kaykay

My husband has had pain until just very recently (He will be 3 weeks out on Tuesday) and has had to at least occasionally take his pain med. I know some on here say they barely needed pain meds or were off them very early, but I know also that has not been the case for him. He also had a diseased gallbladder out at the same time. So perhaps having an additional surgery simultaneously makes it more painful (like you had with the hernia.) Whatever, I don't think you're alone in still having some pain 3 weeks out.

Are you having pain or what? Results are different for different people. My husband is almost 3 weeks out (will be Tuesday) and up until recently he was still taking his pain med occasionally.

I will mention that I did see one patient of Dr. Alvarez on another board who was not totally happy with her experience. Felt she was given inadequate pain med and a couple of other fairlyminor things that didn't specifically relate to the surgery. This was the only patient I have ever seen that wasn't overwhelmingly positive so we don't know how valid that is, but felt I should probably go ahead and mention it.

My husband crushes his pills in a pillcrusher he got at the drug store, then fills one of those little "medicine cups" with a little water and then dumps the crushed pill on top of the small amount of water, then swallows it. He has found that to be easiest.

My husband (16 days out) has complained of fatigue too. His nurse practiitioner suggested trying to get in more protein & little more B-12. I have heard quite a few sleevers say that they were tired early on.

Guess that's why she needs a dr~ it sounds like staph to me. :biggrin0:

Yes, you may need to call and set up getting a nuclear stress test. My husband had this done and there is no running or walking involved. He says the feeling is kinda unpleasant though. They "stress" your body chemically. Actually, though, I had a regular stress test a few years ago and I did not have to run, just walk kinda rapidly.

My husband thinks they do help, but not with the intense left shoulder pain kind of gas from the surgery. Walking is supposed to be the only thing that helps that.

I second that. There are things you could get OTC, but a physician might want to give you a script for an oral antibiotic and/or prescribe prescription ointment called Bactroban.

Well, I got inspired to make some when my husband, (fencepost's) sister made him some potato soup. We both thought her potato soup was the best potato soup we'd ever had, bar none. But I could actually see the butter swimming around in there and it was indeed a little too "rich" for him. So I tried to experiment and make a low-fat version.

If you end up deciding to stay in Dallas, you might also look at my husband's surgeon, Dr. James Davidson. My husband has been very impressed with him. Their package price is comparable. (Davidson's is 12,500.) www.bscdallas.com

I used the following ingredients to make my husband a low-fat "homemade" potato Soup. I don't measure....so a lot of this is just "to taste." I used the following and he liked it: Harvest the potato meat out of 2 baked potatoes (Im a "lazy cook" and don't like to peel them. So I just baked a couple in the microwave.) Used about one-quarter to one -half can of Campbell's cream of potato soup. Added fat-free half and half and some Swanson's chicken broth. (The broth flavor susbstitutes for butter/margarine flavor.) Added potatoes to the mixture blended it all in Target's version of the Magic Bullet (Bella something...) Salt to taste.

While I have perused "the other board" it has been mentioned a couple of times that some surgeons are "gentler" than others ...which may result in less post-op pain. Do you think there is much to this? Is there really that much difference in not necessarily "skill" but in how a person is "handled" surgically?

I think many, many people on these forums have not have any formal psychological counseling prior to weight loss surgery and done just fine. I think the main thing is that you know what you're getting into and be convinced that you do indeed want the surgery. My husband's surgeon's "manual" for them says that people often have a form of "buyer's remorse a couple of months out from the surgery, but this usually passes as they adjust and things smooth out from the surgery.

Praying for you that all goes well.

I can't give you specifics. Maybe someone else can, but from what I've read on this forum and on another, the two doctors both enjoy very good reputations among their patients, and I have heard people say they believe you would be in good hands with either doctor. Both doctors' patients appear to be very loyal and supportive of their choice of physician. Regarding cost, I understand that the price is comparable of both of them, depending on what specials they are running. Cost of air fare might be a consideration.

Another Mexican physician who seems to have a good reputation on the sleeve forums is a Dr. Guillermo Alvarez. It seems like his and Dr. Aceves patients are very well satisfied with their surgeries and care received. I understand that their prices are pretty comparable. Dr. Alvarez may be closer to you, however, if you are in Houston, but that's not a big deal really.

Hi, Tandy! Welcome to the sleeve forum! You will probably find this site very supportive and helpful. I am currently giving my husband injections daily (he wasn't keen on "self-injecting!") of Lovenox after his surgery to prevent blood clots, but I think he also only had to do about 14 days worth. We have about 3 left.

Good advice already given. One other point, if you are someone who needs to take NSAIDS (anti-inflammatories) on a regular basis, the sleeve might be a better option for you. (Some drs don't like their sleeve patients to have NSAIDS ever either, but generally, it is generally considered by most to be ok to take the NSAIDS after you are healed with a sleeve, but NEVER with a RNY) Not sure if that matters to you, but if it does, that's one advantage to a sleeve.

Well, here I am back in the "men's room!":blushing: My husband is down about 23 or so since first seeing his surgeon, but only about 3 since the surgery. We saw his surgeon yesterday. I think this is because after his surgery they took him off these heavy duty diuretics he had to take daily before. So he is retaining some water and they know it. But they still didn't want him back on the diuretics yet because apparently, they are concerned about him getting too dehydrated in this early stage. Congrats on your big loss this week.

Well, let me just say, downinsocal, as my husband's surgery date got closer, I began to also ask him if he was sure he wanted to go through with it etc. Now, understand, his BMI is very high and I am totally supportive of him doing it. I wanted him to do it very badly. But at the same time, I didn't want him to feel like he "had" to do something this life-altering if he really didn't want to. I think sometimes people may question you and emphasize the negative because they do want to make sure that you realize there are risks and that this is not a "walk in the park." I think most people by the time they get down to the weight loss surgery, they are usually pretty informed about what it involves....but others don't always realize that. I know that probably not everyone we know was in agreement with my husband's decision to do this even though his starting BMI was about 59. Even at that, it is controversial to some extent. At the end of the day, you just need to be confident in your own decision about it.

Ok, I confess! I'm a lady here in the "men's room!" :biggrin::blushing: Yes, I think there are probably more ladies overall who have had weight loss surgery than men. My husband had his sleeve done the same day you did, Paul. I'll see if I can get him to come in here and post!

If they can be crushed, you can put them in a small amount of water and down them that way. It's not always real pleasant (taste wise) but it can be done if necessary. You can put them in a medicine type tiny cup. Put the water in first and the med kinda floats on top.

Yes, my husband was sipping a little bit of caffeine too (before he was really supposed to.) He is about 10 days out now and his surgeon's office allows a minumum amount of caffeine at this point. (full liquid stage)

Well, it can be scary when you look at the risks. I think the reputable bariatric surgeons try to make their patients aware of any risks too prior to the surgery. But, on the other hand, there are associated risks with every surgery. If we focused on it, we would probably not have any type of surgery or take any type of medication. The question that usually has to be weighed though is how large are the risks really and how do they compare to the risk of NOT having the surgery/procedure or taking a certain med. Also regarding some possible long-term effect of "death" or paralysis of the stomach, that was mentioned, let me remind you that it is entirely possible to live without a stomach at all. (Unfortunately, a close friend of mine did when she developed stomach cancer. Not desirable to be sure, but she adapted to eating without it just fine.) _________________________________________ My husband had VSG on 7/28/09 Dr. James Davidson Dallas, Texas