Question:
I am on lots of medication, will i still be able to take them after the surgery?
I am a 32 year old female, I weigh aprox. 425. I am bipolar, and I have anxiety disorder. And thyroid disorder. And on a lot of medication to treat these problems. Will I still be able to take my meds? — tina H. (posted on September 9, 2002)
September 9, 2002
hiya
i don't know about the thyroid meds but i too am bipolar. i take prozac and
depakote. prozac has a 6 week life so i stayed off it for several mos.
after surgery then started on the minimum dose (which i discontinued a week
ago since i haven't had a "depression" since pre op) but the
depakote i had a prob with post op. about one-two weeks post op i felt a
bit out of sorts so my doc prescribed liquid depakene but i dumped on it so
then they tried depakene sprinkles (gelatin capsules that you open and
sprinkle the "sprinkles") into applesauce and swallow but you
can't chew them and i had to take soooo many i just couldn't do it. so
about 4 weeks post op my doc put me on the lowest dose of depakote, very
small pills, and i've been on that ever since. i went down from 5000 mg to
500 mg!!
also your hormones change as you lose weight.
be sure to discuss these issues with your surgeon and pcp.
good luck!
kate
open rny 6-14-01
pre op: 268lbs
goal: 135lbs
current: 130lbs
— jkb
September 9, 2002
Hi. I did have a little bit of problems swallowing pills right after
surgery. Most of them I just didn't take for a few weeks and then
gradually started up with them again.(with my PCP's ok.) I was on Prozac
and I kept having trouble swallowing it so I was put on once weekly Prozac.
It worked well for me but some have problems with time released meds. If
you are on synthroid (as I am) it also comes in liquid form. Within 1 week
after the surgery, I no longer had to take my Blood Pressure meds or my
osteoarthritus meds. Good luck to you!!
— Leah H.
September 9, 2002
I've been on Synthroid for the last 26 years and I stayed on the pills all
along. They are just a tiny little pill. They started giving them to me
against after the NG tube was taken out.
— John Rushton
September 9, 2002
Your surgeon would be the best person to tell you what you should or
shouldn't take. Mine allowed my usual meds
(synthroid,premarin,doxepin,accupril,zoloft); the only constraints were the
size of the pill. Anything bigger than a 1/4" in width had to be
split or crushed (just till the pouch and stoma healed). The premarin was
stopped two weeks before the surgery as the hormone can cause blood clots;
restarted it a week after surgery.
— LLinderman
September 9, 2002
I am 3 months out. I am still able to take all my psychmeds and pain med
for menstrual cramps. I just had trouble swalling the big pills at first.
Cherie-Doudenal Switch May 21, 2002
— Cherie L.
September 9, 2002
You should be fine so long as the pill is small enough (as stated in an
earlier post). You also must avoid any sustained-release drug (like
Wellbutrin SR, for example).
— Patricia E.
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