Lanakila

Whew...I thought I was the only one! I got my band on the 28th, only ever took the meds every 8 hours. Quit the meds on Saturday, no tylenol either. Went to work today and if they hadn't known that I had the band put in they never would have guessed that I had had surgery. I'm not having gas problems, am not having any trouble drinking, but my scars are itching like mad!

For me, it's the port tugging on the stitches that hold it in place. The doc said it was no big deal and would stop pulling after a few weeks of healing. If it really bothers you more, call your doc. You pay him/her to take care of you and answer your questions!

I asked my surgeon and he said that the "sip" was a strategy to get enough liquid in for those who had difficulty drinking regularly. He said that I can drink as much as I like, as quickly as I can tolerate it. Because it is liquid, it flows right through the band once the swelling goes down. I was banded on Thursday and I never had so much swelling that I couldn't drink regularly. I do notice that if I drink quickly, like half a glass at one draw...I burp like a complete lush!

Welcome Meekie! I was banded on the 28th, so we are pretty close in healing. How are you doing?

Jackie, I was banded on the 28th. I cannot feel my port for sure, prob because they stitch it to the muscle, under the fat. You are probably getting tired and short of breath because of the pressure on your diaphragm from the gas they pumped in to you. Even if you don't have major gas pains, there can still be a little gas pushing on you. Don't forget too...you did have major surgery. Hang in there and we'll keep an eye on each other as we heal together!

Welcome Bindi! I realize that Australia is huge, but we have several folks on these boards that are from there. Nice to have such international flair! What kind of nursing do you do?

It was probably some fresh scar tissue splitting from being too taut. No big problem, it will scar over again a little more loosely. I doubt that it was anything going wrong with your port.

Before I got banded I ordered a good sampler pack from BE. It included their Blender Ball cup for mixing liquids. It's the best blender...even better than a blender! My husband has actually confiscated it for mixing and pouring pancake batter and scrambled eggs, but I bought another one at GNC.

Wow Chris! A 3 week pre-op sucks but that nearly 30# loss sure looks like a great reward.

Shrink! :lol:That's AWESOME! "my shrink says" "the shrink thinks" "I'll ask my shrink" Someone should snap that name right up! My band is named Stanley. Since I always refer to the band as a tool, my hubby decided he needed a "tool" name. The short story is that the slogan for Stanley Tools is "make something great" so that's what we named him. It's dorky, but I bought Stanley a silver baby spoon engraved with his name and birthdate, 8-28-08. I figure that I'll need to learn to eat itty-bitty bites in order to chew well enough, so I was going to get some baby spoons anyway. I decided to go with a fancy spoon when I was daydreaming one day about where I'll be a year or two from now. I plan to have Stanley's baby spoon mounted in a keepsake frame with a Before and an After pic. It'll make an interesting conversation piece. Shrink Seriously, Funny!!!!!

Michelle, you are not alone! Do not suffer in silence a moment longer. The people here on the boards are almost all super supportive and we all want each other to succeed. See your doctor about your band, get back on your meds, and life will turn around for you in just a few weeks. Hang in there honey...we're here for you! :smile:

Take the meds! It is Waaaaaayyyyyyyy easier to keep the pain eased up by taking the meds regularly than it is to try to get rid of it again once you slack up. I learned this from injuries in the past and let me tell you...take the meds.

Yep, it was the 28th. Everything went well and I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I'm actually doing great. Hang in there girl, it's going to get better!

Nena, I think that it's really neat how we can all learn things and be supported on this board too! I'm lucky that I work at a University and have med and physiology folks in my family so I drill them with questions constantly and then jump back over here as soon as they tell me "why". Why, why, why...I'm sure they just roll their eyes when the phone rings sometimes, but I don't care :smile:

I thought that I'd pop in from over on the August boards and say 'Hi'! I've seen a few of you folks checking out what's going on with those of us just ahead of you. I have learned sooooooo much from reading these boards. I've learned what to expect, learned what questions to ask, and learned what to have on hand. I learned different Protein solutions, who are the most supportive folks, and what to wear post-op. All-in-all, the info has been invaluable! I know that alot of the posts have, and will be, frustrations about gas and pain and such, but I wanted to post my experience here so that you'll know that there are some who have easier experiences. I've been very, very active on the boards here, so I had heard everything. I'm a pretty matter-of-fact gal, so my experience is probably pretty related to that. I'm not knockin' anyone else, I promise! I had surgery on this past Thursday, the 28th. I had to stay overnight because I have sleep apnea and they monitor all apnea patients overnight after they have general anesthesia. My starting BMI was 49.8 and my insurance would only cover a bypass if my BMI wasn't under 50, so I lost 10 lbs before my initial consult that so that there would be no question. For most of us who are so large, we can lose 10 pounds easily...it's just that it usually finds us later, and brings friends! I had all of the regular pre-op tests: EKG, Chest X-ray, Labs, Psych, Nutrition. My dr. did not prescribe me a pre-op diet, but I was terrified that I would end up with an "open" surgery so I self-imposed a cutback on myself. I did a regular dinner and liquids only during the day starting 10 days before my sx. I'm glad that I did. It really helped me to transition mentally. I did eat regular dinners, not diet dinners. I saw the dr 5 days after I started that and found out that the only pre-op diet he actually prescribes is 48 hours of full (not just clear) liquids prior to sx. ALL drs are different, so follow what YOURS says. I figure that the drs orders are the right ones, and that if you want to be more restrictive (remember, I was scared of an open procedure) then there's nothing wrong with that. I lost almost 6 pounds just going to the daytime liquids. Anyhow, I had to take my blood pressure meds only on the morning of the sx. I went into the OR at 8:10 a.m. and woke up in recovery at 9:40 a.m. No nausea, thank God! They kept me drinking Water and gave me ice chips. I never had to limit myself to sips, as I was able to take a drink (not a gulp) from the beginning. This seems to be very individualized. Unfortunately, I had to hang out there for about 3 hours because they didn't have a room on the ward for me yet. No biggie, I'm a lurker so I enjoyed the people watching and hearing. I got up to my room and leaned/tottered/fell, more or less, onto the bed. It's just not graceful the first few times you try to get in and out of bed :tt1:. I got the tv set, the pillows moved, and once I was all situated I was really ready for some sleep. I've heard that folks cannot sleep on their side for a week or so. I did. I'm a side sleeper. It wasn't fun, but I was able to force myself to roll on my side and get situated so that I could sleep. After a time or two, I was able to roll over without whining or cussing! :smile: I gotta tell you, I think that this rolling back and forth was the reason that I didn't have ANY stuck gas. OK, that and the fact that I told my surgeon to squeeze me like a Ziploc before he closed me! :wink2: Thank heaven for bars in the bathrooms. Other than the darned IV pole, getting through the potty wasn't horrible. I didn't get online until around 5 p.m. but that's mostly because I couldn't figure out how to get across the room to unload my laptop. Turns out the IV pump can be unplugged and run on batteries, so I could cross the room! Once the nurse told me this, she made me walk a lap on the ward floor before she let me play! I seemed to do a 2 hour nap and a 2 hour tv-walk-jello routine for the rest of my stay. Take the pain meds. From family and personal experience I can tell you that it is SILLY, no wait...STUPID, to refuse pain meds as ordered. It is much, much, much, much easier to keep the pain away in the first place than it ever will be to try to get rid of it once you let it get started!!!!!!!!! Yes, I felt great. Yes, I'm still taking my meds. Dr gave me 7 days worth, I'll probably take 4 or 5. No heroes needed, really. Along the lines of pain management, here's a few tips that worked for me. 1. You had surgery, it's gonna hurt. How badly or how long is pretty much up to you. The more you lie still and don't move around, the worse it will be. If you try to go without the meds, it's your own fault. 2. It's ok to whine, whimper, or downright cuss. Just move. When you stand up to walk, you are going to want to stay hunched over. Don't. Slowly make yourself stand up straight, then breathe deeply. It will "open" up your frontside and will truly help you move better. It's not easy, but do it anyway. It was easier for me to sleep with the head of the bed tilted up, but it was better for me to sleep with it flat because it kept my frontside unhunched. As we all know, easier doesn't always mean better for...and we're not known for choosing the one that is better for us, you know? I repeat, I feel great. It's still not so fun getting up or down from my chair, and in or out of my bed. It's still not so fun sitting down to potty at home because I don't have any of those "trendy" bars. Those things are not-so-fun, but they aren't what I would call "bad". Remember, it's surgery and it's gonna hurt. It hasn't stopped me from folding laundry (hubby has to get it out for me though 'cause I can't bend over low enough to reach to the back of the dryer.) It hasn't stopped me from ironing clothes, cleaning the fishtank, and spraying water on the garden. I'm thrilled to finally be on my way...and let me tell you, the not-so-fun part is not going to hold me back now. Let this be a warning to everyone across the land: She's back, and she's gonna be a hottie!

Hey Kathy! How was your service at Duke? I've heard so much about Dr. Enochs here in Raleigh, and I went with Dr. Moran here too, so I'm really interested in hearing how you were treated out there. I'm sorry to hear that you are feeling so poorly. I'm sure that you are sick of hearing about it, but walk, walk, walk. When you walk, don't shuffle. Work hard to stand up straight and "open" up your frontside. It's not the most comfortable thing to do, but it really does ease up the pain once you get there. Then you'll be able to breathe more deeply and maybe feel a teensy bit less like you've been punched in the gut. Hang in there, and keep us posted!

The technical reason for a hiccup is that it is a spasm of the diaphragm. It is likely that the hiccups that you all are experiencing is a direct result of things settling back into place after having been moved around during surgery, and the gas moving too. This all exerts pressure on your diaphragm with might cause a single spasm or more. The hiccuping after drinking or eating is probably just a reaction of your esophagus and/or stomach moving a bit and shifting things in the same way. I would think that walking and deep breathing seem to be the cure-all advice for this as well as the gas.

Hang in there Ang! Nearly everyone on this board has been where you are right now and you'll never be on your own as long as you come here. Tell us how your day is going? Is anyone around to keep you company? Have you discovered popsicles yet? :biggrin:

Restless, I am THRILLED that you were able to finish everything up so well. It's awesome that you feel great. They always say...good things come to those who wait! I know that it nearly drove you insane, but it'll be worth it.

Welcome Donna! I was banded yesterday and am feeling quite well. I'm really excited for the last of our August buddies to join us in BandLand. It's been a real adventure getting to this point and I'm really looking forward to our successes!

the Sip/Growl/ Burp thing...lol

Remember that the band is a tool only. Yes, the band is supposed to help you feel fuller faster once you have the proper restriction, but it is still your responsibility to track your calories and work on your mindset. Just because you feel like you can eat more doesn't mean that you shouldn't start practicing the dieting changes that come with.

I completely agree on the pet thing and the IV thing! I was never so grateful to be able to walk from a bed to a bathroom as when I was after not having to drag that darned pole with me! My usually frisky dog immediately, obediently sat when I came through the door and hasn't pawed my lap once. The kitties have come over to sit on the arm of the chair, but seem to "smell" the difference and have not yet tried to climb on me. Because my doc put my large incision horizontally in the crease of my rolls, there's a natural cushion of roll above and below so I haven't had to worry about it rubbing anything. The smaller incisions don't hurt any more than a typical boo-boo would.

I toast you all with my crystal light as you head out to your grand voyage! It's been a long wait, I know, but your time has finally come and we are cheering you on!

Welcome Angela! I got banded today and have to stay overnight (apnea monitoring) but that's not keeping me from watching the NFL Preseason game tonight. Good thing it's a private room...or my yelling at the tv would probably get me in trouble!