My EsophyX procedure..9 days post-op

[Nevermind]

You're the MAN haha
Well, I think I started eating normally way too soon.. should've been more careful, but this led to the spot not being too tight and stop hurting me. Thank God it hasn't loosen up too much.. the food stays down and I guarantee that. Sometimes I feel the pressure more, sometimes less, it's funny.. cause you know, when i eat a little more I think to myself, 'omg, you silly, maybe you broke smt', but the next day I feel it tight again..
I mention meat cause it's like the most solid food I can think of..
About the physical activity, I did lots of 'exercise' but nothing to put pressure on my arms, for the spot.. like trained my legs, ran.. ran out of air, but still, not interfering with the spot.. I suppose lifting weights to train the arm muscles is forbidden... Haha golf is fun!
Yes! Let's exchange mail! Administrator, help us pls!
Keep enjoying the good life, Dan! :P
Oh, do you feel like the trush had finally completely gone?

[DTanna]

I will keep enjoying the good life Rebecca !! In fact I did yesterday...I played my first round of golf in 3 months. What a joy it was to be out and about with some friends. I definitely had plenty of pain, but I guess it was just the surgery site being put through it's first real test. I felt really nauseous when I got home which was frightening. I took a leftover antinausea pill I had, and that made me feel much better. I feel the exact same way with the valve..sometimes late in the day it feels like my whole body is trying to reflux. As time goes by though...it always feels better. I have not had any food come up since my 2nd post-op week. Today is 10 weeks, so I guess that is great!

The thrush symptoms are gone..and it is awesome. I wake up now and taste toothpaste. What a welcome change that is. No more bad taste, no more white tongue. This is very good news. I'm checking on the mail thing later today..I believe a mutual request is needed. I plan to always keep a journal on here about my experience regardless...you should too. Not many people have had this done, and it's good to have first hand accounts available. I'll let you know what I find out. You da woman Never

[jurgenBE]

Jurgen from Belgium

Hi DTanna, hi Nevermind,

I read all the stories here about yours esophyx operations,and I want to exchange some experiences. My esophyx operation was done on the 10th of July 2009, so now is the 8th week ending on friday. I must say that after the operation I had a lot of pain,and the chest and shoulderpain lasted for a whole week after. I also had pain in the back (like burning flames feeling) and although it's less than in the beginning when I could sit more than 5 minutes behind my computer, I still have occassional pain and burning sensation in the back. I visited the doctor and he said it was normal as they had to make 5 layers starting from scratch instead of the additional 2 or 3 layers on top of the existing ones for the valve creation. Starting from week 7 I could start trying eat everything like before, but since I tried that I feel a lot of the times very heavy in the stomach (like wanting to throw up) and also I feel like acid is in mu throat. I am starting to get depressed now,as I can eat less foods as before (for example milk with musli gave me no pain before, now I get sometimes lot of stomage pain and annoyance) I went to the doctor and asked to examine me, but he said everything would be alright, I had to wait more weeks. Yesterday night (I am a restless sleeper), I made some acrobatic tour in my sleep,adn wanted to lift me a little bit up in the bed, my God, I had a violent pain suddenly in my chest,and also today I didn't feel good at all after every meal, I'm more worried, but the doctor seems not to be ... Dtanna, you are in week 10 now, did you have a similar experience ?
Greetings, Jurgen

[DTanna]

Hello Jurgen. First let me say that I have great sympathy for your situation. I also had chest pains...and still do some...after the surgery, but I had them before too as a result from constant reflux. I never had any pain in my back though. As far as eating goes, I would say that your situation is very similar to mine. After my second week I tried to add some soft eggs and mashed potatoes. Although I never had any nausea from it, I could tell that my body was not ready for it. I went back on a liquid diet almost right away. Over time I have progessively been adding more food items and have had a lot of success. Each time I try to eat things of more substance there is definitely some discomfort..very similar to the "heavy stomach" you described. It seems like my body eventually adjusts until I try something new..and then the process repeats.

From my experience so far, I would say try to stay optimistic and to not be depressed until you know for sure you have a problem. The only thing that I can say for sure about this recovery is that it has been a roller coaster ride so far. Some days I feel completely healed, and within 24 hours I may feel like it is not working at all. I just do not think there is an accurate way to tell if the surgery was a success until you are many months post procedure. I have friends ask me all of the time if the surgery worked, and I honestly can't answer them yet. Some things I know without question have changed for the better, but I am not certain yet that I am totally "fixed". I think you and I both just have to give it more time to really be able to judge where we are at. So no sense getting depressed over things yet. Please keep us updated on how you are doing...I think we can all learn from each other while we go through this!

[jurgenBE]

Hello DTanna, thanx for the information, this has given me a bit of hope, as after seeing all these stories everywhere and after viewing all these (too) positive video testimonials on websites from doctors who perform esophyx, I was already thinking I was the only one still having problems after 7 weeks. I am a bit glad that also you experience this heavy stomach feeling still now, it's perhaps means it's still healing and stuff.
I must say that the day before yesterday I also had this 'good' day,and I could eat a lot more than otherwise. But yesterday I ate a lot less and I again felt some discomfort and heavy pain, but at least now I know that also other people experience this probably although it's not always being said in forums or blogs. Thanx DTanna for the confidence boost ... I'll keep you informed about the situation.
Greetings, Jurgen

[DTanna]

Hey there Never!!..have you checked your inbox lately? I talked with the admin folks and there is an email for you.

@Jurgen: I have to agree with you on all of the overly positive testimonials relating to the esophyx. I found a lot of it very hard to believe. Then it makes you feel worse while you are healing because they all claimed to be good as new in like 4 days. That is just not the reality of the situation. It is a long healing process...and some days are going to be better than others is what I have found. Please let me know how you are progressing, and I will do the same. Good luck and keep getting better.

[Nevermind]

Aaaaaah.. really? I had to change my e-mail cause I forgot its password and could no longer use it, but I updated it now and I mailed the admin, hopefully it will be fixed asap!

Jurgen, so sorry to hear, buddy! But don't lose hope, you can never know when the wheel will turn! One day you can start feeling all better. I remember at the beginning I always had to wake up when I wanted to move my body position cause it hurt like hell, and had to hold my breath for a few seconds. This happened during the day too, when I talked to somebody and the moment came, I used to say "Hold on!" and put a grimase on my face, stop my breath and wait for the pain to go away (but I always thought no pain, no gain)...also shoulder pain, but not too bad.. and couldn't eat enough either, that's why I lost weight pretty much.. that changed since I gradually started introducing normal food.. And when I drank too much tea, I was so scared feeling a warm sensation in the throat like it was coming up :-/ Do you feel acid in your throat rarely or is it a common thing? You say they made more layers than the usual.. that has to hold more! Give it more time...

DTanna, do you see how lucky you are! Even I envy you! :-} in a constructive way Still feeling the taste of the toothpaste at waking up? I'll write to you as soon as I get your mail!

[DTanna]

Right on...I haven't heard from the admin yet, but will give it a test when I do. I've never mailed Romania before so it'll be a first!

Still good with no acid in the mornings....but have had a small bit of "the burn" during a few of the days. I think it is because I am adding new foods. I had like the best week health wise last week...and now it has gotten a bit worse. But no worries...it will change again for the better I am sure. You doing all good I hope?

[Nevermind]

Yes, still good as always if it weren't for you, I'd forget I had surgery. Still figuring out ways to keep my tonguie clean..
Just curious.. did you notice any difference of reflux from season to season? Did it differ from when it was hot(summer) or cold(winter)? I sometimes too have the burning sensation in my stomach, but don't give it too much attention, unless I feel it higher in my throat (no such case). Hugs!

[DTanna]

I haven't really noticed with the seasons yet...but our weather hasn't changed at all since I have had it done. I live in the south, so it will be awhile before it gets cold.

My problem with the burn in my stomach is that it does come higher into my throat. It doesn't happen often, but enough to worry me. This is why they think it may be too tight. I know that I am gonna have to go back and see them sooner or later, and I REALLY don't want to. Oh..the admin said that he is trying to send you another email...don't know if they have the correct one or not. I am happy and jealous that you are doing so well...I wish I would have gone to your surgeon and could feel as good as you do!!

[Nevermind]

Oh yeah, that guy is unique and has all the experience in the world! And I totally feel for you for not wanting to go to the doc! But hey! It won't last forever and the testing will be done and you'll be home again! But I don't get it.. the endoscopy is so invasive.. makes you wanna vomit like crazy.. isn't that dangerous for the stiches? (in the case the test will consist in an endoscopy).. And then what.. operate you again, make the stiches looser or maybe even take some out? That's screwed up..
Come here and I'll take you to that doc! hehe he'll fix you. I'd so like to see him again, cause he's so nice! Haha you're jealous and I'm envious..
I got your mail! Gonna write to you! Have a super burn-free day, DanTanna!

[jurgenBE]

Situation update

Hi there, I've been writing down the things from which I feel heavy, uncomfortable feelings when I ate this :
cream,cake,salami,red sauce,cheese, coca-cola,yoghurt with fruit,french fried, meat balls --> all NOK
the things that are OK to me are soja milk,bread, butter, chicken, turkey, green soup, pudding(of soja),rice,eggs, soft eggs, beefsteak

Especially after 6 o'clock I am afraid to have something else than soja milk with oat malt, because of the severe heaviness in my stomach (is it acid burning or not I don't know), what I do know is that it's 8 weeks past just yesterday and I have the feeling that a lot of the things I used to eat before my operation like some of the above mentioned here, I can't eat anymore for the moment ... and that's not really why I got operated, I got operated to start eating again like normal ...
DTanna, does this meet your own experiences or not ?
I am starting to feel that I've done a stpe backwards instead of forwards ...
Greetngs,
Jurgen

[DTanna]

Hey Jurgen. What you described is very similar to my experience. I have been trying to stay mostly on liquids during the day, and then have a meal of solid food in the evening. I definitely feel much worse in the evenings after that meal. There is no question about that. Sometimes I have a bit of reflux and a lot of pressure in my chest and stomach...what I would compare to the heaviness you feel. This basicaly started after I added solid food to my diet, and has come and gone. Lately, it is always here. I called my doctors and made an appointment for Thursday the 17th. I am getting a scope to look at it and they said a possible dilation. When they told me that, I asked what they meant by that. What they think is happening is...either the surgery could be too tight (which they have been suspecting) or that there could be esophageal strictures that may have formed at the surgical site. This is when scar tissue forms in the esophagus which can happen as a result of the surgery because the fasteners used go through both sides. It may be something that you might want to investigate yourself, because we seem to have a lot of the same issues. Here is a link:

[URL="http://www.drugs.com/cg/esophageal-stricture.html"]http://www.drugs.com/cg/esophageal-stricture.html[/URL]

I will absolutely update here when I go in for evaluation...and sooner if I have any other developments. Please keep me posted as well in how you are doing. One thing that is odd...I still have not regurgitated anything into my mouth like I used to do. It almost seems like this surgery has fixed some things and not others. We shall see I guess. Hang in there...I hope you start feeling better soon!

[jurgenBE]

Spoken to doctor

Hi Dtanna,
I've spoken to the doctor's assistant(the one who's following up the patients...) about it by telephone, I told that almost everything I eat (besides liquid, fish, chiken,soja milk,pudding) is giving me a very heavy annoying feeling in the stomach, sometimes I also wake up in the morning and feel my throat is soar...
I told for example that I had this from one glas of coca cola, from two sandwiches with salami,you know what she told me ... She told me to eat not so big portions (???) and not to drink a full glas then, but only 1/4th of a glas. Hmmm, if I don't eat or drink, I'm pretty sure that my "symptoms" will go away too.

She tells me it's normal and that I should not eat so much, just mini-meals. Everything will be ok, he says, without even asking me to do a checkup or so. I'm getting bit nerveous as it's the only hospital (i think) here in my country where they do this esophyx operation, but I feel like the follow-up sucks a little bit, as they just keep telling me it's gonna be alright, without doping some investigations as they do with you... I keep you informed, I've myself made an appointment for 30th of september, hope by then I feel better.

One thing though, I not understand is following : In the morning I eat a big meal of soja with oat malt, and at noon I eat one plate with 2 potatoes, one hand of vegetables, and one peace of chicken or fish - all without herbs or salt or pepper! and you know ... from these rather 'large' meals, I have nothing,nothing, not even a bit of heaviness ...

but if i eat one lillte piece of chocolate or a little bit of salami, or the same piece of chicken or fish with herbs like barbecue powder or curry powder or if I eat some mayonaise, hup, the heaviness is there for at least some hours, until I take some pills for it to stop... If the assistant says I eat to much, why oh why do I have no discomfort at all from my morning meal and my meal at 12 o'clock ...

[DTanna]

This is just a quick FYI, but my recovery specifically stated no chocolate, no carbonated drinks, fatty red meats (salami) and no strong spices. I would stay far away from things like curry powder for quite some time if I were you. I haven't had a coke for three months now...and I am not one bit happy about it. If you are able to eat big amounts of potatoes, veggies and fish/chicken without troubles...I think that's great news. Even though this is a newer procedure, it is still a fundoplication and takes many, many weeks to heal. I'd say stay with the meals that are not bothering you until your appointment and see how that goes. I am going in on Thursday...will let you know what happens. Here's to good health !!