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5 days post sleeve, still in hospital

Sunshine41

Sunshine41

Member
Had the sleeve done July 20th. I had major trouble, ended up in ICU & getting blood transfusions & the surgeon had to go back in on July 22. I’m so incredibly lucky that I had a nurse who was good, he was my guardian angel. It turned out there was a leak. The blood was leaking out and then clotting. I was in so much pain, couldn’t breathe, blood pressure 76/54. I really thought I was going to die. I was praying out loud and begging God to save me. I’m finally out of ICU & feeling stronger today. Took a shower & a poop. (The things you take for granted!!). Nurses are the most amazing people in the world. Seriously. It really hurts to swallow and I have a lot of pain in my left clavicle area. Still have a drain in. My hair is falling out. I’m not trying to be. Debbie downer but I’m feeling defeated like I made the biggest mistake of my life. All the Drs that come see me Say they are amazed how far I’ve come in a few days. I feel like a failure. Did anyone have an experience like this??
 
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Ohhhhh I'm so sorry u had to go thru all that! Had to be so scary. I had a little scare with a very high fever but wasnt too bad. I am so glad u are doing better and stay strong, each day ull get stronger and will be ok!
Did your surgeon Do an endoscopy after the surgery to look and make sure all things were good?
Nurses are the best I was crying and shaking so hard and man they calmed me down right away!
 
He had said he would do an endoscopy before allowing me to leave but we never got to that point. Plus the nurses I had the 1st night (the only nurses that were NOT good) did not tell him about the problems I was having w/ my blood pressure. My Dr was very upset. All the nurses since have been incredible. They are planning for Monday to do an endoscopy.
 
I am sorry to hear of your complications post op. I can’t imagine how you must be feeling. It sounds so scary and what most of us fear when we commit to the sugery. I am so happy they found the leak, repaired it and you are now out of the ICU. Things will get better now that you are back on track. Hang in there. The first couple of months with the liquid diet are tough but things get so much better!!! You’ve been through the worst of it. Things will get better from here on out :) You are in my thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery!!
 
YIKES! What a horrible experience you are having. I am so sorry that you have had to go through this. I can't imagine how afraid you must feel right now. I hope they have now gotten the leak taken care of and you can begin healing properly. Please remember that YOU did not fail and you WILL come through this. I hope everything from here on out is smooth sailing. Please keep us posted. I am rooting for you.
 
Sunshine41 said:
Has the sleeve done July 20th. I had major trouble, ended up in ICU & getting blood transfusions & the surgeon had to go back in on July 22. I’m so incredibly lucky that I had a nurse who was good, he was my guardian angel. It turned out there was a leak. The blood was leaking out and then clotting. I was in so much pain, couldn’t breathe, blood pressure 76/54. I really thought I was going to die. I was praying out loud and begging God to save me. I’m finally out of ICU & feeling stronger today. Took a shower & a poop. (The things you take for granted!!). Nurses are the most amazing people in the world. Seriously. It really hurts to swallow and I have a lot of pain in my left clavicle area. Still have a drain in. My hair is falling out. I’m not trying to be. Debbie downer but I’m feeling defeated like I made the biggest mistake of my life. All the Drs that come see me Say they are amazed how far I’ve come in a few days. I feel like a failure. Did anyone have an experience like this??
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I had a hard time, and for several months afterwards, but I’m over a year out now and I’m fine. I still get tired, but no other complaints. Good luck with your recovery!
 
I had it done primarily for medical reasons, not for weight loss. It was a last resort for me. I had a lot of stomach issues including severe GERD, gastroparesis and a hiatal hernia that they couldn’t fix. At one point my stomach was in my chest, attached to my heart and lungs! So I had the gastric bypass, and then they removed the rest of my damaged stomach and fixed the hiatal hernia at the same time. I don’t have any problems now, I do get tired and I can’t eat a lot of solid food, but apart from that I’m healthy. I have to say it frustrates the hell out of me when I cook or we go out and I can’t eat, but overall I can’t complain and it’s nice being skinny!
 
Sunshine, I'm so sorry about the complications with your surgery. You have really been through a rough patch. How scary for you. Sending positive thoughts and prayers for a smooth recovery. I haven't had my surgery yet, so I can't give you an answer to your question. From what I've read on this board, everyone seems to be very happy that they made the decision.
 
I'm so sorry for what you've been going through! You seem strong and I am willing to bet you will come out of this and do great. I can't imagine what you went through, but I'm sure I'd be questioning everything if I had gone through what you are. However, I also know the reasons for me taking this step are important and righteous, and although you've gotten off to a rough start, the end goal is still the same and you can do it! I know everyone on the forum here will be sending you the best possible healing vibes.
 
dianeseattle said:
You really have been through the wringer. But I'm here to say that in my years of research, I have only read five or six stories that were like yours. I think it is extremely important to tell our pre-op members that this will not happen to them. I don't know exactly why you had a bleed after surgery but I would put the blame in the surgeon's hand. I can't believe that anyone could sew you up without detecting a bleed before stitching.

The rate of failure in bariatric surgery is something like .0 1%. It is just as ordinary as having your tonsils out, or at worst, having an appendectomy. It was much easier on my body than my hysterectomy and less painful then a whole bunch of other things I have suffered in my life. Maybe the best thing about it was that my knees stopped disintegrating. I had surgery on one and was going to have the other one done but I don't have any pain anymore.

If you are pre-op and have a lot of questions and a lot of fear about the outcome of the surgery. Please do not imagine that you will have an experience like Sunshine's. there were many other factors involved in her hospitalization. For 99.9% of us oh, it's an experience that we have and recovery ranges anywhere from a few days to a few months. You won't know what to expect because it's completely unfamiliar territory. If you read through the results that are written about in the 12000 posts that are archived here, you will not find stories like this. They are rare as hen's teeth.

Don't Be Afraid. Don't expect the worst. The procedures are so common now and so easily performed that most people who complain post- operatively are really talking about the gas and how painful it is for the gas to leave your body if you have a laparoscopic procedure.

I had an open procedure so, no gas. My recovery time it was about two weeks, but one week after surgery I attended a dinner party I had committed to attend. It was hard to find anything to put on my plate because I was in the liquid phase. But I was happy that I managed even to attend the social event and nobody asked me any questions because nobody there knew I had had surgery the week before.

It is common for sleeve people to feel pretty much all together within one day. Don't be scared. A nightmare like Sunshine experienced is beyond rare.
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Thank you Diane for your comforting words and reassurance. I will have my gastric bypass with an umbilical hernia surgery on Tuesday, July 28 and reading her experience was very scary.
 
Thank you Diane for your comforting words. I am scheduled for gastric sleeve on August 17. I am getting a little bit jittery about the procedure. My biggest fear is my age. I was so ready in March and after the surgery was cancelled (due to Covid virus, which I now understand) , I have lost some of my enthusiasm during the wait. Don't get me wrong---I am glad to read of Sunshine's experience and other's telling of their post op pain and experiences because I am going into this knowing what can happen and what to expect. I realize that each of us has a different Dr. and experience. I went through my knee replacement and recovery normal and without much pain, so hopefully I'll do as well. But, knowing the failure rate is .01 is good to know. Thank you, again, I needed that!!
 
I am happy that you had a "with it" nurse who caught the symptoms and was able to alert the MD. There are risks with all surgeries and usually, when the doctor goes over those risks with us, right before surgery, we all nod our heads and happily sign the permission slip. More often than not, there are no complications from the surgery and everyone goes about their merry way, but unfortunately, once in a while, someone has one of those complications mentioned. I am really sorry that you got to be "the one" this time. I hope that you will have a speedy recovery and will be able to put all this behind you and enjoy the benefits of your procedure. I had a gastric bypass in June and seemed to have a couple more days of pain than some, I had nausea that others said they didn't have and I still have a horrible metallic taste in my mouth that makes me dread drinking any fluid. Everyone seems to have a slightly different tale to tell. We are here for you and will help support you emotionally through your journey.
 
I will check it out, thank you. I have been chewing Dentyne Pure which tastes great and helps alot, but you don't want everything to to taste like gum. Doc says this will go away and I hope it does soon. I have to drink sweet stuff so that I don't taste the metal and I am so tired of sweet drinks. I just want a nice glass of water to have no flavor at all. Sorry, not trying to whine, it is a small thing compared to what others have gone through post op. It is just annoying. Someone suggested it was because I was in ketosis from eating just protein, someone else suggested it is due to the vitamins I am taking, my doc has no idea what is causing it and says it will go away. I will look online for some mouthwashes. Thanks for the suggestion, I appreciate it.
 
You are extremely kind, Diane - it is my fervent hope to be remembered more for my uplifting comments, not my "poor is me" comments. But, I love having this forum to safely be able to say "this is happening and I don't like it. Is it happening to anyone else?" It's good to have a "safe place". Thank you all for being that safe place for me and I hope to be that safe place for you.
 
Thank you everyone for your kind words. I did not share this to scare anyone. I did hesitate to share it because of that reason. I just thought if anyone had an experience like this that this would be a start to find them and it'd be nice to find out how they handled everything afterwards. Physically and mentally. As Diane said above, my situation was very rare. And I'm glad to see that no one here has experienced this. A few of the nurses I had who have been around for a long time even said this. A few of them had even had the surgery. Many other people I interacted with in the hospital were shocked I was in for so long w/ complications. This is kind of my luck. I had an appendectomy in March and the ER Dr took out my perfectly healthy ovary, admitting to me that he thought it was my appendix. (luckily the mistake was realized. I had further unfortunate luck that this Dr was on call again after my sleeve and was trying to treat me for thrush AND was going to use a fork as a tongue depressor. He also tried to get me to drink a giant cup of potassium even though I was NPO. Stay away from THAT guy) My surgeon thinks a staple got caught on a piece of mesh from a hernia repair I had years back that, it was wrapped in some fatty tissue. I came home after 8 days. I Am beyond thankful to be home with my family & pets. I have narrowing in the stomach that the Dr thinks may be from inflammation from all the blood that had been there. It hurts to drink, after it goes down. I'm still on clear liquid diet. I know it will get better despite what I've been through.
 
dianeseattle said:
I'm so sorry this is going on and that that particular doctor should have his license yanked. You may have encountered someone who is biased against fat people. i think we've all encountered this sort of bigotry. I can't forget the day I was crossing the street in a hick town (Ellensburg, avoid it if you can) and the boys in the car all started mooooooing and barking at me and laughing their asses off. So, this caliber of man is in for a long, unhappy life. I, on the other hand, put the pain to good use and got RYGB surgery. A few years after this happened, I was working in an engineering group as their technical writer and I told this story to one of the engineers, who happened to be from Ellensburg. He laughed and said, "You know what those guys say, like, "Honest, I was just helping that sheep get over the fence!"

I never looked twice at a redneck again without imagining him alone with a sheep in the dark...

I also think it's probably difficult to do such an invasive surgery when there is so much of the fat effect in charge. I think that's why some surgeons go into the bariatric field exclusively. They know they are up to the challenge and they legitimately care about you and your health.

This too shall pass. You're strong and determined. I know the best is yet to come.
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Oh my gosh, the sheep in the dark. hahaha. Kinda sounds like some people I grew up with.
This crazy Dr should be no where near the human body. I grilled my surgeon about who exactly would be in the room during my surgery. I was so scared this crazy Dr would be involved.
I agree with the fat people bias.
Honestly, that was one of the many reasons I choose the surgery route. I felt more than once that if I had a health ailment, I was looked at as "fat chick who needs to stop being lazy and exercise and my problems would disappear." Because I never thought of that........ :rolleyes:
 
Sunshine41 said:
Had the sleeve done July 20th. I had major trouble, ended up in ICU & getting blood transfusions & the surgeon had to go back in on July 22. I’m so incredibly lucky that I had a nurse who was good, he was my guardian angel. It turned out there was a leak. The blood was leaking out and then clotting. I was in so much pain, couldn’t breathe, blood pressure 76/54. I really thought I was going to die. I was praying out loud and begging God to save me. I’m finally out of ICU & feeling stronger today. Took a shower & a poop. (The things you take for granted!!). Nurses are the most amazing people in the world. Seriously. It really hurts to swallow and I have a lot of pain in my left clavicle area. Still have a drain in. My hair is falling out. I’m not trying to be. Debbie downer but I’m feeling defeated like I made the biggest mistake of my life. All the Drs that come see me Say they are amazed how far I’ve come in a few days. I feel like a failure. Did anyone have an experience like this??
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Praying for you to make a full and speedy recovery. ☀ You got this
 
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