7 years Post Op...Having Problems.

Hi guys! I am having some problems with my bypass. I feel so lost and desperate. I was overweight from about 12 years old on. I had tried Nutri-system, Jenny Craig, Slim Fast, Phen-Fen and all sorts of other diets out there. Finally at age 21 I decided to have a gastric bypass. My weight at the time of surgery (January 11, 1999) was 301 pounds. I had an open Roux-en-y Gastric Bypass that went normally. Afterwards I had 2 ballooning procedures to fix a stricture. After that it was smooth sailing. In 15 months I was down to 167 pounds. I followed the rules, took my vitamins and even enjoyed exercising. I became pregnant 13 months post-op. I had a normal pregnancy and delivery. 8 months later I was pregnant again. This pregnancy was a little rougher. I experienced anemia and extreme fatigue. One evening when I was 37 weeks pregnant and about 1200 miles from home for a wedding I woke to severe abdominal pains. They were so bad that I was vomiting and having diarrhea on the kitchen floor (not a good way to impress the in-laws!) I was taken to the ER and it was determined that I was not in labor. I had already figured that out. This hurt wayyyyy more! So the hospital keeps me, runs tests, does and ultrasound...nothing. The don't know what is wrong with me. The next evening, about 20 hours from the onset of pain it suddenly gets much worse. A nurse checks the heartbeat of the baby and it is dropping. They decide to do an emergency c-section. After the c-section they do some exploratory to see what is going on. To their surprise they discover that I have gangrene. Apparently some scar tissue had wrapped around my intestines cutting off the blood supply. They did a bowel resection and I spent 8 days in ICU. The worst part of my stay was when my NG tube became dislodged and they had to put it back in while I was awake. Not my best memory. My daughter was fine...a little small but perfect. After getting strong enough to make the 1200 mile drive back home we moved to another state. I have had a very difficult time trying to find a doctor that deals with gastric bypass surgery and my original surgeon is quite far away. After the bowel resection my pregnancy weight came off easily. However I noticed that I could eat larger quantities, and I did not seem to experience the "dumping." My daughter was born in 2002 and I weighed 160 pounds. I am now up to 215 pounds and scared. I am ashamed to be gaining the weight. I try to control my weight but it is a constant battle. I am honestly hungry again 30 minutes after I eat. I also have loose, fatty stools and horrible smelling gas. I also have in the last year had severe acid reflux. It was so bad that I was consuming a large bottle of Tums every 2 weeks. I am on Prilosec right now, but I wonder why I am having this heartburn. I have not had an upper GI or any testing done since my bowel resection. I am not sure what my options are at this point. I feel so scared and lost. I cannot seem to find help through most doctors. They just don't seem to understand a lot about everything that has happened. All of the surgeons I have had are in other states. I currently reside in Upstate New York. Perhaps you all might be able to help me get my health back under control. My insurance is Tricare Prime. Jamie Kim :) Timeline: January 1999 Gastric Bypass Weight 301 lbs February 2000 167 lbs. April 2002 C-Section and Bowel Resection 160 lbs. Currently 215 pounds.

Hi Jamie, So sorry to hear whats happening with you. It is understandable that you are desperate at this point. Several years ago I had severe bowel problems that were not able to be helped by local DR.'s and I fought my way into the Mayo clinic in Minnisota and it was a God send. My advice is to go to the best major medical university or hospital in the city nearest you or if you have out of network insurance as I do the Mayo clinic. My prayers are with you. Linda

You need to find a bariatric surgeon or gastroenterologist to go in with a scope and take a look and see what is going on with your stomach. Do you know if you are transsected (remnant stomach surgically separated from pouch)? Not sure if surgeon's did that back in 1999 or not. Many do now. Could be a staple line disruption - opening between pouch and old stomach which allows food to go into old stomach leaving you hungry and which might allow stomach acids to flow into the pouch too. Good luck, Kathy

Jamie, I agree with Kathy, you need to find a bariatric surgeon or GI doc and make an appt. It's possible your surgery has failed (stoma enlarged, fistula, etc). Have you posted to the NY board also? I can also send you a link to the Yahoo Grads board that I'm sure you can gain help and knowledge from. Let me know if you're interested in that group, I can email you the link. Hope you find out soon what is causing your problems, best wishes. Dana

Several of my friends have had their surgery at a Bariatric Center in Rochester. Jane

The others are right you need to find a good doctor in your area to make sure nothing has gone wrong with the surgery. I understand your frustration with being hungry all the time. I find when I start allowing the carbs to creep back into my diet I go through the same thing. I try to keep my carbs low (below 40 grms a day), which also kills the constant hunger. As long as I concentrate on dense protein the hunger isn't a problem. Even adding a piece of fruit a day is fine, but if I eat anything with flour it sets me up for starvation feelings. The simple carbs don't effect some wls patients, but for some of us they are a recipe for disaster. Remember wls is a tool, not a cure. It's up to us to figure out what works for us and exercise. You know what worked to get the weight off so go back to those basics. My surgeon says: Eat 4 oz dense protein (steak, pork chop, chicken, etc) If still hungry eat low carb veggies If still hungry eat a small piece of fruit Best of luck in getting back on track.

Thanks for all the responses! I have an appointment with Dr. Elliot Goodman at Beth Israel Medical Center on Monday! Yeah! He is going to go a GI series, edoscopy and bloodwork and see wha tis going on with me! I will keep you all updated! :)

Jamie, If you can find a doctor here that knows what they are talking about when it comes to us post-ops, please let me know!! I swear, everytime I go into the clinic at Ft Drum I have a different doctor to see and I have to explain everything all over and tell them what bloodwork I need and what levels everything should be at. I too had my surgery elsewhere (Laundsthul, Germany) and cant get back to see my original surgeon. The last doctor I saw here told me that the mass I have just above my bellybutton thats the size of a large marble and also the 4 pea sized ones following a line was just muscle mass even after I explained that when there is food that Im digesting they become larger and sometimes painfull. I sometimes feel like Im banging my head against a brick wall!! Good luck to you and keep me posted! Dreama 3 yrs post-op Leray Heights