Syrah

Ack. I overdid it. I was feeling good and cleaned out the turtle tank. I walked past it and it was nasty with a skin on top of the Water. I thought I could do a partial cleaning but it got involved. Now my incision sites are a bit tender from hauling clean water, even though I was sure to keep it under 10 lbs. per container. To make things worse, people in my house keep dropping like flies from the stomach flu. Including my mom, who came here to help me out. My husband leaves for a biz trip tomorrow. And I am *possibly* returning to work tomorrow.

I read that the mortality rate for RNY is 1 in 200 while the mortality rate for lapband is 1 in 2000. I like them odds a lot better!

How are you making Protein shakes? (Or what kind are you buying?) I can't find anything that I can stand. Blech. So far I've been using 1 chocolate pre-packaged pudding cup (sugar/fat free) + a touch of milk and a scoop of unjury, blended. It's the only protein I can get down right now. I tried to mix it with soup, crystal light, etc., but it's nasty. I had my husband pick up a Majic Bullet last night and it was $60 at Kohl's. I've used it three times already!

I love to chop jalapenos up and put them in my tomato soup. But since I am only 3 days past surgery, I think I'll wait on that. LOL.

Good luck Sarah!

Hello all! I was banded 3/29, home 3/30. I was put directly into the pureed / liquid stage after discharge, eating soups, broths, shakes, etc. I am doing ok. I dropped the vicodin (don't like feeling drunk and light-headed) but am struggling a bit with gas. I'm experimenting with Protein mixtures to find something I like. I think I am feeling some hunger and I need protein to stave that off.

FYI, I was told to use tylenol vs. motrin. I heard that motrin can be hard on your pouch and that you should let it heal for 2-3 weeks before using motrin. I am not sure about the urine quesiton. I don't seem to be peeing a lot, though I feel like I am drinking a lot. Belching hurts for me too. Is that normal?! My kids have the stomach flu. Great timing. My surgeon says it would be ok to puke but (eg, won't damage the band) but that it will hurt. I keep washing my hands.

Hello Autumn - glad you are home. I was banded the same day as you and came home on Friday. I'm doing pretty well. Giving up on the vicodin though - it makes me feel too darn loopy! So far I've had tomato soup, pudding and applesauce. I haven't weighed myself yet. I'm almost afraid to. My face looks bloated and my belly is very swollen. I'm afraid I'll weigh more than when I went in.

I am two day post op and my belly is huge. How long does it take the swelling to go down? Also I am trying to wean off the vicodin but I still feel very light headed. Is this the general anesthesia? How long does this take to wear off, typically? I feel a bit woozy and can't read very well, or for very long.

I was given fair warning about this from my doctor, and during my pre-op interview. I have not had a lot of trouble with this yet, but my doc said it can hit hard several days post-op.

My only concern is that you can't seem to keep fluids down. I was told that above all else, keep the fluids going in. They didn't care if I didn't eat much at first but the fluids must keep pumping. If you feel good, you probably aren't dehydrated, but it can't hurt to ask your doc abut it Monday morning.

It was a much better experience than I envisioned. I had great care and was kept very comfortable. Honestly, the worst part was drinking some really bad crap for the post-op G.I.! that stuff was HORRIBLE. Day 2 is worse than Day 1. I think it has something to do with that nifty little morphine pump... But I'm comparing this to a C-section and overall, it's not bad. Is it true that days 2, 3 and 4 are often the worst? I have a fair amount of pain from the port site. Normal? I am on vicodin. The tablets are kind of big; I cut them in half. I just took one not long ago and am worried it will hurt my stomach. Was I supposed to get liquid vicodin? I hope to hear from a couple of others here soon, who were banded on or around the same date. Pam? Autumn?

I am one-day post op and very relieved to have it over. This was the biggest step for me. I got home today. It was a good experience. Now I am eager to get past the pain (though it's not horrible). Good luck to all!

Rebecca, stay current on your pain meds tomorrow. The anesthesia will wear off even more by then, for you, and then the pain will probably be more obvious. But if you take your darvocet you will do fine. I hope to start cutting back on my vicodin tomorrow or Sunday. Stay ahead of the pain! Good luck to you.

I am glad you are doing so well! I was in overnight and frankly, it was heaven. I loved being waited on, having my own TV, my little morphine pump, and being kid-free for a few hours. LOL!

I agree with Benbax. My surgeon was very experienced and there was not much of a pre-op diet and I am already on mushies (banded yesterday). I think they all just have their own way of doing things, experience aside.

Go with Flintstones chewables.

BlueTatoo: Don't use a straw after surgery. I learned the hard way - using a straw invites more gas into your tummy. Ouch! My doctor did not require a pre-op diet (though I was told not to eat fried foods and cut back on sugar). My doctor also has me on mushies today (I was banded yesterday). My Breakfast today in the hospital was cream of wheat and apple sauce. This seems to be very different from what a lot of other docs recommend.

Good to hear about the pain fading. I was banded yesterday (3/29). I enjoyed the effects of the anesthesia hanging on and the morphine pump at the hospital. LOL! My pain was never higher than a 5 and often closer to 2-3. Now I'm at about 3. I'm taking vicodin and liquid tylenol. Hope everyone continues to improve!

I was banded yesterday (3/29) and was told to take a week off.

I'm a week away from being banded. I have been reading around here quite a bit, but I wondered if this is unusual. I have no pre-op diet. They just told me to practice chewing food really good, give up caffeine, sip as much Water as possible, and eat less carbs / more Protein. I feel like I should be doing more to get ready for this. Also, post-op, I will be on Clear liquids for a very short time (about two days) and then go straight to mushies. Does this seem unusual? The place where I am being banded is very reputable. It's a "Bariatric Center of Excellence" for Blue Cross / Blue Shield. They do a lot of surgeries and they are quite aggressive about recovery, post-op. Also, TMI-type question (I'm a dork) but do they shave your pubic hair when they do surgery? For some reason I am freaking out about this. I am not a hairball but I don't shave clean either - can't stand the grow-back itch! LOL! Thanks in advance, for any info.

Hang in there! I get banded tomorrow too. I am way less nervous than I thought I'd be. I just want it to be over. Between work, home and shopping to get ready for post-op, I've been super busy so have not had a lot of time to think about it. I think that's good!

Thank you Kat. That was very helpful. My doctor does things a bit differently. As if the lack of a pre-op diet wasn't strange, they also want me to start mushies after 3-4 days.

Dave, I have heard that you should not fly for at least one month after surgery. The concern is bloodclots. I asked my doctor about this because I have a trip to make 5 weeks after my surgery. Both my surgeon and personal physician said this would be ok. But there is a woman in my town who flew pretty soon after her surgery and she died from a bloodclot. Defintely ask your surgeon about this. You may need to postpone your surgery (which might be a good idea anyway -- traveling one week after surgery sounds like kind of a nightmare, aside from the bloodclot issue).

I was given samples of unjury Protein powder. I ordered some online for post-surgery (I get banded 3/29). You can add it to Soups, sugar-free puddings and Jello, etc., and it is unnoticable. Be careful not to add it to anything over 130 degrees, though. (You can use a meat thermometer to measure liquid temps). When choosing protein supplements, I was told to MAKE SURE it is a whey protein isolate. I was also told to avoid GNC because they are often uninformed about protein needs for bariatric patients. If you google "unjury" you can find more info.