Nina C.

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I thought I would post an update on me and my journey so far.    I had my surgery on January 31st and as most of you know I was passing black blood in my stool.  My hemoglobin was dropping and I was really scared.  They let me go home 4 days out and the bloody stools continued for exactly 7 days.  I was relieved to see that there was no more blood but then they turned green and I had maybe 1 or 2 after that.  

I was having a really hard time getting my protein and my water in and hunger was taking over.  I cried pretty much every day wondering what the hell did I do to myself.   I began having really bad acid reflux and nothing would stay down and a normal day i was vomiting 10-15 times a day.  I went through this for a couple of weeks and tried to contact Dr. Kleins office but was told he was on vacation and I wouldn't be able to get an appointment until March  even though I had just finished explaining all the issues I was having.  Finally I contacted Dr. Kleins office again  and spoke to someone who actually gave a shit about what I was experiencing and she said she would give Dr. Hagen the information right away and have him call me.  Dr. Hagen contacted me that same day and told me to come into the ER because it was hard for him to diagnose the issues over the phone.  

I went to the ER on Wednesday with my daughter and spent 6 hours in the waiting room.  They finally took me in and hooked me up to an IV and took some blood and I was running a low grade fever.  The ER doctor came to see me but he just contacted Dr. Hagen as was advised and Dr. Hagen came down shortly thereafter.  Dr. Hagen looked at the reports and said he was admitting me.   I had driven myself to the hospital and was there with my daughter and we both ended up spending the night.  Well the next day after realizing I wasn't really getting anything in I came to realize that I wasn't going anywhere and I couldn't reach my family so my daughter was there for a couple of days with me.  I had an Xray and a catscan done and was feeling so bad for my daughter because she had a valentines dance that she was talking about all week that she was so looking forward to and after having the IV I felt pretty good so I had waited for Dr. Hagen and was told he was in surgery so I figured if there was an issue Dr. Hagen would call me and I signed myself out just intime to get my daughter to the dance.  

Shortly after arriving home I tried sipping and getting in some liquids and quickly realized it wasn't going to stay down.  I went to Fortino's and bought the Atkins instant protein drink and decided that I was going to make another attempt at getting in some protein.  Big Mistake because I was vomiting even more at this point....Was I lactose intolerant I kept taking my temperature and realized that I was still running a low grade fever so Thursday night I was back to the ER vomiting with a low grade fever.  They admitted me right away and I was told that the results of my catscan showed a narrowing of the passage caused from swelling where they actually connected the intestine to the pouch and that pretty much that I couldn't go home until I can actually hold things down.  

Friday I was finally able to get a hold of my mother and she picked up my daughter so I was there in the ER hallway until Saturday morning until I finally got a room on the 5th floor.  They had continued to give me an IV and some Pentaloc (for the acid reflux)  and gravol and morphine so I wasn't feeling any pain but my blood pressure was dropping really low almost every evening and for some reason my hemoglobin dropped as well.  Wednesday it was 113 and by Friday morning it was100 .  

I was seen by a female general surgeon who was in contact with Dr. Hagen and she came to inform me that they were  were going to put in a feeding tube because I wasn't able to keep anthing down and while I was waiting outside the room to have this tube inserted the nurse came out and said Dr. Hagen doesn't want to put in the tube just yet so your back to the emergency room - Thank God I was really grateful to him.  My daughter heard what the doctor wanted to do and she became really upset  so I was trying to keep a brave face the entire time and was sooo relieved to hear that I was spared for the time being.  

I spent that evening in the hallway (right beside the pee room- for those of you who dont know what that is that is where the nurses dump ER patients poo and pee and the smell was overwhelming to say the least.  I had a horrible night and was feeling pretty low at that point.  

I felt alot better when I heard I was finally going to get a room upstairs.  I tell you.  There are sooo many fantastic nurses at HRRH really caring good people but there are also those ones who just either hate their jobs or just dont have any people skills because let me tell you the night shift was totally different from the day shift- totally different!  Thats all I have to say about that.

So I was moved up the 5th floor where I was greeted by some familiar faces (nurses from my surgery 2 weeks prior) and I had forgotten about the Evening nightmare in the  ER and I finally was able to get some rest.  My roomate that night just had gastric bypass the night before and she was really nice so it was nice to have some company and we talked about OH and I strongly recommended this site to her so that was pretty cool.  My male nurse that night  was really nice and I actually had a really good sleep for the first time in a week!   They kept coming to check my BP and it was pretty low still.    I was only aloud clear liquids and was feeling really weak after a week of eating absolutely nothing and was becoming pretty discouraged.  When was this nightmare going to end.  

Sunday was another day and night from hell.  I was brought some no name brand of Ensure was told that I had to drink as per Dr. Hagens instructions.  I looked at the carton and ready that cornsyrup was the second ingredient.  I tried explaining to the nurse that I cant drink it because it has sugar and it will make me sick. She got pretty aggravated with me and said well she had to contact Dr. Hagen about it.  She came back to tell me if I dont drink it then I will be having the NG tube put in on Tuesday morning because Monday was a holiday (feeding tube inserted through my nose into my pouch).   So I did-- BIG MISTAKE!   I almost immediately got really hot and began to sweat and I thought I was having a heart attack and began vomiting again! .  Once it was all gone and after some dry heaves I felt better but began to cry like a baby.  Thinking what the hell did I do to myself?  Is this how it is going to end for me?  Shit like that-- feeling sorry for myself is an understatement but at that point I was tired and I was hungry and I was scared and I was not up to the politics at HRRH.  I was given some medication immediately and had to sleep it off for a couple of hours and when I woke up I felt alot better and I was hungry.  I asked my nurse if she could ask Dr. Hagen if I could have some full fluids because I felt I was ready to get in something other than colored water.  I was told I couldn't have it so I went down to Tim Hortons and bought myself a cream of asparagus soup and I took my time eating it.  It took me a couple of hours to eat it but I felt so much better I knew I had made the right decision for myself.  My brain was telling me to do something and do it now and so I did.  I am not sure how I didnpt pass out while I went downstairs to get it because I felt really shaky, dizzy and weak.   My bp was good that night and I had absolutely no vomiting so I figured I really have to start listening to my body and trusting my instincts at this point because there was no way I was getting that NG tube! I also figured out that I probably was not lactose intolerant because the soup stayed down so I figured it must have been the acid reflux that made it so difficult to keep anything down. 


The bed beside me was empty so it was used for emergency patients that were going to go home after their surgery. So the first set come in and I finally got to sleep.  3am in the morning all the lights come on and nurses coming in and out to get the bed ready for another patient who was waiting for sugery after she broke her hip.  They didn't even try to whisper they were talking loud (like I wasn't even in the room) and were complaining about what the Emergency room nurses didn't do (their is this rivalry between the ER nurses and the ward nurses because they each think that the other has less to do then them .  I didn't feel up to hearing this shit so needless to say I again was fit to be tied.  There must have been 3 or 4 nurses that came in and out and not one of them asked how I was doing or apologized for being so loud - NOthing they didnt care- I tell you Night staff is totally different from the day staff.  Not all of them but you know what I was starting to see a trend.  I finally got to sleep at around 4 that morning and was feeling pretty depressed and agravated.

My sister-in-law came to see me and brought my daughter and my beautiful 1 year old niece and I was sooo glad to see ALL of them.  Then Dr. Klen came walking in.    He asked me if I was sure I was able to keep down the fluids and I told him yes and he asked me when I wanted to go home and I told him today is good for me  he told me ok you can go home today and he told me he wanted to see me in 2 weeks.  He again explained the swelling and the narrowing of the passageway through the pouch and told me to take it easy.  He said it happens to about 10% of patients and that it may mean in 6 weeks (from the day of surgery) he may have to still go in and stretch the pouch- That sounds like a stricture to me but they wont do this so early out so I have to wait.  I asked him if I should try purees and he said your pretty much a week behind so try and keep down the full fluids first.  I was sooo happy and felt ok.  Me and my daughter were going home - Finally!  

Shortly after arriving home my mom came to visit with some home made chicken broth   and I managed to get that down and I actually managed to get down 3/4 of an Atkins Vanilla protein shake and it didn't come back up so I was like ok this is good.  I took my daughter to dance and when I came home I tried some homemade cream of leak and potato soup- Big Mistake!  Now I cant keep anything down again.  I didn't have very much of it but i think my mom made it with cream and it my grouchie pouch was not having it.  Heavy cream has always hurt my stomach so that doesn't surprise me.  I actually had to stop typing this post twice because there is no warning when it comes up.  It just comes up.  You feel like you have to burp and well....the rest is history.  I tried to take my pill and my vitamin but my pouch was already bothered by the soup and I have already puked 4 times so far.  So needless to say it didn't stay down.  I feel alittle better now so I am just going to keep sipping my water and take it easy for the next few days with clear fluids, my pills for the acid in my stomach and hopefully my vitamins.  I will try and sneak in a protein drink inbetween when my stomach is feeling alittle stronger and up to it.  

I gave the OH website to a couple of staff members there and really strongly recommended that they give this information to their patients because I know OH is an excellent resourse for all pre-op and post op bariatric patients.  One of the nurses was very interested and came on the board to understand why there are so many issues post op ie nutrional counselling etc... I told her I read a post about some post op patients who had issues getting ahold of the dietician and she wanted to take that information back to the table.  She said if we don't address these issues they will never be corrected or get better.  She also asked me when I had attended my class and both me and my roomate had attended over a year ago and she is trying to change that too because I do agree with her it is not helpful to attend a class that you remember absolutely nothing about a year and a half later.  It was good to see that there are staff members who are aware of the issues and gaps and are also trying to make a difference and if your out there and your reading this.  Thank you for taking the time and the effort to at least try and make a difference!

Well sorry this was so long but I haven't posted in so long - TOO LONG!  because of everything but I realized after talking to afew people at HRRH about OH that I actually missed you guys and could really use your support right now because this journey has been really hard on me so far and I know I need to keep a positive mental attitude so I will get through this.  I know how truly important this website is to me and I really tryed to promote this website to the nursing staff so they can share this resource with other bariatric patients because we all need support because this is not the easy way out.  This is the hardest thing that I have ever had to go through so I going to stick around for awhile and keep you guys updated on a regular basis so you don't have to take regular breaks after reading this novel.....LOL 

Nina

Dr. Kleins office called me today to give me a surgery date of January 31st and and a pre-op appointment for January 10th.  They asked me to come into their office that same morning and pick up my opti-fast.  I was sooo excited and happy and scared and nervous.  Do you believe it?  I don't have to leave the country for my surgery.  Everything happens for a reason right?  

I asked Dr. Kleins office if I can have only the chocolate opti-fast because I heard the vanilla is yucky and she told me no they don't do that because its ordered in bulk and then someone else would end up with only vanilla. I was so happy I was just not in the mood to argue.

Can someone tell me if they have a good book I can buy that will give me a break down of carbs, protein, calories for foods that we will consume after the surgery?  I know alot of you keep track of this (according to the labels) but what about when I am on a regular food how do I keep track then?

Also, can someone tell me (I know this has been asked a million times) but can you give me some options for some protein drinks that I need to have handy after my surgery (I am a single mom and will not be able to get anyone to go and get me protein so I have to purchase some before my surgery) I know everyones tastes are different but has anyone found any proteins here in Toronto that are actually really good for us and economical?  


OT
Considering the horrible day I had yesterday today was a pretty good day.  I finally got to go see my Orthopedic Surgeon after a year long wait to get my 1st appointment.  He was a real smug, ignorant jerk if you ask me.  He looked me over 30 seconds.  I told him about my car accidents and he kind of snuffed that off and then told me he couldn't help me because he feels surgery would probably make things worse and he said he has seen people like me (does this mean fat people) end up in a wheelchair of course after asking me me how tall I am and how much I weigh.  So I started to cry and said I need help to put my socks on what other solution do I have.  He said he isnt sure but he cant help me.  I was so frustrated and angry he told me to quit smoking and lose weight. At this point I am getting pissed off!  I asked him if he confirmed the disc was herniated and he said ya you and about 90% of the population.  Well 90% of the population didn't get rear ended twice ( I never had any problems before the car accidents).  I actually googled this doctor before I went to go and see him and found that he had been the doctor that the insurance company used in a similar case to prove the injury's were not sustained by the accident and honestly as soon as I told him about the accident his whole attitude changed.  He couldn't get me out of his office fast enough.  He looked very annoyed and uncomfortable when I started to cry and when I told him something needs to be done I just cant live like this for the rest of my life.  Im a 34 year old walking around like an 80 year old (sometimes thats how I feel)  So I have to go and see my GP and ask for another referral so I can get a second opinion.  UGH

Thanks for listening and oh one more question.  Is there anything else I need other than the WLS for dummies, some sort of protein drink for after surgery oh and vitamins.  What vitamins does Klein ask his patients to take afterwards?  If anyone can think of anything else I am missing can you please let me know so I can start to make a list?  

Thanks again gang, 

Nina

I finally completed the last step of the pre-op testing and that is the sleep study.  I discovered that I have a mild form of sleep apnea and will be meeting with Dr. Sherkin this Thursday to review the results in further detail.   

I have been so frustrated with the excessive wait times at this point that it almost seems like this will never happen for me.  

I read the posts everday regarding upcoming surgerys and members finally getting their dates.  I just wish I could join them.