The Post Op Experience

I had my surgery Thursday, came home Friday, and as I type this it is Saturday evening.  Surgery went well as far as I can tell and I felt like I had top notch care.  When I woke up from surgery I wasn't in any pain, just extremely thirsty.  It wasn't until today that I feel like my saliva glands started working again.  During my short stay in the hospital I dozed in and out of sleep and I walked the halls several times.  After the anesthesia wore off I felt pain in my abdomen where the drain tube was located under my rib cage.  I so glad to have it taken out.  Getting in and out of bed is still difficult as well as bending over, twisting, or getting up and down.  I am very sore at an incision site on my left side, apparently thats where they take out the part of the stomach that is removed.  It hurts to laugh, sneeze and blow my nose.  And today the pain has got the best of me and I broke down and took 1/2 a dose of pain medicine.  Wow what a difference that made, I feel human again.

On the flip side I was really scared about giving myself the lovenox shots, I have mastered that and have not problem doing it, (yeaaaa me). I don't even feel the stick.  I have also noticed since I have been home I am extra sensitive to smells, like when I was pregnant.  I smell things no one else can smell, it's weird and I hope it goes away.  While in the hospital the nurses encourage you to belch (during surgery you get blown up with CO2) to get the gas out because it's painful if it migrates up into your chest.  Well mine migrated alright, but not to my chest, if you know what I mean.  It's great because when it's time to release the "gas" it's pretty obnoxious in both sound and smell, but I must say it feels so good when it happens....and inadvertently I can't help but laugh, which is painful.  My family is both disgusted and entertained by my behavior, which is exactly how they were prior to WLS.

I also feel as though I have bad breath all the time, like hungry stomach bad breath, maybe I don't but I am erring on the side of caution with a lot of teeth brushing and breath mints.  This could be another one of those smell sensitivities I've developed.  

So, I didn't buy sugar free jello, big mistake.  It is waaaay too sweet and I just didn't like it.  So I got some sugar free jello and it is perfection.  I also love my chicken broth, why didn't I ever eat this stuff before?  Or maybe I love them because I haven't had real food in over a week, yep that's probably it.  I also recommend going to your closest Sonic and buying the biggest bag of Sonic ice they sell.  It helps with hydration and keeps your mouth busy!  I recommend that you walk and do as much as you can tolerate, it helps wake up your digestive tract, helps with healing, and also helps move the gas out of your body.  

Also don't try to wear jeans, even jeans that were very loose in the waist, I did this and was miserable.  Just don't do it.  I will be in my comfy pants as long as I can be from this point on.