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I have already hit my 2-3 lb a week point, granted I'm only restricted to 3 ccs, but I really want to get down before prom, which is May 2nd. Does anyone have a work out routine that works really well? As of right now i go to the gym about 5 days a week, and I do a variety of things with the weight machines, and then I get on the treadmill for half an hour. help help help

girl, talk to me. whats going on?

alright so i got my surgery on the 5th of this month. i've lost around 20-22 pounds since then. and now its just not going anywhere. i will admit that i don't walk as much as i did the first week, because i go to school for a full day and when i get home i just feel like crashing what should i do? is this normal? i go back on the 1st of feb to get my followup appt and possible first fill, eeeek

i'm sticking with cottage cheese atm when i go to softies i'll be doing fish and chicken woot woot

thanks everyone for replying i had my dad who is a firefighter/paramedic look at them and he put some butterflies on one of them but he said the others look fine.

I didn't have any staples. all they used were steristrips to close the wounds. i'll have my mom call the center soon or tomorrow. it doesnt hurt or anything its just bothersome

I will be 2 weeks post-op this tuesday, and my steri strips started falling off two days ago. One of them looked fine, just a little red, but the other one wasnt fully closed, and it looked like it had a little collection of yellow drainage in it. It wasnt seeping, it was just sitting there. And then today another one of my steristrips came off and there was the same problem. The top part of the wound was closed but the bottom part was still open. it wasnt as if you could see into my abdomen but it was just a little crater. Is it due to my weight? [the girth of my stomach is towards the bottom, so everything drags down] We put an ointment on it and put medical tape over it. did this happen to anyone else?

yeah i know its hard, i remember not wanting to put anything in my mouth because i was afraid that it would come right back out. but about 20 mins after the milk went in, i immediately felt better. another thing that made me feel better was to go off of my pain reliever and to switch to liquid tylenol. i hope you feel better soon!

nausea is due to exactly what you just said. lack of any real food. it is also a result of your band being empty and lack of protein. eat as much yogurt and drink as much milk as you can tolerate. it really helps with the nausea.

i too had a lot of back pain the first week or so. it did go away. have you been sleeping in your bed or in a recliner? it helped me a lot with the pain to sleep in a recliner. also i walked walked walked and then some. the back pain is most likely where your gas pain is mimicked. thats the way it is with me. i would suggest walking as much as you can. i walked 20 mins the first day i was home, 15 the next, then 20 again and it got rid of my back pain. also, just plain childrens acetaminophen may help with your back pain. hope you feel better!

yeah, it will liquify it. i can't say i've ever heard of that type of Protein shake so i can't help you on the taste there. you should be good if you add that. how much longer are you on liquids? & i was banded on the 5th of this month.

i add half a banana to mine and it seems to be no problem. i put it in a blender though. also, try adding a little bit of pudding. it makes the shake taste SO much better. what kind of Protein are you using at the moment? i would suggest going to walmart, getting jillian michaels whey protein. you get a tub for 10 bucks and its pretty good. do you add Water or milk when you mix it? heres what we do jillian michaels vanilla whey protein + ice + milk + pudding + half a banana = some good stuff!

i'm 18 years old, & i'm a senior in high school. i was banded on Tuesday the 5th, home Wednesday the 6th, and i returned to school Monday the 11th. honestly, i felt worse at home than i did when i was around other people. it also helped me to focus on other things besides my hunger. you should be able to return to school within a week, i don't see why that would be any problem as long as you recover quickly enough. you're young, so you should be good. as for Protein shakes, yes i have one or two a day depending on how much protein i had gotten for that day. [typically, a Protein shake, a yogurt, and a milk at lunch will fulfill my protein requirement] my mom makes the shakes for me, but we use jillian michaels [that mean ass trainer from the biggest loser] whey protein. i prefer the vanilla to the chocolate. to that we use milk instead of Water, so you get even MORE protein in one shot, and we also add a little bit of pudding [it really really helps the flavor] and in the mornings, i get half a banana. i am driving. i have no problem driving at all. at first it was a bit difficult, but that only lasted the very first time i got behind the wheel. i'm serious when i tell you that i feel just like i did before the surgery, probably better. it IS going to be hard though not being able to eat. when my family is making dinner its so hard. because you WANT to eat the food, but you can't because your stomach needs to heal and it is so frustrating. i would suggest getting yoplait for when you're on the yogurt stage because they have such a variety of flavor that you really don't get bored. my favorite is cinnamon roll and it is delicious. i get the dessert flavors because it tastes more like a meal then lol. feel free to ask any questions! i'm more than happy to answer.

yeah that is perfectly normal. i went up and down after the surgery. typically, i felt alright in the mornings and then would kind of decline and then i would feel really good at night. the first couple days after my surgery at home were the hardest. i was sleep deprived, hungry and in pain. not a good combo. i promise you it gets better. i am sitting here about a week and a half post surgery and i feel GREAT. i feel just like i did before the surgery. the only thing is i am hungry. my surgeon is pretty strict with the post op diet [2 weeks liquids, 2 weeks full liquids, 2 weeks soft food, then move to solid foods] so i dont know how you will feel in that department. i do believe that whatever they give you for pain, you should try to take the least amount of. i took mine for about 2-3 days and then switched to nights, and then went off of it completely. liquid tylenol helps a TON. as for the back pain, i had that as well so you are not alone. that lasted about 3-4 days and would flare up at night. it helped to sleep in a recliner instead of my bed because i was way too temped to turn on my side and that was a bit painful i'm afraid, but alas i've been sleeping in my bed again so as with all post op troubles, that too will fade. congratulations on your banding!

typically 2 weeks should do it. construction workers can return to work after 2 weeks, so i believe that you should be safe. i'm currently in a certified nursing assistant program, but i do perform all labs on actual people and i am returning after only one week post op. just make sure that after your surgery you get a ton of Protein, rest, and fluids. anything that can help your recovery.

i think i'm more paranoid for my own good. i'm worried that every little discomfort and ache is a sign that something is going wrong with my band. i'm terrified that i'm gonna mess this up somehow by turning the wrong way. blach. it helps that my mom did the surgery a few months ago, but yanno its just hard to get used to the idea that something is inside of you. it's hard to believe that its not gonna burst from my stomach anytime soon.

no, i doubt they would require you to lose another 10% of your weight if you have already done it. that would be excessive. they probably are making sure that you diet so your liver is not too large during the operation [this would require it to be an open surgery, as opposed to a laparoscopic] as for quitting smoking, they do that because during the surgery and, shortly after, you are intubated and a machine is breathing for you. if you are still smoking when you have your surgery, breathing afterwords will be very very difficult, and very painful. your lungs need to be in the best possible condition. & yes they expand your stomach with gas during the surgery, so that it is easier for the surgeon to see what he is doing. for fills, at least with my surgeon its about 6-8 weeks after the surgery, and then you go in every month to 6 weeks after that, after the first 2 years you go in every 3 months. gradually, as you have the band you go in less and less for fills because you have found your sweet spot by then.

i have a bmi over 50. it's about a 58-58. i was just banded on the 5th, and already i have lost 10 pounds, so i would have to disagree with your surgeon. when i went to my seminar, and talked with my surgeon he said that those with more weight to lose generally do so faster than those who have a less significant amount to get rid of.

hmm, i don't get to start softs until a month out, but things like mashed potatoes, mac and cheese [although its fattening] vegetables. you could even make a Soup. as long as you chew your food very thoroughly you shouldnt have a problem.

hey, i was banded on tuesday as well! congrats! the gas pain goes away much faster if you walk. i walked walked walked, and my gas pain was only really present at night. as for bms, i haven't had any out of the ordinary since i have been on liquids. but when i was in the hospital, the nurse told me that its nothing to worry about and that its normal.

how much is too much to drink at one time? i just don't want to drink too much water and not have all of it go down and then have an issue.

yeah i'm on lortab or something, which is a hydrocodone/acetaminophen liquid. so its a pretty hardcore thing

thanks everyone for replying another thing thats worrying me at the moment... i don't feel full on nauseous, but its kind of a mix of being dizzy, a little nauseous, and tired. is that because i haven't been eating that stays in the band? and then taking pain meds on an empty stomach?

i stayed over night, and aside from the fact that i had to, i was glad that i did. i was able to get any questions answered about whether i was healing right or not, and a few doctors would come in periodically and see how i was doing. it was really reassuring, rather then being at home and wondering. it was also really important because right after surgery, you are swollen and have to take small sips of Water, which results in a lack of fluids so being hooked up to an iv not only allowed me to get enough fluids, but it allowed my pain meds to be administered, as well as antibiotics. when i stayed, they had you walk every couple of hours, which was more than fine because i didn't want to sit still for very long. they had you walk to help reduce the risk of a blood clot, and to get some of that gas in your tummy broken up sooner. all in all i've got to say that i am glad i stayed over night. i almost wish i would have stayed an extra night.