Eating problems after hiatal hernia & nissen fundoplication

After my surgery I wound up with gastroparesis. It’s a life changing problem. My vagus nerve was injured from the surgery. It’s not uncommon-check with your GI doctor.

It has been two years this June since I had the surgery. It did take about 8 months to get to where I didn't have to worry so much about eating. That said, taking small bites, chewing food and sips of water is the way to eat anyhow. I didn't and don't eat too much meat if ever but fish, yogurt no problem. I still have my original bottle of Zofran and only took maybe 8-10 during the first year. I also had a mesh implant and they told me not to ever throw up again. The reason for Zofran.

This was very helpful. Thanks so much for telling me about Zofran as well. I am sure that will come in handy:)

I too have a damaged vagus nerve after delay of 6 months to repair an organoaxial volvulus stomach and possible reactivation of varicella virus, I now also have bleeding esophagus
I am appalled by the lack of dietary advice available to patients in the US. I now google every food, tea, spice, or herb that I might eat and ask is it OK with Gastroparesis, weak LES, and bleeding esophagus and have been pleases with the amount of advise given, You might want to give it a try as everyone has such different food tastes, it helps to be ,ore specific im stead of relying on generic food lists, I also requested pelvic floor PT to help with exercises and breathing exercises to strengthen the diaphram and the the vagus nerve, You can also google vagus nerve strengthening and find things like humming, singing the vowels, massaging ear lobes, facial yoga exercises, cold water to face, diaphram breathing exercises, but I would definately try and get in to see a pelvic floor PT expert, and if you had history of chicken pox, ebstien Barr virus, CMV, or HSVor covid ask your PCP about possibility of reactivation of a virus,
US healthcare system is terribly broken, Doctors are now treated as interchangeable linemen and we are basically fungible articles for billable hours on the comveyor belt. Doctors don’t have time to to do a thorough assessment of patients with complex issues, often sent to many specialists, who are so siloed into their specialty they are unaware of how all our systems work together or impact each other or how medications affect nutritional status, There is a lot of junk science on the internet, but I rely on information from the NIH mainly with some from other reputable medical journals, I usually print these off and take them to my appointments to ask the doctors opinion, .good luck , this is no easy DX, but I think found the right healthy food , exercise, proper sun and fresh air exposure a long with the inherent wisdom of our bodies amazing ability to heal is worth a serious pursuit,

Thanks so much for all the helpful information;) 🤗

After a year and a half after my hiatal hernia operation I will be going for a second opinion soon to a female doctor rather than the male doctor & staff who did my surgery. I had concerns after surgery on bodily changes and they were poo poo'd and not addressed sufficiently to my liking. I have had weight loss post surgery from 1.5 years of 30 lbs, cannot eat dense foods like carrots, beef without struggling and swallowing hard and basically no longer have a good appetite because of the fear of choking and the backwash it produces coming up my throat. After surgery I also became lactose intolerant & after an upper GI again the doc's told me I have another small hernia that I was told not to worry about it yet I have ongoing pain bouts at times & the only relief I get is by drinking water and doing deep breathing exercises while stretching out my abdomen area.

I had hiatal hernia repair with fundiloplication in September 2024. The operation went well but I had problems with blood oxygen levels for about a month afterwards.

The surgery seems to have worsened my allergies- cannot eat any gluten or milk products.

My issue is that they told me I would be unable to vomit. But sometimes when I have a reaction to something I’ve eaten, I do vomit. It happens so fast that I have no time to take the nausea medication. I thought I would be unable to vomit after the surgery but maybe I’m not SUPPOSED to vomit? It’s a different type of vomiting than ever before.

My surgery was June of 2021 and I've had nothing but problems since then. I have very little appetite, food often makes me nauseous and sometimes I vomit, I have a little difficulty swallowing, I have to be very deliberate when I swallow. The boost type protein drinks make me violently sick. I had to go thru a battery of tests, some pretty unpleasant in order to be seen by a speciality clinic and when I finally did get an appointment, it was nearly a year after I requested to be seen. To top off all this delightful news, I have developed another hiatal hernia. Has anyone experienced this, and if so have you been able to alleviate these symptoms. I have lost over 30 pounds, I look good and feel awful.

Good day everyone, thank you so much for all this helpful information. I sympathize with each of you who are having ongoing struggles post LAP fundoplication & hiatal hernia surgery😔. My toupet fundoplication & hiatal hernia surgery was just a week ago, 12/1/25, so I am still in the initial healing phase, but have many concerns. I have- or had?- too soon to know if surgery successful- LPR/ laryngeal pharyngeal reflux (aka Silent Reflux) vs regular GERD; acid goes all the way into my larynx & pharynx & I've procrastinated over 20 years to address surgery; trying to help myself with alkaline diet, etc. My hiatal hernia was 1/3 of my stomach pushed through diaphragm, which was much more than my Gastro surgeon expected based on my last 2 endoscopies. I have long suffered with COPD, & air-trapping in my lungs- supposedly from acid, per my Pulmonologist. I developed Pleural Effusion after my surgery, causing my oxygen levels to drop, so was kept 4 days in the hospital & sent home with 2 breathing apparatus & inhaler. My fear is messing up the surgery. My intestines are still not working, though I'm drinking MiraLAX & prune juice, & trying hard to stay hydrated. Coffee tastes awful anymore- which may be a blessing- & I have don't really have an appetite, but am eating very small amounts of pureed foods. Culinary is my background, so healthy cooking & baking is my passion. Sunday I atetoo large a serving & suffered greatly for that with excruciating pain throughout my chest, shoulders, esophagus, gut ... my body wanted to vomit, but I could not. Hours later, with self care, things settled down a bit. So I hope & pray I haven't messed up the repairs 🙏. I don't know yet my long term prognosis, seeing my Gastro surgeon & Pulmonologist next week for post-op. All of your sharing is so helpful, & I hope by this late date of my own response, that each of you are on a better road to healing🫶

Don't beat yourself up for over eating that one time. I think a lot of us that have had any of the various surgeries involving the stomach have made that mistake. The pain it causes will make you promise your first born to never endure that pain again. Just remember the first year is the healing time. My surgery was in April and it does get better. Be kind to yourself! Wishing you a gentle recovery.