june09bandit

Ok, we are all looking forward to our first fills now. I got mine yesterday. It took about 1 minute total. I have to admit, the needle was HUGE!!! I was immediately nervous when I saw it, but he didn't give me time to dwell on it. He stuck it in the port and inserted all the fluid before I even had time to react (3 ccs. Now the really surprising part.. it didn't hurt.. at all. I can't explain it, but I swear, it was totally painless - or pain along the lines of a mosquito bite. Good luck to you all! The 2 days of liquids sucks though.

Mine is still tender as well. I got my first fill yesterday. I'm sure the doc noticed that I flinched when he was feeling around for the port, but he wasn't concerned, so it must be normal! You probably have a fill coming up, right? Ask your doc!

I was just banded on June 2. I went through the exact same thing you are describing. It went away once I started trying to focus on something besides food. You've just lost your favorite past-time activity. But, you knew you had to do it (just like the rest of us). You need to replace it with a healthier alternative. Just keep yourself busy and it will pass in a few days.

My port is dead center, right underneath where I think my sternum is. I think the band is is that general area as well. I bought some non-underwire bras, but the support and shape they offer is not good. Hopefully I'll be back to the industrial strength LaMystere bras in a few more weeks. I'm relieved that it's not just me. I had never heard of this problem before, so I was very surprised when I realized how much the bras hurt. Maybe my boobs will actually shrink as I lose weight, and then I won't need bras made of tire tread material!

You should check with your surgeon. Some meds are not allowed within certain timeframes of surgery. The phentermine may raise your blood pressure and impact your surgery date.

Congratulations on getting your band and wishing you an easy and speedy recovery!

I have lost 14.6 pounds since the day of surgery (June 2), however, 10 of that was lost in the first week while it was liquids only. I was able to move to mushies in week 2. I get my first fill next week, so hopefully the pounds will start dropping again at that point.

You said he is big as well - I bet he is afraid that you won't partake in food fests anymore (which you probably won't), so his own food celebrations won't be as enjoyable. It will make him self-conscious of pig-outs. Just my opinion of course. Hopefully once you start to lose and he sees how much better you feel, he will come around.

LOL.. I didn't notice that part. You're right, probably not gas! oops

I wasn't hungry week 1, but week 2 is a whole nother story - and week 3 is even worse than week 2!

Depending on when your surgery was, it could be the gas pains. It goes just wherever it wants to.

Congratulations on having your surgery! I hope your recovery goes well!

You're going to need to measure all your food to make sure you keep your portions in control. When I was right at the stage you're at, I seriously overate on Chinese Soup. I hope I didn't do any damage since it was a liquid, but that was also the day I realized I must measure and weigh everything. It's not much fun trying to master a new lifestyle. I feel your pain.

It depends on what your doc said - I was also allowed blenderized soups right after surgery. I was living on cream of potato blendered with lots of milk to make it thin enough. What does your diet say? I'm amazed at how different the diet routine is from one doc to another.

For the first time since surgery on June 2, I am wearing an underwire bra. It's terribly uncomfortable under the left boob. My port is in the center, so I know it's not hitting the port. I don't really know where the band itself sits. Has anyone else had bra issues? Any solutions?

You are correct, it changed June 1. Now you have to have a passport to cross at all. I live very near the Mexican border. If I'm just crossing to go get a bottle of vanilla, I still have to have the passport.

Thanks for the words of advice Mely. Hopefully I'll feel better after I'm off mushies. For now, it IS a time of necessary deprivation. One more week....

I am the same way. I feel like I could eat an entire pizza - and I want to!!! It's sheer willpower that's keeping me away from food at this point. Since I never feel restriction, I'm very worried that I will overeat and cause damage. I haven't felt anything different other than burping. I keep telling myself that it just means I'm healing easily. I don't know if there is any truth to that or not! I'm glad I'm not the only one!

Now that I'm finished grieving for the time being, I thought it may be a good time to post. About a week post-op, I went through a serious mourning period, with all the doubts and questions. I finally realized that pre-band, food was my best friend. With the band, I just can't have that relationship anymore (which, after all, is the whole point of the band). For some reason, I didn't realize how much it was going to impact me post op. What did I do? Why did I make it so that I can't enjoy my main source of pleasure anymore? About 24 hours later, I had to lay it all out for myself again. I did it because food was destroying me. My weight made my injured knee useless. I could barely walk. I hated the way I look, so I was always depressed. I did this so that I can feel good again, so that I can take long walks again.. so that I can be HAPPY again. It will be worth it, I just have to tell my old friend goodbye, especially since it was destroying me one mouthful at a time.:wink:

Good luck to all of you - remember that your pillow is your friend. I just carried mine around the house with me for 2 days and kept it against my stomach. It also kept the dogs from pouncing on me. You'll all feel much better soon!

I put my timelines in my signature block - like you, I wanted to keep up with how long it took. I never gave it a chance to stall out anywhere, I kept pushing.

I agree with everyone above. I bought a shaker cup with a whisk ball from GNC to mix mine - it worked much better than the tupperware or the blender. My favorites are nectar Cherry mixed with Cherry Pomegranite crystal light - and Nectar Roadside Lemonade mixed with Raspberry lemonade crystal light. In my opinion, making it as cold as possible makes it better as well. Good luck!

That's more or less what I was thinking as well. My surgeon does over 500 lapbands a year (I didn't ask for specific numbers) and he is a "proctor" for lapband (not sure exactly what that means either). I believe he knows what he's doing, he's just lacking in communication skills. His nurses do all the communicating on his behalf. He is on the liberal side of things. I was on the way home within 2 hours of surgery, however, he keeps those with sleep apnea overnight. I'm allowed coffee and carbonation (but I don't like soda, so that part doesn't matter to me). I just feel a need to "understand" the differences better. It's definitely a learning experience. My stomach gurgles in a new location, and the rest of the intestines are being much more fussy. Now if I can just get my brain adjusted to this new stomach, it'll be a piece of cake!

I can have chicken or fish as long as it's blenderized, so I've had chicken breast blenderized with spaghetti sauce to make it more liquidy. It's not great food, but it's way better than a Protein shake. Restless Monkey, since you have a lot of knowledge, perhaps you know why the guidelines vary so much between doctors. For instance, I was on liquids (any liquid) for one week. Weeks 2-4 are mushies, then full solids. I've noticed others on liquids for 3 weeks. I don't get it. Obviously some doctors think mushies too early can be harmful. Thanks for sharing all your wisdom and experience!

I haven't thrown up or pb'd either, knock on wood. I just know I've eaten a little more than I should a couple of times. I'm rededicating myself to the food diary today. I think I must be eating something with significant calories that I'm overlooking. Still also adjusting to never feeling "full". Like someone else said, I have to learn to eat till I'm not hungry anymore rather than eating till I'm full.