, watch your salt intake. It was the only real problem I had right after surgery, I was getting very dizzy and weak....it was a lack of sodium and potassium. And still, if I don't get enough salt, my body doesn't retain my potassium and I get dizzy and weak. Even almost 3 years out. I saw that you are sipping broth, Good! Maybe you could talk to your NUT or dr. about the salt content of the broth. After I switched to using salted boullion with my chicken broth, I stopped being dizzy. Just sayin'.....
Of course, consult your dr. first!
Angela
Last edited by missangelaks; 01-04-2011 at 08:16 PM.
Wow Mommy, sorry to hear you encountered some hateful people in regards to the weight loss surgery! That can be very difficult. My mom and my sister were both very much against my surgery at first, but they came around. My mom worked with a lady who had gastric bypass and she saw what a difference it made for her. I still dont think my sister fully realized how much I needed the surgery until she was there in the hospital with me. After fully understanding how much I really do weigh and how hard it is for me to do things, she got on board. Either that or she has decided to keep her mouth shut! Either way, I'm happy!
I'm hoping what you'll find after all of this is people becoming more educated about the surgery and therefore becoming more tolerant and understanding. Or, at least if they see how hard you are trying and what a journey this is for you, maybe they will at least cut the negativity! I find that a lot of people are uneducated (case in point: my boyfriend's cousin asking me a week after surgery if I was up to eating a cup of food yet! ) and that sometimes it just takes someone like you to open their eyes.
Whatever the case may be, 3FC is a great community and I'm glad you're reaping the benefits from it already. I've been a member for a few years but just recently came back after a 3-year hiatus, lol, and its just as supportive and wonderful as it always was.
angela - how did i miss that you had problems with your sodium and potassium? wow. glad it's figured out though - you might be the ONE PERSON in the world who HAS TO HAVE salt!! lucky you [i think].
BigM - given that your family and friends have said that your decision was 'stupid,' i gotta give you a heads up about relationships. They change after surgery. and not always for the better. You will be dealing with food differently, and that can change how you deal with people [ever been so angry with someone that you ATE so that you wouldn't yell at them? well - you won't be able to do that any more!].
your goal: live a healthier life. if that means that you express your anger [for example], instead of literally swallowing it, then so be it. just be aware of what's going on. this is one of those issues that drives many of us into counseling.
I was in a lot of pain with my back because I have a herniated disc and my surgery took 2 1/2 hours and I laid flat during that entire time. The next morning after my surgery I was in tears from the pain. THEN--they came in with Lortab! That helped SO much more! Hard to believe that everyone talks about what a God-send Morphine and Fentanyl are when you're in pain, but they did nothing for me! If your pain is really bothering you, ask them if they can give you Lortab or something that is not intravenous. If you can drink fluids you should be able to drink liquid pain med. Something that helped me was putting ice on my incisions. I had one on my left side that hurt a lot more than others because they inserted a tube there to drain fluid and kept it there for the 4 days I was in the hospital. Putting ice on it that tube site really helped my pain. 
What you are doing is very brave and very unselfish to want to do whatever you have to do to be around for your son! 
Either way, I'm happy! 
I find that a lot of people are uneducated (case in point: my boyfriend's cousin asking me a week after surgery if I was up to eating a cup of food yet! 
) and that sometimes it just takes someone like you to open their eyes. 
