doxieville

Thanks! I've learned so much about WLS in just a few short months and i'm thrilled to be able to help others through my experience. I remember how confused, concerned & kinda lost when I first started looking into WLS. There is just so much confusion because everyone's protocol is different. I feel that if you've picked your surgeon wisely and have done your research, then post-surgery you need to trust your surgeon and follow what he/she has set up for your program. Here at the forum we can help guide, support & encourage by sharing our experiences. That does not mean that someone should igore their docs advice and do something that someone else is doing. OK....stepping off my soapbox now. :-)

Definitely speak up! My surgoen is excited that I am so curious and ask questions. As soon as he saw that I was really into seeing & understanding the leak test, he glowed. He broke it all down in laymans terms so I could understand everything. Do docs & surgeons have a tendancy to become drones & forget we are humans? Absolutely! I think it's up to us to bring them back to the 'real' world & make them talk to us. I've had many docs w all my auto-immune issues, and I've had both knees replaced. I won't tolerate a doctor who acts like he's God. This is my body, and if you are messing with it, you are darn well gonna tell me what you are doing with it! :-). So yes! Speak up! Ask to see what he's doing & explain it to you. :-)

Good. How are you feeling today? Hey, this could have happened to ANY of us, so it's important that we all support you and stand behind you. Right, group?? :-)

Iggychic: nothing is an easy question with you yet. . Report in tomorrow with what the doc said & how you feel. A lot of people are following your story. Nite!

I was sent home w pills for naseua, pills for pain control(narcotic), pills for gas and acid reflux and a big bottle of loratab. (tylonel w codiene.). Docs dont want you to be in pain.

You look FANTASTIC!!!!! I'm so glad you shared these with us! Thank you for being brave enough! You go, girl!!

I also had breathing treatments every 6 hours for the 3 days that I was in the hospital. Anyone else have those? And the silly, but very useful, breathing spinny thingy.

Thumbs up!!!!! Congrats!!

Try alternating walking, then heating pad (or hot compresses.). Then cold. Then walk for about 5-10 minutes. Then hot/cold about 5-10 minutes each. I had HORRIBLE gas in my left shoulder. As soon as I felt the pain start i'd walk, hot/cold and it would lessen the pain. It doesn't work for everyone, but it worked for me. :-)

Please call your doctor!! You've been through SO much already, don't let this set you back. I do know that for ME, the doctor said any over the counter cough syrup was ok. I got a cold the week after my surgery. BUT my surgery went smoothly, and we know that you've been having problems. So CALL your doctor!

I get to start on Tuesday. I love fish & Costco has a really large selection of good quality frozen fish. I had my husband just go down the line and get me a box of each. So i have tilapia w pesto, salmon in a sauce, mahi mahi, all kinds of goodie. They are each individually wrapped so i take one out and defrost in frig overnight or run the bag under cold water for a few minutes. The fish can be grilled, mircowaved, pan fried or baked, so it really creates quite a variety. Of course, we spent a couple $100, but i figure each fish serving will feed me at least twice, so i'm set for awhile! And we also got eggs, cheeses, refried beans, denser soups, tuna, cans of crab, cans of salmon, and some frozen veggies. So I think I'm good for awhile. My first meal is going to be an omelete with cheese & maybe refried beans. The size I used to make will prob feed me for a week! I just realized i'll need to figure out a whole new way to cook. This is such a new & exciting time!!

Gosh, that really sounds awful and I've heard of that reaction before. Hopefully each day you'll get better!

JSoc: I saw that post too and was kinda taken aback by her comment. . And the poster hadn't been sleeved yet? I guess the poster wasn't talking from their own experience but heresay. Kinda sad. AND it's a warning for all of us to trust our Doc's and NOT what others are suggesting here on the list!!! We are all here to support each other & share our experiences, not to hand out advice. I just read a post where two people with the same doc have different eating plans. I'm sure the doc has his reasons. We are not all the same.

That's normal. Use a heating pad or warm compress. And for a day or so hold that side in when you move around. Weird, but for me, the harder i pushed it in when moved, the less it hurt.

Yeah, your reaction to anesthesia sounded deeadful. When can you start getting around? And i just posted on another thread how I'm sure (i hope!) a protocol will be established once studies show what's best: nutrition after surgery or rest stomach so can heal. Its just all over the map how diff docs are!

You are less than 2 weeks postop and you can do all this stuff? That's AWESOME!!! Hopefully in the future the 'eat nuturionally right away vs. liquids' will have been decided. I think that time will only tell. There is something to be said about people recovering faster with better nutrition. But what about leaks if the stomach doesn't have tlme to heal? The future will be interesting! Keep up the good work!! :-)

I love the words 'grumping around the house!'. Love it! Gonna borrow it from you! They really can be grumps, can't they be? And yep, when I'm stressed I want to walk right to the frig.....

It also really helps to take a small sip, then put the pill in your mouth and take another sip and swallow. Sometimes i'll need to take yet another sip. But it seems that my espogus does better w pills when 'lubricated' first.

Rachdreams: Please remember that all docs are so different. Your doc might do the surgery different than mine. But the way mine explained it to me is that for 3 weeks postop they didn't want my tummy to have to work at digesting anything. They want it at complete rest as much as possible. So something like oatmeal, or pureed rice in Soup, would make your tummy work at digesting because even though its pureed, the disgestive system still recognizes it as a food that needs to be digested, so the tummy goes into it's digestive mode. I'm sure you're doing fine w your pureed foods. Rememeber, everyone is different! Good luck! Judy

It was so cool! I drank the barium while the camera thingy was on. It's a big apparatus that is like an xray machine. They had a big TV screen centered so the patient can watch too. I could see the liquid go down and into my tiny belly. It took about 4 oz, 3 sips, to fill it. On my fourth sip it backtracked back up to the bottom of my esphogus and I could feel that pressure. As soon as the liquid went out the bottom of my sleeve, the esphogus emptied into my stomach. It really helps me now that I have a real visual of what's going on.

My surgeon asked me how I was feeling about the surgery in my Pre-op exam a week before my surgery. I said 'anxious, nervous. And a bit scared.'. He said that was good. It's the cocky people who have no fears that he gets concerned about. And as a side note he said that those people are the ones who usually have the bumpier ride bcs they aren't prepared. So, embrace your fears! They will help guide & educate you towards a wonderful, healthier you! :-)

I've been doing liquids since August 15th. Soft foods start this coming Tuesday. Had my leak test done a few days ago & my sleeve looks great. Yah!! ReadyForSuccess: when you can start with soft foods? It sounds like we have more conservative surgeons than most people here. :-)