Horrible taste and constant lump in my throat

 I had my DS done on 6/7/11. I am so excited that I had it done, but I have few issues that I need help with. I constantly have a metallic taste in my mouth which makes food and drinks taste horrible. Not to mention my mouth is constantly filled with mucus. I also get  what feels like a lump in my throat after eating or drinking.  These things are making it really hard for me to get my protein and fluid intake. I am also having troubles keeping my vitamins down. Does anyone have any suggestions? I have spoken to my dietician and nurses, they gave me advice that i will try. Slow down eating, try different foods, but I just don't know if this will get rid of the taste.  I am hoping that there is someone on this site who has either experienced this or knows something about it.

You might just have to live with it.

Everyone's experience is different (fortunately....), but mine was that my sense of taste was "off" for the better part of the first year.  AND my sense of smell was off the charts.  I had to remove a wool area rug from my home because it smelled like wet dog to me.  No one else could smell it at all.

Hopefully, this will pass quickly, but if it doesn't, please learn from someone who "did it wrong":  Drink even if you don't feel like drinking, eat even if you don't feel like eating.  It's quite possible that if I had pushed myself harder at the beginning, my body would have passed through those phases more quickly.

Have you tried varying the temperatures of the liquids you're drinking?  Very ho****er was much easier for me to drink than room temp.  Cold water seemed impossible to me.  Maybe hot broth instead of sweet-ish beverages?  That was another thing that was easier for me.

Please keep trying.  Getting dehydrated and protein deficient isn't pretty or fun.

And, I sincerely hope that this is a very brief phase in your recovery.

Oh, and, that DID change, even for me.  Nothing gives me grief anymore, and I can chug cold water.  It took two years to be able to do that, but I can do it.

Thank you for this helpful info. I didn't think about the temperatures of the liquids affecting how I tolerate them. It's so hot here in NC that drinking room temp drinks just was not a thought. But i will try this. I knew that the hardest part would be in the beginning, but I wasn't expecting it to be this hard. It's good to know that I am not the only one who is or has had a difficult time.

My taste and smell buds were off after surgery. It does make it hard to want to eat (it did for me). I had other issues (such as dehydration) so my main concern was keeping hydrated **** pops, frozen snapple), etc. It will get better. You just had major surgery and your insides were all rearranged.

 Nikki,
I had a HORRIBLE  taste in my mouth for about two months.  It did make it difficult to eat and drink anything.  I had to switch it up all the time... hot (tea and tomato soup were best) to cold liquid.. .change the kind of protein I was drinking (found that the CLEAR ones [Isopure] were the best at that time)... different meats.  Just remember how IMPORTANT staying hydrated is and do your best to meet your protein goals.  It a lot easier to fight to stay hydrated and up on your protein than it is to  RE-HYDRATE or make up for DEFICIENCIES.
Hang in there it will most likely get better soon. 

The taste thing goes away. I remember water tasting horrible and I loved it before surgery. I was so concerned that I'd stay that way...but it passed after just a couple weeks. Lump in throat....chew thoroughly, swallow slowly. I used to "gulp" down my drinks and I had to learn to sip. Now after 5 years...I gulp them! Chicken was difficult for me but I could do meats. The first month, I did just softer foods - and crock pot food.  Tuna or egg salads had to have a LOT of mayo and meats had to be moist with juice or gravy.

Hope this helps but it will get easier! I promise.

Dianne from FL

Lots of good advice already, but I'll add that some of your symptoms sound like reflux, which is a common problem right after the DS. Ask your doc for a prescription for prilosec or protonix, or other similar drug. It might make a huge difference.
     The metallic taste thing - hey, I had that too! For me, it was CostCo's house brand of water (kirkland) that just tasted awful, where before I had been fine with it. Try switching to a different brand of water and it might help. Different temperature, as someone already suggested, also is worth a try.
     The best part, though, is that time is on your side, and all this WILL get better.

Larra

I am with Larra on this one...

I upped my prilosec to twice daily and that all went away and I was able to eat.. and actually not mind eating and drinking...

I checked with my surgeon first, but your symptoms sound just like mine.  and at about the same time.. i was on 5/23

All posters have given way good suggestions.  One I haven't heard was to check with your doc on follow up to make sure you don't have thrush.  Barring that, yes, everything tasted horrible to me and I slowly got my taste buds back after a year. The lump in the throat thing can be not sipping small enough amounts or reflux as suggested.  Let your doc know during your follow-up!

Hugs,
Ratkity

If you are not taking an acid reducer (as opposed to a PPI), start taking one, like Prilosec, and see if that helps. That sounds an awful lot like acid reflux to me.