Dr. Frech Appointment

I have my follow up with Dr. Frech. Things at this appointment go pretty well and I don’t have a nervous breakdown again, hallelujah!!

The first thing we go over is weight. I weigh 124 lbs. at this appointment (thanks to bloat weightJ). Dr. Frech is satisfied with this number so I feel we are out of the woods with the weight issue and being threatened with placing a feeding tube again.

The next thing we discuss is the issue of having a hard time eating anything with substance. I am still having major issues with reflux and food coming back up. If any of you have seen the movie, Wreck it Ralph, the little girl explains that when you burp and vomit at the same time, it’s called a VERP. This is my life all the time. I do fine with liquids but anything like bread, chicken, or raw veggies and fruit comes back up. I can’t tolerate more than a couple of tablespoons of food in one sitting and I should be able to eat at least ½ cup in one sitting. I also can’t lay down flat at night. This makes me lean more towards the hiatal hernia being the cause of this problem. He is concerned that the anastomosis may have shrunk (although not likely) since the last EGD. He thinks that it may be the pouch is just not functioning anymore. He suggests doing another barium swallow test to which I refuse. I tell him that the last two we did had a false positive and that I don’t want to drink any more barium for the rest of my life. He laughs and agrees that it might not be the best route of testing. He suggests doing another EGD with the intention of doing another pouch stretch and to also possibly find a source for the pain near my liver. He is hoping that he can get the scope far enough through the intestinal tract to find something but he hasn't had a good success rate in doing this. We both settle on waiting several weeks to give my body more time to become adjusted and heal. I decide to repeat the EGD after Thanksgiving. He says if things get worse to call and we can do it any time before then, he will squeeze me into his schedule.

He also hinted that as much as no one wants to do a repeat surgery that might be the only option for reducing the pain that may be related to surgical adhesions. That is the only way to 100% know for sure that the pain issue is scar tissue. He said most people don’t have “pain” when there is scar tissue present, but it is not unheard of. And since I don’t fall into the “normal” category, it may be the case and surgery may be beneficial.