less than 72 hours!!! I have some questions!!

I have to be on clear liquids for 24 hours before surgery and then I will be NPO for over 24 hours ****il I get my swallow study ).

1) Will I be hungry/thirsty while I'm in the hospital???

2) How long did you have to stay in the hospital?

3) When do you get up to walk?

4) How long were you off work?

5) On a scale of 1-10 how bad was the pain?

6) Does this surgery really cut out hunger?? How about cravings???

That's all I have for now....sure I'l have some more :)

 Hi, I was sleeved last Monday so here are my answers to your questions.  Please know it is different for everybody1

1.  i was super thirsty when i woke up.  Due to nausea they held off on the ice chips for a while.  Once I had those then at least I could do something about it.  Take lip balm (Carmex worked well for me.  This was hugely helpful.  I was not even minimally hungry, and I would be shocked if somebody else was hungry after surgery.  You will be surprised at how NOT hungry you are!

2.  Surgery done at 10:30 on Monday, released Tuesday about 6 p.m.  Docs and nurses were leaning toward keeping me for another day due to my nausea on day 1, difficulty taking deep breaths still on day two, and barely touching the "full" liquid meal served.  They were ok with me leaving and I felt much better being home.  The deep breath issue resulted from a hiatal hernia repair, not the stomach surgery.

3.  First night about 10:30 was my first walk.  Didn't go far, but it felt great to get off my back.  Tuesday morning as soon as the hubby made it back in I walked in short bursts all day, longer and longer each trip.  

4.  Planning on going back to work on Jan 4th.  I am a teacher and that is when my break is over.  I feel pretty darn good now so I am not thinking this will be a problem.  My follow-up is not until Thursday though, so we shall see.

5.  On the scale, a 5 during the first 12 hours, a 4 during the remaining time in the hospital.  You should know that I did not use the morphine pump after the second hit on the first night.  Turns out that was a huge part of the nausea for me and I felt better without it.  I was super surprised on Tuesday night when they told me I had NO pain meds since the last morphine hit.  Even without a tylenol it was more than tolerable.  Most of my pain was from the hernia repair and very little from the stomach surgery.  

6.  It totally wiped out hunger.  I had a couple times over the week where I wondered if I was hungry or just gassy.  No joke, if I am hungry and cannot say for sure it is hunger!  Love this part!  I have no cravings.  I went through Christmas Even dinner, Christmas dinner, family over today, and tons of deserts everywhere.  I realized at lunch today that it wasn't the food I missed per se, but more the sensation of biting into the beautiful panini that was grilled for the family.  I cannot tell you, however, how long this will last as I am so new. 

I absolutely love the sleeve!  The recovery has been super easy for me so far.  I am having no difficulty following the doctor prescribed menu, no difficulty getting the minimum protein down or water intake.  My only hiccup  is that my blood sugar seems to drop too far so I am having to juggle the low levels of carbs that I am taking in a bit more carefully.  I have no regrets at all!

 1.  I was not hungry in the hospital but had not problem drinking what they brought me including frozen lemonade and jello -- just a few bites but no problems
2.  I stayed 24 hours from walking in to walking out.
3.  I was walking after I got to my room and all settled in and checked out.  I walked in the middle of the night several times and slept in between.   No problems walking just stayed near the railing cause I was still wobbly from the surgery.  No one stayed overnight with me.  I had surgery at 11 a.m. and sent my sister home at 10 because I was fine.
4.  I went back to work after 2 weeks of leave,  I did fatigue easily and left early to go home and take a nap around 3 the first few days but my employer was very accommodating.  I got a laptop and worked from home 1/2 days the next 2 weeks so I could get my stamina back.  It was fine.
5.  Pain was a 4 -- it wasn't sharp anywhere but right after surgery I started feel an overall ache but the nurse responded quickly witth something in my IV.  Once I knew the nurses would take care of my well I sent my sister home.  She was going to stay if she needed to be my advocate but they were very responsive so I was comfortable being alone that night.   I only asked for pain meds once in the hospital.   I had pain meds at home but only took them the 3rd night because I was having trouble sleeping and it knocked me right out.  No REAL pain at all.  (No nausea --weird feeling stomach but no what I call nausea).
6.  I have not felt hungery in 5 weeks.  I have felt it was time to fuel my body (weakness) but not hunger.  I haven't had too much temptation but I did give into head hunger 2 times -- these were related to emotional stressors and I'm working on the psychology of some of my eating triggers.  But regular days  - day in and day out -- it hasn't been an issue to stick to the proper nutrition.  It is like a miracle

I have lost 26 lbs in 5 weeks and I'm very satisfied (not hungry) all day long.

As I'm sure you know, everyone's experience is different. That being said, here's my experience:

1. I was not at all hungry while in the hospital. I felt a bit dry mouth when I woke up, but it was okay. They finally let me have a few ice chips in the evening. (I had a leak test done while still in the OR).

2. I was checked in on Wednesday 12/7 @ 6:00 am. Left Thursday, 12/08 @ 8:30 pm. On Thursday I had to have a barium Xray, prove I could manage without the pain pump, and prove I could keep clear liquids down.

3. I was in recovery by 11:15 am, in the room by about 1:30 and up and walking by 4:00. I did 4 laps around the ward my first time out. I had a person on either side of me because I was pretty looped when I first got up.

4. I have been off work since the 7th. I have a built in 2 week vacation, so I just added a week and a half to that. I could have gone back to work easily after 2 weeks and I have a very active- on- my- feet- all- day job teaching.

5. Pain was not too bad at all. The only time it hurt was when I wanted to get up or move in bed.
Anything that involved abdominal contractions "Ouched" plenty!

6. I have not had any hunger at all in the almost 3 weeks since I've been sleeved. No cravings either. I am now at the point where I can tell I should eat. I'm not hungry per se, but I sort of feel empty. I have had momentary instances of head hunger, but they come and go within seconds. I have been out to dinner twice with friends, had the family over for Christmas Eve, been to the movies and didn't want popcorn (huge deal for me) at all. The elimination or severe reduction in hunger is the most incredible part of the VSG for me. I hope you have the same elimination of hunger. It is absolutely surreal, IMO. I have now lost 18 pounds in the 19 days since surgery. Freaking incredible to me. Never has this been my experience when dieting in the past. Physically, I feel better than I have in years.

Hope that helps! Good luck on your surgery and on your journey to a healthy, slim you!

1) I wasn't. I had some trouble getting all the fluids in..But I eventually got it all. I was on IV fluids the entire time in the hospital,aswell as drinking.
2) Surgery was 7:45 friday morning.. I had to be there at 5:30-ish though. I left about noon on Sunday.(They were planning to keep me another day.. But Monday was my birthday, and I was doing well.. So I was able to go. [:)
3) I woke up from surgery around noon in recovery then was taken to my room.. I fell asleep, got up around 2:30 and sat in the chair.. then got backin bed.. i didn't walk more than 2 steps though, until about 8:30pm that night. Then i walked every few hours the next day and the day after that, more and more each time.
4) I was volunteering atthetime.. and was off two weeks. same from school.
5) Gas pain wasthe worst..and the drain getting caught on things was annoying and a little painful.. day 2 was the worst overall pain wise. maybe a 7 or 8. but it only got better from there. majority of the time in the hospital itwasn't over a 4. (aside from the Upper GI.. i'm notgoing to lie.. they had me lay down flat on my back ona metal table.. and i was crying. and i have a ridiculously high pain tolerance.. if you can avoid laying flat on your back..i'd reccomend it.)
6) yup(:. pretty much everyone i've talked to has lost their hunger.. it came back for somepeople (for me, only on occasion..) the surgery fixes your stomach, not your head. so head hunger doesn't go away, really. you have tore-train yourself. but the good thing is:if you ever do get hungry.. something small will make itgoaway.. a piece of string cheese or a few sips of milk and i'm not hungry anymore. its amazing.

Good luck!! (:

I'm much further out, so I hope this helps.
1. Once they started the IV, I wasn't thirsty but did have a dry mouth when I woke up.
2. I went in at 1 PM, had surgery at 7:30 PM, was in my room by 10:30 PM, went home at 5 PM, so just over 24 hours.
3. They let me sleep through the night, but started walking in the morning.
4. I'm a teacher and was off work for a week. It was a teacher work week at the beginning of the school year. Had my surgery on Thursday, was at work the next Thursday and students started the next Monday. I would have preferred to take more time off - 2-3 weeks, but it was too much trouble for me. I was very tired the first 4 weeks and moved very slow during the first 3.
5. Pain was around a 6 initially and then dropped to a 4. The only thing I took at home for pain was liquid Tylenol. Other pain meds with codeine make me nauseous and lightheaded.
6. As for hunger, I was hungry after the first wee****il I started mushies/soft food. I wasn't able to drink much, but I did feel hunger. Other vets assured me it would go away after I started solids and it did. Cravings are something you'll have to work with. I was determined to give up carbs, so I just didn't have them once I was past the mushy stage. Some never experience hunger. I don't have major hunger even now unless I've gone 5-6 hours without eating, but head hunger does come back. I snack more than others, and that's why I haven't reached my goal. Yet I'm content with both my weight and what I eat. For me, carbs set up my cravings.
Hope this helps and good luck! Make sure you work your sleeve as a tool, not as the magic wand that we all wish we had!

i  was sleeved on 12/12 ....here goes it..and good luck!! No matter what it is so worth it...

1. I wasn't thirsty at first, as I had so much pain when I woke up..I did like the ice chips when my mouth was dry(take lip chap) and the hospital offered mouth moisterizer for when your NPO for your leak test.

2. I had surgery 12/12 @ 215PM, got dicharged on 12/15 @ 530pm

3. I made myself get up and walk that night around 2am, I had more pain then most people post about on here( I was so mad lol I thought OH is getting a BOMB for xmas from me, as everyone lied to me...lolol) and walking DOES help the gas!

4. I am a nurse, and in my delusional thinking I was going back to work 1/1/2012 but I have decided that I was going to take the 6 weeks, I am felling better each day but side have considerable muscle pain on my right side from where they remove the stomach, and my surgeon explained that it hurts so bad because the incision was bigger, and they suture it up so tight to prevent a future hernia. Wearing my abdominal binder in my best friend! and Robaxin for the muscle pain.I dont want to put myself in a situation of having to catch a patient or having to do CPR.

5.  Directly out of surgery it was awful...10+....BUT I voiced my pain and the nurses kept in contact with the doctor and they did there best to keep me out of pain!!!! Each day was a little better

6. I def think it has taken away the physical hunger and as I was feeling better the first week I has some mental hunger..but that went away also...I do have fleeting moments of dang I miss this or that..
BUT once that scale starts going down it makes it soooo worth it!!!

Best of Luck to you!!!

Hi Sabrina,

I'll be sleeved 3 weeks tomorrow, and BY FAR the worst part of the whole experience was the pre-op diet (especially the 2 days before surgery when I could have only liquids and sf Jell-O).  I felt borderline homicidal!! :-)

1) Will I be hungry/thirsty while I'm in the hospital???  As the other posters mentioned, no hunger in the hospital (which will just blow your mind), just thirst, especially right after surgery, but ice chips do help with that.

2) How long did you have to stay in the hospital?  My surgeon typically has his VSG patients stay 2 nights in the hospital.  However, by the 2nd day, I had already moved my bowels, had been walking A LOT (started in the recovery room) and was getting in lots of fluids, so he discharged me a day early.  (Surgery was 7:30 am on Tuesday; was discharged 6 pm Wednesday.)

3) When do you get up to walk?  Every few hours.  I started in the PACU (recovery) area and even got up at 2:30 in the morning and did a lap around the floor of my hospital. It really helps with the gas pains and is great for preventing blood clots.

4) How long were you off work?  I took 2 weeks off, per my surgeon's recommendation (I have a desk job).  Last week was my first week back, and I did get tired by the end of the day and went to bed quite early those nights, but it wasn't unmanageable.

5) On a scale of 1-10 how bad was the pain?  Maybe a 2 -- more discomfort from the gas than anything else.  I had my gallbladder removed laparoscopically 3 years ago, and that was MUCH worse in terms of pain.  Removing my drain felt strange, but it lasted only about 5 seconds.

6) Does this surgery really cut out hunger?? How about cravings???  Being only ~3 weeks out, I can tell you that I have not once felt hungry in my belly (in my head, well, that's another story, but at least I'm not acting on it!).  When I was on the liquids/full liquids stages, I craved cheddar cheese because I wanted to actually CHEW something, but the cravings were not overwhelming.

Hope this helps! Good luck.

Kelly

Thanks all!!!!