bowe6061

papaya saved my life! i thought i was going to die from post op gas pain, day 1 after taking the enzyme life had become heaven!

i was banded at a bmi of 32 1/7.11 by dr ortiz in mexico. it's painful and not a decision to take lightly, but so far i have lost 15 lbs. i highly recommend dr ortiz at the obesity control center. i was self pay for $7000. i paid $1000 extra to have the needle micro surgery so i dont' have any visible scars so i can wear my bikini!

i am 9 days post op, doing much better with the gas, but over the last 2 or 3 days i have been having increased pain at my belly button surgical site that extends up to my port site. i had the microsurgery so they inserted everything at the belly button and drug it into place. my surgical site is healing quite nicely. no signs of infection. however i can feel a painful bump just above my belly button and i am still considerable swollen and tender all the way up to my port. plus, the other day the port, or the band seemed to be rubbing on my ribs. i also have a pain that radiates to my back on the left side. anyone else experience anything like this?

I am feeling so much better and I can only attribute it to the papaya enzyme that I started taking a few days ago.

my fellow bandsters please help! i am 6 days post-op and the gas is killing me. I woke up from surgery in terrible pain and it hasn't stopped. i even had a barium swallow the day after surgery to make sure everything was ok. i'm eat the gas-x strips like candy, chew beano (get some relief) and walk like crazy, oh and tonight i tried some papaya supplements. not to mention being best friends with the heating pad. the gas can be quiet painful at times: very heavy tight feeling in my chest, pain in my shoulders and around my flank, abdominal pain. othertimes it just moves about like a creature living in my stomach. it even hurts to sniff my nose. has anyone experienced this? is it normal? does it get better? what helps?

i'm scheduled to be banded by dr ortiz jan 7. I have heard nothing but good about him. in fact, i spoke with a nurse practitioner who was banded by him, learned to do fills by him and then took a group of 6 of her patients from idaho to mexico to be banded by dr ortiz. that sealed the deal for me, i was in. my mother on the other hand said, "NO!" when i told her i was doing it in mexico. however, she is reluctantly on board now and will be traveling with me there. i will let you know how it goes. i have also heard good things about dr kuri. their office was really good to work with, but in the end i chose dr ortiz.

muscle milk is good, but watch the fat content in that one. odwalla makes a protein drink that i think is super tasty, but a bit gritty and you can get it at almost any grocery store in the cold section. i suggest bodybuilding.com to research protein shakes. they are a great company. i drink SNI elite series pro whey.

i love your post because i posted almost the exact same thing a few minutes ago. but from a professional side i hope i can help shed some light on some of your fears. i am a pre-operative, recovery and intensive care rn. your surgery will only be about 40 min. it takes longer to get you on the operating table, put you to sleep and wake you up than it does to do the procedure. when you wake up you will probably not have any idea where you are and you will be so surprised that it is all over. don't be surprised if you are really tired and possibly a little nauseated. some people have no trouble with the nausea. pain meds are no big deal. there is very little risk of becoming "addicted". make sure to take them with something in your stomach such as juice because they can make you sick. the biggest side effect of pain meds is constipation, and the best thing for that is walking and Water. walking will also help your breathing /lungs after surgery, help to stretch the muscles in your stomach, prevent blood clots, and help elevate your mood. so walk! I have previously lost 70 lbs and i struggled with it emotionally. i found myself almost mourning the loss. i did not know how to deal with my new body. i mourned that my clothes no longer fit. i didn't know how to handle guys checking me out in the gym. i had always thought i would be fat, so the concept of me being a hottie was hard to accept or deal with. i will say this though, it gets better. i got used to the idea of it. i loved being able to go into any store and try on anything! i didn't have to look for the biggest size and pray that i could get it up over my fat thighs. i'm sure your husband is a little scared as well. how will you change? will he lose what he loves about you? i wish you the very best! trust me, i'm freaking out as well to be banded jan 7.

hello everyone. this is my first time participating in the forum and i am doing it because i am scheduled to be banded jan 7 and i am experiencing some interesting emotions and thoughts. i would love to hear your feedback. the first thing i feel is almost ashamed or embarrassed. i keep thinking, "why can't you just eat healthy, exercise and lose the weight?" especially since i have lost weight before doing that exact thing. however, some of the weight has crept back on. on the other hand, i feel excited like i am going to get my life back. i have gained 30 lbs within the last year, and as a result i have lost a lot of my self-esteem and i find myself avoiding social situations. i am also terrified that it won't work and that i will remain fat. basically i feel that i have so much riding on this and that my hopes will be shattered.