How bad is the first week? - ThinnerTimes

MeAgain · 09-18-2004, 07:23 PM

Hi guys

I've heard several of you refer to the first week as Hell Week. Since my surgery is on Tuesday

, I'd like to know what to expect! How bad is it?

Thanks!
Katia

Blueyz · 09-18-2004, 07:46 PM

Katia,
First of all, congrats on your surgery day. I remember how excited and nervous I was. I was also afraid of hell week.... I was very uncomfortable the first day in ICU. I was miserable and the morphine was making me very sick. I was fine after the first day and I want to let you know that you, too will be fine. I had the open procedure and was kinda sore. I remember regreting the fact that I had the surgery and I wanted to cry. I kept telling my husband "why did I do this to myself". He pulled me through all of the pain and misery along with the psychological issues. I complained a lot for the first week and thought I would never feel right. By the second week, things got better. I can now say that I do not have any regrets and the hell week was worth every minute! Everyone is different and have different experiences. You will do fine and I wish you all the luck with a speedy recovery. Let us know how it goes. I will be thinking of you.

Christina · 09-18-2004, 09:29 PM

Katia,

I think I dubbed the first week as "hell week" because it reminded me of when I was in school sports and we had "hell week." It was a pain in the neck and you felt half dead during it, but after it was over you started to become in the best shape of your life. So for me, the name is suitable. I felt horrible after I went home for the first couple days, but the more I walked and got up the better I felt. I didn't take Lortab *(Pain medication) after the first day home. I didn't feel I needed it, as I wasn't in too much pain. However, I think the hardest part is not really the physical.. it's the emotional part. You start having that voice in the back of your head saying "what the heck did I just do??" and when your family sits down for dinner, you can't eat with them. That is the part that bummed me out the most. I was never much of a steak eater, but I remember smelling the steaks broiling and thinking of how much I wanted a steak right then and there my first day home. Well, I got through it. The other worst part is the boredom you feel and to me the loneliness.. nobody knew what I was going through.. nobody understood.. except my friends from Dr. Callery's office. My cell phone bill was over $300.00 that month due to calling so many people when I was feeling blue or had questions whatnot..

But it was sooooooo worth it because I realized then and there that the people I met here are my friends for life.. they really care about me and not just in the good times either like some friends in my life. They cared when I was sad, emotional, down, scared, sore, or having regrets about the surgery. Of course every time I mentioned that I regretted the surgery they kicked me in the butt and made me realize that those were just my fears and self doubts I was dealing with. So once I got past that first week and felt like I could actually stand up straight again I realized that everything was worth it. Skip ahead 5 1/2 months where I am now the newest member of the Century Club and I can tell you for sure that I have NO REGRETS!!!! Of course I would be lying if I said that I did it all on my own, because if it weren't for the support that I have gotten here then I may not have had such a wonderful journey.

triciaknox · 09-19-2004, 12:31 AM

OOO, then I will have a "leg" up on some of you. I live alone. NO missing sitting down for family meals! No smelling others cooking their food (at least not in this house!). Betcha I start feeling bad cause I can't have some of the cats' food. ICK!!!

watergirl · 09-19-2004, 07:32 AM

It was really tough getting through that first week. My 3 days in the hospital were controlled with morphine, but still had pain, on a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the worse, around a 8 when trying to move. I had really bad coughing attacks that would send my pain level up to 10. Morphine was my friend. If I felt I had to cough, I'd push the button, wait about one to two minutes, then grab my extra pillow, hold it against my stomach and then cough. I continued to suffer at home and still am with trying to find the right allergy medication. At home, I took the loratab for two days then stopped. I ate/drank chicken boulion soup, sugar free jello and pudding, water and herbal tea. My saving grace this first week was finding egg drop soup and wonton soup from take out (these must be strained). The thicker texture and different flavors was a God send. Pain level by 5 days out was significantly better. I can tell you that every day was better than the next. I was hungry, some aren't. When I was able to sleep on my left side, life was good!

I gained weight in the hospital and left weighing more than when I went in. I was told this was normal due to all the fluids being pumped into you. Like all water weight, it comes off fast. Sleep, rest and take good care of yourself!
Know that you're not alone, you've got us to fall back on if you have any questions, need support or just a cheer!

I wish you a safe and speedy recovery! If you'd be up for visitors, let us know your last name and your surgery date, we'll try to make it in to see you. There is a calendar on this forum, if there are pre-ops that would like company, put your name on YOUR rebirthday date! If you're not comfortable with that, provide it to someone privately, but let us know who's got the ball.
You'll be in my thoughts and prayers!

lealphachienne · 09-19-2004, 01:08 PM

I recommend having a friend stay with your for the first week. It's hell getting out of bed by yourself! I had diarrhea every 2 hours for the first 2 days at home, so I was in and out of bed a lot. Think about the worst flu you've every had and multiply by 10. You just feel miserable all over. I say my pain was 2-3/10 most of the time. The only time it really hurt is when I sneezed, laugh, or cough. Plus, you get bored to tears just lying around or walking all day. Sleep is difficult, I'm a side sleeper and there was no way, even with pillows that I could get comfortable on my back or side. It's so strange. You think the first week will never end, then suddenly, on the 7th day, you wake up and everything seems fine.

triciaknox · 09-19-2004, 01:50 PM

Marie,

Good advice. I will have to broach the subject with my "buddy".

Phebius · 09-19-2004, 04:14 PM

Tricia...the first week is a little tough, but you do feel better each day. It was pretty bad for me in the hospital...worse than home I think. I couldn't get comfortable in my hospital bed and they even changed it for me. I had the open version and morphine makes me throw up. I didn't know that before taking my first dose, but learned quickly...lol. I was throwing up (dry heaving) with an 8" inciscion down the middle of my stomach...not fun. I ended up sitting in the chair in my room for 2 days. I would doze off, but I never could sleep...I was dying to go home. My feet and legs got so swollen that I couldn't even wear my sandals home...I had to just wear my socks.

The worst was getting in and out of bed once I got home...you don't realize how much you use your stomach muscles. My thighs were sore as hell and my husband (buddy) had to help me out of bed for the first couple of days of being at home. If your buddy can stay with you, at least 3 days after you come home, it would be a great help.

Also, i found it easier to sleep in our recliner and it was much easier getting up and down the first week. When I did sleep in our bed, I slept with a pillow over my stomach...it just made my stomach feel "protected". It got easier each day and if you're like me, you don't like to feel helpless so you just do what you got to do. I was able to sleep on my side before the first week ended, but I was hugging that pillow. My husband was kind enough to sleep on the couch for the first week too so he wouldn't bump me or move in a way to make me feel worse.

You will probably be bored out of your mind within a week of being home, but if I could go back, I would have taken off the full 6 weeks. I went back after taking 3, but ended up taking one more week after that.

Two tips for you...when you do go home, bring a pillow for the ride home. I didn't realize how the seatbelt would affect my stomach, but the nurse who took me down in the wheelchair was nice enough to give me the one I had from the hospital. Secondly, if you don't have a recliner at your house, it's much easier getting in and out of bed if you have 4 or 5 pillows to sleep on, or at least to prop yourself up with to help you get up. My husband would put all the pillows behind my head/back, help me swing my legs over the side (slowly), and then gently help pull me up to sit on the edge of the bed. Then it was a piece of cake to stand up. It was just the opposite to lay down with and it seemed to work out pretty good. Most of us don't have the kind of bed that elevates (like the hospital beds) so the support of pillows on your head/back seemed to help a lot.

Everyone tolerates pain at different levels...me, I'm a big baby...lol. It also depends if you have open or lap how hard it will be to move around. I had a lot of incision pain, but the Loritab (sp?) helped a lot with that. I felt like s**t in general the first week because your body does go through a lot, it is a major surgery.

All I know is that it was worth every single painful and uncomfortable moment and I never questioned what I had done to myself. I waited a long time and jumped through a lot of hoops (with the insurance company) to get this. Remember...no pain, no gain.

I wish you the best on your surgery and a speedy recovery. Take care of yourself and do what they tell you to do...you'll sail through the rough days even though it may not seem like it at first, and the good days will make you feel like you're on Cloud 9. It's a great tool and a great gift, don't ever lose sight of that.

Take Care,
Pamela
Open 08/26/03
272/138/120

triciaknox · 09-19-2004, 04:26 PM

Pamela,

Lots of good advice there, thank you! I do have a recliner and after my previous stomach surgeries slept in the recliner for the first few days home. That will propably be the way of it again. I have this really high pain tolerance that is actually more cross to bear than a blessing, but it will help with this. Hey, you are 2 pounds from losing half of yourself! How cool is that???

MeAgain · 09-20-2004, 07:13 PM

Thank you all so much for your replies! Everyone's experience is so different, but it helps to know the different scenarios I may encounter. Tomorrow's my day...so I'm off to take a shower now and finish packing!

Wish me luck!
Hugs
Katia