What Can I Expect When Recovering From Surgery?

Special care will be needed right after surgery while still in the hospital. You will generally begin feeling better by the second day after surgery. Exact timing of your discharge from the hospital will vary depending on your medical condition.

Gastric bypass or gastric sleeve patients who live more than 100 miles from Nationwide Children’s are strongly encouraged to consider staying at the Ronald McDonald House located across the street from the hospital for the first week following discharge. The Ronald McDonald House is a home-away-from-home for families and patients receiving care at Nationwide Children’s. This facility will allow your team to monitor your progress and address any problems immediately if they develop.

After you are able to return home, you will likely be on a special liquid diet until instructed by the team. You will also need to participate in physical activity to aid in the recovery process. Your team will inform you of your personal activity goals before returning home after the surgery. It is very important you attend follow-up appointments in the clinic following surgery. At these follow-up appointments, you will meet with a doctor or nurse practitioner, dietitian, physical therapist, social worker and psychologist. How often you have appointments will vary depending on your condition.