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Gastric Byass - Two Months OutJul 04 '05 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line The saga continues.
Ahhhhhhhhhh, the saga continues. For those that haven't seen my other reviews about my journey down the Gastric Bypass road, see my profile page for my other reviews. I am now a little over two months out. My surgery was May 2. Do I regret it now? Depends on the day of the week, I guess. Since I am still having issues, there are still days when I want to crawl under the covers and cry. I keep being told that over time this will all be just part of a bad memory and that I will be so happy that it was done! I haven't gotten to that stage yet, apparently. On June 24, I had my third Endosopy. The doctor, this time, didn't dilate me with a balloon. He said that everything looked good and that he didn't see a problem. This Endoscopy went a little more smoothly. Since they knew I had a high med tolerance the first two times, they hit me with extra meds in my IV, which they managed to get in the first time. Since they didn't use a balloon this time, the procedure was over in half the time of the previous two. Since I was still throwing up a few days later, he went to the Chief Surgeon and asked what his opinion was while I waited in the exam room. When my doctor came back and told me that the other doctor said that "I was a big lady used to eating big meals" and that I was probably just eating too much too fast, I started to cry. Obviously the "you're fat because you over-eat stigma followed me here, as well. I knew that wasn't the case, but nothing I could say or do would prove otherwise. My husband was livid. The first thing he said was that I don't hardly eat anything before running to the bathroom to throw up. I knew that, as well, but it didn't matter. So what now? I am doing my own thing. I still throw up once in a while, but as long as I am super careful, I am ok. I haven't been back to my surgeon since. What was said cut me to the bone. I haven't been that hurt and humiliated in a long time. My doctor is a nice guy and probably didn't mean to repeat everything the way he did, but it still hurt. The Chief Surgeon is one of the best in the nation at this surgery, probably THE best, and he knows it. He says what he wants whenever he wants and doesn't often think about how it comes out or how it will sound to who he is saying it to. He is about to get out of the Navy, leaving this month for a private practice in Florida, so he doesn't care anymore what people think. Well, that is my take, anyway. I was seeing him before my surgery and while he could be brisk and to the point, he wasn't rude. Lately, it's like he wants to finish his time and get out, not caring whom he steps on in the process. Anyway, am I still having issues? Yes. My first period since surgery was almost a month ago and about killed me. The cramps had me curled in a ball, crying. I even took Lortab to get thru the first two days. Nothing else even made a dent in the pain. My cycle ended up lasting two weeks. I had just started back on the birth control patch, you aren't supposed to get pregnant AT LEAST for 12 months after surgery due to the risk of birth defects, as well as your own health. I don't know if the patch was part of the problem or not? I had been on it for well over a year before surgery. I had to stop using it due to the risk of blot clots until around 6 weeks out from my surgery. It's now due for my cycle again and the cramps aren't as bad, but they still hurt like hell. Nothing like I usually have. How's the eating situation? Oh, I still throw up every couple of days. The things I am supposed to be able to eat (chicken, turkey, fish) make me throw up. Things I shouldn't be able to tolerate (beef/hamburger) sit just fine. I just have to make sure that not only do we use the highest low-fat we can find (90%+) but that we rinse it, as well. I still can't eat more than a few bites at a time before I am full, but that is normal. I also have went back to eating baby food on occasion. There isn't a lot of protein in it, I only eat the fruits, but something is better than nothing, and my body has no problem tolerating it. Protein shakes and such make me gag. I haven't ever been able to keep them down. I've even tried smoothies with protein powder and threw those up. My taste buds work overtime and can ferret out the taste no matter how much I try to cover it up. I almost immediately throw it up. Have I noticed weight loss? Yes and no. I don't see it when I look in the mirror, even though even my husband says he sees a difference. I have noticed that my pants aren't tight anymore. Before surgery I couldn't even fit into my jeans, even if I laid on the bed to try to zip them. Now they zip with no problem, even with me standing. I can sit behind the wheel of my car without my belly hitting the wheel. My seatbelt doesn't choke me anymore, I have more room. I put on a women's 3X t-shirt Saturday and it actually fit like it was supposed to, without me having to tug, yank and stretch it out. I am still exhausted. Since I don't get in all of the protein that I am supposed to, 60 grams a day. Trying to get in the 1 1/2 liters of fluids is near impossible, as well. When I was weighed at my doctor's office on June 23, I was 290.8 lbs. My scale is 7-8 pounds behind my doctors and I weighed 277 last night, so I am losing. He said as long as it keeps going down, he isn't worried. I am losing a little more slowly than to be expected, but since I'm not getting all of my fluids in (I drink milk rather than water since milk sits better on my stomach - which is also odd since a lot of people can't tolerate milk after this surgery) it isn't flushing all of the fat out like it should. Am I glad I did it? That is a loaded question. I am excited when I see the numbers on my scale drop, but when I am sitting in the bathroom floor, my head in the toilet tossing up whatever I ate, I regret it. I am sure that, eventually, I will be thrilled that I went thru this mess. Right now, I'm still not there yet.  |
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