roziecakes

My doctor had me eat a 1200 calorie diet to lose 20 pounds, and then I was on a full liquid diet for a week before surgery; I hear that 2 weeks is probably the most common. I just got banded 3 days ago, and already I know that I made the right choice, and that I am so proud of myself for taking the steps. Good luck with your upcoming surgery, and I hope that you do well!

I'm a self pay also. I had my surgery scheduled after I lost 20 pounds after the first consult. Then I had one more consult the day before surgery, and then we just walked in, and paid, and that was that. What I had to have pre-op: psych eval. barium swallow blood work EKG Consult with the surgeon Chest X-ray Hope that gives you some idea!

Yep, what everyone's saying is true. When I went in for my band, they read off the 'title' of the procedure, and it was 'placement of lap band, etc etc with possible hiatal hernia repair.' I think it's something they look for just in case. I didn't have one, but I hear that it's fairly common, and they will repair it.

I am sorry that they have treated you this way. I think that 80 pounds is no small potatoes to lose. I would say try to get a different doctor; someone who will actually look at your individual case rather than just assuming that you don't need the surgery because "only" have 80 pounds to lose. We're all different, my goodness. I wish you were out here on the West Coast, I would refer you to my doctor. Best of luck!

Hooray! I'm so glad that you're doing better! That's great to hear I can't wait until I'm on mushies!

1. My surgeon is 8.5 hours away from where I live, and I think that it was very worth the expense. I made sure that the office knew how far I was driving, and they made accomodations for me to come in and do all of the pre-op stuff in a span of three days, and one drive down. I had one more pre-op consult the day before my surgery. I am down here in California for a week, because my doctor wants to see me a week after the band was placed, which will be the 15th. Then I will be driving home. So my advice would be to make sure that your office is aware how far that you have to drive and see if they can make arrangements for you to get everything done quickly, or at least to work with your schedule. 2. I also work a desk job. I work from home, so I'm able to work while I'm here in California. Today is my first day back to work, and I am 3 days post-op. I have been walking A LOT though, I think that's what's helped me have less pain, especially gas pain after surgery. And even before I was back to work today, I was on the computer using forums and answering email yesterday at 2 days postop. Remember though, that we are all different, some people have too much pain, some have none, some take a couple of weeks, it's hard to tell until you actually get the band, and it depends on your age and health before hand. 3. I saw my doctor right after surgery, and then I have an appointment to see him next week. I think that if I were having complications, I could probably call and get in to the office whenever I wanted. Hope that helps!

Congratulations!! Good luck with everything

My doctor let me have coffee right after surgery. I had read all this stuff that said I couldn't have any... but he said it was fine, especially because I have no history of reflux or heartburn. Believe it or not though, I haven't had any since I've gotten home... funny enough. I used to drink two or three cups a day.

To the topic starter? How are you feeling? Any better?

I am surprised that your doctor didn't prescribe you liquid pain meds. Darn! I think that the few times I've taken that liquid Vicodin has really helped me. It especially helped me sleep last night. Maybe you should call them and ask!

Mine didn't show up until after I left the hospital and started walking around; some people don't get them at all (lucky!), and who knows you might be one of the lucky ones. Mine are gone now after three days, and I consider myself fairly lucky.

I did not have this experience, but I am so sorry you had to go through this and I hope all gets well soon.

It's true, walking is the key. I've been walking about a mile a day since I got back from surgery three days ago, and my gas pains are gone. Granted, I was walking a lot before surgery, so I don't expect everyone to do that, but the point is, the more I walk, the more the gas pains go away. You'll get there!

I'm three days post-op, and I have pretty much no pain today. What has worked for me has been to just walk walk walk walk a lot, even though it was painful, it helped the gas move out. I also used a heating pad. As for the rash, do you have tegaderm dressings on your incisions? (The clear plastic). You might be allergic to the adhesive on the dressing, of course I'm not a medical doctor or anything, but that's a guess. My incisions don't burn, but they are a little tender. Hope I was able to help somewhat, I really hope you feel better.

It DID work! I slept so well last night Thank you for the suggestion. You made my day. I am actually back to work today, and it's good to feel rested.

I agree, I think that there would be some sort of medication that you could be given for the heart burn. Sorry to hear that you're still on clears

Congratulations! I was so happy when I got to leave the hospital, although I don't actually go home for another week; I'm at my parent's house. But still, it was so great. Best of luck to you! I'm on day 3 and doing great, I hope you have a positive experience

Ny nutritionist has encouraged legumes as being a really good source of protein for me, I love this recipe! I will definitely try it when I get to the mushy stage. Yumm! I really love Mexican food, so healthier options for Mexican food are a-ok on my list

Thank you for this post. I have a friend who got bariatric surgery (a stomach stapling) when it was still experimental, and he has maintained a 200 pound weightloss for many years, and is now a fire lieutenant. His greatest advice to me was "This is not a miracle, it's a tool; and if you do what you're supposed to do and work hard, then you'll lose weight. Listen to what your surgeon tells you to do." I really agree with what you said. I also read the post from the person who mentioned that some doctors have poor post-op instructions, etc. I can definitely understand that, and I certainly don't blame someone because they trust a doctor and do what that doctor says to do... But I do have to say that didn't they look into the records of those doctors? Research? Ask the doctors questions? Did they not compare doctors? I shopped around for doctors for over 2 years before going with my doctor, and I researched as much as I possibly could about what to expect with that surgery. I guess to me, that seems like it's part of the weight loss work too. Please don't misunderstand, I'm not trying to be harsh, and I know that there is an expectation that we should trust our doctors; but knowledge is power. I guess I've always been the type to try to learn as much as I possibly can before jumping in with both feet. I am sure that everyone who gets banded knows what a huge and life changing decision this was; and I know in my case, I wanted to be sure that I got it done right by someone who knows their stuff. To the original poster, thank you again for your realistic attitude. It is encouraging.

Congrats! This is very encouraging to read

I found that I was actually feeling hungry about six hours after I got home from getting surgery. I was really shocked, and I didn't expect it! Glad to know I'm not the only one.

For me the gas pain is really the worst part of all of this so far (of course I was only banded yesterday). I walked about a half mile yesterday and so far a quarter mile this morning. I've given myself a goal of getting up every 2 hours and walking outside in the fresh air. I've been doing some shoulder stretches, which really do help, plus I'm drinking a lot of water, even though it's a little uncomfortable. I think it's preventing pain in the long run. Hope you feel better soon!

You are so smart! I'm going to sleep in the recliner tonight and see if I do better than last night.

Thank you so much! I am feeling good today, but honestly, I did NOT sleep well. Lying down was pretty uncomfortable, and I'm generally a side sleeper, which I really wasn't able to do. So I was up and down all night, plus (and sorry for the TMI) I was peeing and peeing and peeing pretty much all night long. I think I got about 3 hours of sleep in, and by 6AM when my mom got up, I gave up. However, I was able to have a full liquid Breakfast, and take a walk with my mom. Almost all my pain is gone today except for some mild shoulder and neck pain. I just feel a little swollen and slightly uncomfortable. I've been sipping Water. I'm truly relieved that I have not had one bit of nausea; and I think I owe it to the Emend pill. I've been enjoying reading other people's surgery stories; it's interesting how many different experiences there are.

Hi everyone! I'm so thrilled to be writing in this thread. Anyhoo, I was banded today; June 8th, 2011 by Dr. Ziad Hanna at Ukiah Valley Medical Center in Ukiah, CA. Yes, I drove all the way from Junction City, Oregon to have surgery in Ukiah. (About an 8 hour drive). The reason I did so, was because well, I'm from Ukiah originally, and my stepfather Michael is a nurse at the hospital. He recommended Dr. Hanna to me because he works with Dr. Hanna and knows that he has an excellent reputation for laparoscopic surgery in general, and especially bariatric surgery. Dr. Hanna and his staff are WONDERFUL, and I recommend them highly. A really cool thing is that one of Dr. Hanna's nurses was a bariatric surgery patient herself, so she is very knowledgeable and empathetic. So this morning, my mom drove me to the hospital. I took my first dose of Emend, which is an anti-nausea medication which was highly recommended by Dr. Hanna's nurse. It is supposed to help me all day today, and then I take another tomorrow. I thought for some reason that my surgery was going to be at 10:30, but I was actually scheduled for 8:30; the first patient of the day! I got there at 7AM. A very friendly nurse named Tonya helped me for Pre-op. I got weighed, she took my vitals, everything was great. My blood pressure has gone down significantly since starting the pre-op diet / exercise, I was pleased. She also gave me some nice warm blankets and ever so fashionable non-slip socks. I changed into a gown, and waited for my IV. Two of Dr. Hanna's nurses walked over from the office just to say hi and see how I was, and to wish me well. I thought that was so nice! Dr. Hanna came in and said hi. My IV got started, I got some heparin subcutaneously, which I didn't feel at all, and some antibiotic. The anaesthesiologist, Dr. Lodge came in and examined me. I got some versed, and they wheeled me in. I thought I would be waiting a really long time, so I brought a book, but I honestly never brought the book out of the bag once, they were so efficient and fun to talk to. Tonya and I talked about our pets and our families, and everyone wanted to know what my partner Greg looked like (he had to stay back up in Oregon because he just started a new job and couldn't get away). I had a great time! I remember going into the operating room. Dr. Lodge put an oxygen mask on my face, and then put some stuff (I assume it was anesthesia) into my IV, and I was out. I woke up in recovery, and I had a surprisingly small amount of pain. I felt pretty sleepy for about 20 minutes, but I was talking to the nurse, and didn't feel nauseated at all! They gave me some Water (and actually a little bit of coffee... ) which I could sip in little bits, and it was fine. I got REALLY tired of sitting there, and I had to pee, so the nurse let me get up to do that. I was a little wobbly, but it all came out alright (pardon the pun). My mom came in, and we sat and blabbed while I waited to get my last dose of heparin. I even drank some apple juice. I did need some pain medicine, I believe it was toradol (sp?), but since then I've been doing fine, no meds at all. Mom and I walked around the supermarket on the way home, and I got a crossword puzzle book and some sugar-free popsicles. I tell you what, that sugar-free popsicle that I just ate is probably the best thing I've ever eaten in my entire life. I'm not kidding. So now I'm going to read some more threads on the forum, and finish calling my nearests and dearests to let them know I'm doing well. Hope everyone has a great day!