gentylwind

I was not perfect on my pre-op but for the last two days before surgery. Prior to that I was perfect about 90% of the time. Stick with it. You can do it! And don't beat yourself up too hard. Just do what you are supposed to and don't give yourself permission to slip, but if you do, don't beat the crap out of yourself. Just learn from it and move onward. I was banded yesterday, no complications.

Banded yesterday. I am so glad it is OVER. I didn't realize how much my fear of the surgery was keeping me from getting excited about having it done. Now that it is over I feel wonderful. Having mid chest pain from gas and swelling and, of course, incision pain. But not too bad in terms of gas pain. Doing my spirometry regularly (the little breathing gadget) and walking around every half hour or so. I slept like a rock last night, in my own bed and not on the couch or in a recliner. I had severe nausea from the car ride home, but phenargan got that under control before I actually hurled. I have homemade chicken broth and GAtorade to sip on and Joe (my SO) is making oxtail Soup, which he will strain for me. I start full liquids any time after 24 hours, but the way I feel right now I will probably wait until tomrrow or so. Not at all hungry, even though the soup smells fantastic. I can actually enjoy the smell and have no desire to eat. That's a first!

DFW - Dr. Manuel Castro is $9990. So is TLCEDge in DFW

Self pay here. All I had to do was pre-op blood work, urinalysis, EKG and psych eval. Came to less than $250. Banded yesterday and doing pretty good.

You look great!

Good luck today everyone!

Most people experience a lull in loss around week 3-5 from what I have read. This is due to healing, your body having to readjust to solids, constipation (as you mentioned) etc. Just keep doing what you are supposed to be doing and have faith. It WILL work if you don't decide to start "testing" your band to see if things you aren't supposed to have will go through anyway and if you don't give up! Just be patient. The band does not work the way RNY/gastric bypass does. It gives a much slower weight loss. The lull in loss at week 3 is why my surgeon does not do the Optifast pre-op he said. The body gets kind of shocked by the reintroduction of solids.

WTG!:eek: I am glad you are doing well and were able to move past your fears.

8:00 AM Baby!! Gah, I am nervous!

Yeah, this is why I made sure I was the first or second person on the schedule for the date of my surgery. That doesn't sound very fun.

Hi all. I am having my surgery this Friday. I hear a lot of people talking about getting Gas-X strips etc. and I have to admit, this makes no sense to me, as the gas that comes after surgery is not in the digestive system. Did you use Gas-X and did it help you? I am trying to decide whether to buy any or not.

I get banded on Friday (day after tomorrow) and am having similar cold feet. I just keep reminding myself that happy people aren't generally online that much telling their story. They are out living their lives. However, unhappy people are online a LOT, looking for help, information, commiseration or even just a place to complain. It is disproportionate. I addressed all my concerns wtih my surgeon. He says if I do what i am supposed to do, there is no reason I will not lose ALL the weight I need to lose. 100% chance of success if I am compliant. So that goes for you too. We can do this!

I don't have good answers for how much to drink and when, but the tightness in the morning my surgeon told me is related to the esophagus still being paralyzed from sleep. It is one of the slower muscles of the body to "wake up" and its normal for restriction to be higher early in the day and to ease up as the day goes on.

I am doing okay...I am hungry a lot of the time but not starving, and i think a lot of it is head hunger. I am not having a growly tummy or anything, no symptoms of low blood sugar. Just not full the way I prefer to be. Its been a challenge, but I am almost there. Surgery is Friday and I have lost 6.6 lbs in the last 10 days, which thrills me!

Without knowing your personal scenario and insurance requirements and surgeon, it is impossible to answer you in anything but a personal anecdotal way. Most insurances consider anything over a 40 BMI to be morbidly obese. You do realize this band is NOT a magic solution and you will have to do all of this and more AFTER the band is placed and for the rest of your life? That you will continue to feel hunger for some time after the band is placed? If you are not prepared to suffer some and push past the unpleasantness, you really need to examine if you are ready to do this! You sound like you are kind of freaking out. Take deep breaths, have some patience, have some faith in yourself and know that your surgeon will tell you all you need to know. But determine here and now you will do whatever it takes to make this surgery successful for you. The band itself will change nothing. It is just a way to help you change yourself.

Down 6.6 in 10 days on the pre-op, and I don't even have a super strict one! yeehaw! Surgery is Friday. I am fretting.

A week from tomorrow! :thumbup: One week from today will be clear fluids only. I am strugglin' along on my pre-op, making it okay with a shake at lunch and breakfast and a normal, low carb dinner. Not droppingtons of weight but I am dropping and my pants are loose. I am ready to have this DONE. EbonyRose, I am so glad your anemia got solved!

I had some of the same concerns you do before all my eval. stuff. But when I met with my psychologist for that part, it became clear that all of this is not to weed people out from the surgery, but to identify where YOU might need help so that your surgery will be a success for you. It was about helping you not to fail on the band! So yes, be honest! It will only do you good.

I am 5'3 and already know I am getting a 10 cc band.

You proceed forward like it is going to happen and put that expectation out into the universe. STart the pre-op diet...it can only help you even if you don't have the surgery. Also have you called the insurance company yourself? Many to most people have had to follow up on this on their own to get answers. Don't let them do the surgery if you don't have approval. You will be liable for the cost, as it is standard to have you sign a form that states you understand that anything your insurance does not cover, you pay for.

I have less than 1000 per day, currently in my pre-op phase too.

Hungry today, not nearly as perky. The scale is up 1.5 lbs, hopefully that is because I started my cycle. :laugh: I find myself today very anxious and worried whether any of this is going to work. Still seems like a long way off.

Thinking of you and hoping it all goes well! Congratulations!

If you don't have ADHD where are you getting the Adderall? You should not be taking it if you don't have the medical condition requiring it. You do need to own up to your doc. Sounds like you may have traded one addiction for others.

LOVE reading the success stories. Way to go!