lingling

I think that it is important to stay on liquids for as long as your Doc tells you to - mine says 2 weeks. Did not specify what kind, I am only one day post op and today I have had 1/4 cup pumpkin soup & 2 cups of chocolate milk. The reason you need liquid is so that the band and stitches heal and don't slip. be careful!

Walk walk walk, sleep sleep sleep and burp burp burp! Heat works too - and pain relief. It will pass! I have no gas pains now - and its been 36hrs since I was banded. Sore tummy though, but its the prodding around in there not the gas pains now.

Congrats Spirnat! I got banded yesterday too. (2nd April in NZ) have your gas pains gone yet? Mine are horrid.

Hey Guys Am home and in bed now. Yay it's good to be home. Although the hospital I stayed in was so tiny and cute - it had about five beds and the OR was tiny too. Really nice nurses more like a hotel hospital. I turned up at 7am for an 8am surgery, they took me through and told me to get changed into my very sexy gown, hat and booties! I then went and laid down on the bed in the recovery/pre-op room and they put these funny leg warmer things on me that inflated and deflated all the time (had to wear these for 24hrs) to stop blood clots. They covered me in this big plastic blanket which had a hole to pump in hot air, apparently higher body temps mean better recovery. Then the anesthetist came in - he was SO Lovely. I burst into tears and said "please don't let me die!" and he rubbed my arm and said I'd be fine and talked to me for about 10-15 mins and put my IV lure in my wrist (I love exciting stuff like that!) and then gave me SO MUCH PREMED sedation I was off my face - AWESOME. Everyone was having a laugh. They wheeled me through and then I had to shuffle onto the OR table and I remember saying "wow, thats a small table" - like you'd think they'd make it nice and wide but it wasn't. Anyway, the Anesthetist was going to put something in my IV lure and all I said was "Dont let me die" next thing I know I am in recovery and hearing beeps etc and then someone was testing the defibrilator and I freaked out and thought it was for me and I said "dont let me die, is that for me?" and they laughed and said no, and I was like "IM ALIVE!!!" I was so excited. Then they put me in my room and I slept for ages like three hours - tried to stay awake every time I woke up but couldnt - would snooze back to sleep - finally woke up about 4pm and logged on via my phone to tell you guys I was alive! Then back to sleep, and some visitors came intermittently from 5-8pm which was nice but hard to be bothered talking. The gas pains from the gas they pump you up withSUCK like you wouldn't believe. feels like someone has a belt around me under my boobs and is making it really tight. But I put a heat(wheat) pad on it which helps, but the pain refers up to shoulders as well, so just have to alternate or get three heat packs (Which I have got today!) to soothe the pain and walk around lots - which I didnt feel like doing as I was so sleepy. I took a sleeping pill at 10pm and was out to the count. They said I could sleep on my side - which was good - but it did put different pressure on the gas in my tummy so I got pains in different areas on my chest and shoulders. The nurse kept getting sick of me asking if it was okay that this bit hurt or that bit hurt etc. she said "you've just had an operation!" haha. So I am at home in bed today - they have given me some hard core pain killers, normal pain killers and some antiinflamatories. I don't think I need them too much though - its just nicer to have them. Am a little scared about what this journey (esp the next few weeks/month) holds for me. I am very scared of hurting the band - I cannot feel it speciifically and I cannot feel any restriction - but I am only on fluids so I guess I wouldn't. He said this morning that he put a little bit of fluid in it, and apparently I have a Johnson and Johnson band - which must be the Realize band - I don't really mind though. How is everyone else going - either in recovery or with pre-op jitters? x

Okay so this is it! Its 6.10am here and my surgery is in less than 2 hours. Just woke up, gonna have a shower and then pop down to the hospital. Feel like throwing up I am so nervous!! Hopefully I live to see another, much thinner and healthier day! Will keep you posted! Thanks for all your support thus far! Good luck to any other April 2nd (and April 1 as it is probably still that in America) bunnies, I'll be thinking of you. xxx

Hey! Never fear! You will be okay! I am being banded in 14 hours time (8am NZ time on the 2nd of April) and I was so freaked out about the surgery, and I am not any more. I don't know why, but I know I will be okay. I keep coming back to the fact that if the risks of surgery were that high, and if this was not the choice for me, then I would have come to that conclusion when I was contemplating this for the last two years - doing all the research - when I was looking at it objectively, not subjectively through anxiety-tinted glasses. You wouldnt have come this far if you didnt believe it was for you in your heart.

Okay I am freaking out, with anxiety and excitement. My surgery is 2nd April at 9.15am. New Zealand is the first country to see the sun, so I will actually be having my op sometime during the day on the 1st of April for you guys in America!! Hence why I am freaking out a bit!! Have half packed my bag, have talked to as many people as possible about anesthetic, have made lists, changed my bedsheets, tidied up, stocked up the fridge with liquids. :biggrin: Weigh in tomorrow - am 7kg down as at today's weigh in 130.4 but let's see what the scales say with the doc!!! :thumbup:

Weight loss will help I am sure. Fat cells store oestrogen hormone, so if you have a lot of fat, you have a lot of oestogen putting your whole system out of whack. The other goal is making yourself less insulin resistant. eat like a diabetic, exercise your butt off, take metformin if you want and it helps, but all it did for me was give me periods and a lot more acne. The risk of not having a period at all is endometrial cancer - so you have to have one one way or another - Oral Contraceptive is the easiest but not recommended when overweight. Metformin was the other option for me but didn't like the side effects. I stopped Metformin, took Spironalactone for my acne (thank goodness) and had a Mirena IUD put in situ to make sure my endometrial lining was so low that I was not an endometiral cancer risk. And, failing my own efforts at weightloss and making me less insulin resistant, I am getting the band, hopefully it will fix the PCOS, if not, I'll stick with my mirena IUD until I want to have a baby then Clomiphene like you wouldn't believe and IVF if that fails. I have a great endocrinologist who taught me all of the above. Suggest you go in well armed with many questions! Good luck - and you will get there I am sure!

I believe that men looking at naked women is normal behaviour, same as watching porn - that's how their brains and hormones work. However I also believe it can be hurtful and devaluing to their partners. My way of looking at it is that the act of sex can be an arousing thing to watch, however objectifying actual individual women and just looking at their "beauty" is hurtful to me as I feel like he could just look at me as I am a woman! The act is something different. I do also agree with Renob, private time is private time - so long as he's still putting out and treating you like a lady - he's just silly enough to get caught!! They say it is defined as an "addiction" when it's impacting on your life and you cannot or do not change the behaviour. In this case it's more complex, it is impacting on your life not his, as it is hurting you and making you insecure. What you have to work out for you is does it hurt you enough to ask him to stop it, and if he cannot, then THAT is when it is a problem, the downloading in itself is not a problem per se.

Oh my god, so funny! Gaspains was me saying gas pains but with sloppy typing. (meaning the pains in the shoulder from blowing up your tummy) Wheatbags are fabric bag things full of wheat and you heat them up in the microwave (hope its called that in America!) and they are nice and warm. Like a natural heat pad Heated wheat bags by Lavender Lane NZ and singlets are eerr.. tank tops? ha ha, its Australian I just found out on Wikipedia!!! Guess we've been learning from our Auzzie neighbours!! Sleeveless shirt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Man, we get NOTHING like that over here!!

OOh good work on the ear plugs!! I have been packing my bag. I have got Singlet, PJ pants, underwear, mushy sox, sweatshirt, medication. Need to pack Ipod, earplugs, toothbrush/facewash/facecloth etc, and maybe a wheatbag for the gaspains. What is this GAS X????

I am not a scrapbooker - but I have started a scrapbook of this journey, I figure it will be theraputic! Any tips?

Hey Spirnat, welcome! Congrats, not long now! I am getting banded 2nd April, cannot wait. Very nervous about anesthetic though - but SOOOO cannot wait to be healthy!! :thumbup:

YEEEEAAAAHAHHHHH!!! Not long now! Welcome everyone. Thanks for the shout out Smilan! Yay for the 2nd of April!! Starting to get freaking excited about this!! Hoping it will quash the nerves of the surgery! My neighbour just said to me a good way to think about it is that I might be nervous but imagine if someone told me now that I couldn't have it, I'd be angry! - So i have to keep thinking of that!:thumbup:

Don't sweat it Sissy, I bet you that your body is going "WHOA, HANG ON A MINUTE! WHERE HAS MY food SUPPLY GONE!!! I'M NOT GIVING UP ANY OF MY STORAGE!!" Give it time and the body has no choice! And drink lots of Water - flushes out all the lard! ha ha. Keep it up!! This WILL happen!

Day 11 today for me too, thank goodness, although I must say it has not been that bad. Mostly I would love a wine (or three) but generally not that hungry at all. Getting pretty FREAKING EXCITED about getting skinny!!!!!:tongue_smilie:

Ha ha, I actually said "SHUT UP!!" outloud when I saw how amazing you look now! Unreal, a total success story. You look stunning!!!

(stole this from March bandsters group!!) There are so many different opinions about what to eat and not to eat post op, I thought it would be helpful to post the LAPBAND SYSTEM guidelines. Hope it's helpful. Recovery Here are some key points for your recovery in the first few days and weeks. First Days You can expect some soreness, especially where the access port is, but it should subside (Please call your surgeon if the pain persists after a few days). To prevent infection, your surgeon may tell you not to shower for a day or so after surgery. Try to walk as much as you can comfortably, so that you'll regain strength and prevent blood clots, but take it slowly. [*]First Week(s) During the first week after surgery, allow yourself to recover and get plenty of rest. In about a week, you should be able to return to work, provided it's not physically demanding. For more physically active jobs, allow yourself two to three weeks to recover. Within four to six weeks, you should be able to resume all normal activity and start a new exercise program. Note: Before engaging in any physical activity or exercise program, first consult your surgeon. Click here to learn more about Exercise Guidelines Many surgeons see their patients weekly or biweekly during the first month after surgery, so you will be sure your recovery is going well, and have any questions answered. Dietary Guidelines After surgery, you'll need a new nutrition plan. You'll learn about the positive changes you can and need to make in your diet and lifestyle from your surgeon and/or dietitian. It's very important to follow your new eating and drinking instructions beginning immediately after the surgery. In the first few weeks after your LAP-BAND® System surgery, you will be on a liquid diet since only thin liquids will be tolerated by your stomach at that time. As you heal, you will gradually progress to pureed foods (three to four weeks post-op) and then soft foods (five weeks post-op). Finally, after about six weeks, you will be able to eat solid foods. The First Few Days Post-Surgery It's extremely important to follow the eating and drinking instructions immediately after the surgery. This allows your new stomach pouch to heal completely and the LAP-BAND® System to stay in the right position. In the early weeks, it's crucial not to stretch the small stomach pouch above the LAP-BAND® System. Vomiting will do this, while also increasing the chance of stomach tissue slipping up through the band. Right after the surgery, you can take an occasional sip of Water or suck on an ice cube. Don't take any more liquid than this, though. The day after the operation, you can take a little more Fluid but only a small amount at a time. Besides water, you should also choose Clear Liquids that have an adequate number of calories. To prevent nausea and vomiting, do not drink too much. [*]liquid diet (1-2 weeks post-surgery) Your goal during the first few weeks is to protect the small stomach pouch so that you can heal properly. It can only tolerate thin liquids at this time. It's also important to stay hydrated by drinking lots of water (small amounts at a time). Other liquids recommended during this phase include: clear broth or Soup (with no vegetables or meat, and not creamy) skim milk fruit juice no-sugar-added popsicles [*]Pureed Foods (3-4 weeks post-surgery) Now, you can start adding slightly textured foods. Think of the consistency of baby foods. This stage will help you transition to more solid foods later. Protein is very important for maintaining muscle while you lose weight. So, you should eat protein-rich foods first, and then move on to fruits and vegetables. Foods in this stage may include: pureed skinless chicken or fish mashed potatoes peas low-fat yogurt or pudding [*]Please note: In the first few weeks you may be able to eat foods that might not be allowed in your diet later, because they may contain too many calories. [*]Remember, it's more important in the first few weeks to let your stomach adjust to the LAP-BAND® System than it is to lose weight. Also, your personal timing and progression into each dietary phase depends on your progress. In general, when it comes to your nutrition, you should follow the advice of your surgeon and/or dietitian. [*]Soft Foods (5 weeks post-surgery) Your meals can now include tender, cooked foods like fish and ground turkey. Now that you can chew, make it a habit to chew foods well. If you have dentures, be sure to cut your food into small pieces and chew your food thoroughly. By not chewing properly, you may experience vomiting, stomach irritation and swelling. You could also have stoma obstruction (obstruction of the stomach opening created by the LAP-BAND® System). Some products like bread, red meat, and rice may still cause you problems, so it is better to eat softer foods that are easier to digest. These might include foods such as moist white meat (chicken or pork) and fish. If solid foods cause any nausea and vomiting, go back to the liquid diet you had earlier. Then you can slowly add soft foods and eventually transition to solid foods. Always ask your doctor or dietitian for advice that is specific to you. Again, remember that vomiting may increase the incidence of band slippage, stomach slippage, or stretching of the small stomach pouch above the LAP-BAND®.

Welcome guys!! good luck on your journeys, Great to have you as part of the group!

Yep, you should ask all of us! We have probably asked our surgeons a lot of them!! :crying:

Great idea!! I dont know what I weigh as I have scales. As of 10 days ago I was 137.4kg on surgeons scales. I am day 10 of pre-op diet, and I bought some electronic scales today and I am 5.8kg down 131.6kg!!! YAYAYAYAY!!!!!!

Bella the scarring is pretty minimal - better to have three scars than a big gut!!!

Oohh gooooo on... did you see how obscene mine are!!