Post surgery questions

[Jenn L]

So... my RYN surgery is scheduled for February and I’ve been thinking about the post surgery process. I would love to hear your perspectives on the questions below:

I’ve always been a stomach sleeper. Event during most of my pregnancy (many moons ago) I slept on my stomach.
I’m curious to know if we’re you able to sleep on your stomach the day you came home from the hospital. If not, how long was it until you could.

I’ve seen people comment on having drainage tubes and catheters.
Did you have them in the hospital?
Did you have to go home with any of them?
Were they painful?

Several people have also mentioned having a pillow for your stomach afterwards. Is that helpful if your surgery is laparoscopic?

Is there anything not listed above that you wish you had known before you had your surgery?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

 

[Taxman]

I had the RNY, and I'm not even sure they put in a catheter! There were no drainage tube or anything. I haven't been a stomach sleeper in many years, but nothing to stop me in the hospital (except for the IV which seemed to get tangled no matter what I did!) Talk to your doctor to see if there are any factors which will leave you with a different result.

 

[Brenda2010]

So... my RYN surgery is scheduled for February and I’ve been thinking about the post surgery process. I would love to hear your perspectives on the questions below:

I’ve always been a stomach sleeper. Event during most of my pregnancy (many moons ago) I slept on my stomach.
I’m curious to know if we’re you able to sleep on your stomach the day you came home from the hospital. If not, how long was it until you could.

I’ve seen people comment on having drainage tubes and catheters.
Did you have them in the hospital?
Did you have to go home with any of them?
Were they painful?

Several people have also mentioned having a pillow for your stomach afterwards. Is that helpful if your surgery is laparoscopic?

Is there anything not listed above that you wish you had known before you had your surgery?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Hey Jenn & congratulations on your date!

I had laparoscopic RNY in March, I did have a catheter but it was put in while asleep and taken out while I was still groggy from anesthesia. So to tell you the truth, I don't remember them taking it out, just that they told me they were.

I did not have any drains, I don't think you do unless they have to do an open surgery.

I did keep a pillow close. Learned that trick from my gallbladder surgery (also laparoscopic) 6 months prior. It's just a feeling of security to be able to squeeze something to you if you sneeze, cough or laugh. Even though there aren't large incisions, you'll still be sore.

Have you read my post about my surgery day? If not, that can help you prepare for what to expect that day: My Surgery Day Experience

If you have any other questions, we're happy to answer to the best of our abilities.

 

[Amailyn]

So... my RYN surgery is scheduled for February and I’ve been thinking about the post surgery process. I would love to hear your perspectives on the questions below:

I’ve always been a stomach sleeper. Event during most of my pregnancy (many moons ago) I slept on my stomach.
I’m curious to know if we’re you able to sleep on your stomach the day you came home from the hospital. If not, how long was it until you could.

I’ve seen people comment on having drainage tubes and catheters.
Did you have them in the hospital?
Did you have to go home with any of them?
Were they painful?

Several people have also mentioned having a pillow for your stomach afterwards. Is that helpful if your surgery is laparoscopic?

Is there anything not listed above that you wish you had known before you had your surgery?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Hi Jenn,

Congrats on your upcoming surgery! I recently had my RNY gastric bypass on Dec 16, 2019. I had been an avid belly sleeper prior to surgery as well.

I had a urinary catheter placed but it was placed after anesthesia and removed before I arrived to my hospital room, so I don't remember or feel a thing from that. They did place an abdominal binder which was helpful, along with a pillow, while in the hospital when getting up out of bed, which the nurses will encourage you to do almost right away. Definitely hang on to a pillow if you need to cough or sneeze, brace yourself for that quick pain, but it subsides just as fast.

I didn't need any drainage tubes. Three of my six incisions sites were quite tender and bruised for the first week after surgery, and while the Steri-strips were still on my incisions, I didn't want to attempt sleeping on my belly. However, after feeling better, I was able to sleep on my side while holding a pillow, which is a pretty good alternative to not being able to sleep on my stomach yet. Still, most of the time I was sleeping with 3 pillows propped behind my back and a firm pillow below my knees, mainly because it is easier to get up out of bed if you are feeling discomfort. As the discomfort subsides you can start sleeping in more of a normal position. My Steri-strips were removed a couple of days ago and only 1 incision site is still slightly tender but only if I touch it, so now that I'm 2 1/2 weeks post surgery, I now can finally sleep on my belly again. So just be patient!

Good luck with your surgery and I hope you have a recovery that is quick, smooth, and pain-free!

 

[missdarmitage]

So... my RYN surgery is scheduled for February and I’ve been thinking about the post surgery process. I would love to hear your perspectives on the questions below:

I’ve always been a stomach sleeper. Event during most of my pregnancy (many moons ago) I slept on my stomach.
I’m curious to know if we’re you able to sleep on your stomach the day you came home from the hospital. If not, how long was it until you could.

I’ve seen people comment on having drainage tubes and catheters.
Did you have them in the hospital?
Did you have to go home with any of them?
Were they painful?

Several people have also mentioned having a pillow for your stomach afterwards. Is that helpful if your surgery is laparoscopic?

Is there anything not listed above that you wish you had known before you had your surgery?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Hi Jenn! Congrats on the date I did have a drainage tube after surgery. It was very tiny with a little bag (think the size of a coin purse) hanging from it. I had that in for 24 hours after surgery. When they removed it, they simply put a steri-strip over it. It wasn't bad at all. I was able to walk with it and never felt a thing. The catheter is usually removed before you are fully conscious because they want you to be up and walking in a pretty short time after surgery.

The only other thing I recommend is the abdominal binder. From listening to others talk, it doesn't sound like every hospital gives this to you. I would check into it and if they don't, buy one for yourself. Having that on made a huge difference in what I was able to do after the surgery. When I didn't have it on, I felt like my stomach was just hanging in front of me and didn't have any support when I would move. Definitely the item I would recommend most.

 

[mmitti]

This stuff is good to know. I'm also a stomach sleeper.