Mike4132

Bob we are in the same boat, I am 48 removed rom my sleeve surgery. I too had an uneventful procedure Event the IV went on first try ( I had a surgery where it took them 17 sticks to get one in)
Yes the gas pains are the most horrible by far. I have never been so happy to fart in my life lol. I was very impressed by the hospitals team, the nurses for bariatric patient's are limited in that they can have more then 3 patients total. Which means you get a lot of quality time in. Heck a few even let me take their picture for my blog.
I was also blown away by the bed I was in. Now in other hospitals they didn't seem to care that I was a fat guy and you fit into the little narrow bed etc. But this hospital just outside of boston mass, has nice big bariatric air beds. The best part they were transformers, I kid you not. At ne point I wanted to sit in a chair so they push a button or two and the whole bed turns itself into a chair??? I was stunned and it was awesome as well. What did suck was the sleep deprivation. By that I mean that they kept me on telemetry and an apnea monitor knowing I did have apnea. But I cannot use cpap, for various reasons, so every time I dozed off the o2 sat would drop a bit then my alarm would go off waking me right back up. The morphine pump was worse they all doctors and nurses kept telling me to use the pump, but I think I used it twice, once right after surgery just before they did a Tac Block, and once when I reached my floor, but that was it. The morphine made me very sleepy but I wasn't allowed to sleep. I will say they gave me scripts for nausea (Zofran) acid ( zantac/ranitidine) and pain, ,Vicodin. A lot of vicodin lol Keep me informed Bob id like to see how we do in this endeavor.

That is wonderful for you! They kept calling me a rockstar at the hospital as my post op has gone ideal, if I didn't have that coughing fit I would agree completely that it was too good to be true. I am trying to adjust to this new eating and drinking and I am doing pretty well. I wish I knew how to burp!

I did it!
48 hours removed from my Sleeve Gastrectomy surgery, and I honestly don't know how much more smoothly it could have gone.
I had nerves up until they wheeled me in, but when I became conscious again, I was shocked at how good I felt. Sore, for sure, in the stomach, but certainly manageable. The scars from the laproscopic surgery (There were five of them) were so small they were covered each by little bits of surgical tape. When my chest hair grows back, the scars wouldn't even be visible if they never healed!
I had two 60 second session of dry heaves, but no vomiting, no acid, no nothing. Started walking a couple hours after the surgery with NO problems (although the sore stomach made it a little slower getting up and down, the actual walking was no problem).
I tried to just sleep and walk as much as I could the first day.
Day two brought the gas pains, which actually were worse than any of the surgical pain. They came on hard and sharp, and lasted anywhere from 2-5 seconds. I understand this is normal, but thought that since my first day was so trouble-free that I might not have to deal with them. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. The gas pains came and went during the night last night, but while uncomfortable, it certainly wasn't awful.
Long story short: If I could guarantee my initial recovery story for anyone else getting the surgery, a LOT of people's worries would be put to rest.
I know that this is a life-long game, and I just came out of the chute, but I can tell you that my procedure and initial recovery experience has been VERY positive. We'll see where it goes from here!

GUYS ROOM
Hey, that is great. glad you are recovering fast. first month is super exciting. brace yourself for the week 3 stall. take care!!!

That's wonderful.

Wonderful, congrats. I am 7 weeks out and 48 lbs gone (including pre-surgery diet). It goes very quickly. Imagine how good it feels with 48lbs gone, you'll feel like a new person. I can do things I couldn't do before. Like put on socks, run and go upstairs 20 times per day without problem. Not to mention no more high blood pressure or pre-diabetes medicine. In addition, my CPAP breathing machine for sleep apnea was reduced to half of the pressure it was before. In another 30 lbs my doctor thinks there's 80% chance I won't need it anymore. This is the best think ever, right? Not easy at first but you will be feeling really wonderful very soon, I am.

Congratulations on your success. It will only get better and its never too late to have this done. I had it done 7/3114 and am down 85 lbs. My wife had it done the following month and she is down over 50 lbs. My son will have this surgery as well on 1/26/15 so we have an internal support group in the works.
The only complication I had and keep an eye on this for yourself, is that the changes were so dramatic that my blood pressure actually dropped below normal because of the high blood pressure meds i was on. I felt like I was going to pass out whenever I stood up. Got with my GP quickly and he took me off the high blood pressure meds only days after surgery and have not been back on them since. Also got rid of the dreaded CPAP machine.
The suregery is both life saving and life changing.
Best of luck to you on your recovery and a new you for the rest of your life!

Forgot to mention one thing. New Clothes! Be very careful with this. I had my surgery on a Thursday and returned to work the following Tuesday. I headed out at lunch to Men's Wearhouse because my pants were litterally falling off me. I got into my new size and bought two pairs of trousers the next size down. My Sunday of that week I was out of the trousers I had purchased on Tuesday. The weight and inches come off very quickly in the beginning which is a great motivator. Just don't buy two many clothes the first few months. You're going to really like shopping now!

That is so awesome! I know exactly what you mean about the blood sugar and blood pressure. I feel so positive about things now that I don't have to take insulin and a other meds I was taking. Just a little advice. Don't miss drinking your Protein and get in as much Water as you can. It will make you feel bad and nauseas if you don't. I did learn that the hard way. But am getting the hang of this now.

I'm 7 days out from surgery and can't believe how fast the weight is coming off already. As of this morning I'm down 22 lbs from the time I started pre-surgery liquids. (I only needed 2 days of liquids prior to surgery). I know this will slow once I get on puréed and solid stages of food but I'm still blown away by how effective this is.
What is probably more important is:
- I'm sleeping MUCH better and for the first time in 2 years I can breath through my nose instead of laying all night with my mouth open, choking for air. I'm also starting to have, or at least remember, dreams again. I feel like my sleep apnea is gone but realize it may be too early to claim victory entirely. Keeping my fingers crossed.
-I was also pre- diabetic prior to surgery and craved sweets constantly. Now the thought alone makes me nauseous. I also haven't had blood sugar issues at all since surgery.
-My BP has decreased to normal levels.
-I'm wearing clothes that haven't fit me for the last 2 years.
-it may sound strange but everything outside seems more vivid in color. The trees, the sky, the Water, they all seem brighter.....maybe it's just because I'm spending more time outdoors walking and relaxing instead of working, stressing, and eating, but it doesn't seem like it.
So far I'm very happy I had this surgery even though it's far from being easy and I'm still in some slight pain/ discomfort. I'm getting a glimpse of what the future holds and things are looking up for the first time in a long while. I can't wait to see what life is like a year from now!

I'm 7 days out from surgery and can't believe how fast the weight is coming off already. As of this morning I'm down 22 lbs from the time I started pre-surgery liquids. (I only needed 2 days of liquids prior to surgery). I know this will slow once I get on puréed and solid stages of food but I'm still blown away by how effective this is.
What is probably more important is:
- I'm sleeping MUCH better and for the first time in 2 years I can breath through my nose instead of laying all night with my mouth open, choking for air. I'm also starting to have, or at least remember, dreams again. I feel like my sleep apnea is gone but realize it may be too early to claim victory entirely. Keeping my fingers crossed.
-I was also pre- diabetic prior to surgery and craved sweets constantly. Now the thought alone makes me nauseous. I also haven't had blood sugar issues at all since surgery.
-My BP has decreased to normal levels.
-I'm wearing clothes that haven't fit me for the last 2 years.
-it may sound strange but everything outside seems more vivid in color. The trees, the sky, the Water, they all seem brighter.....maybe it's just because I'm spending more time outdoors walking and relaxing instead of working, stressing, and eating, but it doesn't seem like it.
So far I'm very happy I had this surgery even though it's far from being easy and I'm still in some slight pain/ discomfort. I'm getting a glimpse of what the future holds and things are looking up for the first time in a long while. I can't wait to see what life is like a year from now!

I'm 7 days out from surgery and can't believe how fast the weight is coming off already. As of this morning I'm down 22 lbs from the time I started pre-surgery liquids. (I only needed 2 days of liquids prior to surgery). I know this will slow once I get on puréed and solid stages of food but I'm still blown away by how effective this is.
What is probably more important is:
- I'm sleeping MUCH better and for the first time in 2 years I can breath through my nose instead of laying all night with my mouth open, choking for air. I'm also starting to have, or at least remember, dreams again. I feel like my sleep apnea is gone but realize it may be too early to claim victory entirely. Keeping my fingers crossed.
-I was also pre- diabetic prior to surgery and craved sweets constantly. Now the thought alone makes me nauseous. I also haven't had blood sugar issues at all since surgery.
-My BP has decreased to normal levels.
-I'm wearing clothes that haven't fit me for the last 2 years.
-it may sound strange but everything outside seems more vivid in color. The trees, the sky, the Water, they all seem brighter.....maybe it's just because I'm spending more time outdoors walking and relaxing instead of working, stressing, and eating, but it doesn't seem like it.
So far I'm very happy I had this surgery even though it's far from being easy and I'm still in some slight pain/ discomfort. I'm getting a glimpse of what the future holds and things are looking up for the first time in a long while. I can't wait to see what life is like a year from now!

My doc recommended sugar free Popsicles to help hydrate post op but I've found that most brands have sugar alcohol in them. I stopped eating them yesterday and gas pains have been greatly reduced. ( sugar alcohols cause gas in many people)
If you are recently sleeved, eating SF Popsicles and can't get rid of gas, sugar alcohol may be contributing to some of it. It seemed to be for me.

My doc recommended sugar free Popsicles to help hydrate post op but I've found that most brands have sugar alcohol in them. I stopped eating them yesterday and gas pains have been greatly reduced. ( sugar alcohols cause gas in many people)
If you are recently sleeved, eating SF Popsicles and can't get rid of gas, sugar alcohol may be contributing to some of it. It seemed to be for me.

My doc recommended sugar free Popsicles to help hydrate post op but I've found that most brands have sugar alcohol in them. I stopped eating them yesterday and gas pains have been greatly reduced. ( sugar alcohols cause gas in many people)
If you are recently sleeved, eating SF Popsicles and can't get rid of gas, sugar alcohol may be contributing to some of it. It seemed to be for me.

@@Don Packer- it should get better. Hang in there the tough days are almost over.

That's good to know I'm on day 2 and can't sleep very good at all. I had my first surgery on the 9th but had a blockage and had to go back in on Friday the 12th.... Hoping things will get better soon

Well after today I'm never drinking it again! I will share it when the in-laws come to visit Ha!

I am 1 week away from surgery Im nervous too. Its not something we thought we wanted to do but know we need to do it.And we will. Good luck. Len

You guys are right, each day has gotten better since surgery and so far day 3 has been no different, although this is the day it got ALOT better!
Last night I was in pain again so I took lortab and a couple Gas-X strips before going to bed. I knew the lortab would help me sleep but didn't have a lot of faith in the Gas-X accomplishing anything. Wow, was I wrong! 4 hours later I literally woke myself up in the middle of the night with the greatest passing of wind the world has probably ever known. Seriously, I wish I had a stopwatch handy because it had to have been some kind of record for the sheer duration of it. I can't say my wife was as impressed as I was but my dog certainly seemed to be.
And just like that, almost all my pain was gone! The new only pain I feel now is the incisions and that is very minor and completely tolerable.
Sorry to be crude but this was a milestone in feeling better for me and I'm just sharing my experiences as they come. I hope the rest of you who have had surgery recently are feeling better today also.

Oh yeah I had the jitters. I think its normal so be strong. I'm 4 days out today and can say that it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Read all you can about what to expect and it will help a lot.

Oh yeah I had the jitters. I think its normal so be strong. I'm 4 days out today and can say that it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Read all you can about what to expect and it will help a lot.

Not sure if I am posting this in the right place....
I'm excited and wanted to share... I have my consultation January 6th!! and I can't wait!
I have new insurance effective January 1st. So, the two weigh-ins I did I guess are now void. lol.
Now, I have 3 months of nutritional counseling. Which I am assuming is through the surgeons nutritionist. Anyone have to do that? Did you go through the surgeons office?
With my new insurance requirements, I was excited for 3 months instead of 6 months of weigh-ins, but doing the math I still end up finishing the process in Mid April. Oh well, as long as it happens.
I'm really hoping April is my surgery month. *fingers crossed*
I have so many "what ifs" going through my head. But I'm trying to stay positive and focus on what I've accomplished so far in the process.
Reading all these post on here have been so helpful, So thank you to everyone that contributed to this site. I'm so thankful I found it.

It is amazing to me the freedom I feel not to have to think about what diet I will start on Monday morning!! I feel so free!! Monday morning would come ... I would start a new diet... Would stay on it a week... Maybe less... And of course cheat and hate myself later. A vicious circle!! I was driving yesterday thinking how free I feel not having to think about diets anymore!!! I was sleeved August 27....almost four months... 63 pounds down ... And 43 inches!! #freedom

You guys are right, each day has gotten better since surgery and so far day 3 has been no different, although this is the day it got ALOT better!
Last night I was in pain again so I took lortab and a couple Gas-X strips before going to bed. I knew the lortab would help me sleep but didn't have a lot of faith in the Gas-X accomplishing anything. Wow, was I wrong! 4 hours later I literally woke myself up in the middle of the night with the greatest passing of wind the world has probably ever known. Seriously, I wish I had a stopwatch handy because it had to have been some kind of record for the sheer duration of it. I can't say my wife was as impressed as I was but my dog certainly seemed to be.
And just like that, almost all my pain was gone! The new only pain I feel now is the incisions and that is very minor and completely tolerable.
Sorry to be crude but this was a milestone in feeling better for me and I'm just sharing my experiences as they come. I hope the rest of you who have had surgery recently are feeling better today also.