katerzz

i just had a root canal and was put on zithromax also, all i can say is of all the "liquid" medicines I've had. this taste awesome! =)

The next lapband meeting for western surgical is May 19th at washoe med south meadows.. im not sure exact time

I wanted to forward this information on to those who I had spoken with regarding SandyRN from the yahoo group bandsters. I know there has been many people who have left due to her, and I wanted you guys to know you can come back now!! ps: this is not intended to flame or cause any drama toward this person I just know that many of us left bandsters because of her and we can go back now!

Well i just got home.. doctor decided to wait a couple weeks to fill me up since I'm doing so well without the fill. No worries to me of course since I am on solids and can eat just fine and still am loosing weight hehe my port site was pretty sore when he went filling around I guess its a bit higher than it should be but the tissue is fixing it up or something lol!

Well wow its been a whole month! I'm finally home now (was in california house sitting for my parents) and today I get my first fill!! I've had no problems eating anything really, eggs.. bread.. you name it. I havent tried anything like steak and I listen to my body if i cant chew something *really* good.. i spit it out. I dont take any chances and because of it i've had no problems. Heartburn a few times.. but thats from the spices i think =) according to moms scale I'm down to 360 now, we will see the official reading today. I started at 386 so thats a huge thing for me. My clothes are so big on me its kinda embarassing, but at the same time i want to wear them to show the world look at me I am shrinking. (sounds dumb eh?) I saw my hubby for the first time in 2 weeks yesterday and he is amazed at the difference he can see. (had nothing to do with my pants falling off my butt he trys to tell me) I have been doing good from what I can tell. Its a hard journey and i know people make mistakes. I have made a few, luckily I just felt guilty not sick! Taco bell nachos is a thing of the past now after 3 trips I thought I was going to get addicted! I'm enjoying icecream still but I found sugar free icecream which makes me feel less bad about it. I'm averaging about 800-900 calories a day. I take at least one Protein drink in the morning and now that I'm home I'll start doing another at night. Once it warms up.. *it was snowing on tahoe yesterday* I'll start hitting the walking trail with my hubby and get some exercise in. Tomorrow I start my new job at the hospital in the surgery department. I was hoping to loose at least one size before having to go in but I think im still borderline so today I'm going to go buy a set of scrubs just in case they dont have any my size for the employees to wear. I dont want to be embarassed my first day of work. (they do know i had the surgery) I know things will get easier but for now I'm still the "big girl" so I have to make things work for myself. I feel like a whole new person.. someone different really. The pscyologist tried to explain how this would happened and of course I thought nah.. not to me I love who I am. Well.. the truth is I didnt love who I was and now that the ball is in my court I do love who I am becoming. Its hard after being away from my hubby for 2 weeks when I discovered this now of course I have a ton of doubts and thoughts I shouldnt be having but I'm going to just work through everything and realize that this surgery was the first day of the rest of my life.

im out of town until tuesday so im sorry i havent written back.. I wasnt able to attend the lapband group at south meadows since i was out of town. I did hear about it, and also heard the facilitator is someone who didnt have the band herself. I dont really want to have a support group that is for prospective patients.. i mean maybe a few here and there but mostly looking for a group that we can all meet once or twice a month and talk about what its like and see what each of us are going through.. live support basically.

I havent had much restriction of course.. hehe but here I am 4 days before a fill and I kinda do feel like I'm making big mistakes but I know its only gonna be possible now, not later. Mistakes being ooo hot fudge sundae from mcdonalds.. nothing else just the hot fudge sundae. Or.. my latest kick is nachos from taco bell. I guess I just miss the "ability" to go and pigout at these places so I do it ever so often. LoL.. i mean i know its normal to be able to eat, ive been able to eat anything Ive tried since day one. Ive followed my doctors orders too.. he said 2 weeks liquids / mushies then told me at 3-4 weeks i can experiment with solids.. so i have. So far the only thing that ive had is a little heartburn or something every time i drink cold Water. gahhhhh but i love cold water. I miss being able to chug a bottle of water 4-5 times a day. Sipping is just not my thing... sighs. im getting used to it though. when i get my little heartburn thing (not sure what it is) i just chew a gas x and poof its gone. The only food ive had problems with so far is bread.. but i think it was mostly in my head. I havent had any other problems with anything.. chicken, eggs, anything really. i do eat A LOT less.. and i find myself paranoid like spitting my food into a napkin when i dont think i can get it small enough. Its kinda sick.. but it works and plus that just is less calories =P Protein,.. sucks. i cant seem to get enough in but im getting better itll get much better once i go home (still in california) and am back on a schedule.

I was on morphine drip in the hospital and had the option in thehospital for liquid lortabb and also sent home with liquid lortabb. I was informed to use the lortabb even when I wasnt hurting because its a drug that is more effective when its built up in your system instead of just used on the spot.

on my trip to california to my parents place this past week I was starving on the drive and i was in this reallly small town that barely had anything but it was right on the highway so it did have KFC and mcdonalds. I decided to go to mcdonalds and get their chicken selects since the doctor told me chicken was okay. I got about 1/2 the chicken select down but after that I was too tired of chewing to want any more!! I chewed each bite about 30-40 times because i was so scared of something going wrong on the road! I sure learned my lesson there but then last night I had a bit of BBQ pork (stringly and mushie) over a bun and the bun i barely touched but even just that little bit stuck with me if you know what i mean. I was hot and cold and shivers all over I thought i was gonna die... lasted about 30 mins and after drinking some Water i felt fine im here with ya.. trying to figure it out my doctor put me on mushies and told me to take my time experimenting with solids but the outside world sure doesnt cater to mushie eaters =)

wow.. i had my surgery 2 weeks ago thats sick! anyways i figured id post one of my ever so cute ramblings so overall i feel great, ive gone from about 381 day of surgery to 365 as of this morning. my pants are saggyin off my butt which i find more cute than annoying. i really hope the weight keeps coming off this rate (which i know it wont but i can really hope it does cant i?) my incisions are finally healing up, the port area being the only one of concern last week when I went in for my post op appointment i was started on antibiotics (yucky pink liquid stuff they give kids.. seriously YUCK) and it seems i'm getting all cleared up. I had some major drainage from the port site for about 3-4 days which was pretty nasty but it was clean and clear so of course no worries. i find it difficult often to get comfortable i can actually fill the port inside of me i can feel it when i lay in certain positions and goood god it hurts everytime i try to find a new position im so tired of laying on my back!! I didnt have any stiches so i think its cool they healed up without them but im thinking the scar will probably not be so cute later. Im told by the surgeon that once the scar tissue has formed i wont "feel" the port unless i try too so thats good. foood ohh food. well this has been a journey. since moving onto mushies i think with being in california and so busy i tend to forget what mushies consist of, granted im still loosing the weight like crazy so its not a big concern. I have just been eating careful last night i had some BBQ pork sandwhich stuff my only mistake was trying to eat a *little* piece of the bun about 30 minutes after my adventure i felt so very sick. I felt like i was reallly hot and sweaty but i had the chills. i just drank some Water and felt fine soon after. Since being in california ive taken my Protein drink down to none almost so im trying to fix that back up. Im also trying to start tracking my calories and weight loss with the remedy online program my surgeons office gave me. (much like fitday) I think ive decided most of my "cravings" are definately in my head and if I just wait and let them pass they do go away eventually. I just really want to eat something else right now thats my big thing. I feel sick of cottage cheese, Soups and the whole mushie liquid phase. ive worked hard to find good tasting food that wont hurt my healing progress. i'm completely off pain meds dont even take tylenol now days but ever so often I do have a bit of pain. I have more energy now but I still am pretty tired that too will pass once i can get in more protein. a week ago I regreted this decision, today I am healthy and happy and honestly havent felt any different than before other than last nights bread incident. i can drink water or my sugar free kool aid with no problems. thats all for now folks just wanted to ramble off into my little world here and go on about day to day life (dont we all?) im sure ill be back soon I am finding more time than before to visit the boards!

im going to california to help my sister at my parents elderly care home while my mom and dad go to ohio to see my brother graduate from the police academy. im not to ready to start working but i figure 2 weeks of helping out here and there will help me prepare for my job that starts 2 days after i get home hehe

so i went to dr. gansers yesterday and had my first follow up appointment. Heres the basics: - I am down to 374 from 386 =) and he said i have probably at least 10-15 lbs of Water and swelling on me. - I am out of liquid phase and have moved on to mushies and he told me when I feel I am ready to go ahead and experiment with "solids" - all my battle wounds look great except where the port is, it looks to be infected so I got an antibiotic and they covered it with sterile strips (its kinda gross all leaking and everything) so.. i leave for california today for 2 weeks. I am taking my computer but leaving my hubby behind! hehe its gonna be weird being gone 2 weeks and coming back to him after loosing even more weight. Hopefully things keep coming off as well as it has. I want to drop a size or 2 pretty fast for my new job. anyways theres my details =) ill check back from california but not as often im sure hehe

mashed potatos and oatmeal are both on my list which seemed odd at the time but man im glad tehy are on it.

so my question is this.. right now here is typically what i consume in one day (mind you i've only been out of the hospital since friday) hehe Breakfast time (depends on what time i get up) 6 oz - Protein shake mixed with Water around noon when hubby comes home for lunch 1/2 cup of liquid mashed potatos (instant kind really runny) around 3pm ish i usually do something like 1/2 sugar free Jello cup around 5-6ish 1/2 cup of tomato Soup or mashed potatos around 8-9ish 6 oz of smoothie with Protein powder or rootbeer popsicle or fudsicle this isnt typical just kinda basic i dont know that im getting enough protein, or calories or anything in really. i go in for my post op appointment thursday and i was told liquids for 2-3 weeks then mushies for 2-3 weeks. so here I am in liquids am i doing it right? i seem hungry... but think a lot of it is in my head. i really want to find new things to eat there is a Peanut Butter shake recipe from my dietician im gonna try that is supposed to help with hunger but OMG all this "cooking" and "blending" to get 6 oz and thats it just seems nuts to me... sorry still really sore and tired ALL the time so im a bit lazy atm.

ok seriously.. whats with this broth and runny mash potatos cant i just blend up what my hubbys having for dinner?

I do have the bigger band now my family pretty much decided for me that I will redo it instead of undo it all. Basically the surgeon said that in the surgery they measure to see if a certain instrument will go trhough the band, if it does then they know they have the right fitting band. (the smaller one worked from a typical case) but because i had an extra artery in there that caused more swelling or something rather he called the #1 surgeon in the world *still not sure who that was yet im gonna ask him* and he recommended to go in and put the bigger band in. So if i wouldnt have had an extra doosey up in there then the smaller band would have worked okay. im starting to not feel so bad and finding new things to get down.

oh yea a few things i forgot to mention, on my week preop diet that i cheated on with subway and some other stuff like tomato Soup and grilled cheese i lost a total of 6 pounds before surgery. and.. with all the damn oxygen i was on i still have a bloody nose everytiume i turn around.. that gets annoying. and of course to top all of that off i feel like im drowning sometimes like my lungs are full of Water.. hope its not pneminua (spelling sucks)

Well I know my hubby came here and posted but im to tired and sore to find it so i figured i will just start a new one. Monday april 11th i went in for a lapband. I came out and was told everything went great. by tuesday I still wasnt able to swallow anything and could barely do much of anything. Morphine wasnt helping much. I did a barrum swallow tuesday and it showed nothing going through so my doctor gave me one more day to figure out if the swelling would go down. He gave me throat spray and told me no more Water or ice chips till the next test. Wednesday morning I had another swallow test, same results. it was going through but very very slowly. and my throat was bleeding. so they sent me straight to surgery on wednesday afternoon. over the coarse of the week I had 5 viens collapse and 3 failed iv attempts so they decided to put in a centeral line this time. (while i was under thank god) if you dont know thats a "tube" that goes to your heart from somewhere.. mine was in my arm. I was given two choices, go in and fix the problem or take it all out. My family decided for me because at that point i wanted it all out. I was in tears going under and thats all I remember until I woke up in recovery. I was sent back to my room and slept the rest of the night. I woke up thursday and was able to swallow water and anything they threw at me. I had my first "meal" since sunday thursday for dinner. Good ole chicken broth and tea. i didnt eat very much of it but it sure felt good to know i wasnt starving to death. I did the barrum swallow thursday and evertyhing went straight down with no problems. they kept me another night to make sure things stayed on track. so basically what happened? heh.. i guess i had an extra artery near my esophagus that when the band was placed the swelling around the artery caused acid to eat at my esophagus which caused more swelling, and of course bleeding and pain. during surgery they just went in and took out the extra artery and slapped in the larger band and have no problems now. so now i think im on the "normal" recovery part, except my incesions are twice as sore being opened twice and all. There are a few things that really suck such as not being able to swallow i wasnt able to take my birth control so i'm bleeding pretty bad (pcos, havent had period in a year) and i have really bad diaherra. They dont mention the fact that your gonna be to sore to wipe your ass. I was bit embarassed about this whole ordial. I cant get in and out of bed alone yet im just to sore. and as far as food.. i still am not sure i made the right choice. i want to eat pizza right now so bad. i wonder every minute and everytime it hurts if this was the right decision. my hubby keeps telling me my case wasnt typical if everything wouldve worked out right then i would be fine by now. i find it hard to make myself eat, and drink. i just dont feel like its needed.. i just keep telling myself ill be skinning soon. ill be back soon hopefully feeling better

Well, the second surgery went as planned! The problem she was having before has been fixed, and she should be home tomorrow!

Its me again, Katie had to go in for a second surgery today at 3:30. The first band was putting pressure on an artery and causing acid to come up her esophagus. They took that band out and put in a larger band. So, we start the recovery process from day one. At least we know what to expect in the first few days!

Hi all, this is Katie's husband posting while she is still in the hospital. She went in on Apr 11, at 11:30am, the doctor said everything went fine, and Katie is doing good. She was supposed to come home today, but the swelling around her esophagus is preventing liquids from passing at a rate the doctor would like. There is a chance they might have to go back in and install a larger band, we wont know anything until tomorrow. We're hoping she'll be able to come home tomorrow, and should be back posting in a few days!

no matter if we know you or not you will always find support here!

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="title">What did you hear about the Lap-Band that turned out to be a myth and is there any Myths you think should be cleared up for those looking to have the surgery?</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2">Myth #1. "Many prominent bariatric surgeons are not doing this surgery, it must not work." This is not the reason, the truth is that not all insurance companies cover this new surgery and many facilities do not want to handle non insurance covered treatments. </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2">Myth #2. "If I am 100 pounds or more overweight, Lap-Band Surgery won't do me any good." This is definately not true. There are many benefits (and risks) to have this surgery and many surgeons will preform it on those of the "heavier" end of the scale. </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" class="paragraph">Myth #3. "The Adjustable Gastric Banding (lap-band) is not as successful as the Gastric Bypass." In recent studies it has be proven that the Lap-Band is as successful as the Gastric Bypass if not more successful. Although the rate of weight loss is significatly reduced after 2 years the weight loss in either patients will start to match up. </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2">Myth #4. "I heard I will only have two years to loose all the weight I want then I can't loose anymore" This is the best part about the Lap-Band. After 6 months, a year, 2 or 3 years and even the rest of your life you will always be able to adjust the fill in your band which in return will allow you to loose more weight. </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2" class="paragraph">Myth #5: "I was told that the band would not be effective if one tended to be a sweets/icecream eater" Well... I am an ice-cream FREAK and the band is working pretty darned well for me! Although every person is different many lap-band patients have no problem eating sweets. </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"><hr></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2">Myth #6: "I heard that one could "run out of room" for fills. Many docs will try to discourage their patients from getting fills too often, because the bands will only hold so much, and once the person reaches the "max" they have no where to go." I have never heard of anyone NOT being totally closed off at the band's full fill capacity. ANY MORE? </td></tr></tbody> </table>

I can't wait to hear how she is doing! I Hope she has a speedy recovery and gets back before I go under! Shes been a rock for me =P

First lemme thank everyone for being my rock right now. My hubby can only say and do so much seeing as he has no clue about what I'm going through. Everyone knows ive been a major rambling freak this week and im sorry its not intentional its just all coming out!!! My surgery is in 5 days. So I figured heres my confessions to those who wonder like I did what one goes through. Am I scared? I really wasnt *scared* until the part where I was doing my pre admit stuff and they handed me the forms to fill out about life support and feeding tubes and the living will stuff. I guess then it hit me.. omg I *could* die. .. heh (Im not gonna die.. but I could) Do I think I'm Ready? Yea I think at this point I just want it over with and all my nervousness to go away. Have I had any doubts? Yes. This is very important for me to explain because I wondered this so much when trying to decide if this was the right thing for me to do. I have asked myself *SOO* many times if this is the right thing. I've woke up in tears as my head filled with emotions about the whole thing. This is not something to take lightly this is something that I believe everyone does go through but it is important that you do go through it. If I didnt have any doubts I think I would only be fooling myself into thinking this is an easy way out. This is by no means easy. Do I think I can do everything that I'm told to do? Honestly no.. not without failure a few times. My whole life I've tried to do things and even when I try my hardest it doesnt always work out. This "list" of things I have to do afterwards seems easy enough but I know I am the kind of person who tries to find ways to avoid things I dont want to do. I have faith in the fact that I have a great support system and that even if I do fail a couple times with the diet, etc. that I know this tool I'm being blessed with will help me overcome my problems. I must confess also that I have cheated in my pre-op diet. I did not do it intentionally and I know for a fact it is not a good thing but I dont believe that this means that I cannot succeed with the band. I am fat for a reason and no matter what any nurse or doctor says it is not always something I can control. Yesterday I had my preop appointment, my preop class and my husband and I were starving. We went to subway. I *knew* this wasnt the right choice but I get it in my head.. oh what can it hurt. The only thing it can hurt at this point is if they open me up and say . .. omg she had subway 6 days ago her liver is to fat to do this surgery. (hey its in the back of my head) so today I vowed that I will stick strictly on my protein shakes and do the best that I can in avoiding situations where the temptation is there. The same goes with smoking. I had quit smoking for a few days but all of a suddden I am SO stressed out and I have had a couple cigarettes between yesterday and one today. I wont lie.. i felt SOOO mcuh better afterwards but Im terrified of what effects those few smokes will have on my surgery. No one is perfect. I surely am not perfect and no matter what I say im going to do things dont always work out the way they should. I'm terrified that I did somethign wrong this week that could possibly effect whether or not after I'm put under they will do the surgery. Im scared that I did something to hurt my recovery and most of all Im scared that if in fact anything does go wrong it is my fault and only my fault. I weigh 387 pounds. I am scared to death that oneday I will be 400. I am scared to death that the extra 250+ pounds will cause me risks during surgery. I'm scared that I did something that I could have avoided because I have bad will power and sometimes cant always listen to myself even when I know what I'm doing is the wrong thing. I dont know maybe I am not a great canadite for this surgery but honestly this is my *last* resort. This is it and if this "tool" doesn't help me get over the things I couldnt do myself then at least I know I tried. I hear so much about people cheating it and trying to eat soemthign they shouldnt and it not letting them. This will help me and hopefully help me learn how to say no because no matter how hard i try sometimes I just cant. I like to make excuses of why I do things. "i ate subway because i was starving" "i smoked this week because i was stressed" the truth is I wanted to do those things even though I shouldnt have and even though I swear to myself now I wont again. This is where I get depressed and emotional because I feel like I am a failure that I cannot succeed and wont succeed. But then I come here and look for the support I need or even the rude awaking of someone telling me hey guess what.. you did screw up but you know what a lot of us do because no one is perfect and you sure as the hell arent either. I know I have a good chance that things will work out for me. I also know the little things I did this last week could screw a lot up for me and if that is what happens then I know its my fault. Sometimes I wish the surgeons office offered more support and less "rules". Sure you can tell me to stop smoking but whos going to HELP me do it. You can tell me to drink just liquid for two weeks but whos going to HELP me through it. Maybe surgeons need to consider all of these things instead of the bottom buck. Maybe I should just realize that I am only human and no matter what I've done this week people make mistakes and hopefully the mistakes I've made aren't going to harm me in the end.