Bariatric surgery is a big deal. If you’re having the sleeve like I did, you are removing a good portion of your stomach. For me, it was abou 70% of the stomach that went bye-bye. That’s major surgery and nothing to take lightly.
Now, will it hurt?
Yes and no. There is not any pain during the procedure because you will have anesthesia. Most anesthesiologists are very good about keeping you pain-free and relatively happy. You will be mostly knocked out for the procedure and wake up in recovery after it’s done.
What happens when I wake up?
You will feel some soreness, but the hospital staff will most likely keep you well medicated. If you are going home the same day, they will give you prescriptions for liquid pain killers. They will tell you to take them every 4-6 hours. I took mine every four hours the first day and a half to stay ahead of the pain, and it worked very well for me.
Did you have any discomfort?
Now, yes I did. They do ‘blow you up’ with gas so that they can perform the surgery. The gas pain is not comfortable at all. I felt a strong pain in my shoulder area. It was relieved when I started to pass gas.
I also had some mild stomach pain. It was nothing unmanageable. I felt very good except for a bit tired after my procedure. I took good care of myself and allowed myself a whole week to rest. If you can, I recommend you do that too.
Now what should I watch out for?
You want to watch out for any signs of infection. I was lucky and didn’t have to deal with this. Not everyone gets so lucky. You could wind up with a wound infection site. Some surgeons, unlike mine, use staples. My surgeon used steri-strips that tend to be easier on the system and less likely to cause infection.
Staples can become inflamed. If they are red and warm to the touch, you should assume you have an infection and at least call your surgeon. You may want to head down to the ER too. It’s not something you want to play with. Not at all.
The other type of infection is systemic and internal. You will want to be on the lookout for fever, nausea and vomiting. If you have all three of these symptoms, get help, especially if your fever is over 100. You could have a very serious side effect and need hospitalization.
Don’t take it lightly. This is major surgery. You will have some pain and discomfort, but anything out of the norm should be reported to your surgeon. Remember, that surgeons differ and the instructions they give you may be different than the ones I was given. I am NOT a medical professional. I am a life coach. If you are ever in doubt, question your surgeon.
Deanna Goodson 