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Blog 59020

A blog by mscarly in General

  • Entries

    30

  • Comments

    78

  • Views

    879

About this blog

A weight loss surgery blog by mscarly on BariatricPal. 30 entries on surgery, recovery and progress.

Entries in this blog

Heck of a Month -

Two things have about trashed my month of July - as well as my fragile lap-band routine.   At the risk of sounding like making excuses, we've hosted three teenage grandsons for the last three weeks - nice kids, but very hard to manage everything with house guests. Eating out a lot, no down time, no organization time. This was not a good event, starting just days after my first fill.   Also, have been working early and late on a big project (many 12-14 hour days). In combination with above, d

First fill -

Got my first fill on Jul-1. No problem, didn't hurt a bit. Dr. Galvani uses some sort of pneumatic anesthetic pen, then inserts the needle. 3ccs in a 10cc band.   Down 31 lbs since the beginning of my journey. Started size 24 jackets and pants - now 20.   I still have a lot of aches and pains with the hip and arthritis, but people are telling me that I'm getting around better - so that's good.

Road trip victory -

I was on a road trip from Tue-Sat. Before I left, I was struggling - weight loss was flat for many days.   So naturally I was concerned about taking a road trip - where would I eat? when? what could I eat? dinner at conference? etc   To my surprise and delight - I came back and had lost 4 pounds!   I found that Cracker Barrel was actually a pretty good place to eat for someone 3-4 weeks out. I could choose the vegetable platter and had some good choices: applesauce, cottage cheese, green b

Got the blues -

I'm a little down in the dumps ...   Haven't lost much post Jun-3 surgery.   Logged into my lap-band (Allergen) site today and realize I'm only consuming about 900 calories a day.   I am following my program quite well - mostly protein shakes, soft foods - think I'm in plateau of sorts - have lost 23 lbs since pre-surgery diet. Kind of hungry, but not bad.   Gotta do better with the water, though.   Am hanging in there - I'm sure the scale is going to change in a couple of days. :confu

Post-op visit -

Went back for my 1-week post-op visit today. Dr. Galvani says I'm doing great. Just have one little incision that's healing up nicely.   First fill will be Jul-1.   He estimates I'll be down 50-60 lbs by the time the weather turns cold again, if I stick to it, so that'll be good for my bad old hip.   It's hard to imagine being that much lighter - but I know it'll happen!   Went back to work today to lots of hugs and nice comments.   Had my first mushy food today, a scrambled egg with

Things I won't miss -

One of my big treats was to get a new hair cut and color this past Mon, to get ready to go back to work on Wed.   Went to the beauty parlor, and sure enough a skinny minnie hair dresser worked on me. (Like a dummy) I blabbed about my surgery. She regarded me with a thin veil of contempt.   When I got out to the car, to my horror, my hair was a completely different color than I had requested (it must be most dimly lit beauty salon in Chicagoland), and I had a blotch of mismatched color by my

Hint re shoulder pain post surgery -

Just like others have said, I got a case of left shoulder and neck pain with post surgery gas.   My wonderful husband went out and bought me a "husk bag" - one of those buckwheat / lavender bags you warm in the microwave for a couple minutes - shaped like a neck pillow you'd have on an airplane.   The warm, moist heat chased the pain away in minutes - amazing!   Thanks, DH!

Hint re shoulder pain post surgery -

Just like others have said, I got a case of left shoulder and neck pain with post surgery gas.   My wonderful husband went out and bought me a "husk bag" - one of those buckwheat / lavender bags you warm in the microwave for a couple minutes - shaped like a neck pillow you'd have on an airplane.   The warm, moist heat chased the pain away in minutes - amazing!   Thanks, DH!

Done and done

Got banded on Wed Jun-3. It was a great experience. Went to Day One surgery in the Bloomingdale's building downtown Chicago. Surgeon was Carlos Galvani. Everybody was top-notch, the surgery center was excellent. Galvani fixed a Hiatal Hernia I didn't know I had, also.   After surgery, we went to the Whitehall, a charming European style hotel right across the street from the surgery center.   We had a really nice room (much nicer than a hospital - fluffy white pillows and bedding). The nurse

Almost done with pre-op diet -

I have to say, this has been the easiest thing to do. When your mind's made up, when you're committed, when you've visited this tremendous supportive site about a million times in 6 months, you're ready.   My surgery is Wed Jun-3. Got a pretty French pedicure today as a treat. Got all my chewable vitamins ready and waiting, C-PAP machine ready to take with me. Nurse and hotel are arranged. All that's left to do is pack my bag and show up.   Made a cut and color appt for next Mon, so the hair

Lap-Band vs Realize Band?

Went to my final appt today before surgery.   Met with anesthesiologist and surgeon.   I asked the surgeon the merits between Lap-Band and Realize. He said, "You're the first person who's ever asked me that."   He said they do both. That I should research and decide which one I want. Most of it seems to be about web-based after care.   Any thoughts / experience? Surgery is Jun-3.

Something else I won't miss ...

The skin on my upper arms isn't very pretty - little pink bumps.   Some years ago, when I asked my (rather insensitive) dermatologist, he responded to his medical intern (like I wasn't even sitting there), "We see that a lot in overweight people."   I hope as the weight comes off, and with some TLC skin care, I'll have decent upper arms ... even if they'll be a little flabby.

So far, so good -

This morning, after the first 2 full days of my pre-op liquid diet, I'm down 6.6 pounds already.   I am very much at peace with this decision. Not eating isn't bothering me in the least. I'm not hungry. It's very easy.   Of course, after my cancer scare earlier this week ... liquid diet? No problem!

Scared out of my mind -

Last week I had my pre-op testing, which included a chest xray.   The results came back that I had a "nodule" in my lung. (What the sam heck is a nodule?!) My doctor said it had to be tested further before she could sign off on my surgery.   So, for SEVEN DAYS I've been waiting to get in for a CT scan and get the results back - sweating out a cancer scare, on TOP of all the emotions of this surgery. :smile2:   I was out of my mind, worried not only would I not get a "second chance" at life

Kirstie Alley -

I read an article last night on Kirstie Alley in the recent issue of People magazine.   I feel sorry for her. She may be rich and famous, but why-oh-why she just doesn't get a lap band and be done with the chronic yo-yo dieting thing is beyond me. :ohmy:   Now she's creating her own diet and writing a book about it. It might make her some $$, but it doesn't take a crystal ball to see she'll be right back where she is a couple of years from now ...   There is peace in knowing you're moving

A few more things I learned today -

My internist strongly advised a couple other things today:   1) GET LOTS OF SLEEP in the next few weeks before band surgery [Jun-3]. It's one of the things that will boost your immune system and stave off getting sick so close to the date. Avoid people as much as you can (trains, etc); and wash your hands a lot / use hand sanitizer.   2) USE YOUR CPAP MACHINE and TAKE IT WITH YOU TO SURGERY OVERNIGHT. I quit using my cpap machine a few weeks ago, thinking tra-la-la it's just a little while b

Lesson learned re cardiology clearance -

Went for my pre-op testing today with my internist (standard questions and tests such as blood pressure, blood work, EKG, chest xray, etc).   She said typically an INTERNIST can give cardiac clearance before surgery; but she looked closely at the order and called to make sure - my surgery center requires a CARDIOLOGIST to give the clearance.   This is usually even more the case when you're having ELECTIVE surgery, she commented. They are being very sure to have complete due diligence on you

Mothers Day Meditation -

I'm taking a few minutes to think about being a Mom and my dearly deceased Mom ... and food and Moms ... and work and exercise and Moms ... and getting older as a Mom ... and why the sam heck didn't I do this earlier as a Mom ... (because it wasn't there in the US 10 years ago, Mom!) ... and how lucky the younger people are on this site who are going to have many better years of feeling great as MOMs and WIVES and DAUGHTERS and SISTERS and the GUYS that will *be there* for their MOMs and WIVES b

Good news today re surgeon

I received a *glowing* reference today from one of my physicians regarding Dr. Carlos Galvani at Day One in Chicago, who is going to perform my lap band surgery.   She was kind enough to ask around, so I take that as very comforting info as my Jun-3 2009 surgery date approaches.   Also, one of my colleagues, who is very knowledgeable about the healthcare industry, reviewed his CV and was very impressed with his qualifications. :thumbup:

20-lb weight vest

My physical therapist said something encouraging to me tonight. She said she estimated I'd be in about 90% less pain once this weight is off.   Her comparison: she wears a 20-lb weight vest when she walks on the treadmill. She says it feels SO GOOD to just be able to unzip that vest and take it off at the end of a workout.   Just think about MULTIPLES of that vest. What we're doing isn't quite as quick as being able to unzip a "fat suit" - but the next best thing!:biggrin:

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