Question:
Scared to death about postop pain for RNY. How bad is it?
— Susan K. (posted on March 4, 2000)
March 4, 2000
dear susan:
i have to be honest here...i wish someone had told me ~ anyway...a quick
background for me is, i am 29 yrs. old and have had 4 children & 5
surgeries and i have to say: THIS WAS THE WORST PAIN I HAVE EVER BEEN IN!
now listen....don't let this worry you, because i have VERY close friends
who say, "i had NOT ONE OUNCE OF PAIN" and they are being VERY
honest! i have a high threshold for pain, but when i woke up after
surgery, i felt like someone had expolded a "grenade" (sp?) in my
abdomen! but i promise...it wasn't too long before i was checking out the
male nurses on my hospital floor~ LOL and i am now 7 weeks post op and i
am doing VERY good! so just remember that it is a hard thing to go
through...but i hear open heart surgery and hip and/or knee replacements
are MUCH, MUCH worse! that is what i kept thinking~ :-) take care and
you'll be running with the rest of us in no time at all!
— [Anonymous]
March 4, 2000
Well, I can only speak about my experience.. I was afraid to have Morphine
because of my Sleep Apnea and I also have interstitial pulmonary
fibrosis. So I sat down with my anesthesiologist and discussed this at
length.. I decided on the epidural.. Another good decision on my part..
I never had any pain. Never had to ask for pain medication oral or by
injection. The epidural stayed in 4 days I was given a prescription
for pain meds at discharge, however, I never even had it filled I
never needed it. ;-) Now, this is only my opinion but I feel it's a
lot in your tolerance to pain and what kind of attitude you have going
in.. I wanted to be up and walking asap and I didn't want morphine
making me sleepy or groggy along with the apnea. Talk to your surgeon
about an epidural or talk to any others on here that had it....
— Victoria B.
March 4, 2000
Susan, have you considered laparoscopic surgery? I haven't yet had my WLS,
still waiting on approval/surgery date, but I did have a laparoscopic
appendectomy 3 years ago and I'm soooo grateful. No incision, no
incisional pain. Other kinds of pain, yes...wound site, etc. But the
healing process is MUCH faster altogether. If there's a WLS doc who is an
EXPERIENCED lap surgeon in your area, it's definitely worth looking into.
— Julie C.
March 4, 2000
Well, I can only speak about my experience.. I was afraid to have Morphine
because of my Sleep Apnea and I also have interstitial pulmonary
fibrosis. So I sat down with the anesthesiologist and discussed this at
length.. I decided on the epidural.. Another good decision on my part..
I never had any pain. Never had to ask for pain medication oral or by
injection. The epidural stayed in 4 days I was given a prescription
for pain meds at discharge, however, I never even had it filled I
never needed it. ;-) Now, this is only my opinion but I feel it has a
lot to do with tolerance to pain and what kind of attitude you have going
in.. I wanted to be up and walking asap so I didn't want morphine making
me sleepy or groggy. Talk to your surgeon about an epidural or talk to
any others on here that had it, however, others have had the Morphine
pump and did fine with that also......
— Victoria B.
March 4, 2000
Hi Susan: I'd call it 'pain', it hurts. However, use that pain
medication! The first day is the worst, and it gets better from there.
Have you ever had surgery before? I've had a few major surgeries, and this
was no better or worse than they were. Just remember that this is a small
price to pay for treating your condition. I had PCA (patient controlled)
Morphine, and it was wonderful. Although I slept a lot, that was OK with
me. I walked in between, and even though I wasn't acting like myself when
I had company, I'd rather have been a little foggy than in pain. I'm
having surgery again this week to have an incisional hernia repaired, and I
have again elected to use the PCA Morphine. Good luck and God bless. You
can do it! Jaye Carl, RN, open proximal RNY 7-29-99, 94 pounds gone
forever!
— Jaye C.
March 5, 2000
To be honest, it was the worst pain I had ever experienced for the first 3
days. I had 2 children with no pain medication and I would rather give
birth rather than repeat this surgery. But on the other hand, also like
giving birth you forget the pain because what you get in the end is well
worth a few days of pain. My doctor was great about giving me pain
medication,,,just talk to your doctor. Good Luck!!
— Kimberly R.
March 5, 2000
I am 2 weeks post-op and I was also very concerned about pain. The pain I
remember when I first woke up was in my back, I have arthritis in my back
and lying flat for so long was very painful. I used the morphine pump but
because I was very groggy the nurse said I could have pushed the button
more times than I did. I was not told how many times just to push it so I
could have used more pain medication than I did. The good part was that I
was out of bed and sitting in a chair within twelve hours from getting out
of recovery. Don't worry it's not that bad and worth the discomfort. I
have lost 24 pounds within two weeks. Good luck to you.
— michelle M.
March 5, 2000
After my post I received several emails from members wanting to know
more about the epidural.. So I will give you my account of my experience
in as much detail as I can..and if there is a house doctor that wants
to answer on more detail great ;-)
It is a very tiny needle catheter like thing (sort of like IV)
inserted in the spinal canal.. (on your back about mid back ) then a tiny
tube runs to a machine that continuous pumps to the catheter site.
(like an IV). it totally blocks all pain ..and I do mean
"ALL" I had no incision pain, no internal pain
"nada" nothing at all.. they inserted this in the holding room
just outside the operating room.. the anesthesiologist does this.. no
pain in that either..pin prick is all.. I had to sit up on the gurney
lean forward a little and look into to the eyes of this simple
gorgeous man (that I do recall) and that was it.. You have to be awake
for this procedure when inserting it, however they had given me mild
sedative at that point they could have done anything to me and I would not
have cared ;-) don't worry it was fine. Then I was wheeled into surgery
and the lights went out for me.. Next thing I knew I was in recovery room
sitting somewhat upright wondering why no pain, I was amazed. I wanted to
get up right then to walk, but they made me wait about 6 hours after I got
in ICU. (ICU is normal in most hospitals usually only a day) The
epidural stayed in for 4 days.. Each day they lowered the dosage just
a tiny bit by the 4th day it's off completely and you really don't even
notice the difference.. What I like so much about this is you're fully
aware and in control I was wide awake at the appropriate times and ready
for bed at the appropriate time.. However, most of my days was spent in
the halls walking. My surgeon had to hunt me down in the halls for my
daily visit.. You don't have that groggy in and out sleep and half awake
feeling that morphine gives you.. This is same procedure they use
with pregnant women during labor and delivery....if they administer
this to normal healthy pregnant women everyday in the labor and delivery
you so know this is relatively safe procedure. I have sciatica down both
legs and low back problems and arthritis in my back & hips, this
procedure never bothered it or flared up any occurrences of the
sciatica.. Guess you can tell I'm sold on this procedure for pain
control.. Hope this helps some members with the questions they had
about what an epidural is.. ;-)
— Victoria B.
March 5, 2000
Susan,
You have received a lot of answers to your question, and you've probably
decided that it all depends on circumstances. But as for me, I hardley had
any pain.Open RNY w/ gall bladder removal 1-11-00. I was on the demerol
pump for the first day and a half. { I do not tolerate narcotics
{pain-meds} well} and after that, I took tylenol two times, was discharged
without a Rx for pain. I've had 4 C- sections, and a hysterectomy which
were more painful than the Rny. just go in with a positive attitude, Good
Luck....Dani
— Dani J.
March 5, 2000
Hi Susan, As a recent post op (2/15/00)I can remember the PAIN like it was
yesterday. I decided to give you an honest reply. When I wokeup from
surgery I cannot describe the pain. I have horrible migraines and have had
3 children, but nothing can describe the pain I felt upon waking. The staff
was very quick to administer pain medication but that feeling I had when I
woke up still sticks with me after 3 weeks. It was worth it though. That
physical pain was not even comparible with the mental pain I have suffered
most of my life from cruel people and their comments. I would have walked
through hellfire to be thin again. No pain no gain, and that is the
truth!!!!!!!
— Michelle S.
March 5, 2000
Susan, it is true that pain levels vary, as you can see from the answers.
Personally, I was also afraid, as I'd never had surgery before. I decided
to be as prepared as possible by expecting the worst. It actually was not
as bad as I'd expected, but still painful. The worst part for me was in
the recovery room; after that, it was manageable. I have had only one
child, but they had to induce, and I was on Pitocin for 8 hours, which was
the most horrible pain I'd ever been through. For comparison's sake, my
experience with childbirth was far more painful than my surgery. I'm now 3
1/2 weeks out, and down about 22 pounds. Clothing is already getting
loose, and I'm feeling much better. I rearranged my living room today, and
was amazed at how little my lower back hurt. The differences I'm noticing
make me so happy! I'd do the surgery again and again if I had to. Best to
you on whatever choice you make.
— Linda K.
March 6, 2000
Post op pain is next to nothing with the lap RNY!! I am so happy i chose
this type of surgery. I took no pain pills after i left the hospital.
Good luck to you
Diana G.
1/13/00 lap rny
Dr. Champion
>40#
— Diana G.
March 6, 2000
Attitude is nice, but do the drugs. I was on a morphine pump for only 1 day
post-op. (I had a swallowing study and they never put in back in.) Those
demons gave me liquid roxicet. I just had stomach surgery and they give me
that foul tasting liquid?! Plus I only got 5ml not less than exactly 4
hours apart. I rang the buzzer to get some of it, and it took 25 minutes
before someone showed up with it. This was at a regional teaching hospital
that prided itself on its modern approach to pain management. <spit>
Get a pain patch. Get a pain patch. Get a pain patch. They're good for
three days at a time. You can actually sleep all night, without waking up
2-3 hours when the roxicet wears off. Don't even think about drug addiction
or getting high from it like your doctor or Nurse Ratched might. People in
pain don't get high from pain killers. Two weeks worth of roxicet or
patches do not an addict make. The more you can rest, the longer you can
rest, the faster you'll heal.
— blank first name B.
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