Post-operative Gastroparesis

I was told by Mayo doctor that 1 in 6 go bad...

@ken82 , thank you for replying! I'm so sorry to hear about that; however, from the thread I've been reading, you seem to finally be in a good place, now, with all that you've had to learn along the way. Your knowledge and experience is enabling you to be a great help to many others!

Anyone with gastroparesis?

Yes, post-operative type.... stomach takes 2-3 hours to empty. Foam sometimes forms. Food sometimes gets caught. Every meal is a challenge. Cut up and small. Use your blender or Ninja. .

Beyond that. It’s autoimmune type. Have failed all medications, NJ tube, GJ tube and staff from Picc lines. Currently on TPN thru central line. Appointments in 2 weeks at Mayo to see what’s next. Any thoughts out there?

My vagus nerves were cut/damaged beyond repair. My life since April 2016 really has been a living hell. For example, I thought I was going to have a good day today and before I can even do anything, I am in bed with a heating pad on my gut and hoping I can make it to the bathroom when the diarrhea hits. I haven't found anything with this disorder that provides me much relief and I think I have tried everything. I see your post from last July and I wonder how you are doing? It doesn't sound like the damage from your Nissen was as bad as mine, but wondering about your quality of life and and strategies that help.

I was wondering if anyone had experienced developing Gastroperisis (sp) years after have their colon removed. My husband is in his 30’s and had his entire colon removed due to severe UC. He did great for a while then we thought was going septic again (happens with the pouch sometimes if they get clogged) but ended up having to have his stomach pumped and told he has gastroperisis. He is no risk of diabetes and not over weight, doesn’t smoke, his doctors have no idea why he just got it all of a sudden. Thoughts?

Hi @guderianj and welcome. You will see that I moved your post to a discussion where members have been in similar situations as your husband. Perhaps you can read through some of them and connect.

When did your husband have his colon removed?

Hi @amandaburnett
Thank you I will check out that information.
He had it removed in 2016 and got his paresis diagnosis in 2020.

I will say after reading everyone journeys my husbands journey with paresis has been very well managed. So I thought I would list the things I do for him that keep him out of the ER for the most part.

Food:
nothing that produces gas, (broccoli, cauliflower, beans, etc.) Nothing that has any strings like asparagus, or anything that even blended is thick.

Nothing served fresh, everything is peeled, cooked, then blended into a sauce for a meat. If it has a spinach in it he only eats it every two to three days so that things dont get compacted and form a bezoar (a no body wants that).
no whole grains at all or fiber anything. No digestive aids, etc.
he tolerates meats well, and dairy but i also limit high dairy fat meals to once of twice a week.
He also cant have chewy candies, nuts, seeds, items such as this tend to bind.

body wise:
I can tell his food is not digesting well enough very early if his breath gets very bad. He then stops eating for about 12 hours and switches to just water. Then he has something very easy to digest for dinner like taco bell. Something with no nutritional value, lol.

When he has stomach pain the best thing to do is gently walk, dont eat, drink water. Until you start to go again.
My husband also doesn't have a colon which complicates him further because his internal pouch can have issues if his paresis has issues. So we are VERY careful with paresis but it works, we have only had to have his stomach pumped once and that is when he was diagnosed.

I hope this helps people. He is a healthy weight and all blood panels are good for vitamin levels etc.