My husband had a stent fitted a couple of months ago now, I'm sure it's not the same for everyone but here's what we found.
In the first few days, there was a bit of pain as the stent expanded, this is to be expected and should get better after approx 3 days. The biggest problem we found was with acid reflux, because the oesophagus is kept open I think it can be a common symptom (especially at night when lying flat) but one thing that really helped on that front is getting one of those 'wedge' pillows. It works better than just propping up on pillows as they will only support the neck upwards, whereas these start lower down and basically gravity does it's work. It did take a bit of getting used to (as you can slide down in the night etc) but it does work well once you get used to it - this has definitely been a big help for us.
Also, you should be given something like Omeprazole after the stent has been fitted, hubby has it daily to help control the reflux.
Other things that helped were ginger, which helps to settle the stomach - you can steep a couple of slices in hot water and add honey for taste, or just add ginger to something like camomile tea and sip after dinner/before bedtime.
There's a long list of foods to avoid, but my advice would be to start slowly and work your way up. We started with liquid, moving on to yoghurt and then softer food in the very early days, and now eating fairly normally. I tend to cut things like meat up smaller, and avoid things which have peel that doesn't break down easily, crispy things like toast are ok but we've avoided things that soft bread which can clump up and form a blockage. Also, handy to have something fizzy/sparkling around it you're having problem getting food down or something gets caught - if this does happen: don't panic, sip something fizzy or warm, sit up straight or stand up and this will help.
We've also found that hubby gets full up quite quickly, so we're trying the little and often approach - lots of small portions or snacks rather than a full meal.
I hope this helps somewhat, and wish you every success
Thank you so vey much for so much valuable information, I know a little but nothing compares to your very in depth reply.
1st thing tomorrow I will be buying Ginger Tea, then I will see if I can get a wedge pillow from Able World.
My dad had Oesophageal cancer in 2005, caused by reflux acid. He was given Omeprazole to combat overnight acid build up. And it worked very well.
I've asked my mum if she is experiencing reflux, luckily she hasn't. But we have that medicine just in case.
The biggest 2 problems are the sickness, & thick phlegm that pools overnight. She's using the 3 pillow method, but it does look awkward.
I don't think she will ever be able to eat normal thicker foods again, but we can try thick liquid based foods, like soups & yoghurts. It's finding these that causes me problems as she is a vegetarian & Gluten free.
Her ambition is a piece of toast covered in real butter. So it's nice to know we may be able to work our way towards that.
Please accept my best wishes for your recommendations. They will prove invaluable.
And pass on our very best to your husband for a full recovery please.
No sickness which was stent-related I think (or at least not very soon after the stent was fitted). There was a bit following chemo etc but the anti-nausea meds seemed to help. Generally if there's any foods he doesn't like the sound of on a particular day I tend to steer clear and go with something else. Hope this helps and feel free to message anytime.
