jahair

With all that going on, I can see why you fired so many endos until you found someone you could really work with. A suggestion for getting an earlier appointment -- ask them to call you when they have a cancellation. I've done that and gotten in much sooner. Good luck! Jo Ann

I'm assuming you are keeping up your Water intake and exercising faithfully... Thyroid stuff can be tricky. Are you on Synthyroid? What strength? If it was me, I'd call the endo and tell them I think something is going on with my thyroid and ask for appointment soonest. Good luck on your search for answers. Jo Ann

Well you might just be human! You got distracted a minute and acted like it was the olden days. Learning my way around life with a band has certainly humbled me. Saturday morning I was having a late breakfast of grits and lightly fried egg that I waited too long to start cooking, so I was truly ravenous. It's the weekend, no one is calling for Mommy, there's actually time to read the paper and listen to NPR. Life is good. I start flipping through the paper to find an article to read while I eat and I get a quick forkful of food to hold me till I can concentrate-eat-chew the right number of times. My attention is NOT on the forkful of food I just stuck in my face. Bang! Suddenly this little piece of egg has grown big spikey edges and it's well and truly stuck. "Golf ball" is no longer a concept - it is live and in living color. I was horrified and immediately angry that I had made such a rookie mistake. I vow to do better. So much better that I repeat the process at the next meal. :angry I left the house and went looking for a baby sized fork and spoon. I now eat all my meals with the baby spoon. Lesson learned. Dang! I might be human too! :faint:

Poor baby! The good news is most of the pain is gone. Since you have a basically free day - what one thing could you do around the house that would make a difference? It doesn't have to be a chore - it could be a project you thought about doing back in the past. Look for something you've been putting off "because there's never enough time." Best wishes Jo Ann

Poor baby! The good news is most of the pain is gone. Since you have a basically free day - what one thing could you do around the house that would make a difference? It doesn't have to be a chore - it could be a project you thought about doing back in the past. Look for something you've been putting off "because there's never enough time." Best wishes Jo Ann

Can you believe there are some people who never get to experience shoulder pain gas? What do they know that we don't? :ohwell: It took about a week or more for me to experience the shoulder gas -- what insult to injury of the very intense abdominal gas! Anyway, all I that I found that worked was to take the Gas -X, keep walking around and finally when I laid down, to add the heating pad. Best of luck to you!

Diva Girl, I was getting way too hungry on the liquid phase or the soup phase and knew I needed protein to quell the hunger pangs. The way I have mushie chicken is to take pieces of rotisserie chicken or broiled chicken thighs and put them in the blender along with a little bit of whatever starch the others are having for dinner and some hot water. Blend until all is smooshed and mooshed. Yes, the color is unattractive, (my husband and children are forbidden to comment on the color or texture) but the essence of the meal is there. In fact, I've been adding the vegetables as well. Pour it all into a cup you can't see through and spoon into your mouth and enjoy. It tastes like real food instead of "recovery" food. See if it works for you. Jo Ann PS How do I get on the ABC?

And they say women are the weaker sex! God Bless You and yours as you go through this transition time. And please keep in mind that when things are this crazy, it is sooooo easy to run to the refrigerator to find comfort. Don't add self loathing to the load you are already carrying. Stay in touch and come back often. We won't leave you. Jo Ann

One of the best names out there -- even if you do spell it oddly! :girl_hug: Keep us posted. Jo Ann

You may be a Santa Claus looking clone, but you have lived some life, dude! :girl_hug: Congrats on the reminder to take the higher road! We do indeed lose when someone else's ignorance causes us to take it out on ourselves . And our spirit loses as well. Jo Ann

I did a little looking around the Internet about gall bladders and found a very interesting site called Medicine Net.com They have some really interesting things to say about the pain of gall bladder disease. Gall stones can be side effect of rapid weight loss. Click here: Educational information on Gallstones produced by medical doctors It occurs to me that maybe the reason you feel so badly at night might be the position you are lying in while you sleep. If there is a gall stone maybe it gets stuck when you are in that position. Obviously we are not medical doctors. Our opinions are just "some good ideas" from the peanut gallery. You really have to make the time to talk to the doctor and follow up from that end. Please do so and write back and let us know what you found out. Jo Ann

I understand about first things first, and congratulations on that degree and having the job already lined up! Best of luck to you and please stay in touch and let us know how you are doing.:gluck: :gluck:

Thanks to both of you. I got it done. Yay!

:girl_hug: :grouphug: I've been trying to figure out how to get a photo next to my user name. Information in the FAQs tells me how to add a photo to my post, but not up by the user name. Any advice would be appreciated.

When I was starting my research phase I called Dr. Spiegal's office for the free seminar because he was located marginally closer to me in Sugar Land. Made the appointment for the seminar and all was well. Then I received a phone call telling me the seminar for that day was cancelled and they rescheduled me for the following week. I got lost and stuck in a big traffic jam around the Galleria and called to say I was running late and discovered : They never heard of me There was no seminar scheduled for that day There was no explanation for the mix up I decided to give them one more try and called for another appointment. Told my whole story to someone who put me on hold. A new person picked up the phone and had no idea what I was talking about. At that point I knew these were not the people for me. If they were this disorganized about an informational seminar, I could only foresee more communication snafus in the future. This surgery is the most important thing I could do for myself at this point in my life and I decided I was worth having the most superior experience I could find. When I called Dr. Spivak's office and went to the seminar everything went smoothly - no confusion and totally patient oriented. Dr. Spivak's talk was balanced and fair and he wanted us to be totally clear on the pros and cons of lap band vs bypass so we could make an informed choice. On the day of surgery he was warm and compassionate and I would choose him again in a heartbeat. Jo Ann

PLEASE get this checked out by your doctor ASAP. No one should have to be in that kind of pain for a minute longer than necessary. Pain at that level is NOT normal -- don't wait another day please.

Hi newbie! Congratulations on considering the lap band as a way to support your weight loss dreams. Your questions about exercise and hydration, as well as situps and crunches can best be answered if you post them in the Exercise Forum or the General or Support Forums. Not many people look at this forum on a regular basis. My band has only been in since Aug.28 and I am learning as I go. As far as vomiting goes, I have gathered that a large part of the potential risk in vomiting comes in the post operative period before the area is healed and the band is fully seated. In fact, my doctor had me wear an anti-nausea patch to minimize throwing up immediately post surgery. They last for three days and I borrowed another one from my husband for an additional three days when I discovered that the smell of food cooking made me terribly nauseous. Never did throw up though! Others have mentioned having the flu after the post op period and experiencing no difficulties. Do not consider the lap band a temporary solution. It is meant to be left in without removal even after goal weight is achieved. Most of us would probably gain all the weight plus more back if our stomachs returned to full size. The only time removal is considered is when there is a serious complication and removal is the choice of last resort. The magic of the band is its adjustablity -- it can be set to maximize your weight loss when you are in that stage and adjusted as needed. If you have a serious illness or pregnancy, the fill can be removed to allow more normal eating. I've provided a link to a helpful web site with great information about the lap band which should answer some questions for you. I would also recommend attending an information seminar about the lap band surgery. Attending does not obligate you to the surgery or to that surgeon. During my seminar the doctor went out of his way to give the pros and cons of both lap band and gastric bypass so that we could make the most informed choice possible. I really appreciated the validation of my reasons for choosing lap band, and I equally appreciated being very sure why I did not feel that the gastric bypass was an option for me. So take the time you need to feel good about this big decision, but also don't dither endlessly or you really will be one of those people who regrets not having done it sooner! :- ) http://www.lapbandsolutions.com/94829E_LB_Patient_Book.pdf Take care of yourself and keep posting. We are all in this together.

You are right, it is really cool! I am not a bike rider (yet) but my husband likes his Sunday ride and he will find this very helpful. Thanks!

Thanks MCW -- It's not funny about being afraid to throw up, I agree, but I had to laugh about the notion thinking about Soups making you nauseous and being OK if you stick to thoughts about Jello. Where else in the world would that statement make sense?? :biggrin1: :biggrin1: It just points out that although as bandsters we all go through the same surgery, each one of us experiences this journey in our own quirky ways. As I read posts that others have made, I am continually floored by the courage bandsters have dispayed. Each of us has made the decision to undergo this very big deal because we are desperate to experience success in keeping off the weight we lose. We have persevered in our commitment to permanent weight loss in the face of doubts expressed by ourselves or others that maybe all it really does take to be successful is to eat smaller portions and exercise more. We told our "true truth" that anything we've done in the past did not work and have turned our heads to the future by deciding on this procedure. Still, that little voice that we all have scares us with all the ways we could mess this up: throwing up and stretching the stoma going crazy on the liquid/mushy stage and drinking only milkshakes or something else high fat/high calorie being the only person for whom weight gain actually occurs rather than weight loss etc. We are alone with ourselves in the recovery stage and it is all too easy to obsess with the fact that we have or will do something wrong and blow this. I know for me it has been more difficult than I expected to allow the minor discomforts of healing (like major gas or itches) not to get in the way of my deep pride in myself for taking this BIG POSITIVE step in regaining my life. I am so grateful for knowing this talk forum is available to us to share our concerns but also to take comfort in the large number of people who are experiencing success on this path and all the tickers showing the decreasing numbers. I think I'll get one today!

I was banded on August 28 and since then am extremely sensitive to the smell of food cooking -- we're talking queasiness and lots of swallowing. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it a common post surgical after effect? It's great for getting out of kitchen duties, but it's not very pleasant! :eek:

Thanks MCW -- It's not funny about being afraid to throw up, I agree, but I had to laugh about the notion thinking about soups making you nauseous and being OK if you stick to thoughts about Jello. Where else in the world would that statement make sense?? :biggrin1: :biggrin1: It just points out that although as bandsters we all go through the same surgery, each one of us experiences this journey in our own quirky ways. As I read posts that others have made, I am continually floored by the courage bandsters have dispayed. Each of us has made the decision to undergo this very big deal because we are desperate to experience success in keeping off the weight we lose. We have persevered in our commitment to permanent weight loss in the face of doubts expressed by ourselves or others that maybe all it really does take to be successful is to eat smaller portions and exercise more. We told our "true truth" that anything we've done in the past did not work and have turned our heads to the future by deciding on this procedure. Still, that little voice that we all have scares us with all the ways we could mess this up: throwing up and stretching the stoma going crazy on the liquid/mushy stage and drinking only milkshakes or something else high fat/high calorie being the only person for whom weight gain actually occurs rather than weight loss etc. We are alone with ourselves in the recovery stage and it is all too easy to obsess with the fact that we have or will do something wrong and blow this. I know for me it has been more difficult than I expected to allow the discomforts of healing (like major gas or itches) not to get in the way of my deep pride in myself for taking this BIG POSITIVE step in regaining my life. I am so grateful for knowing this talk forum is available to us to share our concerns but also to take comfort in the large number of people who are experiencing success on this path and all the tickers showing the decreasing numbers. I think I'll get one today!

Thanks for the kind words. I'll stay in touch.

Hello all. My surgery is scheduled with Dr. Hadar Spivak first thing tomorrow morning. I've already missed out on the excellent tip to have today's diet be mostly liquid, but at least I haven't stuffed myself silly. I'd like to know if there are any other "best tips" you can offer pre or immediate post surgery. I've been keeping a lid on the excitement level, but now, with the surgery less than 12 hours away, I'm just humming with anticipation and eagerness to get on with the next phase of my life. Bring it on!