1 week post op, doing great!

[Alisonjayne]

Hi everyone, so thought I would post an update.

It has been a week since my surgery but every day that passes brings me stronger health. I came through the surgery brilliantly and was up and walking about an hour after going back to the ward. After speaking to my surgeon, he said I had shrunk my liver very successfully and this was one of the main reasons I was doing so well after surgery.

I know this must be true as my daughter had the same sleeve surgery two years ago and she was in agony after hers, on loads of pain medication and couldn't walk around or do anything for at least a week. I am so glad I followed the guidelines and didn't cheat, it has made a world of difference to my recovery. For anyone who is doing a preop at the moment, please seriously think about committing to it fully, you will be up and about after surgery a lot easier if you follow the plan to shrink your liver.

I have been on a liquid diet for a week which hasn't been hard to do. The amount of water I can drink has improved dramatically as well. Each day I was able to take slightly larger amounts so my sipping actually is now real drinking, albeit slightly slower than I would normally, but still, a great improvement.
I have had no hunger at all, still amazed by that!

Today I get to eat puree, hurray!
My first meal is going to be some liquefied scrambled egg and later on for tea, I will be having some mash with carrot and liver, blended, so excited!

I got weighed today for the first time since surgery and I have lost 12lbs, gob smacked.

Oh and just for the uk people, I am in the nineteens! I know this won't mean anything to our american friends as they weigh in lbs but it was a joy to see the scales saying 19 stone instead of 20 stone today!

[sraebaer]

I love hearing stories like this, excited you're doing so well. And you're right, we don't understand stones. Stupid question, but does your scale weigh in stones? Because if a stone is 14 pounds, the scale won't move that often will it?

[Stacey03]

I love hearing stories like this, excited you're doing so well. And you're right, we don't understand stones. Stupid question, but does your scale weigh in stones? Because if a stone is 14 pounds, the scale won't move that often will it?

Fantastic Alisonjayne many congrats... srsebaer, the scale will have increments in pounds so she will see the pounds going down. W e have kilos here which nobody understands over there :-) So I weigh 134 pounds which means nothing to me and 9 stone 6 pounds and 61 kilos. that was quite nice to work out lol!

[Katrina]

Happy for you that you're doing so well, but sticking to the preop diet and shrinking your liver has nothing to do with it. You're just lucky in that. Shrinking your liver was simply so your surgeon could safely operate on you without your liver in the way.

[IamDetermined]

So happy for you! Glad you're feeling well!!

[Tenloris]

That is wonderful to hear! I love seeing this. I will be undergoing the surgery within the month. Fingers crossed, I hope to have a similar outcome!

[Alisonjayne]

Happy for you that you're doing so well, but sticking to the preop diet and shrinking your liver has nothing to do with it. You're just lucky in that. Shrinking your liver was simply so your surgeon could safely operate on you without your liver in the way.

I respectfully disagree, I am involved with a large local gastric sleeve group where there are people who have followed the pre op diet and those that didn't, of the ones that followed it, all had better recovery than those who didn't follow it.

[Alisonjayne]

I love hearing stories like this, excited you're doing so well. And you're right, we don't understand stones. Stupid question, but does your scale weigh in stones? Because if a stone is 14 pounds, the scale won't move that often will it?

Hi!
As Stacey said, the scales will tell me in lbs and stones how much I weigh so I know when I have lost a little bit. I don't have to wait until I have lost 14lbs for the scale to move to the next digit, that would be torture!

[KiwiGal]

Congrats on your success so far. You are doing great. It only gets better too :-)

[tonewbeginnings]

So glad that you are doing well so early on and that your surgical experience was a very positive one. That is wonderful. However, just for the record for those people that followed the pre-op diet to the tee like myself, (mine was 2 weeks of 3 shakes a day, no food, with only bouillon and herbal tea allowed in addition) and still got very ill and or had a slow recovery it is because surgery and anesthesia affect people very differently. Everyone has different responses based on their own physiology, tolerance to medicines and concurrent health issues going on. I knew going into surgery that I have a history of very poor tolerance to anesthesia and most pain medicines. I had to stay 3 nights in the hospital w/ my sleeve surgery and finally had to be given a steroid of some sort to fight off the severe nausea. Even when home I didn't feel better for a week in a half after surgery. From my understanding the shrinking of the liver is to avoid the possibility of the laparoscopic surgery turning into an open one as a fatty liver can obscure the view of the surgeon and can be difficult to retract enough so they can still see adequately while doing it laparoscopically. I just don't want people to get the impression that if they may have cheated just a little on the pre op diet and had a poor recovery that it is their fault since they most likely still shrunk their liver and once again everyone responds differently to surgery and anesthesia.

[Alisonjayne]

Hi and thank you for your thoughtful response. I agree, everyone deals with it differently. I have literally been amazed at how quickly I was up and about and the lack of pain both internal and at my incision sites. I have had my gallbladder removed ages ago and had scar tissue on my belly button so my incision sites are higher up. I can get up from the sofa or bed without any pain and I wonder if its because my stomach muscles weren't affected because of the high incisions?

[Christie13]

Sounds like you are having a great recovery. Wishing you continued success.

[The North Sleeve]

Glad to hear you are doing well. Welcome to the sleeve family. You will improve a little more each day and you will soon feel normal. Glad to hear you didn't have any issues. Best of luck to you!!!

[VSGtheNP]

Congratulations on a successful surgery. I wish you the very best on your journey.

[tonewbeginnings]

Hi and thank you for your thoughtful response. I agree, everyone deals with it differently. I have literally been amazed at how quickly I was up and about and the lack of pain both internal and at my incision sites. I have had my gallbladder removed ages ago and had scar tissue on my belly button so my incision sites are higher up. I can get up from the sofa or bed without any pain and I wonder if its because my stomach muscles weren't affected because of the high incisions?

That is so exciting that you had such a great tolerance. You must be a very fast healer. So envious as I wish I had that ability. Your the kind of patient that surgeons just love. I also had a lot of previous incisions at my belly button, a lap band in and several years later a lap band and gallbladder out. I didn't really have pain with the incisions either, most of my issues were nausea and fatigue. Looks like your off to a great start.