LonghornGirl

after a fill I do liquid for that day, then mushy for a day maybe two then back to solids. my doctor said the longer you stay on soft foods the harder it will be to get back on solids. he basically said by the 4th day his patients should be eating. remember mushy foods go thru the band easier and therefore you can eat a lot more of them which can cause weight gain. p.s. this was a good poll!

Banded on Oct 7, 08.......:sad:

I asked my doctor were everything was located and he said that the "pouch" is on the left side (where the underwire would sit on a bra). The port is further down just left of center and the band itself is right of center. I was hoping you would describe the pain I have. After eating, within an hour the area around my port is protruding, which is weird. Gotta ask Dr. F about that when I go back. Hope you get your issue worked out and best of luck to you!!!

Why not try and locate a women's shelter and donate them? Those shelters are a place for women and families to start over and clean clothes are a part of that process for alot of them. Your local police dept can give you the number *but maybe not the address as many of the residents are in hiding from abusive companions/spouses*. The person who answers the phone will be able to tell you what they take/need (and will accept other clothing as well i.e. kid's clothes) Just a suggestion

had first fill today (surgery 10/07)... they cleaned the port area and then the doctor just said relax... a little sting when the needle went in and then a bit of pressure while he was injecting the Fluid... did it under fluoro and then I drank about an ounce of barium and could see it go thru... he then pointed out to me where my band is and showed me exactly where my "pouch" is located... now i'm on liquids for today and then back to mushie food til Saturday... the best part is I could have a steak this weekend!!! trust me it was less painful than a stick in the eye! Best of Luck to you

tyler is a haul from dfw but if its all you can get... you could try dr smith or dr ferrera in ft worth off of I-30 (exit forest park) they are in the park plaza building on the northwest corner... 817-850-1100... don't know if they take Mexico banded patients but its a ton closer than tyler or paris... good luck!!!!

20 days post op here and still don't know when I'm hungry... and since I can't tell I have started measuring/weighting food... i can drink about 5 oz of protein shake for breakfast but since i don't like milk so much i'm not sure that i'm full or just disgusted with the milk so i stop... taking extra care w/ the foods that i'm choosing also... if it doesn't fit in to a 1/2 cup, i don't eat it... i hope this gets easier soon... also not exactly sure when i'm full so when i finish with 1/2 cup i'm done... don't want to get sick! anyone know if you ever are 100% sure about these things????? the first week post op, warm liquids were way easier and made me feel better... i got Lipton Cup of Soup in Cream of Chicken and it was just enough to make me feel better... also if you are still having gas pains or the air bubble feeling in your chest ask yourself when your last BM (bowel movement) was? if its been more than 2 days, ask your doc what laxatives he is okay w/ you using... it might seem odd now but trust me, if that is the problem, you will want to get that taken care of quickly. best of luck!

my doctor (who teaches and trains other doctors to do lapband) said most ppl go right back to eating after a fill and that it can cause quite a bit of pain. he said that once a fill is done that patients should go back to fluids for one day, then soft or mushy foods for a day then gradually get back to where you were eating prior to the fill. he said most ppl rush back in to eating and this can cause the "stuck" feeling. just remember to eat tiny bites, chew chew chew and then chew a little longer. he also mentioned you shouldn't drink while eating as this forces the food thru the band not allowing your pouch to get full or to send the msg to your brain to stop eating. the more you drink the more you can eat which also stretches the pouch out (and it can't retract to its original size), so it doesn't do what its supposed to. just some helpful info (i hope)

before i was banded I spoke to the local restaurants that we frequent and asked about whether I could order from the kid's menu once my surgery was done. granted 2 of the 5 restaurants we go to are family owned but I got a YES from all of them. 1 of them doesn't have a kid's menu and suggested to me that when ordering I should say 1/2 order and they would take $3 off the full menu price. not once did they tell me that I had to show proof of surgery (scars or card). these are the type of places that bandsters should cultivate and partronize, not the chains that don't care or aren't ready to change to meet the needs of their customers. i'm not saying we are "disabled" or anything but you only have to look at the sheer number of ppl who use this site to see that our numbers are growing and eventually the food industry will take notice. someone i know just opened a restaurant and asked for my feedback on how they might handle lap band patients as customers. i told them my experiences with the other places and they picked the 1/2 order, $3 off. i'd be willing to bet not all OGs are going to hassle you but if they do, make your choice: order full menu, split a meal with someone or find somewhere else to eat. the choice really is yours!

my doctor's order are the same as the post above... you have to kinda start over for a few days but it is just giving your stomach time to adjust... I had to have a de-fill just a week after surgery and the needle stick was not horrible and it was cool to see the barium go down thru the band... seeing it made me feel better knowing the band was good and in the right position... best of luck

after I had completed all of my insurance requirements (stress test, chest xray, nutrition class) the dr office faxed the info. I got a letter just under 2 weeks later from insurance saying yes. I have United Healthcare.:biggrin:

my DH brought me my medicine the first day so to be honest I didn't read the pamphlet or the bottle and still haven't actually looked at it to see if it had the warning or not.... hopefully future bandsters will see this and won't go thru the pain some of us did... does anyone know if there's a way to get this post as a sticky so that it will stay more visible to the newbies????

if you haven't gone poop, you need to start working on that... my doctor said that having a BM would help decrease the pain... make sure you take what he/she reccommends if you need help... don't get in my situation and not be able to go for almost 10 days and be in major pain... walk walk walk and drink plenty of Water (whether you need assistance with the BM or not)... Best of luck to you sweetie Signed, Been there (Renee)

I was close to a pack a day before surgery and was told not to smoke 24 hours before surgery which was difficult (I ended up smoking 3)... the first day and a half wasn't hard because I was resting and it was hot outside (we don't smoke in our house) and I couldn't stand getting overheated... now its almost 2 weeks post op and I have realized that I do smoke alot less (maybe 1/2 pack or less per day)... its hard to quit doing something that you like and frankly I like to smoke... haven't drank in almost a year but never was a big drinker... a night out with friends I might drink 2 beers (I was a cheap date) and I gave that up b/c my son who was 12 at the time asked me to so after my birthday party I just didn't drink anymore... now I've given up double meat double chez burgers and greasy yummy fries so I feel like I've given up 2 outta 3 of the things that I enjoyed and its difficult to give up everything! I think one day I will just stop smoking and that will be that but until that day comes I'm going to enjoy my one and only vice! lol

first off be thankful that you are even able to eat chicken! lol i was banded on 10/07 and am not supposed to have chicken until the 21st and can't have beef or pork til 3 days after my first fill (nov 3rd)... did you get a list of stuff that you can eat over the course of 2-3 weeks post op? maybe you are graduating your food too fast??? my doctor said the stomach needs at least 3 weeks to get back to "normal" and maybe your tummy isn't ready for chicken yet? you might also ask for topical Fenagrin (spelling?)... it really helped me in the first couple of days after surgery but luckily i haven't needed it since then... just take good care of yourself and talk to your dr or nurse regarding foods that you might not be ready for... Best of luck

DH just realized last night that I had my wedding ring on! For a while he was always asking why I wasn't wearing it and then when I finally am able to again, he doesnt notice. MEN!!!!!! :w00t:

This was from my post on Friday regarding BMs (or lack thereof) To upcoming bandsters-some possibly helpful info regarding meds Please speak to your doctor concerning the adverse effects that narcotic (at home) pain meds can have on you. Was banded 10 days ago and when I went for my one week post op had not gone to the bathroom. I guess in all of the excitement of finally being on the road to better health I overlooked the fact that I had not had a bowel movement since the day before surgery. No one ever mentioned to me that the medicine used during surgery and the viacodin/hydrocodone that was sent home with me could cause constipation. Believe me, it can and it does. So before surgery discuss w/ your surgeon what type of OTC meds you can use and when is a good time to start using them. I'd venture to guess that if I had realized the situation I was about to be in I would have started Miralax or Milk of Magnesia (acceptable to my doctor) on day 2 or 3. The pain that is associated with the introduction of gas during your surgery will be 10x worse if you can't go to the bathroom. Just something to put out there so that hopefully no one else has to deal with it. I didn't feel constipated either so maybe that is another reason I didn't think anything of not going... Renee'

My doctor told me that as long as I maintain (or even go over) my required daily Protein requirement that I wouldn't have to worry about it... if you really have major concerns you should speak to your doctor and ask what you can do to keep this from happening... Best of luck on your upcoming surgery! :w00t: Renee' p.s. make sure you are doing your Vitamins also if the doctor tells you to take them

hey RM, still slightly miserable but getting better! I think maybe I didn't realize that I hadn't gone potty. I just wish someone ANYONE would have mentioned it. The doctor said when that feat is accomplished all my pain will go away. So hopefully it will be soon! Remember guys and girls talk to your doctor. I don't want to see any of you in the shape I was (and am still partially in) for the better part of a week!

skylady, best of luck to you! you might miss those sweet treats now but in a few short weeks you might be able to have a small bit and feel better... trust me when i was in my last days of the pre op before surgery my husband and son ate a giant chez burger in front of me (i couldn't have bread or red meat)... i was afraid i'd miss surgery b/c i'd be in jail for beating them both!!!! lol but i know that in just 10 days i'll be able to have some and it will be okay! just keep up the awesome work you are doing now!

do you guys have to modify your diet after a fill? when i was in post op group we were told that the day of a fill that we should go back to liquids for that day and the next and then slowly progress back to wherever we were in the plan. day 3 after fill would be mushies and then day 4 back to regular diet. i guess each doctor gives different info so checking with him/her would be best. best of luck to all of you!

30 Pounds For the first time in more than 8 months I can finally put on my wedding ring again... :smile: I think it was to the point that my DH thought I just didn't want to wear it anymore... Though he knew I was overweight I guess it never dawned on him that it was a "can't" as opposed to a "don't want to". So what do all of you feel like you have gained since losing?

Please speak to your doctor concerning the adverse effects that narcotic (at home) pain meds can have on you. Was banded 10 days ago and when I went for my one week post op had not gone to the bathroom. I guess in all of the excitement of finally being on the road to better health I overlooked the fact that I had not had a bowel movement since the day before surgery. No one ever mentioned to me that the medicine used during surgery and the viacodin/hydrocodone that was sent home with me could cause constipation. Believe me, it can and it does. So before surgery discuss w/ your surgeon what type of OTC meds you can use and when is a good time to start using them. I'd venture to guess that if I had realized the situation I was about to be in I would have started Miralax or Milk of Magnesia (acceptable to my doctor) on day 2 or 3. The pain that is associated with the introduction of gas during your surgery will be 10x worse if you can't go to the bathroom. Just something to put out there so that hopefully no one else has to deal with it. Renee'

this is my first post since being banded tuesday oct 7th. after surgery i felt so good and was so confident that i had made it then on the day after and yesterday i was in total pain from the gas! you would think if they could pump it in they could pump it out. its horrible! i walk around my pool 15 times every hour and then barely get a tiny burp. and honestly i would rather it go south because it doesn't hurt when you do it that way. :confused: i had voiced a concern to someone about the pain meds and so far i've only taken 7 doses in 3.5 days. even though i never had a problem with hydrocodone before this time it has made me throw up (maybe b/c of empty stomach). i decided to go with children's tylenol and have been okay since. i did take the hydrocodone last night after having a cup of soup and didn't feel bad. post op appt is tuesday the 14th so i hope everything is good. congrats to everyone who had surgery this week!!!