Learn from my mistake and trip to the ER - Drink your water!

I am only 6 weeks post op and am super super paranoid about getting dumping syndrome. I secretly hope I am one of the lucky ones that don’t dump, but I don’t have any plans to test it out.

So, Saturday, I was working out in the yard in the sun and I kept feeling slightly nauseous/light headed. I took a few breaks for small snacks and did drink some water. About mid-afternoon I called it quits for the day and went in the house and drank a large glass of water. Shortly after, I had some Greek yogurt with PB2. Then, 15 minutes later, I was so nauseous, my stomach hurt really bad on the right side (radiating to my back) and I kept dry-heaving. I immediately thought, “Crap! I’m going to be a dumper!” I was sure it was the small amount of sugar in the PB2 (even though I have been eating that stuff practically every day.)

 As I lay in bed for about 3 hours trying to find a comfortable position, I swore off any type of sugar forever. However, the pain was in my lower abdomen/back and it was a sharp pinching pain, not “cramps” so it didn’t completely add up to me. So, I started wondering if I was having a gallbladder attack and, when things didn’t improve, I drove myself to the ER hunched over the steering wheel in pain with my overnight bag anticipating some sort of emergency surgery.

 Well, a CT scan revealed that I had a kidney stone. This is likely due to the high protein diet and getting dehydrated. I have been drinking what I thought was a decent amount of water, but not quite up to the amount my doctor prescribed. I will definitely be drinking more water from now on… Lesson learned!

64 ounce is the MINIMUM recommendation for fluids.  Many of us have to drink MUCH more to stay stable.  I drink at least 120 ounce daily to stay healthy.  I'm sorry you had to learn the hard way how important drinking your water is.  I don't go ANYWHERE without a water bottle in my hands. 

I have been told if you put lemon in a glass of water (without any sugar) the kidney stones can't grow.  My mom has had kidney stones for yrs (it runs in her family).  The doctor told her the last time to start putting lemon in her water (1 glass a day).  I started it just to see if I can be one person in the family NOT to get kidney stones. Instead of a lemon I use lemon oil from de torra.  Maybe this might help you in the future but still make sure you drink your water! Good luck

Hope you are feeling better. I feel (or should I say have felt) your pain. 3 weeks post -op same thing... I was a kidney stone sufferer pre-op so I knew what it was and really should have known better but it is so hard to get the liquids in those first weeks and well... bam. Doubled over, same scenario as yours. Mind numbing those little suckers. 

So 8 1/2 years later older and wiser (haha in some things) I know dehydration is one of the 2 most common reasons for re-admittance (the other being infection.) They (hospitals, bariatric programs, everyone) really need to stress that importance even more than they do!  

Hope it never happens again.

~Michelle "Shelly"

We are glad you are doing better!  Have a bottle of water velcro'd to your hand at all times.

Yikes!! Thank heavens you're recovering! I've been super vigilant in my 2 weeks post op to meet the 64 oz. water (on top of other liquids).  It's getting easier now - yesterday I exceeded 64 slightly (72oz) for the first time. I'm going to keep working on it - thank you so much for sharing your pain and experience.

Christine