Tootarts

Congratulations big time! I can't wait till I make it there too.

I'm a cereal freak! I really need the fiber so I tried Oat Bran hot cereal, it's got loads of fiber and goes down easy and sticks with me most of the morning. Of course I eat at 7 am so by 10 or 11 I need a snack, no matter what I eat so I'm happy. The 2 meals a day cereal diet sounds good to me too.

I had a hard time with just liquids I felt so weak so my doctor told me to go ahead with mushies after a week. I started with applesauce and that new yoplat whipped yogert and cream of rice cereal and felt way better. I was on mushies for 2 weeks and slowly have introduced semi mushies. I go for my first fill on wednesday so I'll probebly be back on mushies or liquids again but thats ok.

Wannbehappy, I was out of work for 3 weeks and just started back yesterday and I am exhausted. I do have a semi physical job, so you never know.

I have to let you know after visiting this forum for almost a year now that I am the exception to the rule because I have not had an easy time of this whole thing. After all the waiting for my insurance and the phycological evaluation, and the nutritionist evaluation that took 3 weeks and the exersize trainer I had to pay for out of pocket(400 dollars), it took me 11 months before my surgery. I almost didn't get the band near the end because I suffer with severe migraines and I was so worried about the vomiting I do when I get a migraine that it might make the band slip or something but I worked it out with my physician and with the positive encouragement from this forum and other migraine sufferes. So all was a go, surgery set for December 21st and all worked out with my job. At the last week I got a call from the surgeon's offfice and they had to change the band date on me and scheduled me in for a week ahead, it caused so many problems with my job it's not even funny, but all was a go. Surgery was at 6 am and I live 1 hour from hospital, and I was late about 20 minutes late and the nurse who was assigned to me was upset at my tardiness. She was rude to me and I was a nervous wreck and this didn't help at all. Then she put the iv drip in my hand and couldn't find a vein and then started moving the needle inside my hand trying to locate a vain. She finally pulled it out when I screamed bloody murder ( I've had a bruise on my hand for 3 weeks now)! She finally found a vein in my other arm. When surgery was over I woke up in severe Pain. I had morphine and Vicodin the whole day and went home later in the evening and basically was in pain for 2 weeks. Another thing, they didn't use tape on my insitions they stitched me up and the scares are so ugly it's awful. It's been 3 weeks today and I'm finally feeling well enough to go back to work. I have lost weight, about 17 pounds but it's been hell for me, not worth it so far, i have to admit. I hope to post more possitive experiences in the future but for now I am being honest with my experience. Tootarts :cry

Merry Christmas to all lap-banders Having the surgery was very hard on me but with the help of all the people on this forum I struggled through and am now doing well. I have learned more from this forum than from any other place. Thanks again and Happy Holidays to all.

gadgetlady, I too had my monthly friend when my surgery came and they let me keep my underwear on.

I feel just like a baby. All the post on here are so positive but not me. I had my band put on 2 days ago and I am in pain and not happy at all. I can't even sip water without burping constant and pain. I feel week as anything and can't sleep hardley at all. I've coughed up a bunch of mucus this morning and am worried. I am a bad patient and a complainer but I feel like crap and can't stop shaking. I stopped taking meds cause I think they are making me sick too. Sorry for complaints, I just feel like a baby. I think I'll try and eat some broth and see what happens even though water hurts any suggestions would be nice.

P.S. I noticed I forgot to change the band date on my reply, the doctor changed my band date so I'm now the 13th instead of the 20th, didn't want to confuse anyone.

Hi Joe, I too am waiting today to find out what time I go for surgery tomorrow the 13th! I'm scared and excited. Good luck Joe. Talk to you later in bandland. Tootarts

I am feeling like I may have to cancell my banding in December. I want to cry and scream.............. I suffer with severe migranes due to hormones every month so september 1st I had an operation that I was hopeing was going to practically make my periods stop. It's called a baloon obilation where they literally burn the inside of your uterus. Well to make a long story short it doesn't seem to have worked. I havent had a migrane since september and I thought things were ok until yesterday and I was hit with a bad one (I have it at this moment but not as severe as yesterday and last night). No migraine medicine works for me either so I have learned to literally suffer through them. It starts with severe pain in the head then I have whats called an Aura where it literally blinds you and then I get severly sick to my stomach. Once I throw up (and sometimes I force myself to because it relieves me) I start to at least feel better enough to sleep through the head pain. I've heard horror storys about the band flipping because of severe vomiting and thats what I do when I get a migraine, every time. I am in a quandry as to what I should do now................. I have waited over a year for insurance approval and all the stupid things they put you through not to mention I have paid over 1000 dollars already. I don't know what to do.........I plan on talking to my doctor sometime today if I can get through to him. I want this so bad but I feel defeated at this moment. Please excuse me while I go and cry and scream in my pillow...

HI jAN, Are you my twin,you sound exactly like me! I'm also 47 and I want to be around for my boys and maybe someday if I'm lucky enough some grandchildren. I'm also getting banded in December the 20th to be exact. I've had my ups and downs about getting banded too. I don't have Diabeties but I suffer with severe migranes and I was worried that the vomiting I get with migraines would make the band slip or worse I don't know. I got a lot of support from the people on this board and I talked to my doctor and he gave me some anti nausa medication. I feel alot better about everything now. After all I've been through so far I don't want to turn back now. All the tests and all the waiting for insurance and all the money......... I'm going through with the banding for sure but I'm scared and excited at the same time. I just keep thinking that maybe by this summer I'll be feeling so much better about myself and hopefully more agile on my feet so that I may feel like hiking and biking and camping (I live in Maine), gives me so much to look forward too.........

I was wondering if anyone knows if there doctor puts a stitch in there band? My Doctor says he always puts one stitch to hold it in place. He said he also places the band higher up on the stoma because he feels the slippage is less? Has anyone heard of this? Tootarts

I can say I have never tried reflexology for migraines. I have tried reflexology for other things but the migraines are so incredibly severe for me that even my relaxation tapes a hot bath or shower or even message does nothing to help.

Thank you everyone for all your posts. I truely truely mean it! I thought I was the only one out here with this problem and all your responses have made me feel so much better, not that I wish migranes on anyone but it's amazing how many people really suffer with them. I am feeling better today about getting the band because I talked to my Doctor and he gave me some anti nausea medicine and I took it in the afternoon and it seemed to work but it did make me quite groggy, I can deal with groggy. I haven't talked to my banding Doctor yet but I feel much more hopefull about the band now. Thanks again All!

fun test, I'm a 40...........

I'm scared too but I'm excited at the same time!

I've been fat/chubby all my life but in 1985 when I stopped smoking I put on 60 more pounds to my fat/chubby body. I have lost 50 pounds twice but it came back on plus an extra 10. I would love to be even where I was before 1985 at 170 which was still high but not as high as 243. So here I am waiting for December 20th my band date.

You should concentrate on being a healthy person now, and staying at a plateu for 3 months is your healthy resting period. You must feel better physically? I know you look fabulous.

I can so truely relate with you. I started looking into the band in January! It has taken me 9 months so far and the 17th I see my doctor for the date. I figured it will be 10 or 11 months since the beginning. I am sooo nervous but excited and mad at the same time. It's just not fair to make people wait this long.

I got the approval from my general Doctor last October to have the lap band and I have gone through all the preliminary crap for the insurance company and was finally accepted by them last month. Huray I thought but no........ now my surgeon wants me to go to an exercise trainer 3 times before seeing him (he does this with all his patients now) and I have to pay for this 400 dollars out of my pocket, my insurance won't cover it. I asked the office person when do they think I can get my final date booked and she said that they are already booking for December at this point. That means if I have to wait till January or February or ? to have the surgery I will have to pay another years deductible on my insurnce which is one thousand dollars. I think this is not a fair situation that they put us through here. It's difficult enough making the desicion to have this surgery and life altering thing done to our bodies and then to have all this crap done from the insurance companies and the doctors seems so unfair. I feel am at the mercy of this doctor now and I'm frustrated. I am So upset, excuse me please while I go scream...................... Tootarts

A quick thanks to eveyone who respoded to my screaming session! You made me feel lots better knowing I'm not the only one who's had to ensure this long wait or pay through the nose. Thanks All

I too just recieved an insurance approval, I am excited and nervous at the same time too. wish us all good luck .....

I too am waiting for my insurance....... I hate the waiting game and am sooo excited to get started.

Hi, I'm waiting for insurance approval and am feeling very impatient at this point. I'm thinking of going on the Nutri system diet until I get a banding date because I am feeling so motivated and don't want to lose this motivation feeling (If you know what I mean). I've known I wanted banding back in January and it's taken so much time to get this far. Did anyone eles feel this way?