DownInSocal

I see a HUGE difference. You look great. Your tummy is smaller. Your face looks great. You look great. Remember when you see yourself everday. It is hard to see changes that way.

Hi! Wow a week. I can't believe it. I went out on Saturday and Sunday. Both times were quick trips to the store with my husband. I was dizzy and sweating by the time we got home. I think it is normal. I feel good so it was odd that just a little bit of walk around the store could do me in. Before surgery I was walking 5 miles. I go around the block now several times a day. It is hard because it has been hot here as I am sure it is there too. I have got on the scale. Couldn't help it. 12 lbs as of Monday. I am sure some of it is Water weight as I am consuming so much less sodium but it is great to see movement. It seems all my loss is in my limbs though! My arms have small bat wings and my legs are much smaller. Now I just look like a weeble wobble perched on small flabby limbs. Great just what I wanted :glare: Oh and my "girls" seem to be hanging lower. I asked hubby if they looked more saggy and he was evasive so that means yes. I have not bothered measuring because I still feel like my abdomen is swollen. I am not one to be real worried about measurements anyway. To be honest I am struggling with liquids. I have a headache today and my urine output is not great. I am going to start measuring today (TMI). I took a clean one of those hat things for the toilet home from the hospital just in case. I am glad I did. I was told not to worry about Protein the first week but try and consume as much as possible. I am getting about 40 grams a day. It takes me an hour to drink a shake so I could add another and was thinking of doing that today. With shakes counted I am only getting about 25 oz of Fluid a day. I am going to try and do better today. It is so hard because I still am dealing esophagus spasms. I seem to be able to drink more later in the day so I need to just get on it and sip, sip, sip more. It seems thirst went away with hunger.

Because I don't think this "mups” preparation is available in the U.S. The law does not just apply to narcotics/controlled substances. It also states a different "preparation". Meaning something that comes OTC in pills in the U.S. can not be bought in Mexico as a liquid and brought back across the border without a scrip. I only brought this up because a friend of mine got in serious trouble about 10 years ago. She purchased an expensive medicine in Mexico and was stopped at the border. She had a prescription for the medicine but in pill form, not liquid. The pharmacy she went to in TJ was out of pills so the pharmacist gave her liquid. She was detained for 24 hours and had to hire a lawyer. The charges were dropped but it was a nightmare. She never went to TJ again. This is how I learned the law does not say anything about if the preparation is a controlled substance or not. Different “preparations” is how one part reads regarding any “regulated” substance. OTCs are regulated by the FDA. To be clear in her situation the medication was a controlled substance but it was anti rejection medication. Not exactly a drug with street potential. I am sure a ton of people have crossed the border with no problem after having surgery. My friend had done this for years. Her parents did it and never gave it a second thought. It was just that one time they did a random search. Better to ask Dr. Aceves for a scrip to be written than sit with in a cell for 24 hours.

I would say go for it. I did a whole week of final farewells so if you just do one day you are a champ in my book!

Did he get back to you yet? You have gone through so much. When is your next surgery?

Oh please! No worries. I might have came across short but didn't mean to. No offense taken at all. You are a huge inspiration to me. The pictures you have posted are in an incredible inspiration!

It is only at night when laying down. I think I am "eating" too close to bed time. I need to stop drinking anything 3 hours before. My husband was thinking mucus too. He said you would just cough before to move it and not even wake up. Now it hurts to cough so it is waking you up. I think I will ride it out and see what happens with being careful about drinking and laying down.

I am feeling better and better each day. No regrets. Thanks for asking! It sounds like you have so much on your plate that some talk therapy will help. I am a better living through chemistry type person. If you need medication to help you and a doctor feels the same way take it but also deal with the base issues. I do talk therapy at least twice a month and want to start once a week. A few days out form surgery I can tell there are still a lot of issues I need to talk about and work through. It is true about being more marketable when thinner. I know I lost out on jobs because of my weight. You will feel so much more confident in the interview when you like the way you look! With the cost of healthcare too I wonder if smaller employers look at heavier person and don't want to hire them knowing their premimums are higher than thinner employees.

I didn't have surgery in Mexico but live on the border. Something to think about: If the mups are not over the counter in the U.S. then you need a prescription for them to legally carry them back into the U.S. I am sure Dr. Aceves can write you a scrip for as many as you want to buy. Use that copy at the border if questioned about the meds. Better safe then sorry. Nothing attracts attention more than a large amount of meds at the border with no scrip from a doctor. Many things can be bought in Mexico over the counter that are not legal to have in the U.S. without a prescription.

What an exciting day! Be sure when you are up to it to let us know how you are!

Keep us updated! Insurance makes no sense and they lie. You get three different answers on two phone calls.

Daisy I think your body had been through so much with the band that this was a breeze. I was a virgin and not sure what to expect :drool5: I am also a big baby when it comes to pain.

I would not say they went away no. The duration of each spasm was less. I have not had a baby but the spasm was almost like a contraction I think. I looked like my sister having a contraction. So you know how the contraction goes and goes and then tapers and stops? That is how it was for me. I would get a break of 1 min and I would get another. This went on for 20 mins and would stop. But the next little tiny sip would start it again. The valium made them fully tollerable. Made the duration shorter, and they came less often. If you do get some make sure the nurse grinds them up! My care nurse was not so bariactric savy and tried to shove the pill in me. Umm no crush it please. It really was not that bad tasting with an ounce of Water. Compared to what you are going through at that point you would eat paint to make it stop I bet. Oh and watch those nurses! Unless you are on a bariactric floor they don't always know that you can't take pills and you CAN'T gulp anything. I got harrased by one for not gulping my Loritab. I told her I couldn't and explained why. I got harrased by another for not drinking 4 of those big jugs of water. What? No way could I drink even 1/30th of that. I had to educate her too. I amost forgot I got harrased for not eating all my "food". They brought me 10 ounces of stuff every meal, broth, Optifast, crystal light, and Jello. Ten ounces? Really? Beat it. Do you have an advocate? My husband was mine. He was my angel and saviour when I could not speak for myself. He pushed my pain button when I couldn't move. He shooed away people who wanted me to do things my surgery would not allow. I was on my period and the Heprin shots.....you get the point. You need an advocate.

You guys and this greek yogurt. I am going to have to find some when I am on mushies.

Hi Denna! Join the team. Our other memeber Ann is still hanging out in the hospital on the account she has such a great view. I had my surgery around 11:30 Wed and was discharged on Friday. I have had some gas but not as bad as others. I just walk it off. That lump is probably your tired and confused diaphram. If it gets worse ask for help. To be honest I have not been hungry since surgery (actually the Sunday before surgery). I think it was / is nerves sometimes though. I also know I am missing some signs of hunger. I drink my little bits of Protein like clockwork so I also might be overriding hunger before it gets bad. What does the hunger feel like? We can do it!!! We have got passed the worst part. It is all uphill......ooops I mean downhill from here!

Oh guys I am having a bad time with night reflux. Or at least I think it is reflux. I wake up coughing and feeling like something is stuck in my throat. Not the "stuck" from food feeling but like a tickle making me cough. I try to take sips of Water but it does not help. My doctor has me on Prilosec twice a day. Once in morning and once at night. To be honest I am kind of scared to bring it up to my "team" member. I know this person does not like me (they have told me). I doubt it will get much attention. Should I run through it the first several weeks and see if it goes away? Should I ask for a strong acid reducer? Did you have reflux at night? Does it sound like reflux? Ugh. Oh I never had a problem with it before surgery so I don't know how it feels.

Required. In fact a not so nice member of the "team" emailed me the day before my surgery to make sure I was still on clears and said they could tell if I was following my diet after surgery and staying on liquids. I was being scolded and had done nothing wrong.:thumbup: I won't do anyting to risk my staple line (and by proxy my life) so I am just going to trod through however long he sees fit to keep me on liquids.

Oh this is such a tough one! Ugh. Umm... Are you getting professional care for your OCD? I would start by asking them. Lets keep you sane too!

I had to do a prep and was not hungry after the prep at all. I drank some apple juice and Water and that was it. My paper said I could continue clear liquids the whole day of the prep and then nothing after midnight (the night of surgery). I stayed away from Jello just in case. No red or blue but I didn't want a green scar or something crazy :thumbup:. Just kidding, maybe. I am overly cautious person.

Ex smoker here. Probably soon to be known as the smoking nazi of the board. I quit a year ago. I had no idea a year ago I would be having WLS. I needed to have another surgery and my surgeon who I loved would not do it if I smoked. I promised I would quit and I did. This was about the 4 millionth time I had tried but I was dead serious and ready to quit. It was not easy. I still dream about cigs sometimes. The cravings do go away! The depression about not being able to smoke does go away! That is all I can tell you. It is pure willpower and want to change that gets you through the first 6 months. Soon you will start to feel and live as a non smoker. You will wonder why on earth you smoked in the first place! It stinks! It is expensive! I have better things to do with my lungs like a nice 5 mile walk and my money like a nice outfit. My WL Suregon tests for nicotine. I don't know if yours does. If I was "caught" smoking by him I have no doubt he would have dumped me like a hot potato.

I am 4 days out of surgery and I can tell you that you will never be able to eat the way you did before surgery. This fact really sinks in ohh about the time you take your first sip of Water. I am going to be kind of rough on you but it is out of wanting you to better yourself and be healthy in all aspects. You must deal with your food addiction without transfering addictions. It seems you have admited to your problem with food, that is the first step. I highly suggest some counseling while you go through this process. It will teach you coping skills for the triggers that cause you to "use". In your case food. I am in no way healed from my addictions (food, cigs, and abusive men) but I am 20 times better than I was in February when I really got serious about dealing with problems and got help. I quit smoking a year ago, and I divorced my abusive ex 4.5 years ago. I am taking food a day at a time. I can tell you 4 days out from surgery and not feeling any hunger makes the tempation much easier. Have you reached your bottom with food? Are you tired of being fat? Are you sick of being the fatest in the room? Are you tired of the clothes? Are you sick of the health problems? Get honest with yourself.

Vegas if things get too bad ask for some from your PCP. You can use a pill crusher (my husband found one at our local CVS) to mush it to dust and then mix it with an ounce of Propel Water. I did not even taste it. The Propel covered it up. I understand not wanting to take narcotics but I think sometimes you just need relief from an ongoing problem. You have been dealing with this for so long. I was about to lose my mind after 24 hours of it. I can't even imagine going longer. You must be made of steel. Drinking no cold liquids does help but my nurse mother states warm liquids can really get the juices flowing in the stomach. I guess we are in a catch 22. I feel like my new stomach is a baby. I have no idea what it needs sometimes. Are you hungry? Are you gassy? Are you acidy? Did I swallow to fast? Did I swallow too much? Am I in the wrong position? What on earth do you want? I have zero regrets. I would do this all over again 10 times. Oh no hernia or repair needed cajun.

I knew you would understand about the spasms. It was so upsetting because my doctor and the other doctors (I don't know there seemed to be ton of them) just told me I was drinking too fast. Drinking too FAST? I am drinking 1/16th of an ounce every 20 mins and that is too fast? Stick it where the sun does not shine dude. I finaly got a nurse practioner to listen and help me. I was at my wits end and almost hysterical though. Oh the other favorite excuse was my breath tube caused it. Umm no. It is when I swallow anything but my own spit. Are you still having trouble? Can you ask for some valium? It really does help. It lessens the lengths of the spams (from start of spasm to finish) and how many you get. Obviously you can't take it all the time but a little dose at night might help get some dinner down.

If I am allowed to advance to mushies on September 17th I will have been on liquids 23 days plus 2 pre op.