Kymba

Hi all....

I saw my surgeon for my 2nd appt after surgery on 5/31...I am now 197 and have lost 31 pounds to date. For the first time in 7 years I am officially under 200 pounds. I am 10 pounds from the 1/2 way point and could not be happier. I did not get a fill because I did not feel as though I needed one. I am quite content between meals atm. He told me that is not uncommon and sometimes individuals do not get their first fill for 6 months.

At any rate...I am so darn happy I made this choice and getting happier as the slimmer me begins to appear. I forgot what the old me use to look like

Hi there!

I am 12 days post op. I feel terrific. I also had a hiatal hernia repair when the band was taken care of. I saw my doctor last Thursday and he put me on mushies straight away. I see him again 5/30th to determine if I want a fill or not. He told me to ensure I was eating regular food for a good 2 weeks by then so they can guage how much restriction I have and how I am feeling. He also reminded me that because the amount of weight needed to come off of me (about 80 pounds) that I should expect it will come off slower than if I had to take of 150 or more. He said the closer you get to where you want the slower it comes off. He said I can reasonable expect a weight loss of about a pound per week. He also told me not everyone will need a fill, some people do just fine with the band itself. Everyone reacts differently to it and the things they tell us are averages. It does not necessarily mean these things will be the same for me.

My incisions are still a little sore and I still have some gas in my left shoulder, some times so excruciating I cannot move the arm, but that didnt start until midway last week. I am looking forward to an all solid diet. I figure in the next week or so I will still eating at least 1 meal that way and see how I am doing. So far the things I have eaten are just fine.

HEY,

So my names Laura im 19 and 3weeks post op. its going ok, so far. I live in NZ so im probibly a long way from most of you. im in my 2nd year at university, thats ok to (lots of assignments).

But im on mushies at the moment one more week then solid foods YAY.

so i just wanted to know whats going with people at this stage, im not in any discomfort anymore. im actually feeling pretty good im kinda feeling hungry all the time though well not all the time but once i eat its not long untill im hungry again. its strange.

ANYWAY i want to know whats up with other people.

Hi and welcome. I am a heart patient and on Plavix. My cardiologist was extremely concerned that I had to be off my Plavix for 10 days prior to surgery as I take it to prevent clots. I have a history of blood clots following surgery, so my doctor also took precaustions with Lovonox. It is not a big deal and the shots do not hurt at all. I was given a heavey dose of Heprin prior to surgery (now that shot hurt like hell) and was given Lovonox in addition to my Plavix following surgery. I was banded 4/6/11. I was sore the first night home and had trouble getting in and out of bed, but after that, other than some general soreness I was fine. I am now almost 2 weeks post op and I feel terrific. My incision areas get sore if I sit to long (myjob is a desk job) so I just get up and take a walk. This is by far the easiest surgery I personally have ever had. While I was in recovery I had some kind of heart issue, with heaviness in my chest and an abnormal EKG. They kept me in recovery for 4 hours while they monitored my heart. After the first abnormal EKG, the following 3 while in revoery where normal, they came in my room the next morning and it was normal, and gave me another prior to sending me home and it was normal. So far I have lost a little over 19 pounds and like I said, I feel terrific. I can sleep on my side without any issues, even the side with the port.

You will do fine, and be happy your doctor is being cautious. Better that than the alternative Keep us posted.

Hi all,

i just had my surgery on friday-so not feeling so great-although better than i might have thought!

my question is this-did they take you off birth control post op? when my dr report came when they were releasing me from the hospital they said to stop taking birth control? the nurse said she had never heard of this (and they do many bariatric surgeries) so maybe it was a new policy?

Also they put me on lovenox-self injections for 2 weeks? again just a precaution -is everyone else getting this same info? just seems like a LOT of precautions?

thanks all! also-generally how long did your incisions ache? any helpful finds on how to sleep? the best i have found is propped up on the couch-but it isn't the best! thanks guys-this board is heaven sent!

I would nto feel bad about it all. My doctor told me to stick as close to the diet as possible but if I really needed to eat something, to keep it high in Protein and healthy like fruits and vegetables, no sugar. tuna is high in protein, so I would say you are just fine.

I'm not supposed to have solids but I ate a can of chunk white tuna. Still just protein and 900 calories instead of 800. How bad should I feel about it?

If you dont want to tell, that is your choice...Since your liquid diet will be filled with Protein shakes...just simply say you are trying a Protein shake Diet. I am sure there are some out there and then you wont have to say a word.

Feeling confident that this the right step for me. Scheduled to attend the Bariatric Specialist seminar in May and go from there. Work in a hospital and have seen several coworkers successfully lose weight, who told very few people of their surgery. Have friends that I eat lunch with, some of which are being successful with weight watchers who I suspect will think I'm taking drastic measures and instead think if I just "worked harder" I could lose weight and keep it off too. I've been overweight all my life. I've successfully lost up to 40 lbs with WW, but gained it all back. With Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, I realize that lapband is what I need as a tool to help me achieve my goals and live a longer, healthier life. I'd like to not tell anyone but immediate family, but when I need to be on a liquid diet for so many weeks, it's hard to figure how to have lunch with the crew without so many questions about my change in food intake. Any suggestions? How did those of you that chose to keep this decision private do it without people questioning your eating habits when you were on shakes etc?

I am drinking Protein shakes, and drinking tons of Water....but zero Vitamins. I cannot take them because they all come with Calcium and that causes me to get kidney stones. I have never felt this tired. As I said, I dont give into it...I refuse to lay around and do nothing, but holy lord the tired feeling is awful....Not to mention, I am a single mother of a 9 year old...It is only her and I in the house, so I cannot just lay in bed and sleep LOL....I have been caring for her since the day I came home from the hospital to the best of my ability. Luckily she was in school. This weekend was her opening for softball and I did get her there, stay there, and bring her home, but I was in bed with her at 8 pm and sound asleep within minutes.

Hmmm, I wasn't tired like that. As a matter of fact 3 days after my surgery I was taking care of my 1.5yr old and 3yr old by myself all day. They are pretty high strung and although I was still in some pain I was able to manage. Are you getting your Protein Shakes in? Vitamins? Lots of Water? I don't think working out sounds right yet especially since you're so tired. Walking of course is ok but if you're that tired I'm surprised you want to do any exercise.

ps. also had a hiatal hernia repaired.

Hello everyone...I am 5 days post op and I seriously have zero energy. I push myself to get up, walk, do some house work, but all I really want to do is sleep. I was lucky with the pain aspect as I didn't have much, only needed pain med the first 2 days and it was Tylenol with codeine. Is this feeling ever going to leave me? I feel light headed and shaky most days which is why I started with something beyond liquid...eating very mashed chicken salad, tuna salad, egg salad, but that is helping marginaly. I get full very quickly so I sure hope I am taking in enough nourishment. I absolutely hate my nut as she has as much personality as a wet mop and is not very informative to begin with. They had to repair a hiatal hernia and that has been a blessing considering the excessive amount of acid I had prior to surgery....knock on wood I have had zero since the surgery.

I want to go to the gym but I have no idea what I can and shouldn't be doing at this point, that coupled with no energy. I feel like sleeping the day away...I dont give in to this, but damn I sure feel like a zombie.

I am on day 5 and feeling the same as you....I have introduced home made chicken noodle Soup, very mashed up chicken salad, tuna salad, and egg salad, as well as cream of wheat and have had zero issues. I cannot believe how quickly I feel full though. I am still a bit shaky though and not sure if thats my body adjusting to the calorie intake or the anesthesia. Since I was a MEGA fountain soda (addicted badly) I switched to unsweetened ice tea or Water. I am afraid to drink the fruit juices because of the calories. I see the doc this thursday. I feel like my belly looks bigger now then it did before surgery, I sure hope that is due to swelling cause I am really freaking out about it. The pants I was wearing prior to surgery were loose and now they fit normal

I am looking forward to my 1 month anniversary when I can sit down and eat dinner with my family. This making two separate meals is very annoying, but I understand is necessary. I miss my chicken kabobs off the grill and that with baked Beans is going to be my first real meal with my family

So my doctor just called me to check up on how i have been. which i thought was very nice lol. & he asked if ive thrown up and been able to drink more than 4oz in an hour and i have been able to. I did mention my hunger pains when my stomach growls it hurts extreeeemllyyyy bad! So he said i can throw in some pureed stuff, anything thats not completly solid but more of a liquid form, im supposed to be on liquids for 2 weeks and im only 3 days post op. He said i can have chicken noodle soup as long as the noodles are soft. I know its best to leave it up to doctor and follow his rules i juts was wondering if anyone else was able to consume noodles at only 3 days post op. and chicken noodle soup noodles are VERY VERY soft they mash up in my mouth very easy.

You know the funny thing about these really skinny chicks is....eventually some of them will end up on the FAT side of the scale. They dont see it but they will. Take a look at the garbage they put in their mouths each day and then logically think about how long their bodies can actually sustain that without some sort of damage. WLS is not easy, in fact it takes an awful lot of discipline. It is one thing to try and count calories and attempt to eat the right foods without the band, but once the band is placed, not only are we trying to do that, we also have to watch the amount of food intake and be more in tune with out bodies so we dont cause slippage are stretching in the band area. As the veteran bandsters know, that is no easy feat...so WLS is NOT the easy way from my perspective. Ignore those fools and sit back and wait for the day they are tipping the scales and you are nice and thin and eating healthy all the time.

So through this journey, I have focused on my health and the positives of WLS. I haven't felt that it was for vanity, I mean come on I would be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to struting a small size infront of a few ex husbands... haha

But today, for the first time I found myself momentarily ashamed... Disgusted at myself, and distraught over my decision...

I sat at my desk, choking down my "shake" wishing and longing for a Milky Way to be quite frank, as I over hear a group of nurses... NURSES standing at my desk talking about WLS. Of course, being on the "Band Wagon" so to speak, I listen...

"People that have weight loss surgery are just lazy, if they spent half the time and effort they put into surgery they would just lose the weight."

"Obesity isn't a disease, its called being lazy and wanting attention."

All of this coming from a group of women that probably never broke the 130lb mark. It didn't register in my head immediatly.. It took about 30 minutes for it to really hit me on my way home.. SERIOUSLY U THINK IF I WANTED ATTENTION I WOULD CHOSE NEGATIVE FATTY ATTENTION??? WTF... I will admit this.. I cried... a lot on my way home tonight, wondering what other people say or think of me.. While this wasn't a direct insult to me, I sure as hell am taking it that way. Am I just being lazy, were all my weight loss attempts just not enough, did I not dedicate myself enough...

I have been very open and honest about my journey... sharing and educating as much as I can.. I even found myself this morning asking myself as I read some blogs and post on this lapband support site.. Why would people hide this, and make it this HUGE secret??? It is such an amazing gift... Well my friends these SKINNY BITCHES I work with have given me that reason.. I however am not going to stop.. I am going to continue to be open and honest, and quite frankly next time I overhear their conversation I will speak up, and kindly ask them to move their conversation away from the "fat lazy wls chick".

Good night my friends, and thanks for letting me vent off a little...

P.S. We r just waiting on a date.. should be getting one soon!

I am getting that as well. It is from the gas they blow our bellies up with during the surgery. It takes a few days to work its way through your system. Walking is the best thing to help move it around.

i had my band on the 7th of april and it went really well..i have got this band pain tho in my left shoulder and it wont go i am walking around the house and stuff but it dont seem to make a differnce does everyone get this to ??

I was banded on the 6th of April. I am feeling better each day...and looking very forward to my new way of life after liquids

Kami,

I started this journey June 2010 and my surgery is tomorrow. After my initial consult with the surgeon in June, I took a few months to really think about if this was what I wanted to do and also did some research on my own. I didnt actually begin the testing until late August early September. My insurance company required 6 months of diet/exercise supervised by my doctor. That seems like a long time, but by the time you go through all these tests that are required (I am a single mom, so taking off a lot of time from work, was not an option) it ended up being 7 months.

I wish you the very best with your choice to have surgery and I certainly hope you receive everything you wish out of it. My suggestion is for you to call the insurance company and ask for a list of requirements for the surgery. Every insurance company is different. That will give you a pretty good idea of what and how long things will take.

Best wishes and welcome to this journey,

Kymba

I am to receive my band tomorrow. I am still waiting for the hospital to call and let me know what time. I am pretty nervous about this whole thing. I will be very happy once it is over and I can get myself acquainted with my new life

My liquid diet is or 7 days, I am on day three and dont know what I weight because I refuse to put a scale in my house. I know if I do, I will get obsessed. My doctor wants liquids, but said if I have to eat something, make sure its something Protein. I have been trying hard to stick to all liquids, yogurt, cream of wheat, Water, unsweetened diet ice tea, etc but the headaches and shaking is too much. So day 1 I ate 2 hard boiled eggs in addition to all the liquid, day 2, I ate chicken, less than 3 ounces, today....still liquids so far, but know I will eat something at dinner.< /p>

Okay so yesterday was day1 of my pre-op diet. I kept to it all day, by the time I got home from work, I had a severe head ache and I was shaking like mad. I have never felt so hungry in my life. I caved and ate 2 hard boiled eggs, I felt a little better, but still shaky hands. I sure hope I can make it through my liquid died and not have to cave on some solids but I did not in anyway like how I felt yesterday.

So far today, have had about 24 ounces of Water, 32 oz of unsweetened fresh brewed ice tea, 8 oz yogurt, and now eating a bowl of Tomato Soup for lunch. The headache is already starting and I sure hope I dont have the uncontrollable shaky hands by the time I get home tonight.

Anyone else ever feel like this?

sounds like gall stones to me...but I am not a doctor...have you ever had your gall bladder out? If so...Im not sure what it could be.

Hi all,

I am having pretty moderate back pain on my left side mid-upper back, possible close to the middle of my back. Its becoming worse and radiating so I can't tell. This morning before the pain i noticed upper mid stomach pain..like dull achy pain causing nausea. Could this be related to my band? right now I feel like I am salivating excessively.. almost bubbly. I may need to go to the hospital if it gets worse.. i dont know whether to call lapband dr, or just go to regular dr.. ugh!

I am not a coffee drinker, so no I am not drinking coffee. I got my caffeine from soda, which now I cant have. My intention is to just drink unsweetned ice tea. I do not get the satisfaction from it that I get from soda, but it has the caffeine I need givent he hours and life style I lead.

I am starting my 2 week preop diet on Friday. Are and of you drinking coffee?

HI...I know exactly how you feel. Use your same plan, except on Saturday, have your husband bring the kids to come pick up their mommy. They will love that because they will be very anxious to see you. Your children will have school on Friday....hubby can stay with you until they need to be home from school, (maybe a friend from school can keep them after school for an hour or so) hubby can go home, be with the kids and assure them mommy is fine and that the three of them are going to get up and go bring mommy home on Saturday. It will work perfectly and you will not have to lie, and then you can tell your family if you choose to when you are ready.

So i made the decision that only a few people were going to know about my band - husband, best friend and a few coworkers that have also been banded. I am not saying anything to others for several reasons.

So i have to stay overnight and its about 1.5 hrs away. I have 2 small kids ages 6 and 10. I will need someone to watch the kids while Dh either a. Spends the night with me or b. Comes to pick me up the next day. I haf the perfect plan to be banded on thurs then dh would leave around 1 pm go back and get the kids, stay with them and drop them off at school and then come back to get me. No one would have to watch the kiddos. We wouldnt have to lie. Come to find out my dr only does outpatients on thurs so i will have to be done on a fri. Ideally i would ask my parents, but i would have to lie about why bc i dont want them to know about the band. I may ask best friend but she just started a new job and i dont want her to request off work to help me. I really dont want to tell my parents about the band but i dont like having to lie about where i am while they have my kids. Anyone else been in this situation?

Thank you for sharing that video...IT is very nice to see a caring doctor. I am not overly enthused with my surgeon. He give you the feeling of your just another obese person. I realize that some surgeons are like that and that in no way means they are not good surgeons, but it is always nice to see a docotr treat their patient the way this one did. Thank you!

Just sharing a video with you made by my surgeon, Tiffany Jesse, St. Pete., Fla. Her caring ways make this venture quite easy. Enjoy.

My last meal was at Outback Steakhouse. I am not a steak eater, but I do enjoy babyback ribs. The weird thing is, I have been watching what I eat for so long now, I could not finish...I felt satisfied and stopped eating. I was going to only order 1/2 rack, but my significant other said...no get the full rack, I want some. He didnt eat any of them, I left more than 1/2 on the plate and I only took a few bites of my potato. I did enjoy a very small piece of cheese cake, which I also could not eat, I literally only took 3 - 4 bites of it. So long to that life and on to the new one. I thought I would be miserable, but Im actually feeling really up beat about it all so far.

Congratulations! I've got a 2 week diet, which I started today as well. My last meal was Olive Garden. Good luck on your journey!

Today begins my 7 day liquid diet - pre-surgery. I went out with my family last night and enjoyed a nice dinner, we divorced my old life and are welcoming the new one beginnign today. 1 week from today, I will receive the tool I have worked so hard to get and then truly be on my way.

Best Wishes to you....All will go very well and soon there will be a completely new you....Can't wait until we hear how you did....Chin up

CONGRATULATIONS!

APRIL 12th!! Just found out this morning! Pre-op stuff this week, more details from the surgeon's office this afternoon!

Doing the very, very HAPPY DANCE out here on the Nebraska prairie!!

They cannot fill you at the time of surgery because of swelling. They have to allow you time to heal. While it seems simple that it takes about 5 fills to feel restricition so just go ahead fill it up ahead of time, the amount of Fluid used varies greatly by patient. You may have a sweet spot at 4 cc's, but someone else will need less or more.

Now I have not had my surgery yet, but I have read quite a bit about this surgery and many posts on these forums. It seems to me the common word is patience, and I know due to the lengthy journey we all have to go through to get the band...our patience is just worn out and all we want is results....However, we can think about it as....we have waited this long...what is a couple more months...the hardest part is over.....

Best wishes to you all...With all the success stories you cannot help but realize you too will be posting your success story as well.

Hello Ladies, I like you will have my second fill on April 9th. I did not realize that I would have to get several fills before I would actually start to feel restricted. Does anyone know why it takes so many fills? I mean why do they not just fill the band with enough Fluid to cause you to have restriction. I understand that the number may be different for everyone but they should have a better estimate after realizing that we all are having to get 3 to 5 fills before we feel that the band is working. I guess I need to just practice self control and stay focused. I can eat anything I want and sometimes I do. I hope after my fill on the 9th the band really starts to work for me. Good luck y'all!!!

Thank you Everyone....I just seem to always have complications of some sort when taken into an OR.....this is mostly the reason I am having cold feet. Today I am having a goodbye party to my old life style as tomorrow I being my 7 day preop diet. Next week I will have the tool placed to help me stay on my new journey. I have done okay taking some weight off per my doctors instructions....so more will be a wonderful way to start. I am a very picky eater, so this is going to be extremely challenging for me. I am really unsure about these Protein shakes and what I read about them...If they smell or have any bad taste, there is no way I will drink them. I am going to have to find a way to get them down without any issues.

Considering I am having this done 3 weeks before Easter, I am concerned abut the Easter dinner I prepare for my family. My children do not want me to cook and want to forego the holiday, but I have insisted we Celebrate as per norm for our family. By then I should be able to have mushies, so I shoulde be able to have some if not most of what I cook in very small amounts.