Dumping Syndrome in Association with Gastric Bypass

Dumping syndrome is a common side effect from having the gastric bypass surgery, or any other type of gastric surgery where part or all of the stomach has been removed. What happens is that the stomach empties too fast, and the food within the stomach is not digested. The food is then dumped into the small intestine, and there are sometimes mild to severe symptoms, which include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, bloating, belching, fatigue, rapid heart beat and palpitations. Over time the symptoms do improve, usually, but not for everyone. For some it can be a life long debilitating condition.

I had gastric bypass surgery in 2001 and for the first 18 months after surgery, if I ate something that was not compatible with my altered stomach and intestine, I had some pretty significant symptoms. The symptoms were not always the same; sometimes they were severe nausea and vomiting. Other times I had diarrhea with little or no warning. Sometimes it was severe shortness of breath and severe fatigue. I would have to lie down and put oxygen on. For some the symptoms are even worse, sometimes there is a feeling that they are going to faint. Different people can have very different symptoms, which include shakiness, low blood sugar, and even mental confusion. I am not sure why the symptoms are different and manifest themselves in the way they do with me. It may be that certain foods stimulate dumping syndrome in different ways. I just don't know. What I do know is that they can be very painful and debilitating. I still have dumping syndrome from time to time, but not to the degree that I used to.