One week in- I'm DRAGGING!

[DesertGal]

I know I have read on here from some of you that the first week after surgery was very tiring and I have been in that mode all week. Anesthesia fog? When I did walk outdoors this week (before these devastating and destructive winds took over Thursday), I STILL had to sleep every afternoon and early evening. Absolutely no energy. I have taken in my protein drinks/soup (averaging 69-75 grams a day), all my supplements, B-12, and I still feel like someone who just opened their eyes from surgery and was told "Here, go function like nothing has happened."

I walked a half mile this morning (in the wind) and thought that might perk me up, but not yet. I'll do another spin out doors in another hour and am hoping I feel better. It's only been 8 days since surgery;I am not a youngster; but I had higher expectations.

Oh, and I found out WHY we don't sip fast or too much. I don't think I took too big a mouthful, I just sipped my soup too fast at dinner and BOY DID I PAY. No vomiting, but the pain was intense and lasted almost an hour. I do NOT want to endure that again. I had to go lay down and curl into a ball, it was THAT severe. I swore off food/drink for the rest of my life, LOL!

[Pam G]

My exhaustion and brain fog lasted a couple of months...

[DesertGal]

First off: Pam, I LOVE your new picture! You are gorgeous!
Second: No! I don't want this feeling of "nothing" to last a couple months. I just told my husband I have no emotions, no nothing right now. I feel like a body that's under repair and completely exhausted and don't have any feelings. This is SO not me! I'm the optimistic one, the figure-things-out girl, the wife, the mom, the grandma. I just feel like a tired lump (that's logged in over a mile so far this morning walking outside), who'd better get some energy back, and soon!

[RehabNurse]

My exhaustion and brain fog lasted a couple of months...

Same here...my anesthesia fog lasted a little more than six weeks. I was chronically tired and had to drag myself out of bed on most days.

Then, suddenly, I came out of the fog nearly two months after the procedure. It was as if someone removed a dark cloud from the front of my face because, at that point, I had energy and could see the light.

[DesertGal]

I'll just have to be patient. At least it's not just me. I shouldn't complain because all in all, I've done very well. Not much pain to speak of, moving easily about, getting fluids into me along with the protein, and I'm walking as much as I can. (1.75 miles today). It's just this dark cloud hovering. I usually have a fatigue-haze hanging over me from the RA, but this one is a different animal entirely.

[Donald G]

I know I have read on here from some of you that the first week after surgery was very tiring and I have been in that mode all week. Anesthesia fog? When I did walk outdoors this week (before these devastating and destructive winds took over Thursday), I STILL had to sleep every afternoon and early evening. Absolutely no energy. I have taken in my protein drinks/soup (averaging 69-75 grams a day), all my supplements, B-12, and I still feel like someone who just opened their eyes from surgery and was told "Here, go function like nothing has happened."

I walked a half mile this morning (in the wind) and thought that might perk me up, but not yet. I'll do another spin out doors in another hour and am hoping I feel better. It's only been 8 days since surgery;I am not a youngster; but I had higher expectations.

Oh, and I found out WHY we don't sip fast or too much. I don't think I took too big a mouthful, I just sipped my soup too fast at dinner and BOY DID I PAY. No vomiting, but the pain was intense and lasted almost an hour. I do NOT want to endure that again. I had to go lay down and curl into a ball, it was THAT severe. I swore off food/drink for the rest of my life, LOL!

Yup I think we all found out how eating or drinking to quickly messes with the stomach and I can tell you thats still the case for me and I'm glad it is it helps me remember to go slow.

[Christie13]

We have to remember this is major surgery. Nothing to sneeze at. It is difficult. It will get better. Just stay positive. In the beginning I took my B12 twice a day. I also take a bariatric multivitamin, biotin, calcium citrate, vitamin D3, and a stool softener. This is a daily routine for me but now I only take the B12 once a day. I think we are just lacking in so many nutrients initially.

[DesertGal]

I've got 2 stool softeners sitting on my nightstand, rearing to go at bedtime tonight. It's worth a shot.

[Luna354]

I've got 2 stool softeners sitting on my nightstand, rearing to go at bedtime tonight. It's worth a shot.

I'm kinda jealous you can take pills already. I wasn't allowed to & could've really used help in that department in the beginning. lol

[sraebaer]

I think I slept the whole first week after surgery. If I was awake I would sip my protein drink or take a little walk. But mostly I slept! 2nd week it got a little better, 3rd week I was back to work feeling pretty good.

[DesertGal]

I'm kinda jealous you can take pills already. I wasn't allowed to & could've really used help in that department in the beginning. lol

I'm not supposed to take pills, but I've diced them into pieces (most of them anyways) and they slide down. I have so many to take and I actually was done in minutes today, rather than 30+ minutes as it's been going.
The stool softener? Not doing that again. I woke up at 2:30 in a bloated ball of discomfort. Not worth it.

[Shirl]

Definitely wanted to chime in and echo what Chrisie said about nutritional supplementation. If you read Kindle, Ann2, Sraebaer, Tinman and several other you will read that taking multivitamin and other supplements is part of their WLS success. It is something to not be overlooked or taken for granted. It is certainly part of my own WLS life.

I started taking pills again, but seriously considering going back to chewables because of what I have been reading on the change in our digestive system. Certainly as sleeved patients we don't have the enzymes to breakdown foods fast enough to absorb nutrients before they leave our stomach. So we need to assist digestion by chewing our food very well as well as taking supplements that can fast release the nutrients we need, chewables do that I imagine though I haven't read anything about it to support my opinion/hypothesis.

[Pam G]

I told told the anesthesiologist that I'm SUPER sensitive to inhaled gases. He obviously didn't believe me.

Same here...my anesthesia fog lasted a little more than six weeks. I was chronically tired and had to drag myself out of bed on most days.

Then, suddenly, I came out of the fog nearly two months after the procedure. It was as if someone removed a dark cloud from the front of my face because, at that point, I had energy and could see the light.

[Lorna Doone]

Just remember you've had major surgery. I remember coming home and taking it easy for 6-8 weeks. I slept a lot, doing little things tired me out. I remember I had a hard time moving my bowels, and yes, I remember the early pain from eating. Hurt like heck. You may have the problem off and on until your body goes down from swelling. I may have had the pain on and off in the early months. I also remember my tail bone hurting when I sat down.
Also remember having a problem with low blood sugar and dizzy spells. My doctor told me to eat an apple when that happened. Of course, I was able to handle solid foods by then.

[Pam G]

First off: Pam, I LOVE your new picture! You are gorgeous!

Awwww, thanks, been called many things in my life, but gorgeous was never one of them! Ha!

aaaaaaaand....I'm gonna be a brand new grandma in october!