POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A

I am planning on having my surgery next month and my husband and I are discussing the recovery process...He asked a good question and I was hoping someone here might have an answer or suggestion. My husband is taking the day of my surgery off from work to take me to and from, and to make sure everything is okay at home. We were wondering if day two of post-op would require someone else being home with me? How was the week of recovery? We are trying to plan ahead so he can put in for his time off. Thanks for the help!

Has anyone been told they could have a few sips of coffee in the morning? Any reasons why you could not? Thanks, Joleigh in NC:thumbup:

Hi everyone, I am in the beginning stages of the process-just received approval from my PCP. Anyhow, I love reading all of your posts and comments. I have learned sooo much (thank you). I am wondering what helped you make the decision between the band and bypass surgery? For myself I work with a bypass patient and to be honest in the year since her procedure she has wasted away, she really looks pretty sickly. So seeing her journey sealed the decicion for me. How about the rest of you? Thanks again for all the great advice, and I know as my time comes nearer I will be begging you for more! Good luck...

I was banded July 18th, done great no vomiting. Did clears for 3 days and now on full liquids. Im am hungry a lot and feel dizzy, I have lost 15 lbs I feel that is too much in a week. I am only getting about 600 calories a day, 30 grams of protien. How soon before all of you ate food. I feel I really need it. I walked tonight with my daughter for 30 minutes and no problems. I am only sore if I do too much and not rest. Also I cant sleep, anyone else have that problem? Im only sleeping about 4 hours, I use to go to bed at 11 and get up at 7. Now I go to bed 4 am and wake up about 9. Any advice from those who have been there, i would apperciate it.

Does anyone know if it is okay to take pill form meds now? I had the lap band may 21st 2008 and i have one fill with 1cc in my band. I keep forgetting to ask my docs about this. Im sure i should be taking some kinda of vitamins but im not sure if pill form is allowed for us. If they are i would like to start taking them right away. Also if you can make and suggustions on what ones are best for our bodies that would be great! thanks ahead! ~~jessica

I am starting to worry.... so far I have lost 20lbs but since I started eating solids I have slowly figured out that I can eat about anyhting (I haven't tried breads or steak, I'm too scared) and now my weight goes up a few pounds and then comes off again and I am starting to panick. The fluctuation is just 2 lbs but I can't seem to get over the 20 lb mark. My first fill is next week but I have heard that sometimes it can take up to 6 fills to give you the right restriction and I am worried I will be yo-yoing til then. I try to eat healthy, but there is a difference between eating just liquids and mushy stuff to eating real food!! Please tell me this first fill will make …

How many others got a fill during surgery? I did not find out I had a fill during surgery until my 2 week post-op appt. Now I understand why I already have so much restriction & have not been hungry. Although extreme fatigue did set in so I have been ok'd to start eating anything I can blend & then in a week start soft foods (YIPPIE). It boggles my mind how different each doctor is with fills, food stages, etc...

Hi everyone, my girlfriend just went through the surgery. She's in a country where the medical providers are uncaring and unhelpful. We've been trying to find out if she needs to go to the ER, or if this is normal and she just needs better pain meds. However, we get the "uninformative answer runaround" where they pretty much just hang up on her. I'm depending on you guys to tell me if this sounds typical or not. A visit to the ER might be prohibitive for us. The most worrisome symptom is great, torturing pain that just isn't getting any better 8 days after the surgery. It's constant and horrible. Her symptoms are: - Pain slevel from 6 to 8 (10 being the worst …

I had surgery on the 18th of July and I still have nausea each day. Is this normal? Feels like everything is stuck in my throat?

I know it's only a little thing lol.... but I was able to lie down in bed last night 10 days out from my op.... and it was wonderful lol.... finally can get some good sleep. I have been very lucky and not had the horrible painful gas... thank the Lord.

I am up at two am with gurgling and pressure, gas and most likely hunger pains, I guess I am just trying to get used to my body after surgery, I am 2 days post op and I think my stomach is a little confused, just was up and thought I would share.

I'm being banded on July 29 and will be returning home alone. What should I have in the house to help me along for a few days till I can get out again?

I am in my full liquids stage and I can have Soup as long as it is liquified (I use my blender until it is like broth...no pasta-usually something with vegetables). I am eating campells Soups (different kinds) and I can eat over a cup at a time and still feel hungry. My typical days menu: morning (11:00 a.m.) cup of soup (12:00) Protein shake sips of Water (4:00 p.m.) cup of soup (8:00 p.m.) cup of soup or sugar-free pudding sips of water Is this too much food? Why am I able to eat so much? Tonight I even had 1-1/2 cups of soup . I do feel full after that but I wasn't expecting to need so much all at once. Could I stretch my pouch from eating 1-1/2 cups of sou…

Was there ever a point when you felt your band wasnt working anymore? When did it start? 2 fills? 3? Thank you:wub: I feel like I have been at a plateau for awhile now.... Will that change with my 3rd fill?? I am at 5 1/2 ccs in a 10 cc band....Help please.

I was supposed to have my fill last week but that didnt happen. They scheduled me for my post op appointment, which happened a month ago!!! Well, the first appt, I had to cancel cause I had to get my daughter from school, she was sick, and I had no one else to get her. SO come to find out that was for a post op, not a 1st fill. Well, they rescheduled me for the following morning, and I got there, had to pull strings to get off early from work, well, once I got there, I was weighed, all was good, until I got in the room, the nurse asked me if this was my pre op appointment, I said no, that this is my first fill. She said that they dont do fills on thursday. I was like WHAT…

I am about 6 weeks post op and most things have been going well. I am not too restricted in the mornings but yet I do wake to like a lump in my throat. In the afternoons are a different story, after I eat lunch around noon, I feel full the remainder of the day (maybe restricted) I use the word full becasue that is how I feel but I only eat until I am satisfied. So yesterday, I went to Knotts berry Farm and was ok except for the full feeling in my stomach. I only had a small cup of berry punch- NO food. So this morning I woke hungy and I usually do not eat until 9ish. So I warmed up some black Beans and rotisserie chicken and after about 5 bites, I knew this was not go…

Oh my gosh...I am SO HUNGRY. This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do. I'm only on day 6 of my post-op diet. I have to be on all liquids for another whole week and I am about to lose it. How do you guys do it? I'm so hungry. I got banded on the 18 and I dont have any restriction. I'm hungry and ready to eat some REAL food. I am so sick of Protein shakes and Jello. :smile2: Any advice for food to eat on an all liquid diet?

Hello everyone. I was banded on Monday 7/21. When I woke up I had this awful pressure on my chest.When I tried to walk it went to my neck and was hard to breathe. It is a little better now after 2 1/2 days. I was so sick I could not drink cause it made me gag and get the sweats. I did much better today I got down 2 protein shakes and 8ozs of propel water. I am also sleeping all the time. I am glad I did this and hoping it gets better as time goes by.

Hello, I have a question for post-banders I was wondering is there things that you just cannot eat anymore? I'm Pre-Band myself and I was wondering if any of my favorites are gonna be on the Cannot Eat List basically so I can put them as my "last meal" I know it sounds sad but if I can't eat something anymore I just wanna savor that last time....Thanks Guys!!!!:smile2:

:smile2:Hi everyone I'm looking for some suggestions, I just got banded on 7/16/08 and i'm struggling for liquid Protein and protein when I get to the mushy stage. I can't do any of the whey products or anything with milk (makes me vomit). I have been drinking something called Paleo Meal that my physician gave me, it's a rice protein but the nutritionist says its not a complete protein. I'm so scared of hairloss as I already have extremely thin hair (you can see my scalp). The rice protein has actually been filling me up, but i'm looking for some other ideas as well if anyone has any. Thanks alot

I am newly banded on 7/15/08 -gas pain is tolerable and really not much port pain, for the first week while I was off work. Now that I have been back to work for a week, at a job where I sit all day, the pain at my port site is getting worse instead of better. Has anyone else had this problem? I am wondering if it is from sitting all day, I do try to get up and walk around, but by the end of the day, I am back on the pain meds. Just wondering if this is normal, or if I may have a problem.

Hey all, I just got banded on the 23rd. There was some trouble with the surgery and it took about 5hrs to finish. I stayed in the hospital over night and am home now. I have a 10cc band and it has 5cc in it at surgery. I cant drink more than about 1/2 of a cup of liquids at a time. very unconfortable after drinking. No shoulder pain from gas but just cant drink much. Tried a 1/3 of jello and have pain. Should i be this restricted this soon? My dr. said I would be really swelled from the surgery, is that why I cant drink anything? I am getting in fluids, small amounts at a time. I am burping alot and passing gas alot. This morning I could only get two popsycles …

I had lap band surgery on 7-7-08 and have been doing great, no complications whatsoever. Until now, I may have overdone it by lifting my suitcase and a cooler weighing more than ten pounds. The largest incision in the center of my abdomen has a hard area under the skin to one side. It feels sore ocasionally. Is there anyone with this concern who can provide advice?

I was banded on 3/19/08 and have lost 20 pounds so far. I received my first fill almost 2 weeks ago. I am still starving and I find it harder and harder not to snack...How many fills does it usually take for the person to fill restricted. I have to force myself to eat the amounts the doctor said I can have, I never have that "full" feeling. Any help????Suggestions??

I was told by a relative on the east coast that she was given a Bariatric ID card and restaurant discount card when she had her Lap Band surgery done. I never received a card like this, is this available online somewhere? I'm in northern California-

Hi All I have one more appointment on the 11th of Aug. til I can schedule my surgery. I am nervous and want to know of any possitive or negative symptoms any of you have had. Can you eat anything after? Any trouble with lettuce, popcorn, or meat? Do you have a lot of excess skin after? Would you do it all over again? Do you regret it? Any additional info is greatly appreciated. Thank you:tongue:

Hi all.... I am still at the beginning of the process...however I am wondering if wine is allowed post-op? I work 2nd shift as a nurse and enjoy a glass when I get home while checking email, or watching tv....is this a soon to be "no-no"? Thanks...

Hi All I have been doing so well, one of the lucky ones to have no gas pains and my wounds are healing well etc but just last 2 days I have been soooooo hungry and yet I still have 2 more weeks of full liquids to go. I know they are hunger pains because it feels exactly like the hungry tummy you get before I had lapband and felt hungry. I am eating the following (please tell me if it is not enough or any other advice to help me) Breakfast - 200ml Protein drink lunch - Soup (just a small bowl - assorted flavours). dinner - Soup or a fruit smoothie Snacks - Water, apple juice, jelly, occasionally a low fat scoop of icecream I dont have my first fill until 7 wee…

I was banded three and a half weeks ago and all my incisions have healed nicely except for one. It is the incision at the top of my abdomen (near my breat bone). While it has mostly healed it is still open (approximatly 1/4 inch) and being stubborn about healing all the way. Does anyone have advice on what to do to speed the healing process and avoid infection? I have tried the triple antibiotic ointment route......anything else? THANK YOU!!!

okay well, i was adament about not weighing myself until the 4 week checkup on the 29th. Well today i gave in and just did it. i lost 14.5 lbs in the last 3 weeks, im so excited!!! But look out cause now the OCD is gonna kick in and im gonna obsess LOL..Im going to do my weigh in every Sunday(i hope:scared2:) Gooooo Lap Band!!

Hi everyone. I got my band on April 17th - just one week ago today! So far, so good. I have had a lot of my questions answered by reading this message board. Thanks to everyone who posts! Today I found a large red rash on the inside of my thighs and on the sensitive inside skin of my upper arms. What the heck? It doesn't itch but looks like hives or something. Anybody had a reaction like this? Jeannie

I am almost 3 months post-op and have had 2 fills. Sometimes I can hardly eat anything ~ right now I am having a weight watchers rice bowl and can barely finish it. Other times I can eat and eat and eat..... almost like old times.. I have seen many threads about this before, but I am wondering does the amount of food you can eat always flip flop? Or is that how you know when you have hit your 'sweet spot', when a WW frozen meal makes you full? anytime, all the time?

I was banded on June 11,2008 My highest weight right before surgery was 346. This morning when I stepped on the scale it said 319.4. Its been just over 6 weeks. Should I be losing more? I have been really beating myself up when i eat feeling like is this right is this wrong is it too much is it too little. Yes my dears I am my own worst critic. food is not my enemy here its ME! ahaha!! What do you think? I mean am I average? I just don't know!! Am I in band hell right now?? ahaha i think I might be! XOX Barbie:eek:

I've heard bandsters talk about having an "id card" of some sort that you present at restaurants that allows people to buy off the kids' menu at because of the limited amount that can be consumed in one sitting. Does anyone know where to get one of these ID cards from?

I was banded a week ago so I look carefully at everyone's weight loss and when I see people who've had a lot of weight loss within just a couple of weeks of banding, I wonder why I only lost 9.5 lbs but then when I see people who've been banded for 2 months and they've lost less than 20 lbs, I wonder what they're doing wrong. I know this is crazy thinking so someone please step in and tell me to get a grip!!!!

My name is Robin, I have been over weight for a long time.... I'm 226 and 5'6. I been tring to get the lapband for awhile but I have to pay for it. So my question is does anyone know how I can get financed? Even if I have to leave the state to get the lapband... I struggle every day to lose weight and I have only lost maybe 5 pounds. My whole family has a problem but we dont have the money.... So please help me... Thanks

I've been watching what I eat really well. I am supposed to be on mushies until Friday, but today I ate shrimp cocktail (I'm traveling for work and healthy [mushie] food choices are difficult to find). Anyway, the shrimp was fine, I chewed it very carefully and took small bites. Also, I have not had my first fill yet (scheduled for 8/13). What I really really want is a salad...I want some vegetables. Has anyone had a salad between 3-4 weeks? I realize I'll have to cut it up to be very small and have the dressing on the side. It's pretty amazing to me that I am craving a salad and not ice cream, fries or chicken wings!! LOL. I exercised today too, while at the …

Hye everyone, i was just banded Monday the 21st. Since then i have had horrible bloating and gas pains. Everyone says that this is normal( hope it doesnt last long). Obviously im still on liquids and really dont feel like eating anyhow. I am a little concerned on why i gained 5 lbs during surgery and when it will come back off. I am also surprised to see how many people state that they dont lose for the first 5 weeks because it is a healing time? My Doc didnt tell me that ... is it common? One of my wifes good friends had been banded now for 10 months and has lost 81 lbs w/ no issues, so you can see why i am confused a bit. Right now he has me drinking 3 Atkins shakes and…

Hey guys Just curious to see what types and brands of Vitamins you use? Thanks Chris

hello, My 19 y/o son was banded on Monday July 21. He did really well after the first day and is feeling good now. My problem is that he absolutely will not drink anything but water and the Isosure liquid drinks. He doesn't like any kind of broth or soup or the carnation instant breakfast. When he smells them he gags. He will get hungry in the evening, but still won't eat. I am worried about him not getting enough calories. He is taking water well. What do you suggest for the rest of the liquid phase and the mushy phase? He also hates eggs. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks! :confused2:

Ok, I had my surgery on 6/17:thumbup: and as of today 7/21 I am have already lost 34lbs. I have read alot on here and I seem to be losing faster than most people. Anyone else lose this fast?:eek: I have NOT had a fill! :crying:

HI ALL JUST BANDED MONDAY JULY 21, 2008:lol::smile2::ohmy:. EVERYTHING GOING GOOD SO FAR HOPE IT STAYS THAT WAY:thumbup:. OTHER THAN BEING SORE AND I ALSO STARTED ITCHING WHERE I AM HEALING FROM THE 5 CUTS. :unsure:MY QUESTION IS HOW LONG DOES THE SORENESS & THE ITCHING LAST:unsure:?????

I posted this on another thread but it may have been the wrong one. Can someone tell me what happens when the band is filled to its limit? My last visit to my GP kind of confused me because he told me he heard that the band sometimes has to be replaced. Any ideas on this one? Thanks for all the info.

Just curious?! :thumbup: I had my lap banded on July 2. I just had my first fill. Dr. Charles Morton was my doc and has been fantastic. Let me know! Hope all is well with all!

Just wondering if anyone has taken a fat burner with lapband? example..Lipozene??

I'm still in my fact finding stage while I attend these nutrition classes for 6 months....(oh brother....) I'd like to know about the fill port (if that's what they're called...my memory isn't so good). How uncomfortable/sore is it? Do you always feel it or does it just become like a part of your body after a while? After you're done losing all the weight you want, does that fill port stay there? Thanks in advance for answering my dumb questions. :confused2:

Okay, I'm getting banded soon and have a few questions... Did anyone drive the day of their surgery? For those banded awhile, does anyone still consider diet pills to curb their appetite? (yes I know that's what the band is for, but I read a lot of comments about not feeling restricted, so I'm curious) What is the earliest you went back to work? I'll be honest first 'kay? :thumbup: If I can, I'll probably drive the first day... I'm gong to be by myself, so if I need something, I'll go get it if I can, if not I can call some one, but I hate to bother people... Diet pills have never really worked for me, or I wouldn't be getting banded... but can't say, if I'm…

How long until the glue comes off? I had surgery on 7-9 and still have what looks like glue over my incisions.....any input?? TIA

to prevent blood clots. Well I was told to wear them every day for two weeks. Its been three days and they are cutting into my legs and rubbing my skin off. Did anyone wear these and for how long? thoughts on preventing the rubbing? Tina

All of go through those thoughts. On several occassions I've worried that I've stretched my pouch. But every post I read about it, someone says, no, your just in bandster hell. So I want to know has ANYONE ever had their doc say......"You've stretched your pouch." And what is the next step if you actually have?