Excuse me

(Note: I wrote this 3 weeks ago and forgot to hit “publish”. )

Consider this my universal “excuse me” so no one thinks I grew up without being taught proper manners.

The one side effect that I experience from not having a stomach is gas. Simply put. There are times I burp a lot. And I do mean a lot. Let’s just say I’ve been compared to Shrek. Without the stomach there is no volume so I just fire off a series of short bursts. I try to excuse myself but by the tenth time it doesn’t seem sincere and I give up. I think it is caused by the smaller bites that I ingest and chew. It leads to me swallowing more air. It doesn’t seem to be associated with a particular food. Hopefully in time I will adapt or adjust how I’m eating to control this. Until then, this is part of my life. Feel free to avoid sitting with me while I’m eating.

Of all the possible side effects that others have reported, dumping syndrome, cramping, reflux, I’m not complaining. I know things could be a lot worse. Counting my blessings…