scoobydoo

Hi Angie,

I was banded on the 16th of April. Although I took my pain meds for a few days, I definitely feel like one of the blessed ones since my pain from the incisions was gone after day 4. I have not experienced port pain either, which seems to bother alot of people, so I feel really lucky about that too. Today I am 12 days post op and feel great. I have a 2 year old though and have not been lifting him a lot since that was one of my surgeons rules. I am also hungry sometimes, but other than that, I feel like I have sailed through with no problems. We are truly a couple of the lucky ones! Good luck to you.

BG, So sad to hear you are having to go through this, but better to find out what the heck is happening. Happy Birthday, even though it is being spent at the hospital. Please keep up updated. Prayers and happy thoughts sent your way...

I was banded by Dr. Machado on April 16th. I think she is great. ]Wonderful bedside manner and genuine caring individual. I had very little pain after the procedure and I think it's because she is so skilled. Would love to hear from anyone else who is currently her patient or having surgery soon.:thumbup:

My EKG was "abnormal" too. I was so worried and had to do a stress test. Well, it came out perfectly fine.

I know it is hard to think of postponing your surgery, but if something IS wrong, it is better to know beforehand and deal with that before going ahead. I am betting that your stress test will go fine and you will not have to postpone anything.:thumbup: I have a bad knee and was still able to do the test, it was not a big deal at all. Hang in there and let us know what happens. Best of luck to you.

I had anintresting thing happen to me yesterday Nick, our dog, and I were out for our walk and one of the neighbor kids said "You look different." I had my glasses on instead of contacts and told her it must be the glasses. Thinking back I should have taken my glasses off and asked her if I still looked different. It was probably a little bit of both wearing glasses and being thiner. I've had a lot of comments that people can see my weight loss in my face.

Wow, that is great, Jaytee!:laugh: I know that must feel so good for others to notice...all your hard work is paying off! Way to go!

Congrats on your new band! Too bad about your little one getting sick right before you had to go! That is hard, leaving them. My 2 year old came down with a cold the week before my surgery and I got it. Luckily I was better by surgery day!

Can't believe the nurse was blaming you for being sick when you woke up! Geez!

Anyway, happy to hear that you did well. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

Hi Pharmagirl,

Glad to hear you are doing okay. Sure makes a difference when you can have full liquids instead of only clear. Hang in there, it gets better day after day.

:smile:Thanks for keeping the list updated too!

Thanks Lingling...Interesting reading and definitely shows that bandster hell is very common. I understand your worries and concerns about hunger returning...I am there myself!...but I know that when we are able to have fills, however many it may take, we WILL succeed! Just know you are not alone and I understand what you are going through.

I am so hungry sometimes that I worry my surgery is not gonna work in the long run, but then I sign on and read these posts and get encouragement from people like you who are going through the same thing and I feel better. I know it is just a matter of time and we will be okay.

I have been writing down all the stuff I eat in a day and I know when I look at it that its a lot less than prior to surgery, so I take comfort in that fact. I ate a baked potato for dinner tonight (not the skin) and it really filled me up. I am so happy when I am full. I hate being hungry.

Stuff is going down a lot easier....I'm on mushies currently and get to add soft solids at the end of next week. I'm glad everyone is feeling better, I know I feel great....I just have to watch I don't over-do it on the mushies....I know it's a time for healing but, I'm going to be totally bummed if I see a gain. =(

Things are going down a lot easier for me too! Glad to hear that is normal. We must be healing well. What is a soft solid food? I decided to make a baked potato for dinner tonight. Getting hungry just thinking about it. lol I feel great too...just wish I was not so hungry!

Hmmm...let's see just started mushies yesterday:

6am - coffee w/splenda & half n half

9am - kashi go lean vannilla hot Cereal (1 pkg) w/unflavored Protein powder added

Noon - 1oz. canned chicken mushed up with some mayo

3pm - Protein shake

6pm - 1/2 C seasoned ground beef seasoned and simmered in Water (don't ask....it was mushy!)

8pm - 1/2 mushed up avacado

Wow that looks like a lot when i type it out haha. I've been really having a hard time with HUNGER. I've been very hungry, I cannot wait for a fill! LOL

Abbie, I think you are doing great with balancing your meals! I sure do miss my coffee but my doctor says no coffee until two weeks from now whenI go to regular food. Do you drink Decaf? I was a coffee holic before this...can't wait to resume my habit!:smile2: I also can't have ground beef...nothing courser than tuna for now. But I didn't think of the avocado...that sounds good. Thanks. I finally found a crystal light I can tolerate which is the lemonade. Getting hungrier here too. Don't know what I would do without FF refried Beans...

I can't wait for a fill either!

Am feeling the same babe. Its that the hunger has come back - and it's awful! I can eat ANYTHING!!! It sucks! We just need a fill, I am sure. Hang in there, and please let me know when you have had yours xx

Lingling, so you mean that you are able to actually eat anything and it goes down fine?? I was just wondering because I notice today that things go down a lot easier and I am hungrier more often. I am still in the mushies stage, but am worried that if it is this easy to eat now, what will I do when I have to wait for a fill? Are you able to eat stuff you ate before the band? Just curious. Hang in there...I know we will make it through all this...it is just probably part of being newly banded and once we are filled it will be a lot better.

I was happy to see that you found Heather's shout out to you!

Glad to hear you did fine. Hang in there. The first few days are the roughest and then it gets better and better!

Let us know how you are doing when you are feeling up to it. We miss you around here!

How is everyone?? I'm feeling normal, whoo hoo NORMAL!! What a joy normal is! I was able to drink plain Water yesterday which I haven't tolerated well since being banded. I'm flying high today, after that miserable awful day earlier in the week this is heaven.

Heather, So Happy to hear you are feeling good! Being able to drink Water is so nice. At first I could only get a little sip at a time in but now I can drink an ounce or two in a drink which feels great. It can only get better from here!

Dies anyone else notice that they can eat or drink easier and easier as time goes by? I am happy but scared at the same time. I want to go slow so there is no pouch stretching, but I am happy to be able to eat something that is going down easier. How long do you guys wait between bites?? I would say I waited 30 seconds or so at first, but now it is more like 15 when it is Soup or pudding. Weird question, but interested in how you all pace yourself when eating the mushy stuff.

Scooby, I'm so glad to hear that someone else felt "hungry" after surgery. I was a little nervous because I'm feeling hungry. <sigh> now I feel better, lol.

Hi Terri,

I still feel hunger but it seems to get better if I just drink Water or put something in my stomach. Today I ate a SF Dark chocolate pudding and must've eaten too fast beacuse I felt SOO FULL and it was NOT a good feeling! lol But, dang, that pudding was good!! I think the Protein shakes really help the hunger too, but there is only one type I like and I am afraid of burning out on them, so I try to limit them to 2 per day.

You just had surgery yesterday!?? How are you feeling other than the hunger? Hope you are doing okay. I know the first couple of days weren't the greatest. Trust me, it gets a lot better after the first 4 or 5 days. I am at one week post op and other than an occasional twinge from an incision, I have no pain. Just hungry sometimes. Good luck to you!:thumbup:

So sorry to hear you are in the hospital! Take it easy and feel better soon. Thoughts and prayers are with you!

For those of us who had surgery about a week ago (or thereabouts) I was wondering if you could share what a day of eating and drinking is like for you. Could you tell me your basic schedule of intake of food and Water? I don't know what is "normal" and just want to compare a little as I feel like I am way under the radar. I am so tight in the am I can't get much down without feeling extremely naseauted and probably got about 6 oz. by 3pm and then for some odd reason I feel okay to eat (not great by any means) and I had some broth and a popscicle. I know everyone is different but I am kinda looking for an average.......... I still feel very very sick- port pain is clearing and thank goodness for that but I have lost 16 lbs in two weeks and feel very weak and am worried about dehydration. Thanks for the help.

I just started mushies today, so I can tell you what I ate.

8oz. Protein shake in the morning

Water in between (as much as I can get in until noon by sipping it)

1/2 cup cream of chicken Soup around noon

Water a half hour after (take me 2 hours to get 8 oz down after eating)

Decaf iced tea

4 oz. Protein Shake around 3 or 4 pm

1 scrambled egg (first solid food so far so good) at 6:30 pm

1/2 cup bean Soup at 6:30 pm

Water 1/2 hour after

Thats about it. When I was on liquids I jsut ate broth instead of the soup or egg. But I could drink a cup of that.

Scooby my port is just a bove and to the right (my right) of my bellybutton. Glad to hear that other than waiting on a room that things went well. Aren't those blank bits kiind of wierd last thing I remembered is someone telling my I got something to put me under as I came throught the door as I was rolled up next to the OR table I don't remember getting on it or anything else till I guess I said I needed to potty in recovery things were kind of foggy till I got to my room also could be the moraphine the nurse pulled out of her pocket whne I was iffy on if I was in pain.

Hey Jaytee,

Glad to hear that you have a port placement like mine. Makes me feel better.lol Yes, those missing pieces of time are definitely weird. I was so paranoid about getting a catheter I peed before the surgery and told everyone I saw so they would know I would not need one. lol

Are you still on liquids? I got the okay to move to mushies today and ate a scrambled egg that tasted like the best food in the world! lol Some bean Soup mushed up at lunch went down okay too, but it is still weird cause I don't know how far apart to space my bites. So I sort of just wait a while in between then take another one. Still req'd to do the Protein Shakes once a day too. Such a learning experience.

Hi Lilith, Tomorrow will go just fine I am sure! You probably will have a little delay between the time they say is surgery and when you finally go in. I know I had to wait a while in a "holding" area since they took people in a certain order. But I was relaxed by whatever they gave me and didn't care too much about waiting. You will come through it all just fine and each day after will get better and better. Keep us posted as to how it goes! Best of luck and prayers your way!

Congrats to you tcbgirl!! And good luck to you, Angie!

WooHoo, you did it! Congrats and hang in there. Each day it gets easier! :rolleyes2:

Peggy- you have the BEST attitude! I love reading what you have to say. Thank you for being you :rolleyes2:. Having said that I feel a bit embarassed by the vent/whining I'm about to post. But if I can't do it here where am I going to do it?

I feel like total crap today. I haven't slept well the last two nights. I think it's like some delayed stress over this big step I made. Or it could be because my period started today. Darn hormones! I walked 1 mile from the train to work this morning. It kicked my bootie, which is not normal...well before liquid diet it didn't bother me. I've walked every day since surgery for 20 -30 minutes. So I don't really understand why this morning was so rough.

I know this is all part of the process but I feel like a loser for not feeling better by now. I can't take off anymore time from work. What would I do at home anyhow, lay around all day and then not be able to sleep?! I just thought I was doing so well. Ugh! I need a Peggy attitude adjustment!

Oh, Heather...believe me, I do NOT always have a good attitude! Especially when I am tired. And you should not feel at all like a loser! I cannot believe you walked a MILE! Geez, I don't think I could make it a quarter of a mile if I tried! Plus you have to realize that everyone heals differently. The liquid diet is not at all easy and definitely zaps your strength, especially if you are doing as much walking as you are. I hope you are able to get some sleep tonight. Try to take it easy and don't be too hard on yourself! You will get stronger and stronger as time goes by and you are gonna look sooo good because of your walking! Hang in there and give yourself credit for what you are getting through each day. You will get there. And once you can have something other than liquids, you will feel better too. Hope you have an easier day tomorrow. I will be thinking of you:smile:

Hey Abbie, Hang in there...soon there will be real food to eat and it will make a big difference. I am looking forward to mushies. Anytime that I am feeling hungry I just up the Protein and that seems to help. Also warm broth. I know it's probably not much consolation, but just hang in there. We will make it through!

Hey Jen,

Congrats on the 15 pounds!! That is awesome and I am so proud of you. Isn't it exciting to see the scale go in the opposite direction for a change? I already love my band and it isn't even really at work yet!! lol I am excited about tomorrows visit and already know what I will eat once I am allowed mushies: scrambled eggs, refried Beans, oatmeal, cream of wheat, mashed potatoes, etc. NOT all at once of course! lol But I have been reading what my surgeon allows and getting ready. I do know that only a little is gonna go a long way!

Hey, Heather, be sure to catch up with us when your boss isn't around or later when you get home. I have been thinking about you and wondering how you are doing.

Abbiepie, I can't wait to try Soup. Your post just reminded me that we are all different and that even stuff we liked BEFORE surgery may change after. You just never know guess.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I'm glad I'm not the only one who has had a hard time finding "the one".

Peggy- I ordered the chocolate Truffle samples per Jen's advice too :smile: I hope I like them as much as you do.

JT- where did you purchase your Magic Bullet? Around how much was it?

Heather, How are you!? Hope all is well. For a change I got some cherry extract flavoring at the grocery store and put some of that in the chocolate truffle and it is really good. Tastes like a chocolate covered cherry. I am sure you will be happy with it. I can't drink any of the other ones without gagging.

I had surgery on the 16th. It went well. Showed up at the hospital at 7am and at about 8:30 the put me in a room to wait. I think I was there about an hour and then they wheeled me in to the surgery room and last thing I remember is talking to the anethesiologist and then waking up in the recovery area. Then it was a blur, pain meds, some being awake, then sleeping again, then pain med and going back to sleep. Finally they said my room was ready and by then it was 1:30 in the afternoon! Saw my husband and daughter as they wheeled me into my room and they were pretty anxious as they didn't know all that time I was okay, just waiting for a room to be available! Had a lot of shoulder pain and some pain in my abdomen area, but worse of all was the dry throat!!! I wanted something to drink very badly and was hoarse when I tried to talk. Then about a half hour later I got up and walked the halls (with pain med surging through my veins). Everyone was so surprised that I was walking, but I remembered everyone saying how much differnce it made with the gas pain. After that, I rested and finally got some ice chips, the BEST ever!! Then walked, rested, walked and rested and slept pretty good. Then they gave me this little tiny medicine cup to drink sips of Water or broth out of. Went home the next day and the pain has continued to lessen as well as the gas with each passing day. At first I felt hungry, but not so much anymore. food looks good and I am cooking for my family, but no real desire to eat it. My doc requires a week of clear liquids, but I can use skim milk in my Protein shakes, otherwise just broth, Jello, etc. I am 5 days post op and feel great. No pain now but my incisions are itchy as heck. I have a post op visit tomorrow, so hopefully will be on mushies, but all in all, it has been a really good experience for me. I am happy I did this and look forward to continuing the journey.

Oh. one weird thing is that my port site is located about 5 inches under my RIGHT breast area. from what I have read, I think most people have theirs on the left. But so far, no port pain so I am not complaining!

Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories.