Liver transplant - Let's support each other

My husband had terrible cramps during the night. We put a heating pad for relief. His diruetics have been increased due to pleural effusion, so I suspect that had something to do with the cause. His fluid intake has been limited to 200 ml daily. Does anyone have suggestions?

@christinelouise, I would like to invite you to join some of us who participate in a Healthy Living Discussion : Staying Motivated for the Long Haul. It is a long discussion and you will see very quickly that you are not alone with weight struggles. https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/staying-motivated-for-the-long-haul/?pg=31#chv4-comment-stream-header

No....I did not get it....my doctors have me on medication as a precaution. In my situation I was doing well right out of the gate. I am now about 2.5 months post op.

@rodney9999, did you get Hep C post transplant or are you taking the medications as a precaution?

I've had weight loss issues most of my adult life.

@christinelouise, Congratulations on your success over the past 10 weeks! And a belated Happy 2nd Transplant Anniversary!!

It sounds to me like you are off to a great start in preparation for your December hernia surgery.
I am constantly mindful of how easy it can be to gain weight after the transplant because in my situation (10 years ago) I had lost so much prior to transplant, that my post transplant instructions included eating to put my weight and regain my muscle mass. I try to eat as healthy as I can and to get enough exercise. So far, I am maintaining, and have minor ups and downs that I catch early.

Was your weight been an issue prior to transplant? Or has it happened since your transplant?

Here is an article that I want to share with you. Thank you for making me search for this! It is something I probably need to review often. In it you can see that weight control is common patient experiences for transplant recipients. It includes some on how to see the scale go down.
Weight Gain After Transplant: Where Does it Come From and How to Get Rid of It
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/page/transplant/newsfeed-post/weight-gain-after-transplant-where-does-it-come-from-and-how-to-get-rid-of-it-2/
You are not alone. I look forward to hearing from you.

@christinelouise I too lost weight before a liver transplant. What are you doing to lose? I used myfitnesspal, an activity tracker, and a digital scale to keep track of my weight daily on an Excel chart. I was very successful at losing the weight. So far, so good at keeping it off for the most part too. Right now I am pretty much at the same weight I was at transplant. Once I bought a whole new wardrobe I didn't want to gain it back.
Please feel free to ask any questions you may have, either within the forum or in a PM.
JK

My transplant was April 24, 2016.
I currently have a big abdominal hernia which I am getting fixed in December. I currently am trying to lose weight for that sugary and also to lose weight over a period of 2 years. I am doing really well for the last 10 weeks. I hope to continue making progress.

@christinelouise, How long ago did you (or a loved one) receive a transplant? Are you concerned about gaining or losing weight?

Hi, @christinelouise It's nice to welcome another post-liver-transplant patient. When was your transplant? If it was recent, and if you are on a high dose of prednisone, that is probably causing the weight gain. My transplant was in September 2016, at Mass General Hospital. I was on a higher dose of prednisone early after my transplant but I am now on a very low dose and I cannot blame my struggle with weight on that. I intentionally lost a lot of weight prior to transplant so I am trying to keep my weight down now.

Other than weight gain, how are you feeling? I hope well. It was such a wonderful feeling for the pre-transplant struggles to be history. I was on the dreaded lactulose for HE prior to transplant and hated it. When I was still in the hospital and had some pain my husband would console me with proclaiming "NO MORE LACTULOSE"! I was pretty fortunate through most of my pre-transplant days and other than HE episodes I felt well most of the time. The last six weeks were pretty horrible though so it was a tremendous relief to get that call.
JK