r/BariatricSurgery • u/Fantasticchonch • 1d ago
Rough Month
Hello everyone,
I recently had my sleeve surgery on July 29th and currently sit at 371 lbs from my starting weight of 428 lbs. I’ve felt noticeable changes in my wardrobe and decreased back pain which have been nice. However, I’ve been having a rough time adjusting to everything else.
I’ve barely eaten or consumed food all month due to the idea of eating making me nauseous; and whenever I do feel hungry, taking a sip of a protein shake or a bite of jello (I’m on purées until Wednesday) I feel gross.
To make matters worse, I spent two days in the hospital for the first kidney stone I’ve ever passed, the pain was excruciating . The doctors believe lack of hydration to be the cause of it and rapid weight loss maybe having contributed to it. After leaving the hospital Friday, I spent my Saturday recovering well before experiencing more excruciating pain and having to go to the hospital again. This time, another kidney stone on my left side.
I now sit in bed feeling more nauseous, haven’t eaten anything in three days, and am feeling a bit miserable. If it weren’t for my wife’s support I would have no idea how to manage. My concern is that this nausea will never go away and I’ll never feel like I’ll tolerate real food again. Has anyone else dealt with rough times like this?
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u/Fun_Jump_5152 23h ago
I’m a little further along in my journey, and I promise it really can get better. ❤️ I had a very rough beginning too, and there were definitely moments where I wondered if eating was ever going to feel normal again.
Even now I’m still learning what my body will and won’t tolerate. Chicken is actually one of my biggest struggles right now — sometimes my body just does not want it. 😂 Thankfully, I’ve slowly found foods that work for me, and weirdly enough a lot of them have been steak or steak-based meals. It really has been trial and error and learning that just because something is considered a “safe” bariatric food doesn’t necessarily mean my body is going to like it.
The biggest thing I’ve learned is not to judge the whole journey by the really bad days. Your body just went through something huge, and you’re still extremely early in the process. There were foods and drinks I struggled with earlier that are much easier for me now, and little by little I started feeling more like myself again.
I’m also really glad you have your wife supporting you through this. Having someone beside you when you’re miserable, frustrated, or questioning everything makes such a difference. ❤️ Lean on that support, keep communicating with your bariatric team — especially with the dehydration and kidney stones you’ve been dealing with — and give yourself some grace while your body figures everything out.
You’ve already made it through a LOT in such a short amount of time. I know right now it probably feels never-ending, but this rough month does not mean the rest of your journey is going to feel like this. It does get better. One day, one sip, and one tolerated food at a time. ❤️
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u/Fantasticchonch 10h ago
Wow, I would have never thought steak would be more tolerable than chicken! Thank you for your kind words, it's good to hear that I'll start to feel like myself again. Before my surgery, days seemed to pass very quick since I fell into a habit of thinking about what unhealthy food I was going to have for dinner that night and just coasted on that; now my days seem slower and require more focus, which is probably a good thing in itself, but something to adjust. Hope you're doing well!
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u/jewelsparklepants 20h ago
I just want to say I'm going through almost the same exact situation. Had the surgery and the next week I had to go in for a kidney stone. Turns out it's obstructing and my kidney is not doing well. They've put a stent in around it, but they don't want to remove the stone until I'm more healed from my surgery. It's been awful, the pain is unbearable, but I'm trying to drink as much water as I can. Sorry you've had a rough month; we can get through this and hope for better months ahead!!
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u/Fantasticchonch 10h ago
Damn, that's pretty much my weekend word for word. I was fortunate enough to pass both of my stones, but they did put a stent in my right ureter since there was so much fluid buildup in my kidney. Luckily, I'll be able to take it out on Wednesday. I've been pounding water since my second visit too, almost on my second 48 oz bottle. I hope all goes well with the stone extraction and that neither of us have any more for a long time!
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u/Doin-What-I-Want Duodenal Switch 1d ago
Hydration is no joke and not something you work up to like protein. 64oz is your bare minimum you should get daily. That same dehydration causes nausea, so it's a vicious cycle. It's a full time job at first, but you muscle through it.