jessicakolman

Oh and follow my blog if you want. I'm going to be trying to write in it at least twice a week.

Hey guys just wanted to post my new blog with some new videos-- check it out Living with Lapband

So... At the beginning of this month my band was way too tight. I was having problems keeping down even chicken broth. So I went in and explained my delema. It had been 3 weeks since I had my last fill and thought that the acid reflux and throwing up was because I was just swelled. Nope. Went in, then took the saline out of my band. ALL THE SALINE. They wanted me to go on a band vacation. For 2 weeks. So I did. Then the next week I got into a minor car accident in my brand new car by the way, that I got in January :thumbup: So I have to pay $500 for that crap to get i repaired. Then... This past Wednesday I was at work for about an hour and started feeling this bad pain in my lower right side of my stomach. Then I produced a fever, then I started throwing up. I left home at around 2am. (My shift is 7pm-7am) I got home threw up some more and then went to sleep. I got up drove my husband into work because I had to go get my fill that day, well, I drove him in dropped him off. As I got out of the car I noticed that the pain just hit me. I started crying. I told Jason I'm fine and got back in the car and started driving. Keep in mind he works at a hospital so I was in the right place to be having this pain. As I drove down the street I was hunched over. I said screw this, and pulled over in the ER parking lot. I went in and explained my situation. Next thing I know I'm getting an IV and pain meds and a CT scan, Ultrasound, Pelvic Exam, blah blah blah. The PA suspected that I had appendicitis. They got the CT scan back and saw a blockage in my appendix called a fecal stone. They said that they would likely take my appendix out or keep me overnight. She had the surgery team come downstairs and examine me and look @ the CT scan. They told me that what they saw wasn't enough for surgery:ohmy: I was so confused. First the PA tells me I better get this thing out or it will burst and the surgeon tells me to go home?? WTF? Well I finally threw a bitch fit and told them i'm in way too much pain to go home so they kept me overnight. The next morning the surgeon came back in and said because of my pain they wanted to do "exploritory surgery" - right.. ok. So I get up to preop and the surgeon said that most likely he's just gonna take the appendix out. Long story short he does and finds that the appendix was swelled and inflamed. I TOLD YOU BASTARDS THAT IT WAS. Ugh.. people are dumb.. So now I sit writing this as I'm recovering from my surgery I had on Friday and I'm planning on going back to work on Thursday. :waytogo: Hope I'm off the percocet by then. first pic - my band too tight second - my poor car third - my surgery scars from my appendectomy

So update -- AS i started feeling better from the surgery -- I found out today after being in some severe pain for the past couple of days-- I have a kidney stone now!! Fricken lovely! Is there a black cloud over me?

About a month ago I decided that I wanted to get another fill. I was already at 5.5cc's in a 10cc band. I went into my doctors office and asked for 1/2 a cc. They gave it to me this time without going under the fluro x-ray so they really coudn't tell if it was going to be too tight. I took my chances. Fast-forward 3 weeks later. I'm throwing up constantly, and having severe acid reflux. I knew that at first I was having episodes of being stuck and throwing up when I overdid it, but I just thought that it was the band still getting used to the fill I just had. I just worked the night before and I went home and really needed to eat something because I was feeling weak. I tried to eat something simple - chicken broth. No good. I threw it right back up. So the minute the office oppened I went in and told the PA how I was feeling and she suggested that she take just a lil' bit of saline out, but I sincerely thought that I needed to look under the fluro and make sure my band and port was OK. So I waited a while and then I went into the x-ray room where they did the fluro and looked at my band as I swallowed barium Fluid and saw that the fluid barely went through my band. No wonder I was having probelms!! I aslo found out that my stomach was extremely swollen. So.... They told me they wanted me to go on a "band vacation" -- for 2 weeks !! :ohmy: Ugh Sadface:( They also gave me a steroid for my stomach, and ibuprofin for the inflamation and prilosec for acid reflux. They told me to take that till I'm done. That weekend my husband and I were planning on going to Myrtle Beach, SC for the weekend. I took it upon myself to take advantage of the fact that I had no fluid in my band and I pretty much could eat what I couldn't eat with the band. So I found myself eating pizza, bagels, and boneless chicken wings. Yeah, yeah, I know.. it's bad. but I made sure I ate very little at a time like I had the band. Come monday when we came home I weighed myself - it said according the scale I gained 7lbs?!?!?!? I did find out that after skipping dinner that night out of being so depressed that the reason why it said that much because it was the middle of the day and that I was retaining fluid from the steroids I was taking. I weighed myself 2 days later and I was only 2 pounds up from where I was. So I wasn't too worried. Lately I have been working out everyday making sure I'm doing 60 min of cardio and 30 min of weights. I've been working with my trainer as well. I'm scheduled to have my lapband re-filled next week.. But here's the question... Are they going to put a large amound like 5cc's in there or do you think they would just start at 1cc?? I hope they don't just start @ 1cc cause that would really suck. I would have to go to the doctor over and over like I did when I initally got the band :ohmy: Too much money!! So I'm really nervous about that part. I just wanted to vent and tell you what happened with me. :Dancing_biggrin: Attached is a picture of the fluro xray with my band at 6ccs. You can clearly see the barium fluid barely going through it and my stomach swollen.

thanks guys!!

I'm really confused. I know that when you get your lapband you are only supposed to be on Clear Liquids for the first week. This DOES NOT INCLUDE eggs of any kind and slim fasts which you say you are drinking. You are only supposed to be on CLEAR liquids which include pretty much anything you can see through but with limitations. For instance -- chicken broth,beef broth, Jello, etc. Then you're supposed to progress from clear liquids to full liquids to puree then to soft foods and then normal foods. It should be at least 4 weeks before you start to eat normal food. The reason why they make you be on this diet is because you're stomach is so swollen from the surgery and the band. Not to mention it is likely that if you do overdo it and eat something that you are not supposed to eat you may get a bowel obstruction which is no fun at all. I suggest you call your doctor and make sure you're doing this right, but I'm just going based off what most lap band surgeons tell their patients. I'm sorry if I'm sounding like I'm lecturing you, but it's important that you follow the rules of your surgeon. It's likely you're not losing weight because your body is retaining Fluid from being in the hospital.

I"m so proud that I decided on weight loss surgery and my husband was so inspired that he decided to have it as well. He had his surgery yesterday. Check out my video blog: YouTube - WLS Week 30 5/12/10 - Husband get's Lap band Surgery as well

I'm having the same problem. I recently got a fill to which I'm up to 6cc's. I have been really really restricted. I might be too restricted, but I think I'm gonna give it some time to get my stomach used to the fill. However - since being restricted and eating very little --maybe under 1000 calories I have not lost a pound. It sucks. Maybe my body is going into starvation mode?? I don't know. Ross -- I see you got your surgery from Dr. Enochs of Cary,NC?? Me to!!!

That is messed up. I'm sensing....hmmm lawsuit?.... I would slap a lawsuit on this man based on malpractice because he did something that she didn't sign consent for. I work in healthcare and know this is a major no-no. I hope he has a good malpractice lawyer because your friend can get a lot of money out of this not only for pain and suffering, but general malpractice of medicine. I hope your friend finds a different surgeon willing to put the band in the correct place. Please I urge you not to use the same surgeon. This guy needs to pay up.

I want to clarify that I only have thrown up because I was stupid and tried to eat foods that I know now that I can't eat such as bread, pasta, rice, etc. Everything else I eat now WHICH I AVOID BREADS I don't have a problem with. I make sure that I only have about a cup of food, and don't just eat until I'm full. Most of the bad situations I had where I threw up where back in December when I had a fill for about a month and I was just testing things out. I think that Tuesday I'm probably only going to get half a CC because I'm ALMOST at my "sweet spot".

I had my surgery November 13, 2009. I had 1cc put in. Since then I've had 3 fills. So I have a total of 5 cc's. Tuesday I'm going into the surgeon again and possibly getting another CC or maybe just 1/2 a CC. We shall see. AS FAR AS RESTRICTION - I do have a pretty good amount of restriction. I CAN'T EAT bread, heavy Pasta, rice and tortilla wraps. ~ Which I consider a good thing. Lately I've been eating a lot of salads. I've had many situations where I did get food stuck and had to throw it up. (Which they call a PB I guess.) I think it depends on the person and how much their band will hold.

So I've been having this weird pain for a while now. Every now and then espeically when I'm sitting I get this pain in my port area. It's like a pinching sensation. Does that mean the port has flipped? I don't know very much about ports being flipped. And more recently, I've felt pain towards my right ovary. I have a history of ovarian cysts, (last year I had 3) but have since gone on birth control which they said stops ovarian cysts from forming. It is possible to form though I guess. I just remember what ovarian cysts feel like and this is very similar. I'm also a week late on my period - which is another symtom of ovarian cysts. I'm not pregnant - I took a test. So what I'm asking is -- Is it possible to have pain radiate from your port to your ovaries?? or vice versa? I"m thinking that in the next few days if it gets worse, I may see my GYN.

I know that I can't eat a lot of chicken. Rice is a no-no for me competely. I tried eating sushi rolls the other day. Nope that didn't work.

Hey all. I've been keeping motivated by making youtube blog videos every now and then. I felt like I needed to tell people my story behind the fat. I've had inner demons that caused me to gain weight. Mostly my childhood. April 2009 was the last time I spoke to my my mom. I put a restraining order against her. Since then I've been so much more healthy. The last step I needed was the surgery. So far I've lost 20 pounds! Many more to come! Enjoy this video. It comes from the heart!

So... tomorrow is my 8 weeks post op. I'm feeling upset and like I'm doing something wrong. I've been 224 since December 10th. I'm not overeating. Last week I started working out and hired a personal trainer. Is it normal for weight to stall so soon after surgery?

So I had my surgery today at 7:15AM. I was out by 9:00 and in main PACU for a couple hours. We went home around 1PM. So here it is, I got there and they had me change in my nifty gown and compression socks. It really sucked that I have my period today. They didn't let me wear a tampon or pad! UGH... I know it may TMI but that made me mad. Anywho, after the nurse started my IV in my hand instead of my forearm --- which HURT!!!, they took me soon to the OR. I go there and I'm actually very familiar with their OR's cause I work in Labor and Delivery at that hospital and a lot of the time I have to take patients back to the OR for c/s's. My room was right next to the rooms they do those c/s in. Anywho, we got in the room and everyone was really nice and introduced themself. They made me comfortable and put my arms in those arm holder things. They kept putting the mask on me and I kept talking asking questions, next thing I knew I woke up a tremndous amount of pain in PACU -- it was hard for me to wake up since they had to give me benedryl with the anestheisa cause they used a "bear hugger" which is a device to keep you warm and it gave me a rash on my chest. Dont' knnow why... LOL Anyway soon they wheeled me down to the step down area and I stayed there for a lil' bit. I was insistant I get up and walk around cause it felt worse to lay down. I went pee about 3 times. Since then I can't go #2 probably cause of the pain meds:frown: So they discharged me and the tech brought me out to the car and then my husband just parked the car and went back in and got the perscription filled. We did this because they wouldn't allow me to just go wherever, they had to make sure I was gone OK but I didn't follow the rulses LOL . Anyway we dropped of my perscription for the Loratab liquid and then we walked down the hall to where I work just to walk of this gas and I saw all my coworkers and they were very happy that things went well. We walked back to the car after picking up the persciption and we headed home. So far I've been walking around the house just a lil' bit and resting as well. I feel pretty good otherwise. So here's a video of my whole ordeal of my surgery --

thanks you guys!! So sweet!

Hey all. I've been keeping motivated by making youtube blog videos every now and then. I felt like I needed to tell people my story behind the fat. I've had inner demons that caused me to gain weight. Mostly my childhood. April 2009 was the last time I spoke to my my mom. I put a restraining order against her. Since then I've been so much more healthy. The last step I needed was the surgery. So far I've lost 20 pounds! Many more to come! Enjoy this video. It comes from the heart!

Keep in mind I've gotten 2 fills already. I'm up to 4ccs. I'm scheduled for another fill Jan 24th. I'm finding myself weighing everyday. It's cruel to do that to myself, but it is addictive. I think I may have my husband lock the scale up! LOL:laugh:

My health insurance company sent me a check recently for $3000 and I was curious why and after I called them they said that I overpaid my deductible since I was in the hospital many times this year and had 2 surgeries including the recent lapband. They told me that check they sent was mine to keep. It just seems strange, I've never heard of this before. Does this make sense to you?