txbecca

PLease call the doctor.. or got strait to the hospital. That shouldn't be happening.. I was banded yesterday too.. none of those things..

I had a protein drink day 1.. as per my doc's plan. drinking one now ( day 2). Doc and DH (chef) & Nutrionalist all said.. you can't get too much protein. it's a must.

I'm still so glad I had this done. The pain has been manageable. Had I not found this site and did my homework I would have been much worse off. Thankfully, the teacher in my spent hours reading up on everyone and followed alot of your advice, and I'm in day two now and to be honest doing great!. The key is the walking and moving.. it really is.. Here is how I went about my last 24 hours 5am Arrived at hospital 7 am prepped for surg. IV and a nasuea pill, and leg compression wraps. LAst minute weight of 268 8:30 am.. Surgery Don't remember a thing, aside from flirting with the doctors who wheeled me in. 9:30 Waking up in recovery.. Throat hurt like hell, had a hard time taking a deep breath, and keeping my eyes open. 10:30 Wheeled up to my room, Where DH was asleep in my bed. doozed on and off, trying to come out on anestheia. throat was a sore. 11:30 Groogy but awake, took a lap around the hospital floor. 12: needed to pee, but couldn't.. (anesthesia) 12:30: Barium swallow. NAsty stuff, but not bad.. wide awake now 12:45 Pee'd.. yeah.. They brought me food.. Jello, broth, tea. I ate half the jello, a cup a tea and all the broth.. 1: took another walk down the hall, while DH packed up 1:30 Discharged. Iv's out. 2:00pm. Home sweet home.. Car ride wasn't bad except for pot holes, I took the pillows someone mentioned.. Helped alot to have them on my tummy 2:30 Napping on couch sort of.. 3.pm Walking around the house in laps. Moving my arms in circles in alternate directions. took gas X pain is there, but took a darvocet. crushed it in a motor and pestal, mixed with 1 tablespoon grape juict.. Swig like a shot, chase with sip of Water then clean palette with a 1/4 chopped up popsicle. 4pm. Still walking.. sitting at pc.. trying to keep moving in some way.. 5.pm.. I'm hungry.. Drink some broth, realize the dog can't be picked up and helped on the couch, she isn't happy. drank juice, drank tea 6 pm. Walked to the corner 4 x's ( only 2houses away) in my loud and obnoxious mumu.. 7pm.. Took another Darvocet with popsicle chaser laid on the couch and walked intermitently in the house.. trying to take a lap or two in the living room and kitchen every hour. Was surprised how hungry I was. 8pm. Drank an Ensure.. a little too fast I might add.. got the gurgles.. not painfull, just wierd. need to learn to listen to my body. Took more gas x. laying with heat on my shoulder, pain is managable.. helps if I rotate my arm alot. So I do that while walking. He is laughing at the naked propeller walking through the house.. (too hot in the mumu) 9pm.. starting to get sleepy, still moving about the living room, 10pm.. Get in bed for the first time. A major challenge since our bed is 38" off the floor. This is a comedy of errors. I can't just hop in.. our footstool from the office won't support my wieght, hubby brings in the step ladder, that won't angle and fit in the space. End up with positioning my butt against the bed.. and pushing with my legs to scoot back on the bed, then laying down at an angle holding on the DH's arm. We took one of those armed bolster pillows and made a backrest, and piled it with pillows.. this helped immensely. The only area I needed help with was getting in and out of bed. Doozed until the Daughter came home at 11. 11:30 took another Darvocet, when to the Bathroom. Hurting a bit, more from laying down and not moving. Decide to do some laps. Walk in circles around the kitchen while Dh is doing dishes. I found that i only hurt when I stop moving, for longer periods than an hour. I've noticed that the swelling /bloating had left my upper stomach, looks more normal now. 3:30 Another Darvocet. This section of the night was the worse.. I kept having to wake DH up to help me sit up, didn't have the strength to get from laying down to a sitting position. I had removed the Bolster, Bad Idea,so I put it back. took a few more laps, back to bed 6:30 awoken by the storms.. Feel good.. Not taking anything.. walking abit.. back to bed.. able to get out and in bed without assistence.. still need a push from behind my back with sitting up. 9:30. Up for the day.. Took some tylenol. gas-x, my thyroid pill, and flintston vitamen and drank a cup of tea. 10:15.. Noticing I'm starting to bloat again, in my upper stomach and that the gas is moving into my shoulder, I'm attributing this to not walking much yet, so I take another darvocet. I'm only taking a half dose each time but it is enough. I have a pretty high pain tolerance, was going to start taking tylenol instead but I could feel the tummy starting to hurt and weakness with getting up.. Really need to walk.. so I said.. why suffer.. took it, as I'm writing this.. now going to do some walking.. Wish it wasn't raining so I could go outside. So far so good.. Drinking some broth now.. while I start my walk.. :clap2:

I was banded yesterday too.. I have darvocet, I crush them in a morter and pistol and mic them with about a tablespoon of grapefruit juice.. follow with a sip of water and then suck on a piece of a popsicle afterwards to the taste isn't too bad.

I'm watching you two.. I'm one day behind you so please keep posting. I'm preparing for a rough day tomorrow, as you said day 2 is the worst. I'v got Darvocet all ground up.. So far I've only need 1/2 dose. and I'm taking it every 4 hours, but I'm walking real good. I really look forward to your posts. Rebecca Banded Today

I too say it is misleading to credit it to the # of bands place. Doc Spiegal has 8000 + band.. he requires a 1 day prior liquid diet, and common sense and what I know from previous surgeries is this.. Anesthesia slows your bowels down considerably. They normally won't let a person go home after any surgery until they poop/fart/urinate, to make sure the anesthesia is wearing off.. If you eat before you run the risk of getting impacted.. (not fun).. and besides, with the incisions the last thing you want to do strain in anyway.. Not to mention being bloated.. wiping can be a bit of a challenge. I'd be more concerned about a doc who didn't want you off solids than one who did. just my .02 Rebecca

I asked the hospitals bariatric nurse that one today.. she said it you have to have time for the sutures that hold the port to heal and mold around it.. people who rush into ab exercises risk having to have a 2nd surgury for port revisions. the lady next to me was having one today, and did not look too happy about it.. she was real uncomfortable. I look at it this way.. Dr. Spiegal may not be all warm and fuzzy, but he has done more than anyone else. I can follow the rules for 3 months. Someone told me a great way to indirectly work the abs without straining them is to do the hula hoop. but even then I think I'll wait awhile

Let's see.. Where to begin. I got home from the hospital around two and I have to tell you I was a nervous wreck for nothing. The most pain I had was from the IV, They had to do it twice cause the first nurse didn't do a good job. I've had no problems getting or keeping liquids down. So far, lots of chicken stock, Jello, juice and popsicles.. and a few ground up darvocets which taste horrendous. I have 5 incisions, which I expected. I can't even feel the port. I not having much of the typical gass pan it was far worse when I had laps for female problems. Only the ocassional twinge if I have to use my stomach muscles to get up. I'm walking all over the house, and even walked down to the corner of the street in this ideous mumu I purchased yesterday. When they weighed be at the hospital I was down to 268 but I think those bed scales arn't accurate, as I was 274 on Tuesday. Chef Hubby went to the butcher a got beef bones.. (femur sliced) for about $8 and is makeing me some stock.. I don't know if ya'll know this, but Bones boiled to stock make a very Protein rich stock, to have tomorrow, it is very gelantanious when cooled and that is nothing but pure protein, A lot of people mistake the geletain quality for fat, but it is far from it and has less sodium and tastes way better than the chemical stuff they sell. The staff at University General was nice, 4star treatment all the way. I think my sense of humour shocked a few of the nurses.. I didn't have any naseua afterwards thanks to medicine. I did have a hard time coming out of anesthesia. I couldn't keep my eyes open, and they scratched my throat pretty bad.. Thank heaven for popsicles, and hot apple cider to sooth it, I'm still pretty hoarse right now. I think I'll stay on the darvocet through the night, so I can rest. I know from my own experience and from what the rest of you have said that tomorrow is the worst day.. I'll keep you posted. Thanks to all of you who sent good vibrations and warm thoughts, I can't begin to tell you how comforting it was to me. Rebecca Banded today Dr. Spiegal/Houston My goals: Get healthy, get into sz 18 by summer, less than 200 by christmas, and get a tattoo when I reach my goal of a size 12

Been home about an hour. Got to the hospital at 5am. rolled into surg at 8. home by 2. So far so good.. Pain is manageable thus far, liquids going down ok. Set Dh to get some popsicles as my throat is sore, worse thing was having my IV blow and having to have a second. Got some neat photos of my stomach and band and the barium swallows to bring home with me. Will post them at a later date.. Been up walking a bit.. trying to take a nap now then will walk some more. Rebecca banded today Dr. Spiegal:clap2:

I'm headed to the hospital to get banded.. eeek.. This is it.. Please keep me in your thoughts, I'll post as soon as I'm able.

Me too for getting banded tomorrow.. and yes I'm nervous.. but I'm feeling more optimistic since I found this site. I totally agree with you about the thoughts we carry, hence i'm trying to focus on the positive and quality of life issues that will improve. The last time I choose to have an elective surgury is was a breat reduction and while it hurt like hell afterwards I have never regretted it. I'd much rather be making my own choices than having someone make them for me.

I'm getting banded tomorrow. I can tell you that depending on your insurance it take a anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. If you self pay it is faster. I'm self paying after getting rejected from the ins co. Even still it took me close to a month to get everything worked out. I get banded tomorrow morning.

Surgery is at 5:30 am tomorrow. I hanging in there. It almost got put off a week, (seems the financing company didn't mail the check to the doc in time).. Thankfully I was able to get things worked out. I've been on Clear liquids today, needless to say I'm hungery. I have a few last minute questions. 1. I have a few laporoscopies before is the pain similar? or different. This is a higher up incision, so I'm thinking it isn't as bad. 2. Do any of you manage to take a "premarin" pill with the band. I have estrogen Patches I can use for the first few weeks, but I really don't like them as I react bad to adhesives. I keep looking a the pill, thinking it isn't too big. I hope I'm not forgetting anything. I'm jonesing for some food right now. Rebecca

I can't tell you how happy I am to have found this place.. I feel so much better already. I was told no powders.. that they clog the band, but in reading I see lots of you use them.. I'm glad to hear breakfast is possible for some.. There is hope..

yes I was a bit upset by that too.. but Dr. Spiegal isn't known for his love of conversing. They told me in orientation Liquids for 2 weeks, then soft foods but not the specifics. They gave me the specifics during my pre-op.

Thanks for the well wishes, I'm feeling a bit better about it today. Still scared of course. Tomorrow I start my liquids pre-op. Hubby and I had a long talk last night, at first he wanted me to cancel the surgery, he couldn't do it, food it an integral part of his life, We are and have always been foodies, food snobs, gourmands.. call it what you like. We talked about quality of life and he agreed for health reasons I need to lose the weight, and he is very supportive and on board. He is already making and freezing homemade stocks into ice cube trays for me. I've told him to consider that every thing I eat will be an "amuse bouche" which is something he loves to prepare and plate. The things I'm struggling with today is the concept of drinking breakfast for the rest of my life. I hate those Protein drinks, as a general rule I don't eat prepared foods and additives and chemicals. I went to the store today to stock up on that kind of stuff, and I couldn't believe the chemicals in them all, not to mention they just don't taste natural. I'm hoping that in time I can use a juicer and whip up my own concoction. Though to hear the Dr.'s office talk, anything with sediment is a big no-no. Rebecca Get's banded on Friday.

thanks for the kind words. While I can't see dragging a hot plate to the resturant its a great idea for at home. I'm trying to remain optimistic about things, but I guess it is normal to be scared about it.

I'm scheduled to get banded on Friday morning, and frankly I'm a nervous wreck. My husband is a chef and cooking together and eating is such a major part of our life. I'm so afraid that we won't be able to enjoy that anymore. I understand the need to liquids in the beginning. I learned about that in the seminar, but it wasn't until pre-op today that I learned no more breakfasts, and 3-4oz meals. I need and want to lose the weight, but I scared that I won't be able to enjoy cooking and eating again. I just about freaked when the lady at the clinic who was banded told me today that she has gotten used to eating cold foods, because she couldn't eat her meals before they got cold. Rebecca