CathyBFromGa

My new best friend!! A couple of tiny sips before bed each night keeps things moving right along!!! Preop I was concerned about bowel problems, but I've found a little swig of MOM makes me a happy bandster!!! CathyB :biggrin:

Banded May 4th. Doing great, feeling stronger every day. First week was kinda tough, then back to work at the beginning of week two was a mistake. Still kind of fuzzy from the anesthesia, I reckon, and from living off no nutrients whatsoever. Doc said I could start protein drinks again, so that helped a lot. Today is my four-week anniversary from surgery, and (according to my surgeon's instructions), I can now start on solids. I had 2 weeks of liquid, 2 weeks of mushies. As posted in another thread, I started a few solids over the weekend and think I seriously irritated my banded area. Yesterday and today I've been back to liquids/soups, and I'm feeling better. I went by the surgeon's office this morning to weigh, and talked to the nurse about it. She said it sounds like what happens sometimes, and I did the right thing by going back to liquids. One of the things I ate was some pepper jack cheese, so what I'm feeling is possibly a combination of irritated band area and maybe some reflux or heartburn. I didn't stop to think that jalopeno pepper might not be an ideal food to introduce back into my stomach that has been virtually empty for six weeks! Anyway, I'm feeling better in that regard. I lost 20 lb before surgery (required by doc), and have lost 16 since. It really fell off quickly at first, but since adding mushies, it slowed down to a crawl. I've got to get in exercise mode and get my body out of "famine" mentality. Check out my blog for more info! Good luck everyone! I can't wait to go back through this thread and see how we're all faring!!! Go May Bandsters!!!

Okay, so today must be my day for stupid questions. As per an earlier post, I'm feeling a little 'stuck', or 'tight', or 'swollen' today, but i'm still burping. My question is this: Do we burp from our "lower" stomach, or our pouch, or both? I don't even know why I want to know this.... other than the fact that immediately postop, it used to hurt really bad when I burped, so I assumed it was the air bubble trying to come through the banded area from the lower stomach. If i'm burping from my lower stomach, then I'm pretty confident that i'm not really 'stuck', and it would seem to work somewhat like a Heimlich and 'blow out' whatever was stuck maybe? Even though i've had nothing but liquid all day (just coffee and one protein drink), i've been burping some nice air bubbles today. So i'm just wondering... do we still burp from the lower stomach? :thumbup: TIA ~CathyB

All of you are AWESOME!!!!!!!!! Keep it up!!!! ~CathyB:thumbup:

At my preop apt, i asked my surgeon about Goody powders, because I have frequent headaches, and have lived on Advil for years. He just about choked and said NO Goody Powders... EVER, and no Advil, Motrin, or anything with ibuprofen. Tylenol only!! We didn't elaborate, but I just assumed it was because of the risk of stomach irritation or ulcers, since there would be less food in the stomach to absorb the medication. I found the Children's Tylenol to be exceptionally nasty, but so far have been pleased with the Junior Tylenol chewable tablets when i need an analgesic. Your trainer isn't a pharmacist, that's for sure, but sounds like she has had lots of experience with bariatric patients. Regardless of what anyone says, if you stop the PMs and your weight loss picks up, then hallelujah and more power to you!!!! Reading these forum posts I have noticed that everyone is different and tolerates things differently. So, if you follow your trainer's advice and start losing again, then you'll know you've hit the mother lode of information, and you'll know to never do it again. Be sure to post in a few days and let us know if stopping the PMs makes a difference. And who knows... just thinking or expecting it to make a difference might be the catalyst you need to make the difference! Good luck! Can't wait to hear the results!!! ~CathyB

ooh thanks! i was wondering if it would be icky. I've gotta get some powder. that was perfect timing... i was aboaut to go try it! thank you!

I was thinking about putting my EAS in the microwave and going for a hot-chocolate type of drink. Warm liquids are working better for me today than cold. Anyone ever try this? TIA ~ CathyB

thanks, yall! i guess my fear is that something is stuck there, and not getting any digestive juices except saliva, and it will stay stuck until they go in with a gastroscope and get it out!!! (i know enough medicine to be dangerous haha!) I am doing sips today, and hopefully tomorrow will be better. the hot sips of coffee do better than the cold sips of water, so i guess i'll just have coffee breath all day! thanks again! If anyone else has something different to add, please go ahead and add it. If i'm not better tomorrow, i'll probably call the doctor. :-) CathyB

I'm going to vist the blogs listed in this post. Add a widget for Blog List, then list all our blogs there. That way they will be listed on the sidebar, and you can then visit everyone's blogs. Here's a ink to my lapband blog. It's lonely too, because I haven't told anyone about it. http://cathyb-itsokayimwiththeband.blogspot.com/ Hope to see you all in blog-land!!! I'm going to link ya'll's blogs to mine when I have a minute. Happy blogging!!!

Tomorrow I'll be four weeks out, and have begun slowly transitioning to solids. On Saturday I ate the equivalent of maybe two bites of a hot dog. I removed the casing and cut the pieces tiny enough to fit on one tine of a fork. I think I might be stuck? I didn't get the stuck feeling right then, it seemed to go down fine, but Sunday morning I could hardly even drink my coffee. Then throughout the rest of the day, whenever I would try to eat anything, mushy or not, I'd get that stuck/chest-tightness/burning feeling. I tried a bite of mooshy refried beans last night and it actually came back up. So my question is... will whatever "it" is that's stuck ever go away? I really don't want to call my doctor yet, because I'm afraid he'll won't like it that i started solids a few days early. Just wondering... anybody here ever stay stuck for more than a day? Please help! Thanks!!! CathyB

14 days from the day after surgery. That will be Wed for me. I'm a little nervous about it!

I've heard some folks say they don't burp at all, so i'm delighted to be among the burpers!! It sure does hurt, though!! I'm only a week postop, and the pain of burping isn't getting any better. I'm wondering, if down the road, after fills and restriction... will it still hurt to burp? Thanks!!! CathyB

Does the doctor do the fills in his/her office? (Just wondering if there will be other facility charges for a fill, like a hospital for fluoroscopy). Write the doctor a very humble letter and respectfully ask if there is a discount for cash payment plan as opposed to their filing insurance. For example, if your doctor charges 250.00 for a fill, and files an insurance claim, he normally does not receive the entire 250.00. Depending on the insurance company, he'd probably get anywhere from 125.00 to 175.00. Ask him if he'd be willing to accept the average amount that he gets from his insurance patients. You have nothing to lose by asking, and if you approach it with the right attitude, you might be surprised that he's perfectly happy to get your cash without having the hassle of the insurance company. Oh, and in your letter, also note that unless he would be so kind as to set up a payment plan, you would need to postpone the fill until you can save/earn the money. I've worked for many physicians, and every one of them have always been willing to work with patients who are making an honest effort to pay their bill, or work out a payment arrangement. Good luck!!! p.s. If you need help composing a letter, I would be happy to assist you.

Hey ya'll. I was banded May 4th. My doc requires two weeks postop Clear Liquids but allows SF popsicles and SF Jello. I can only have 15 mL (about 3 teaspoons) every 15 minutes while awake. I'm not a Water drinker at all, so during the 2-week preop Protein Drink only phase, i drank so much lemonade that i am sick of it. today i bought some gatorade, and I wish I could chug it like a beer drinker chugs a pitcher of beer!! It is so delicious, and I am so thirsty. i'm not hungry, per se, because even if i was allowed to have anything I wanted to eat, I am physically not interested in eating and swallowing. I just want to TASTE the food, and FEEL the texture in my mouth and how good it FEELS to swallow it! ha! that sounds crazy I know! The poster who talked about straining their favorite Soup is really onto something. Tonight I stopped by my favorite Japanese restaurant and got a small container of their onion soup. It's really an oniony broth with nothing solid in it. You put your Durkee French Fried Onion Rings in on the side. Of course i didn't get any of those. But let me tell you... it was HEAVENLY!!!! I sipped on it like hot tea all evening long. I know it's still not anything to chew on, but just the change was an encouragement to me to hang on for one more week of this!!! Good luck. I hope you feel better about things soon. It will be worth it in the long run. Just take it one hour, (one minute if necessary) and tell yourself, I CAN DO ANYTHING FOR ONE DAY (hour, minute... whatever) and just plug on through. CathyB

Awesome!! Way to go!!! Keep up the good work!!

check with your doc, but mine said i could use Milk of Magnesia. i'm six days postop, clear liquids only, and a BRUTAL preop bowel cleanse. Today I used a glycerin suppository and had some explosive episodes of diarrhea-like activity. Sorry that's gross, but we're all family, right? i've been a little concerned about it too, more about my intestines "forgetting" how to work with no solid intake. then i remembered there are patients who spend weeks in ICU or hospital beds with only IVs and they don't poop... so I reckon we'll be okay. check with your doc if you're really concerned or if you are having pain. cathyb

I was banded on the 4th! Tomorrow is my one-week anniversary. So far so good. Hope everyone scheduoled for last week is feeling well. Let's keep each other posted!

Congratulations on your date!!! It will all start to feel real now! My surgery is in 13 days. I submitted my application to the surgeon's office the first week in January, and thought this day would never come. The time has really flown by, though, and now it is almost here!! I'll be having my preop appointment the day you have surgery!! Good luck, and post often!

Flagyl is an antibiotic that they specifically warn you against consuming alcohol while you're taking it. Tell them you're recovering from a respiratory infection. :-)

Testing 1-2-3. Lookin for the little froggie hopping on lily pads.

My surgeon recommended EAS AdvantEDGE carb control, which can be purchased at Wal Mart, Sam's, and I have seen it in regular grocery stores. It has 17 grams of protein, 2 grams net carbsm 119 calories, 0 sugars. The flavors are chocolate fudge, strawberry, vanilla and some other dark chocolate flavor. I use the chocolate fudge and find that they taste almost just like the pre-made Hershey's chocolate milk from the store. Quite yummy. I've been playing around with the drinks, trying to transition into 14 days of preop liquid only, and so far, over a period of 3-4 weeks, I have lost 14 lb. But I have also been doing some serious eating as well. You know, The Last Supper. I have had quite a few of them! At any rate, I'm down to 9 days before preop, with 6 lbs to lose. I am confident that I can do it! These drinks are really good, and I guess the high-protein content is what helps me stay full. I'm pretty picky about taste, and I'm so thankful that I found something that wasn't just tolerable, but something that I really like. EAS will be my friend for the rest of my life, I guess. It's not expensive, either, just a buck and change per container. A case at Sam's is 28.00. Good luck, I know it is a challenge! I hope you find something that satisfies you. This is difficult enough, I can't imagine not being satisfied with your drink. Keep looking, don't give up!!!

May 4th for me!! I'm so excited! My surgeon requires you to lose 20 lb from the time of the first consultation to the preop date. I've lost 14 of those, and I have 9 days until my preop appointment. That's cutting it close, but I'm using the EAS drinks and nothing else, so it's coming off steadily. I've had quite a few Last Suppers myself, but it's all liquids from here on out.

Playing with my grandchildren without having to stop every few minutes to rest! :-)

I'm not in Brussells, but I can talk to you from the USA! I'm being banded May 4th also. Good luck to you!!