[rozzy345]

I am so sorry you had to go through this. I am glad you are back on the mend and I hope you contact that first hospital and report their staff.


Roz

[whizzersmom]

OMG I'm so sorry to hear you had to go through all of that. Quite an ordeal. I'm happy everything went ok for you and you're back home again. Wishing you a speedy recovery.

[Spikey1341]

Originally Posted by DocSanae

Jeanne, you threw blood up because your guts were tangled up and dying from lack of blood flow. As the cells die, they fall off, and the resulting raw surface that is exposed after the inner membrane falls off will bleed into your gut because there's no protective layer. That was what was coming up. That's why I say the ER at the first hosp should have been right on it, and be more attentive. Of course, ulcers bleed, but most of the time, you don't get the kind of pain you actually experienced. That kind of pain can come only from blocked blood flow and whatever organs affected dying off. Think of heart attacks, myocardial infarctions are painful because the heart cells are dying due to the blockage of the arteries feeding the heart cells, and that's what causes the pain.
Oh, and they should have suspected from the smell, too.

Thanks Doc, I didn't know that. My surgeon may have explained that when he was explaining the rest but I was being so pumped full of drugs I'm sure I forgot alot.

The human body is an amazing thing isn' it!

[sonofone]

Hey just wanted to say glad you're doing better and kudos to your surgeon for going in and fixing the problem. I know my surgeon would have left me for dead if that was me. My surgeon thought I advanced my diet and caused myself to have an ulcer and sent me home with some

prevacid

. I really ended up having a stricture which he eventually corrected after my wife threatened to sue him. So I'm glad your surgeon was proactive and chose to treat you better than the original er doctors did!

[fr1endly2]

WOW sorry sonofone that you feel your surgeon would leave you for dead....THats horrible that you were misdiagnosed when you first had your stricture!
(((HUG))))
i am one that had an ulcer at one year out and i was throwing up blood which is alarming.

[Ladyhawk]

So sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience. But thankfuly you are okay now. Hopefully you will have smooth sailing now.

[BreeChick]

thank god Doc said it and not me!!! woohoo...yeah they should have known by the smell..it's really unique to say the least...Don't even get me started on bad emts/medics right now...

(i'm emt intermediate level and can say that! few and far between are the good ones!)

[MsVickie]

I had wondered where you were. I knew somthing was up. Im so glad your ok now. And wow on the treament you got before you finally got treated. I really hate to say it but being nice sometimes gets you no where quick. Its auful. You hang in there. Take care of you.

[DocSanae]

The lesson here.
If any of you blood, or dark chocolate- charcoal colored stuff because these colors mean old blood, bug the medics until you get a gastro-intestinal specialist; if any of you notice a foul smell with your , and as BreeChick says, it is distinctive, it kinda smells like what should be coming out from the tail end is coming back out, bug the medics until you get a GI specialist; if any of you get excruciating pain that you can't stay stil, much less walk, or if the pain radiates all over your tummy from where it's worst, bug the medics until you get the attention of a GI specialist.

Actually, a well trained and dedicated ER dr, at least, if not the rest of the staff, should suspect blocked intestines or perforations, conditions that need surgical treatment, from any of the above three.

So, if you feel you are being put off because you've had WLS, and feel that they think you are making a big issue of something that's minor, then you can tell them that it's exactly that kind of attitude that allows serious complications to develop, and allow them to get worse than they should, that makes this surgery look bad.

Okay, off my soap box.
Jeanne, may your journey go well from here on. (((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))

[not quite Barbie]

Whew, for a second there I thought I was going to have to tell Bree off! I've been a paramedic for 17 years and yes, anyone vomiting blood gets my utmost attention! I will put in two large bore IV's while flying down the road and yelling at my partners to watch the BP. I've seen people die from vomiting blood - though I have to admit they were chronic alcoholics with bleeding varacies, not WLS patients.

But Bree is right in that some EMTs don't know how serious it is, and some hospitals will stick you in a room and forget about you so be a pain in the butt and yell until someone pays attention!