Back in the hospital 6 weeks after VSG
Short Story:
It started with discomfort eating and drinking, then I was having severe spasms on my left side near my rib cage near my left breast. I've had x-rays, CT scan, multiple blood work and everything is okay. This is my 3rd day in the hospital and there is no end in sight.
Long Story:
Thursday, I was at work and whenever I drank or ate, I had discomfort when it was going down. Almost like how it felt 1-2 weeks post op. Thursday night, while sleeping, I kept waking up with spasms on my left side near my rib cage. Where it hurt after surgery and when my muscle was healing in week three.
Friday: I didn't sleep much but I went to work. I called the surgeons office and waiting for the nurse to call me back. During the day, the pain never faded. When the spasms came, I would go into the fetal position until it passed. When the nurse called me back, I explained what was happening and she said since I was keeping down whatever I was eating and drinking, it didn't seem like it had anything to do with the surgery. I was not happy with that answer because how could it not? I just had stomach surgery and it hurts when I eat and drink....but it had nothing to do with my stomach? She said to take it easy and go back on soft foods for 48 hours. Well, I was not happy with that so I left work and called my GP to see what they said. That nurse told me that they didn't have any available appointments but she thought I needed to be seen. Maybe not the ER but I should go to a clinic and get checked out. I was stubborn and stayed home and had whatever was left of my codeine from surgery.
Saturday, I woke up and knew I couldn't make it into work. I knew I had a fever, I still had the pain, I had the major body fatigue, and I was dizzy. So as soon as my boyfriend came home, I had him take me to the ER. They did an X-Ray which came out clean. They did a CT Scan which showed some blurriness around my staple line (which is when I started to freak out) but because the radiology didn't come and get me till 3 hours AFTER I drank the dye, there wasn't enough contrast to show where a problem was. (Thank you radiology!) They also did a urine analysis and it showed large amounts of proteins but since I wasn't having any issues in that area, they weren't concerned. They said they would only be concerned if I was pregnant. They also took blood which showed a white cell count of 16. They said anything over 11 is concerning along with my 101 fever which meant I had an infection somewhere. Sooooo, I was admitted to the hospital.
Sunday, They started me on IV antibiotics, morphine, Heparin, and some other stuff for acidity in my stomach. I spoke with the doctor on call from my surgeons office and he said from what he could see, all my tests came back normal and he didn't see a leak. He said it was possible there was a tiny hole at the top of the staples and esophagus that healed on it's own but nothing he saw would require surgery.
Monday, I saw my surgeon and he basically said the same thing, He said he saw some inflammation basically in my entire belly and haziness around my staple line, and inflammation near my spleen. He wanted me to try food (I hadn't eaten or drank anything since Friday) and liquid and see how I felt. If I felt good and thought I could stay hydrated, I could go home. If I didn't feel better, I needed to stay and see him Tuesday and most likely schedule an Endoscopy to get a better look inside.
So here I am, it's Monday night and I am so ready to go home. I ate but I had the pain. He gave me some liquid to drink 30 minutes before eating which was supposed to numb my stomach but it didn't do **** It was wonderful to eat but I'm still undecided if it was worth the pain. I pray that tomorrow I have the Endoscopy, they find what the problem is, fix it, and then I can go home. I really don't have that much pain, it's just when I eat or 90% of the time when I drink. And I obviously can't go home if I can't stay hydrated.
Anyone else have any kind of problem similar to this or know of anyone? I don't know what this could be?
They started me on another antibiotic which treats the urinary part of my problems. I'm not having any issues urinating and I'm not having any pain in that area so I'm thinking my urine is so dark from being dehydrated and all the dye from the multiple tests. Only time will tell. As for the scan, it didn't show any leaks. He said it was possible there was a small hole and that's why I got the infection and it fixed itself on it's own.
I ate a snack and it seems if I keep to eating 4 bites or less, I don't have any pain. With the drinking, sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't. I'm so confused but I know this pain is NOT in my head. I'm not even sure if it's related to my surgery. I just find it odd that the pain is right where they did the surgery. And that the pain is from eating/drinking when it hits my stomach. Odd, I just hope it's figured out soon. It's not fun sitting in the hospital all day.
Not really. They pumped me full of antibiotics and fluids. I was there I believe 3 days? It was such a long time ago. They did tests and everything was fine with my sleeve. My doctor had said if it continued, they could make my sleeve larger so I could eat more than one bite but it eventually passed. I'm 2 years out, not the weight I wanted to be at but still down. I don't overeat so that helps. I listen to my stomach 90% of the time and not my brain.
Wow, Glad to hear you're alive and well after that whole scary, crazy ordeal. Thanks for the update!
I'm 6 wks post op and was searching the boards for any 6-week or future surprises. I feel pretty good though. Very slow loss, but hey maybe it's better that way.
Thanks again, and best of luck reaching your goal!
~Rach
