O.M. Freakin.G --4 Days Post Op

Okay today I had a horrible day. BAD  I kept feeling my stomach turn and had insane back pain.  Now I haven't had a BM since last Thursday.  I made an impromptu visit to my surgeons office telling him what I was feeling. He said the painkiller Hydrocodone can cause constipation ...GREAT!and as for the back pain, I should have it b/c they repaired a hernia before placing the band.  So anyhow I used a suppository to get me back to "normal".
 
I felt a little better but I still had the insane back pain and the feeling of tightness right under/between my rib cage. Did anyone else have this feeling of being bloated??  I have not had a fill so is this feeling of restriction normal?

Hang in there... you will feel better and better each day. I had a pretty easy recovery from my banding, so I can't help on what you are experiencing, sorry. I am sure the hernia repair with the banding is making it more difficult. ((hugs))

Thanks for the support, hun.

Yes pain the same...today has been a week for me...Im a tad bit better..but still pain. Very bloated...I cant ever burp and when My body trys to do some sort of weird burp thing it hurts...My port area is so sore!!! I want to feel normal! Feel better girl

Okay we are so on the same page.  I have no troubles burping or tooting but when I have to do it, I have to hold my belly so it doesn't hurt so bad. I wanna feel normal too, girl! Obvisously we are supposed to be feeling these things so soon after surgery since the symptoms are so similar so we'll hang in there together.  Feel better, too!

Hey Telisha,

Trust me it gets better.  The first week was the hardest for me and I was going crazy wondering if I'd ever feel like my old self again.  Even though the surgery is out-patient and most band folks get to go home the same day, it's still very stressful on your body.  I watched a video of the procedure on youtube and it gave me some insight as to why certain areas of my body ached or felt like they'd been poked and prodded, and it's because well...they had been.    Just try your best to take it easy and you'll feel better soon.

High five,

Lauran

I went through the very same thing, My Doc told me that with the hernia repair I'd have a little more pain. What was he kidding! It was horrible I wanted to die , it didn't help that I got my period the day after surgery. I called him on a Sunday, he said quit the pain meds and just take Ibuprofin. Once I did that it got a little better and then I finally1 week later had a BM and I felt like a million bucks. My port site and all the muscles in that area were a bit sore for a while. I kind of ignored the weight lifting restriction. I have a 22lb.8 month old baby. So hang in there, remember to take it easy.   Good luck, Jean

He TOLD you to take ibuprofen!?!?!? At my pharmacist visit( and my doc agreed), that I should NOT take NSAIDS, and not ibuprofen....but Tylenol(acetamenaphin) is OK to take. Maybe all docs differ on this ...just know what I was told...

I had my surgery on the 13th of Jan and the first week was hard. Anytime I had to sneeze, cough and burp I had to hold my belly so it wouldn't hurt. As for the pain walk , walk and walk. If you have a heating pad use it that's what I did. it helped.but trust me it will get better before you know it. I just returned back to work yesterday and I am fine, just a little tender by my port. hang in there

 Ms. Lauran, you're brave girl for watching!  Good for you.  Gives you a perspective indeed.  
Ms. Telisha, I hope you're feeling better soon.  I was banded on the 18th and today I was running up and down the stairs doing laundry and vaccuming cause I couldn't stand it anymore.  
I had ridiculous back pain too and the incision pain at the biggest site is bad.  I also had crazy pain right in the middle below my chest.  It's still bruised pretty bad.  I quit using the Lortab around day 3 cause I finally got myself "going" again and I didn't want to mess me up.  So I also used a heating pad which did a world of good!  I then would only take the Lortab at night before bed (15 mL) cause I sleep best on my stomach.  
I know drinking as much water as you can manage will help with the constipation.  Being banded and not getting in a lot of water will put us at higher risk for gall stones and kidney stones as well.  So yet another reason to try and keep hydrated.  
Your feeling of restriction should get better as the days progress as the swelling around your stomach goes down too.  Keep your chin up, have faith, there's a rainbow on the other side of this week.