4 Month Surgiversary
Yesterday was my 4 month surgiversary. As many of you have read in previous posts, I have had a rough go of it. Up until about a week ago, I had been confined to my home since surgery. Struggling with dehydration due to diarrhea 7-8x/day for 4 months. After seeing multiple Dr's they have decided that it is not surgery related. I have chronic pelvic pain and they have been treating that with ER Morphine for the past 5+yrs. When preparing for my surgery they took me off the morphine and put me on a fentanyl patch. The diarrhea began about 3 days after that change. They thought that it was just a bug that was going around and since I didn't have an infection my surgeon opted to go ahead with the surgery. I had surgery and experienced a lot of difficulties with pain control and swelling in my new tiny tummy. I was about 2 months before I could get more than 40oz of fluid in a day. Thankfully I followed all the wonderful advice from my OH friends and was able to learn some tricks to get around my swollen tummy and get more fluid in. Due to the diarrhea/dehydration I haven't done much exercising, but about a month ago the Dr cleared me for light to moderate exercising. The big change happened almost 2 weeks ago. My pain management Dr decided the patch wasn't working after increasing it for the 3rd time, so with my surgeons blessing, he putting me back on the ER Morphine, although this time it was double the dose I had been taking because he needed it to be equivalent to the patch. I had some major side effects and things were rocky for about 5 days. But, the BIG change...no more diarrhea, no more pain!! I could leave the house without fear of having an accident. I was able to go to church for the first time in 4 months. I was able to go to the grocery store and run errands with my husband. I am no longer a prisoner in my own home!! My surgeon, Gastro Doc and pain management doc all feel that I currently have colitis and have more than likely had it for years now and the morphine has been masking the symptoms and for the most part keeping the flare ups under control. Every 3-6mos I have been in the E.R. with what they were telling me was a stomach virus, but now the Dr's think that it was colitis flare ups. I am definitely beginning to enjoy my sleeve now that I am not spending all my time in the bathroom lol
I have noticed a few changes that I would like ya'lls opinion on though. Since going back on the morphine last week I have noticed that my fingers, ankles and feet have been swollen. I haven't had that issue since before surgery. A friend was thinking that maybe since I'm not losing all my fluid via diarrhea, that that may be why they are swelling now. I have increased my fluid intake since going back on the morphine. As most people know any narcotic makes you really thirsty. So, maybe my body needs to adjust to the additional 20-40oz/water/day? This past month was a really low month for me too. I lost 4lbs. Which 4lbs is 4lbs less than what I was carrying around. Most people, me included, thought that I would pull bigger numbers in the beginning since I have so much to lose. I have excepted that I am going to be a slow loser. I have read that a lot of people slow down or stall in the 3rd month, so maybe that could be it as well. I know there are a lot of different factors and my hormones have always played a huge part in my weight loss/gain. I take progesterone and it actually increases your appetite. which sucks. So, I'm hungry pretty much 24/7. I also noticed that I was taking in too many carbs recently. I was still staying within my surgeons limit, but I agree with many on here who follow really low carbs during weight loss phase. I have been making those adjustments the last 3 days now.
Mainly I just don't know what to do about the fluid retention. Should I drink more? drink less? I am looking for some help from ya'll. Thanks for reading my ramble!! I appreciate everyone on here and everyone's opinions. There is no way I could've done any of this without all the support from here. I don't see how people go through this process with ya'll!!
Lindsay ~ 5'4" ~ HW (5/6/13): 280 ~ SW (5/17/13): 273 ~ CW: 140
Losses by month: pre-op: -8 M1: -18 M2: -12 M3: -13 M4: -9 M5: -10 M6: -12 M7: -14 M8: -12 M9: -2 M10: -8 M11: -9 M12: -2 M13: -6 M14: -7
I have some Lasix that I took preop for fluid retention. My surgeon didn't want me taking it postop because of my trouble getting my fluids in. I don't have that problem anymore. I will take one in the morning and see if that helps. I have a physical scheduled for Tuesday, so I will talk to PCP about it as well. Thanks for the reply!
Lasix is a pretty heavy-duty diuretic. The diuretic I take is a combination of HCTZ and triamterene, both of which are potassium-sparing diuretics. I was prescribed HCTZ long before I had surgery as it was a part of my blood pressure medication, so I knew what to expect with that. Be careful with the Lasix now since your weight has changed, your dose might not be the same now.
I wouldn't even want to venture a possible treatment option due to your current treatments and conditions. I will say though that I am soooo happy that you are feeling better in relation to pain management and moving forward. I bet with your recent activity that the fluid retention in the ankles and the such is related to the increase in activity recently and gives proof that the pain management treatment is working and allowing you to be more active. So the good news is...you are feeling better so you are doing more...the bad news....you are feeling better so you are doing more...ha! I would definitely keep going with the fluids and definitely be mindful of activity before and even though you are feeling better just be mindful that your body is used to a certain thing and may need slow transitions. Ok, so I said I shouldn't venture possible treatment options...ha! Go to the doctor and ask about it...you might even could call your doctor's nurse and just make sure that there is no possible side effects from your medications that might cause fluid build up, etc. Good Luck!
