Four months post-surgery I’m enjoying my new stomach. Since the holiday eating season began, I’ve indulged in Mexican food and margaritas three times, Middle Eastern food, pizza, cake, cookies, and wine—and my stomach feels great.
But it definitely is a new stomach. The GERD and its complications are gone, and the delayed gastric emptying remains. What’s brand new is that I can’t burp, I have occasional hiccups, and I have mild gas/bloat.
So, what’s it like to not be able to burp? Before surgery, I belched almost every
time I ate or drank anything. It helped to relieve the constant trapped gas in
my stomach (I now know that with each belch came acid reflux). I was very
worried that I would be one of the people who couldn’t burp after surgery.
The first month or so after surgery, not burping was a very strange experience. When gas was trapped in my stomach, I could feel it expanding uncomfortably, but the only thing I could do to relieve the pressure was walk immediately after eating or drinking.
By about two months after surgery, though, I had much less trapped gas, and the
disturbing sensation diminished significantly. On those rare occasions now when
I feel like I really need to burp, I swallow a few times, and the feeling passes. That’s it!
I do take precautions to avoid swallowing air: I don’t drink from straws, I
avoid slurping soup or hot drinks, and I don't have carbonated drinks. I eat
small amounts of gassy foods, such as beans, every few days, rather than
consuming large amounts daily (some people swear by Beano, but I can’t tell if
it works). I eat small meals, stopping when mildly full, and I eat slowly (I’ve
been doing this for years, anyway). Taking simethicone as needed with meals
helps a lot.
Many people can burp after a Nissen fundoplication, but some can’t, and you won’t
know until you have the surgery. But, don’t let it stop you, because there is a real benefit to not burping: I know for sure that I’m not having GERD!
In my next two blogs I’ll talk about my hiccups and gas/bloat.
But it definitely is a new stomach. The GERD and its complications are gone, and the delayed gastric emptying remains. What’s brand new is that I can’t burp, I have occasional hiccups, and I have mild gas/bloat.
So, what’s it like to not be able to burp? Before surgery, I belched almost every
time I ate or drank anything. It helped to relieve the constant trapped gas in
my stomach (I now know that with each belch came acid reflux). I was very
worried that I would be one of the people who couldn’t burp after surgery.
The first month or so after surgery, not burping was a very strange experience. When gas was trapped in my stomach, I could feel it expanding uncomfortably, but the only thing I could do to relieve the pressure was walk immediately after eating or drinking.
By about two months after surgery, though, I had much less trapped gas, and the
disturbing sensation diminished significantly. On those rare occasions now when
I feel like I really need to burp, I swallow a few times, and the feeling passes. That’s it!
I do take precautions to avoid swallowing air: I don’t drink from straws, I
avoid slurping soup or hot drinks, and I don't have carbonated drinks. I eat
small amounts of gassy foods, such as beans, every few days, rather than
consuming large amounts daily (some people swear by Beano, but I can’t tell if
it works). I eat small meals, stopping when mildly full, and I eat slowly (I’ve
been doing this for years, anyway). Taking simethicone as needed with meals
helps a lot.
Many people can burp after a Nissen fundoplication, but some can’t, and you won’t
know until you have the surgery. But, don’t let it stop you, because there is a real benefit to not burping: I know for sure that I’m not having GERD!
In my next two blogs I’ll talk about my hiccups and gas/bloat.
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