Thank you so much for the compliment. As to nausea after the surgery, yes I had some. But it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be. My big reason for vomiting was the fact that they removed my gallbladder, and that meant the bile that had already been made had to come out of my body by vomiting. I don't know if the bile made me feel sick or if it's just the whole process that results in vomiting, but I was really careful, hugging a pillow to my stomach because I didn't want to bust a stitch or a staple with the convulsions from vomiting.
It was nowhere near horrific. Whoever told you that should have forty lashes with a wet noodle. That is an absolute lie. Do not buy into fear mongers. Look at what you've already dealt with in terms of your physical condition and comorbidities. You are a strong woman and you can absolutely navigate the very short post-op period.
The problems I had after surgery were unique to me and to my surgical experience. No one else here has ever listed the problems that I had. For instance, because I had an open procedure, there was some nerve pain from one of the staples and it caused horrible stabbing pain in the left lower quadrant of my abdomen. It was really the worst thing of everything. And I took a lot of pain meds and I spent a lot of time in bed, but when I was ready I immediately became active and I recovered so quickly that no one even suspected I had had major surgery.
Unfortunately, the opiates I took caused constipation, which I had never had in my life. And not to be too graphic but it was a HUGE problem and it took me an entire day with various wranglings to get a very solid, large log of stool to come out of my intestines. But it only happened once. The house
That was entirely preventable, however. I should have been taking a fiber laxative at least a week prior to surgery and continued it after surgery until my new digestive system began to behave.TAKE HEED, PRE-OP NEWBIES. Take the laxative. After the surgery you are not eating the type of food, such as green vegetables, that allow you normal bowel movements. You need to give your intestines a little assist.
Other members here will also tell you tales of diarrhea and constipation, and for some people, it's chronic. You cannot expect to completely rebuild your digestive process without affecting your bowel movements. Forewarned is forearmed and I am not kidding you. Take the fiber laxatives!
Your concern is how you will feel after surgery. But I still don't know what procedure you're having. If you are having the sleeve, you may not suffer any symptoms except for that muscle pain from escaping gas. If you're having laparoscopic surgery, you will certainly suffer gas pain as it exits your muscles. You can handle that. The worst thing is not realizing it's just gas and thinking something horrible is happening to your body. It will mostly be gone in 3 days.
If you have an open procedure, you will have a more noticeable initial recovery because that is surgery just like a hysterectomy or having a kidney replaced or anything where a knife is used on your midsection. You really don't realize how much you involve your midsection in your every movement (breathing, laughing, sneezing, coughing, Etc) until you have an incision there. But I would do it all over again ten thousand times and I would prefer the open procedure because I feel like the doctor really saw what was in there and did an excellent job making that bypass for me.
If you are worried about hair loss, you can always get a wig. But hardly anyone ever needs to and for some people, the hair does grow back.
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And if you don't want to wear a wig, there are always all kinds of hats and hair styles and clips and bows and bands and bandanas and all kinds of things you can do to your hair to make it appear that you have it all.
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There is nothing so bad about the post-op recovery that prospective client should be worried about it. I have had more painful experiences going to the dentist. And I am absolutely serious about that. For some people, even having an open procedure, the recovery time was fast and uneventful. Don't borrow trouble and don't be afraid. Expect some discomfort and pain, accept the fact that you are probably going to be nauseated, and plan for your post-op diet. For the first week you may only be able to drink broth and maybe liquefied jello or tea or coffee.
Make sure you avoid sugars and fats for at least the first month. Your newly built digestive system can't handle sugar or fat. You will experience dumping and that, my dear, is something you never want to feel.
And you have read in many many posts here already about the importance of staying hydrated. Do it! If you do not drink a lot of water now habitually, buy yourself a special vessel of some sort, a cute or crazy or inventive type of cup or pitcher or water bottle that you enjoy. Fill it with the kind of water you like, whether bottled, filtered, temperature, iced, or straight from the tap. I actually have this nylon strap sling that attaches to a water bottle of any size so I can slip it over my shoulders like a bandolier and have my water bottle with me at all times.
I am one of the lucky people who loves water and drinks it all day long. I drink so much water my doctor has advised me against it. But I love it. I only drink bottled water because I have such severe metal allergies that even the small amount of lead tap water contains will make me feel run down and kind of sick like I'm catching a cold for days and days and days.
I hope our other members, whether over 50 or not, will also share their experience with post-op nausea and their solutions on this thread.
Age has very little to do with it. The shape
you're in is the most important factor. If you've been a couch potato for a long time and movement is difficult for you, start moving now even if all you do is arm and leg motions from a seated position.
Also, do some toe touching. This will help your midsection because you will be stronger and more flexible and prepared for any vomiting that may occur. And the more you move postoperatively, the faster the gas to leave your body.
