Today I had a scope done of my stomach to find out why I have been throwing up almost everyday since my surgery. The opening to my "pouch" should have been 12mm (what he originally made it), and mine was only 8mm. That is why I have been getting sick so often. So the doctor was able to dilate the opening back to 12mm and this should help! He did mention that some people have to have a 2nd procedure done, but I really hope that I don't have to have another one! It was a painless procedure, but I still don't want to go through another one. He also mentioned something about sutures coming out and my stomach trying to digest them, but I was still coming out of anesthesia at that point, and don't remember much. He did say that that could have contributed to my vomiting as well.
I have spent the rest of the day chilling out and watching/sleeping through movies!
I will be back on liquids for at least 2-4 days then progress back up to solid foods again. That part is kind of frustrating, but if it fixes me, I'm all for it!
Friday, May 25, 2012
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Progress
It has been 9 weeks since I had surgery and I am feeling great! I have not done the best job of taking weekly pictures as I would have liked to have done. I did go to a few events this past weekend though so I will share some pictures from the weekend.
So far I have lost 75 pounds since November 1 and 46 pounds since my surgery on March 14th!!
I am technically allowed to have pretty much anything I want to eat at this point (except for sugar and alcohol). However, I am not able to eat anything I want. I have had a very difficult time keeping food down to be completely honest. I spoke to my doctor about this a few weeks ago and he said that his patients tend to have a harder time with certain foods because he tends to make his pouches smaller. My "pouch" will stretch out over time and this is the reason he makes them smaller to begin with. He has found that patients have better long term success if he goes small. For the same reasons, he also makes the opening to the pouch smaller as well. He feels like my opening (or stoma) became smaller than what he made it as it healed, causing me to not be able to tolerate food very well at all. He said that eventually it will stretch out and I will be ok, but there is a procedure that can be done to stretch it back out to the size it needs to be so that I am not throwing up all the time. This would be an out-patient procedure that would include putting a tube down my throat with a balloon and camera on the end. He would see if the stoma needs to be stretched and if it does, he would inflate the balloon to stretch the stoma, deflate it, and remove the tube. I was hesitant about having to have another procedure done, so I told him that I wanted to give it a few weeks and see how things go. Well, it has been almost 2 weeks since I saw him, and things are not getting any better. So, I will be calling his office to schedule to have this procedure done soon (hopefully). It is quite frustrating not being able to keep food down....especially those days when NOTHING wants to stay down (I had one of those days last Friday) - they are exhausting! Here are some pictures, enjoy!
Getting ready to go to a wedding:
My friend Erin and I at our co-worker's wedding:
Mother's Day 2012 with my step-kids, husband, and mother-in-law:
This is another before picture I found. (I hate this picture of me) This is from a weekend trip that I made last fall with my friend Kelsey. She lives in DC and I met her along her way to Pittsburgh where we met her father and brother and she picked up this car! Super excited about possibly going to MN this summer to celebrate her wedding! Still waiting to figure out if I can get the time off work since I did just start a new job.....but super excited for her even if I don't get to go!
So far I have lost 75 pounds since November 1 and 46 pounds since my surgery on March 14th!!
I am technically allowed to have pretty much anything I want to eat at this point (except for sugar and alcohol). However, I am not able to eat anything I want. I have had a very difficult time keeping food down to be completely honest. I spoke to my doctor about this a few weeks ago and he said that his patients tend to have a harder time with certain foods because he tends to make his pouches smaller. My "pouch" will stretch out over time and this is the reason he makes them smaller to begin with. He has found that patients have better long term success if he goes small. For the same reasons, he also makes the opening to the pouch smaller as well. He feels like my opening (or stoma) became smaller than what he made it as it healed, causing me to not be able to tolerate food very well at all. He said that eventually it will stretch out and I will be ok, but there is a procedure that can be done to stretch it back out to the size it needs to be so that I am not throwing up all the time. This would be an out-patient procedure that would include putting a tube down my throat with a balloon and camera on the end. He would see if the stoma needs to be stretched and if it does, he would inflate the balloon to stretch the stoma, deflate it, and remove the tube. I was hesitant about having to have another procedure done, so I told him that I wanted to give it a few weeks and see how things go. Well, it has been almost 2 weeks since I saw him, and things are not getting any better. So, I will be calling his office to schedule to have this procedure done soon (hopefully). It is quite frustrating not being able to keep food down....especially those days when NOTHING wants to stay down (I had one of those days last Friday) - they are exhausting! Here are some pictures, enjoy!
Getting ready to go to a wedding:
 |
Mother's Day 2012 with my step-kids, husband, and mother-in-law:
This is another before picture I found. (I hate this picture of me) This is from a weekend trip that I made last fall with my friend Kelsey. She lives in DC and I met her along her way to Pittsburgh where we met her father and brother and she picked up this car! Super excited about possibly going to MN this summer to celebrate her wedding! Still waiting to figure out if I can get the time off work since I did just start a new job.....but super excited for her even if I don't get to go!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)