Thursday is the day and it is coming quick. I will be soooo glad to be banded and get eased back on to food for meals again, although, I think I will keep up with the protein shakes for breakfasts.
I had a class I had to take at my surgeon's office Friday. They have such great support up there! They went over everything with the lap band, why they want you to shrink the liver (I had no idea those with 'apple' body shapes seem to have larger livers compared to 'pear' shapes--thus the difference in pre op diets!), what you can have/when you can have it, etc. The nurses are all on call 24/7 and encourage phone calls for anything. The nurse who gave the presentation said sometimes, when you get 'stuck' for the first time, it can be scary and they want to be there to reassure and give tips. It was nice to hear nurses who are actually wanting to be there for you. My surgeon's office also does a support group once/month, meetings with a dietician in a group setting once/month. They even offer bootcamp--which is 2 hours, 3x/week, for 6 weeks where you meet with a personal trainer at the gym, workout, and then meet with a nutritionist....all free. I can't wait to be healed up and do that!
Anyhoo, I am getting more nervous the closer that it gets but really wanting to get this done and over with.
It's amazing how much I miss just having even healthy food. I would have killed something over the peaches sitting in my fridge for the kids! The sugars and carbs are very much missed. I do pretty well with the protein shakes in the morning and for lunch. I haven't had any soup and have cut out the jello now, too. For dinner, I usually have a Lean Cuisine or another small, healthy meal. The other night, I made hobo stew with lean hamburger, sliced carrots, onion, potatoes, mushrooms, corn, basil, and V8. It was actually very good. A cup of that and a small side salad with mushrooms and a small amount of fat free dressing made a good meal.
Well, onward I go towards the countdown. I truly can't wait.
So, I went in for my second fill on Monday. It was 2 months to the day of my surgery. When I stepped on the scale at the doctor's office, I was happy to learn I had dropped 4 pounds over the past two weeks without really trying. I was ultra bad on Thanksgiving, caved in, and had 2 rolls....eek! Those went down fine, so when i went to the doctor's office, with 3 cc's in my band, of course I told him I could use another fill. He filled me with another 1.25 cc's and sent me on my way. I had a few sips of water in the office that really went down okay. However, by the time I got home, I felt soooo nauscous! Luckily, since the rest of the family has the stomach bug, I had some anti nausea meds on hand that I took. I did try to eat mashed potatoes and those came back up. I had a sinking feeling I was overfilled. But, I blew it off as swelling and tried to get liquid down in small sips. It was crazy. I would take a sip of water and feel stuck for 20 minutes. Since my baby girl came down with the stomach bug really bad Monday night and Tuesday, I couldn't get away. But, after waking today with an incredibly thirsty body and not being able to even drink, I knew I had to go today. The husband stayed with the baby while I made the 40 minute trek to the doctor. He wasn't in, but his nurse practitioner was. She took me back to unfill under the big fluero machine. She first unfilled me completely. We were both shocked to find that I wasn't at 4.25 cc's...I was at 7.5 cc's! My band must have been partially filled at surgery and there was no record of it. So, she took out 1 cc, leaving me with 6.5 cc's. I can get water down now, FINALLY! And, did I mention I lost 5.5 pounds since Monday? Probably from being so dehydrated! So, I think I should be good here for awhile. I felt a little restriction before and, once I add full foods again, I'm hoping I will be at my sweet spot. Word to the wise------if you think you might be overfilled, go see your doctor ASAP! On a plus side, I'm now under 300 **applause** Have a great day, everyone!
My second fill comes tomorrow....maybe...most likely. I currently have 3 cc's in my band. The first four days were extremely hard to get anything down without getting stuck (after my first fill). Now, I see that I can still eat breads (small bites....thanks to Thanksgiving!). I don't have anything in the way of restriction, so I really have to watch my portion sizes. I have also been doing awesome with not drinking for a half an hour after I eat. That has been so hard! I am currently down to 301.8, after being stalled for a month. Thanksgiving also went pretty well. I grabbed a salad plate and just put a small portion on it of foods. I don't think I allowed myself alot of food at all. Yesterday, I took my son and daughter to lunch with my parents. Lunch was a bowl of steak soup. I was only able to eat about half of it and my daughter ate the other half. I do find I feel tighter in the mornings. I would love to feel restriction, but it is not so bad where I'm at right now. i can tell the band is helping. While I don't feel restriction, I do find the food stays with me longer, which I love. We'll see what the doctor says tomorrow. Until next time....hopefully, I can soon report that I am under 300!
I got to see my doctor today for my 2 month diet plan. One more month to go and psych evaluation next week. Yay! I am down 6 pounds and I feel pretty good about myself. I have discovered sparkpeople.com and it really keeps me motivated. If any of you haven't tried it yet, I would encourage you to do so. I have an app for it on my phone and it helps me manage my calories and keep me in line.
Just another month then the big decision times come. I am nervous but oh so excited! My daughter's babysitter LapBand done in March and looks absolutely fantastic. I can't wait!
Feeling pretty good, so far. I have been doing a lot of walking and being up and around...I hope I'm not overdoing it! But, I'm not really having any gas pains at all, so I guess that is good. I have also been sipping a lot of water and G2. The only real complaint that I have is my throat! I called the doctor's office this morning and spoke with a nurse who told me it is normal to have throat pain after surgery, due to the tube. As long as there isn't a temperature, I should be better in a few days. thank goodness for pain meds! My incisions are doing okay, too. It doesn't hurt as bad to go to the bathroom or get up from a chair. Or, sleep, for that matter. last night was MUCH better sleepwise!
I do miss food, though. I don't really have hunger pangs, to speak of. When I get a little hunger feeling, I have a thin protein shake and I am better for awhile. Thankfully, the doctor said I can have those and soups in addition to the clear liquids. That is nice.
I went to the store today to pick up some food with my husband that I can puree this next week. I am so excited for that! I miss actual flavors! haha!
How is everyone else doing who has been banded recently?
