seniorsleever

My doctor didn't use a bougie, he used an endoscope. He said he could examine the staple line from the inside that way--kills two birds with one stone.

I had all the same questions. Here's what you need to ask yourself--have I ever lost weight and KEPT IT OFF? Do I think if I lose weight with WW I can KEEP IT OFF? If you are really honest about these questions the answer will be apparent. With the surgery I will lose weight and know that I will keep it off. That makes it worth it for me. Hope this helps.

Take good care of yourself when you get home, for as long as you can. Good luck!

Mine has pretty much resolved, but it was really red and swollen for the first few days. Heat might help more than ice if it is still bothering you. It will go away as the liquid reabsorbs.

Where in Texas are you? I had my self-pay surgery 8 days ago in San Antonio with Dr. Patel. It took less than 2 months for me, and I had to have a bunch of tests beforehand.

Welcome, Johnny! Check out the Man Room further down in the forums. You'll find other guys there who can relate to what you're going through. This forum all rocks!

As an RN, I would call this a definite red flag. Call your doctor ASAP. It might be nothing-- but it might indicate a leak in your sleeve, or pancreatitis even. Nothing to mess around with.

I have 5 incisions, the largest one had a pain ball tube in it. My IV infiltrated the second day and they tried several times to re-start it (I had to take extra antibiotics and was hospitalized an extra day.) They finally put it in my upper arm. I also had four shots of blood thinner in my abdomen while there, but none since. They also drew blood samples twice a day. This was a week ago today.

Mine was done on the 24th, so I am 7 days postop. Yes, I still get the gas bubbles, especially when I drink a little too much at one time. So I think you're probably right on track.No straws--they made it worse for me.

Scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, pudding, creamed soups!

My headaches are either caused by caffeine withdrawal or aspartame. I had to go caffeine free in stages, mixing regular iced tea in various proportions with decaf until I got decaffeinated. Iced tea has always been my go-to drink.

Good luck, Doug! I was sleeved last Monday, and although the last week has been difficult, I am doing better and starting to get back to normal activities. You will be surprised how fast the recovery time goes by! We'll all be thinking about you!

I was sleeved 1/24/11 at Innova Hospital in San Antonio, a self-pay patient, and was treated like a queen. The people were all nice--even the receptionist came to check on me after surgery! The facility is super-clean, the diet is prepared individually for you, and the equipment is all state-of-the-art. I highly recommend this facility.

I'd say it depends on the surgeon. My surgeon told me if I had not dropped 10 pounds by the day of surgery, it would be cancelled. So I'd say she's really pushing it. Let's hope her surgeon doesn't feel that way.

Well, I am now 1 week postop, and finally feel up to posting again. The last week has been a little rough. I had to stay an extra day in the hospital--my white count was up and they weren't sure why it wouldn't go back down, but it finally did. My IV infiltrated twice, and my arms are completely covered in bruises. I have to say that the first three days postop I was sure I had made the biggest mistake of my life! But now I am doing much better and gave myself a good pep talk yesterday, so I know I am on the way to a better life. My biggest difficulty right now is the back spasms from not being able to lie on my side yet. I'm still taking Lortab Elixir twice a day to combat that, but otherwise the pain is very manageable. (My son said "Lortab for the win!" LOL!) My incisions are healing nicely, even the biggest one, which had a pain ball in it for the first two days. I am drinking a protein shake every morning with 2% milk, water, juice once a day, and strained soup-broth twice a day. I have my SF Jello and SF popsicles, but because I am allergic to aspartame I only have one a day at most, or the migraines will set in. My husband is keeping the house running, doing the shopping, and fixes my soup-broth for me. (He eats the solids part for his own meal or gives it to the dog.) We take a short 10 minute walk every evening. When I weighed in the morning of surgery I weighed 269, 21 pounds down from my starting weight. When I got home from San Antonio, I had gained 10 pounds from all the swelling! I am finally back down to 269 this morning, so I guess I am finally on my way down. Thanks to everyone who sent private messages while this was going on. They really meant a lot.

Thank you, Margaret--I needed your kind words right now. Good luck to all the Monday sleevers!

I leave for San Antonio first thing in the morning for my Monday morning surgery. I am not scared of the surgery, but the anxiety is for the life-changing aspects of it. I love to eat, I love food, and I have to keep telling myself that I'm not giving up my favorites completely, just reducing the amount. It doesn't make the anxiety go away completely, but it helps. I will need this forum for support when I get back. My husband is fully supportive but I haven't told my siblings yet. I really needed to have a good cry this afternoon, but it just wouldn't happen. I guess I just needed to vent a little.

Wow! That's great! I hope I see changes that fast!

How nice that you are so supportive of your wife! You wouldn't believe how many husbands are not. I am lucky with mine. With that said, my doctor wants me on clear liquids for 3 weeks postop. (I get sleeved on Monday.) This is to give the stomach time to fully heal. Perhaps your wife's stomach needs more time to adjust. I would suggest she go back to clear liquids, then try again in another week. BTW, there is a forum here especially for family members of patients, although I think it is empty right now. You might enjoy connecting with other spouses here. Good luck to your wife!

I love this! I have two daughters-in-law that are obese. One is very active and outgoing, the other is a miserable recluse. I mean, she NEVER leaves her house--my son does all the shopping, etc. I am so sad for her, but talking to her at this time would not be helpful but hurtful. When I have gotten down to a normal weight, I hope to convince her to explore having the sleeve for herself. My son agrees with me that by then she will see that it worked for me, so it will work for her. I would even pay for it if she could only be happy again. You ARE an inspiration! Thank you for this post.

Mine will be in San Antonio--self pay at 14 thousand with Texas Bariatric Specialists.

I am also having my surgery on Monday. I'll be glad to get that done and get on with my new life!

Where in Texas are you? I'm in Corpus, and my surgeon is Dr. Nilesh Patel in San Antonio. Self-pay for everything is $14,000.

I get mine from GNC or the Vitamin Shoppe. The grocery store type aren't all that good. Try to get individual packets rather than getting a large tub, so you can find one you like. In my opinion the pre-mixed shakes are nasty. I much prefer the taste of powders. Get a blender bottle or a plunge hand mixer (I use this when I am at home.) My favorite is GNC Amplified Wheybolic Extreme 60 in chocolate or vanilla. You can add other flavors to the vanilla if you want. But try to find one YOU like, because there's no reason to drink one that tastes nasty. My doctor does not allow Slimfast, Muscle Milk, Boost, Carnation, or Myoplex. I hope that helps!

I hope everything went well for both of you. Keep us informed!