Kalipso2

i always thought i had a high toleration for pain but then again, this was my first surgery. i had my surgery done on a monday and i spent the night in the hospital. tuesday i recovered at my parents house. wednesday i drove myself home and just basically slept until sunday. i was still in a little pain and had to get a refill on my pain meds. i woke up monday prepared to go into work but i just didn't think i could sit up for that long. i did to back to work that tuesday but i honestly think i could have used 2 more days off. you're not going to be walking normal after a week. there will be twinges of pain occasionally. it may still hurt to stand up and sit down. if you're not planning on anyone at work knowing, you may want to use a couple of sick days...

being able to start training for a 5k race. actually being able to RUN even though i can't run for long. having to hold up my sweat pants while i run!

3 weeks seems like a lot of time. why do you need to be there for 7-10 days pre-op and why do you need to stay 2 weeks after? are you going to Mexico? even then, i never heard of anyone needing to be away for that long. my surgeon is 4 hours away and i was able to get my pre-op stuff done in 1 appointment and i spent one night in the hospital before my parents drove me the 4 hours home. i didn't even need to go in for my 1 week post-op visit. my surgeon just asked that i take digital pictures of my incisions and email them to him to look at. maybe see if that is an option so that you don't need to stay 2 weeks after?

to me, people who aren't supportive think they can change your mind. my parents were NOT supportive at all and unfortunately i needed their help getting to the hospital and back (a 4 hour drive each way). i basically told them that while i understand their concerns and reservations, i'm doing this for me! i've tried diets. i've tried exercising. i need more help. and i was going to go thru with it WITH or WITHOUT their help. they eventually came around and i was so happy to have them there for me while i recovered.

wow... you're amazing! i've just started training for my first 5k. i haven't ran since i was a kid and i can barely run 1/4 of a mile but i'm determined to finish that 5k in november no matter what! you look great!! congratulations and Happy Bandiversary!!

yes, you're normal. right now you're in what some consider "Bandster Hell" because you're banded but have absolutely no restriction. Even after your first fill you may not feel restriction. Some people have been known to gain weight the first month or two after being banded. just watch your portions and eat healthy so that doesn't happen!

i'm wondering if anyone has taken their resting heart rate and what the number was. i was told that the lower the number the healthier the heart. well, my resting heart rate is around 100 beats per minute which is NOT good. my 60+ year old dad has a rhr of 65!

for me when i hear the words "productive burp".... burping is not what happens for me even though i know i'm PB'ing. i can feel the food lodged right under the breast bone. it's a lump that won't go away... and it hurts. i stand and lean from the waist over the toilet, cough twice and the piece of stuck food comes right out. usually if i'm burping that tells me the food is going down okay.

being afraid is understandable... especially when children are involved but the lap-band is much safter with less complications than gastric bypass or the sleeve. don't let the surgeon to try to pursuade you to have a surgery you don't want. sure, some people don't lose weight. the band can only help so much. take me for instance.... i need to lose 85 pounds. i've lost 42 pounds in 4 months just by changing my diet and not eating as much BUT it's now been almost 6 months and i'm still at the 42 pound mark. why? because i haven't exercised one bit. so my new goal has been to start running. i found a running class with a trainer and i've begun my exercising. i have signed up to run a 5k (3.1 miles) on 11/22/08... that's 7 weeks away and i can only run 1/4 of a mile. is it doable? yes... with some hard work from me! my point is... the band is what you make of it. if you don't want to put some effort behind it you probably will lose some weight but not all you want or need. you also have to be prepared to not eat some foods you may love now. some people can't eat red meat or bread or even chicken anymore. i can not eat ground meat or bread which means no hamburgers and no pizza... probably ever again. but i'm okay with that because now i'm having the best time finding hundreds of different ways to cook chicken or learning that i like tilapia, etc. it's all in what you make of the process. i'm determined to become healthy.

the rules i've set for myself are to stop eating AS SOON as i feel the least bit full. i've learned that if i take that "one more bite" i will end up PB'ing. do NOT drink right after eating. the Fluid has no where to go since the food is "cloggin up the hole". sometimes i forget and i take a gulp of something and i'll end up PB'ing mostly just the liquid. do NOT wait too long to go back to the doctor if you think you're too filled and can't keep any food down. i waited 2 months and WAY too many PB'ing episodes that i have stretched my stoma. (hopefully with my slight unfill for 2 months the stoma will go back to normal). you learn what foods your body just will NOT tolerate anymore. for me it's bread. i don't care if it's fresh, toasted, crunchy, soft, covered in butter, eaten in tiny pieces.... i PB every time. so that means no sandwiches, no pizza, no garlic bread *sigh* i've had to accept that bread is no longer part of my life!

lanakila... don't worry about it. go at your own pace. it's awesome that you're out there TRYING at least which is more than a lot of people!! i have a 5k scheduled for 11/22/08 and i can only run 1/4 of a mile right now! i'm okay with that because i know in time i'll be able to run further and faster!

i just found out during my last appointment that my stoma has stretched... i was banded in april, 1st fill in may and 2nd fill in june. after my 2nd fill i knew i was too tight but i had hoped it would loosen up. i either had to eat a VERY tiny amount of food or i'd PB. i let this go on for 2 months. i PB'd more than i actually kept food down. i told the nurse during my september appointment and so we looked at things under flouro. sure enough i was WAY TOO tight. the food was sitting in the stoma for so long and only trickling thru the band that i stretched my pouch. i got a slight unfill and have to wait 2 months before i can get another fill and to see that hopefully the stoma went back to normal. here is a picture i got after i got the slight unfill... click on the picture to enlarge it... you can see my stretched stoma.

i can totally understand your dilema. for me, i'm too scared to go out and buy new clothes because i know i won't be happy in the size that i fit in now... i want the clothes size to be smaller so i'm waited to go shopping. now my clothes are baggy and don't fit and i look worse than i did when the clothes DID fit.

i can definitely understand how reading about other people's struggles would be scary and that's because this process is NOT easy. what i did to cheer myself up was to go to the before and after pictures and see ALL the people who have struggled (because we all have) and see them looking so much better!

a bowl of soup and only eating the broth would be a good alternative but it's true... one meal won't make that big of a deal. a lot of people cheat on their preop diet... including me!

you're feeling the normal pain that comes with the surgery. i thought that i had a high tolerance for pain and that the surgery wouldn't affect me much even though i've never had surgery. boy was i wrong... i chose to spend the night in the hospital since this was my first ever surgery. i brought cute pajamas, books, my ipod, curling Iron, a cute outfit to wear home... needless to say i stayed in my hospital gown, never opened a book, never turned the ipod on, didn't wash my hair and wore the same clothes i wore going in to the hospital! i was in a lot of pain too. i asked for my pain meds every 3 or 4 hours and for the first few times i had to ask for help getting out of bed but it gets easier each time you do it. i tried to be brave and strong before i left the hospital and wait longer than the 3 hours for my pain meds because i had a long drive home and wanted to take them right before i left and i waited too long and ended up crying and freaking my parents out. also, i had pain meds that lasted me 3 days after the surgery and i had to call for a refill. if you're in pain... use the medication! it will help you heal faster!! congratulations on the beginning of this wonderful journey!!

i had surgery in april, first fill in may and second fill in june. i was way too filled in june but never went back for an unfill until september. so during june thru september i didn't eat a lot but since i was over filled the food sat in the upper stomach too long while moving way too slowly thru my band. this caused my upper stomach to stretch. i got a slight unfill in september so that the food can move quicker thru my band and hopefully my stomach will go back to it's normal shape. i don't know if it would've helped if i went for an unfill in july or even august... if that would have stopped my stoma from stretching. i'm not sure how long it takes for the stoma to get stretched but i'm almost positive that it doesn't happen after 1 or 2 times of over-eating.

i was banded in April and have lost 40 pounds without any exercise. i had to get a slight unfill because i was PB'ing too much but now my weight loss has stopped so i know i have to start adding in exercise. i joined a "beginner's running" class and the trainer claims i'll be able to run in a 5k race by the middle of November but i'm not sure i believe her! during the first class we had to run a mile... or run and walk if we had to. i finished last. i was depressed and upset and swore i wasn't going back but now i want to prove to myself that i CAN do this! now i just have to get my legs to agree with me!

i'm SO glad i found this thread. after my first running class this past saturday i really thought i wasn't going to go back since i was the last person to finish the mile run/walk but after reading every one elses dedication makes me want to try harder too! like you, lanakila, i might not make the 5k in eight or nine weeks but i hope to be close!

you're very welcome, mimi! i would definitely double check with your surgeon though too!

i never thought about asking for a picture either.... the nurse offered it... i wish i would have gotten a "before" pic of the band with too much saline along with this after shot. usually you just have to take 1 big gulp of the barium for the flouro which isn't too bad. it's thick and a little chalky but i ended up having to drink over 4 ounces of barium that day since we were testing my band. i was so into watching the liquid flow thru my body that i didn't really taste the nastiness of the barium lol

i JUST joined a beginner's running class this past week. our first class was this past saturday. the trainer would like us to run a 5k by the first weekend in november! i ran/walked a mile yesterday and my lower body hurts... but it's a GOOD hurt! yesterday while running i thought to myself "well, i'm not coming back next week" but i think i will! i'm totally out of shape but i really want to accomplish this one thing... stick to the training and run my very first race!! i'm definitely going to check out the podcast stuff too! i'm so glad to see that this goal isn't unrealistic!!

yes, that's the barium going thru. (if you click on the picture it gets bigger) i had 5.7cc's in a 10cc band but i kept PB'ing and let it go on that way for over 2 months. when i went for a check-up a couple of weeks ago we took out .5cc's and while i don't feel much restriction anymore, i'm not PB'ing either. this pic is me with 4.7cc's in the 10cc band. you can see how i stretched my stoma but it should hopefully go back to normal soon. i can't get another fill for 2 months to allow my stomach to heal again. i just thought it was cool and decided to post it. i'm just surprised i haven't seen more of these pictures posted!

i JUST joined a beginner's running class this past week. our first class was this past saturday. the trainer would like us to run a 5k by the first weekend in november! i ran/walked a mile yesterday and my lower body hurts... but it's a GOOD hurt! yesterday while running i thought to myself "well, i'm not coming back next week" but i think i will! i'm totally out of shape but i really want to accomplish this one thing... stick to the training and run my very first race!!