SorryNameTaken

2 minutes ago, JRT Mom said:

This is a useful thread. I will be riding a train to get to the hospital and back and would like to lug as little as possible. I'm supposed to stay two nights in the hospital and am thinking of staying a third in a hotel before going home--I don't want to be 5 hours away and have something develop.

What did most of you wear in the hospital after your surgery? If you are supposed to get up and walk a lot I'd think you wouldn't want to stay in a hospital gown very long...no one wants to see my a$$ as I'm walking down the hall...😄

😄 My hospital had special bariatric gowns, so I was completely covered front to back when I was walking. I brought pajama pants just in case my gown did not cover well enough. I ended up wearing them despite my gown being quite covering.

A lot of people bring a robe or just wear a second hospital gown to cover their backs, it can just be tricky with the IV, so you may only be able to drape it over your shoulders.

I barely packed anything:
- I wore the same shirt to the hospital and home from the hospital
- A pair of pajama pants in case I didn't want to wear the pants I wore to the hospital home
- Multiple chapsticks
- Phone charger
- Slippers (Only worse these out of the hospital)
- 2 pairs of underwear (I didn't wear any underwear my entire hospital stay, I just went free!)
- A sports bra (never felt inclined to put this on until after I got home from the hospital)
- Wallet (never needed this)

The only thing I didn't pack that I asked for were breath mints. My breath was pretty nasty from all the tubes during surgery. Once I coughed up all the nastiness, it got a little better, but they were still nice to have.

I tried not to bring too much because I'm weird about the germs in hospitals. The thing I used the most was Chapstick and breath mints.

I bought slippers with the intention of just chunking them in the trash after the stay, but I decided I liked them too much to do that, so I just used the slipper socks provided and wore my slippers on my ride home. I brought my charger, but I don't recall ever charging my phone since I mostly just watched TV. I live in pajama pants, so I bought a nice soft pair of pajama pants to wear under my gown. I didn't put them on until the day after surgery, but they were nice to have.

I had my surgery 10/24 and went back to work 10/31. My surgery was a bit more complicated than anticipated. I was a revision and they didn't think my band had slipped, but it had and it was very difficult for them to remove.

I have had some problems with my heart rate shooting really high just from walking a short distance. I feel like it's slowly trying to get better, so I'm just taking that one day at a time. I have another appointment on Wednesday to see if any answers can be found.

Other than that, everything has gone great and I'm essentially pain free minus where I had a drain after surgery. I did buy a decent bit of Protein Powder to have after surgery and now I only like one of the flavors.. I knew that would happen, but it's still a bit of a bummer. 🤣

Thank you all for your answers! I am still well elevated and have been as high as the 160s now. I have an appointment Wednesday to see if any more answers can be found while adjusting my meds post-op. I feel like it's trying to slowly get better, so we'll just take it one day at a time. I'd just like to be able to get some walks in without feeling like I can't breathe! Thanks again!!

On 10/28/2019 at 8:32 PM, mousecat88 said:

How was Dr. Oviedo?

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using BariatricPal mobile app

Dr. Oviedo was really nice. I really didn't get a whole lot of time with him, but I knew I was fine with him doing my surgery once I met him. I've had complications with an elevated heart rate, but that's not his fault, just my crazy body marching to the beat of it's own drum.

I hope your pre-op today goes well and you get all of your quesitons answered!!

Did anyone have a significantly elevated heart rate post-op? If so, when did it normalize, did they ever find out why?

I had my revision surgery on Thursday, October 24, 2019. It ended up being more complicated than anticipated, my band was slipped (I told them!!) all the way around my esophagus with the top of my stomach incarcerated in the band and a significant amount of scar tissue. My revision was anticipated to take 2 hours and ended up taking over 4 hours.

As soon as I went under anesthesia (before even cutting) my resting heart rate went into the 130s and stayed elevated. During my stay they had me on metoprolol to bring it down, which it did, but still in the high range. Since I have been home, my resting heart rate is about 110 and walking the stairs, scooping Protein Powder into a shaker, walking to the bathroom, has it shooting as high as 147 with me instantly feeling drained of all energy. I have also had low grade fevers around 99.5.

My surgeon's office sent me to the ER today and I had an EKG, CT scan, and labwork showing nothing of significance. The ER doc was trying to sell me on some people's resting heart rates normally stay at 110, which I know mine is usually in the 60s. He then said it could be mild dehydration or just left over adrenaline. My blood pressure is normal, so I couldn't be sent home on beta blockers to try and help with the heart rate again.

I did have 2 abnormalities on my EKG pre-op that no one seemed concerned about. I know time will tell, I just know when my heart rate goes into the 130/140s I feel tired beyond just normal surgery tired.

I'm trying to get even more Water down to see if that helps. I'm just hoping someone else might have some experience with this. Thank you so much for any advice or experiences you give!

Less than 24 hours for my revision, but she called and gave the majority of my information on the phone and then faxed in the rest to back up their phone call. It was significantly longer for my band surgery, but I was denied for that once or twice.

I have a version of both, but I just plan on mostly eating soft foods that don't need to be blended. If I were wanting to puree a can of Soup or something of that sort, I would use my Nutribullet. If I wanted to make a pot of soup to puree, I'd use my immersion blender right in the pot. My Nutribullet is a lot sharper than my immersion blender, so that may be something to think about depending on what you plan to puree, but that could vary from each product.

They both have their good points. If you plan on making a lot of smoothies down the road, a Nutribullet or Nutri Ninja would probably be the better investment, but the more expensive one.

I am planning on being pretty open about my revision surgery. I know people are going to ask how I've lost so much weight and if I can inspire someone to look into it that may have been thinking about it, great, if they want to judge me, great.

I feel like one of my gastric band downfalls was not being open about it. I think had I been more open with everyone I wouldn't have felt the pressure to eat like a "normal" person around people who did not know I was banded. Granted, I don't think that would have eliminated all my band problems, but I can't help but wonder if I would have been somewhat more successful if I had broadcast it to the world.

That said, I'm dreading telling my husband's family. I think they are much more likely to be overly judgmental about it than most people in my life. These are people that think doing Keto is the easy way out, so I'm sure they'll have plenty to say, but I'm okay with that. I'm really confident in why I am choosing to revise, so I'll do my best to not be offended by it.

I'm planning on significantly cutting back my meat consumption with my revision, so I can fall back on that for people I don't feel need to know about surgery.

On 10/15/2019 at 4:57 PM, JRT Mom said:

Sorrynametaken, my surgery is Nov 20. Even though I jumped through all the insurance hoops when I got my band done I have to start over. Luckily (or unluckily) my BMI has crept up enough that between that and the two comorbidities I have developed in the past year (diabetes and high blood pressure) I will qualify for Medicare to pay for the removal and a RNY bypass.

I live in SW Virginia but am traveling to Reston, VA to have my bypass done. I got my band done locally but that surgeon has left hence the trip. But I really like the surgeon (Matthew Fitzer) but more importantly the office staff has their sh*t together and are easy to get in touch with, always return your calls, and work hard to make sure your personal and insurance needs are met. There are a lot of good surgeons out there, but if their office staff sucks it doesn't matter--the front end makes all the difference. I first saw a surgeon in Richmond but their office is a disaster area so I looked elsewhere and I'm glad I did!

OMG, next week?!? PLEASE keep in touch and let us know how it went!! Lots of positive vibes coming your way!!🍀🙏🌈🌷

@JRT Mom I understand, my BMI and comorbidities qualified me, but I still had to do 7 months of weigh-ins, it went by so fast though! November 20 is so soon too!!

I don't think my band doctor still practices in Richmond. His practice was a fine tuned machine back then, but there's no telling what has happened in the past 11 years! I am very familiar with Reston! You can't go wrong having surgery in Northern VA! I consulted with 3 different practices and finally settled on the one in Winchester because the other 2 practices didn't feel like the right fit. I wasn't living in this area at the time, so it didn't occur to me to look in NOVA. It's so important to find a practice we can imagine seeing for the rest of our lives!

I will definitely keep everyone updated on how things go! I can't wait to hear how your surgery goes as well! Sending lots of positive vibes your way too! 😃

Syntrax Nectar has a bunch of fruit flavors. I bought the 17 flavor sample pack, but I haven't tried all of them yet. Their lemon tea flavor would mix nice with Crystal Lite. They also have a Roadside Lemonade flavor, but I have not tried it yet so I can't say how it is. My favorite of their fruit flavors so far is grape.

I had a psych eval for my band, which was just talking to a counselor for about 30 minutes and that was it.

My psych eval for my revision involved 3 different paper tests having around 300 questions total and then I sat and talked to a psychologist for about an hour. His questions mostly revolved around whether I was a binge eater, emotional eater, what changes I have made to ensure I will be successful in combating boredom eating and bad habits. He also wanted to know what support systems I had in place. He did ask a little bit about my family history and my past, but didn't go into it in great deal. I am currently on an anti-depressant and I was cleared with no problem.

While my first eval was much easier than my second one, both evals were pretty relaxed and easy to go through. Some doctors will bring you back for more than one evaluation, so it's possible that could happen with yours. With my most recent psych eval I was warned they usually do three visits, but I was cleared on my first one.

Good luck!

While I don't know a ton about it, from my understanding if it hasn't righted itself in 6 weeks, it isn't likely to. Did they have you do a liquid diet in conjunction with the unfill? Usually they call for a liquid diet and an unfill when there is a slip, but I am unsure for how long.

Hopefully your doctor can give you some really good insight on this! Good luck! I hope it works itself out! 😃

I often time find exercise to be the very best option for handling emotions and curbing emotional eating, specifically something pretty high energy, a dance workout video, even Wii Sports, just something fun that requires my brain to be paying attention to it instead of what is bothering me. Other things would be calling a friend, reading silly articles on buzzfeed, playing with my pets, essentially anything to keep my brain busy, that's the real key.

6 hours ago, JRT Mom said:

Sorrynametaken, I could have written your post. My story is exactly the same. Mine is also 10 years old, and even with no fill in it I'm struggling to get food down. The barium swallow doesn't show any problems with dilation or slippage, but I still slime and vomit every other meal.

I thought it was going to last a lifetime but it's so stressful being hungry but dreading that next meal, and my surgeon thinks the stoma will eventually totally close off so even Water can't pass, so I'm having it removed with a revision to a RNY. I know I'll never eat an average size meal again but I'm OK with that as long as I can do so without dread!

@JRT Mom It's sad how many people share our same story. I'm sorry it's been such a tough road for you! My doctor was telling me that sometimes the scar tissue under the band gets too tight and they actually have to go in and slice it to release the restriction on the stomach even after the band is already off. I'll be interested in seeing if that is what has happened with mine since I am also unfilled.

I am revising to the bypass next week. I never wanted to get the band out, but I realize I really need to take control over my life again. I feel like my band has been in control of me for way too long at this point. Do you know when you'll be revising? I really hope the bypass ends up being so much better for you!

Also, I live in NW VA, so howdy neighbor! I had my band done in Richmond, VA, but my bypass is going to be done in Winchester, VA.

My mom is super supportive, she is all for it. My husband is supportive, but he would never consider it for himself, so sometimes I get the feeling he doesn't really like it. He's hoping this will help my fertility, so my getting surgery quite possibly will benefit him as well. The only thing I think I'll need to work on with him is having him not bring home so much junk food no matter how good his intentions are.

One of my clients from my side business has expressed her disappointment in my choice and wants me to consider trying Weight Watchers again. As much as I adore her, I just had to let that judgement pass.

Everyone else is kind of in the "If that's what you want to do" boat. We'll see if those people end up ghosting me or staying friends afterward.

My best advice is to just know why you're doing it and not feel like you have to answer to anyone else. I think it's nearly impossible to change the mind of anti-surgery people, the best way is to show them you made the right choice by living your happiest, healthiest life! You'll do great!

Looks yummy, like a nice bariatric buffet!

My scars from my band aren't too bad anymore, but that was over 11 years ago. The only one that is still really visible is the one where they put the port in, it's about 2 to 2.5 inches long and still somewhat purple. You won't have to deal with that though! Other than that, there's one other scar still noticeable, but it's flesh-colored, it just looks like a different texture than the rest of my skin. I didn't use any scar fading cream, but a lot of people have great success with them if that's something you are worried about 😃

Thanks for sharing!

I also am not full vegetarian, but I get a lot of my Protein from Beans, lentils, and tofu. I also add unflavored protein (Unjury vegan) to just about anything I can that it will mix well into.

Plant fusion and Tru supplements have been my favorite vegan Protein Shakes out there so far, but there are so many I have yet to try.

I always had problems with getting stuck, I just dealt with that, but right around the 10 year mark I started getting insane nausea and reflux with projectile vomiting instead of just getting stuck. My band appears to be in place despite these sudden onset of symptoms. Even if something is wrong with mine, they don't make it anymore, so there are no replacement parts and I'd have to get it out. I honestly feel like my quality of life has gone down over the past year, so I'm choosing to revise.

That said, there are plenty of people that have had their bands in for well over 10 years and are still doing quite well. The thought is that they should stay in lifelong. I'd be interested in knowing how many revisions are because the band itself aged and failed versus the other symptoms causing people to seek revision.

19 minutes ago, apiane said:

@SorryNameTaken Here's what I was talking about. This is their butt lift Challenge. Moves seem pretty beginner.

That doesn't look too bad at all! I could certainly manage those movements. I was just watching some of the Blogilates videos, which don't look too bad either, I may give some of them a try and see how I like them!

YES! I have it and I'm wondering how much worse it will get after my revision. I honestly haven't been doing anything to try to fill it out as of yet, so hopefully someone will have some great tips on exercises. I looked into beach body's Brazilian butt, but never ended up doing it. Youtube probably has some good workouts too.

Girl, yes! I am so glad that you have had such a breakthrough and especially glad you and hubby had a talk, now he can understand your needs and be there for you as a support system after surgery. It sounds like you have your MIL for a great support system and us too, we're excited for you!

I think if my work treated me that way, I'd probably be job hunting during my time off, they don't sound like they deserve you. I'm only getting a hand full of days off of work and I'm pretty sure if I need more time, I'll get fired, so maybe I'll be doing some job searching my time off anyway. 🤣

You are going to be so successful, I just know it!

I'm the opposite. It feels like I have hit the ground running and it is coming so stinking fast. I suspect the week of surgery will go really slow, but then again I have a ton of appointments that week, so it may go just as fast.

@april042019 I'm afraid to ask about the catheter!! It completely freaks me out too. I'm a revision, so my surgery is going to be a bit longer than standard, so I'm just so sure they will say yes and I just don't think I want to know! 🤣

I haven't even met my surgeon because my original surgeon was booked out way into November and my insurance won't cover surgery starting November 1, so I had to switch to the other doctor in the practice. So naturally, most of my questions are about him or things about my pre-op testing. My x-ray showed I have a kidney stone just hanging around and no one told me, so I'd like to ask about that. My new doctor does robotic surgeries, so I want to know if mine is going to be robotic. And of course the important questions like, "Can I wear toenail polish?" I also want to know if I'll have an incision in my bellybutton, I can't stand the thought of that, it weirds me out so much.

Whenever anything pops in my mind, I just write it down to take with me. Just do that and you'll surely have a good list of things to ask!

10 minutes ago, mousecat88 said:

Yes, I love Dr. Oviedo. He is the most compassionate, caring doctor I have had. I do not like Dr. Glembot at all. I've had him respond as the surgeon on-call when I had some post-op complications and it was always a terrible experience. Most recently (like 3 weeks ago) he diagnosed me as having an ulcer OVER THE PHONE to the ER Department when really I had a herniated disc in my back. You will love Dr. Oviedo! I had some post-op complications and he would always rush to be at my bedside after he was finished for the day and insisted on seeing me personally for followups instead of the nurse practitioner, which is usually the case. I was the first robotic RNY patient at Winchester and he always called me his "favorite perfect patient" even though I was far from perfect. LOL

I have an appointment with the dietitian there next Monday and it would be nice to see him again since I haven't since February. Sucks you don't see the surgeon anymore and they never see your progress.

Thank you so much ❤️ I haven't seen or met anyone else who has had him as a surgeon yet, so it's a big relief to hear you love him so much! LOL I am sure you were the perfect patient!

I am so sorry for the post-op complications and your experiences with Dr. Glembot, that's such a bummer to hear about him. My patient navigator told me I would very likely prefer Dr. Oviedo over Glembot if I prefer a nicer doctor 😂 I thought it was odd that all of my post-op visits are scheduled with Rick, but I guess that's not surprising given how busy they are, it's just a bit disappointing.

Thanks again for letting me butt in! Hope your plastics journey goes amazingly, can't wait to see how it goes!

I am having a revision from band to bypass this month. I started out okay with my band, lost some weight and had to make some big changes about the food I ate (ie. eating what I could eat versus what I was supposed to eat). After about 10 years I started getting some serious nausea and reflux as well as more episodes of getting stuck, so I am revising. My x-rays don't show a slip, but I'd be surprised if there isn't a small slip in there when they go in.

I am under a 40 BMI and I qualify for bypass, but I do have significant obstructive sleep apnea, so you would likely need some co-morbidities to qualify if you are under a 40 BMI.

I think a lot of it comes down to whether or not eating large portions is your biggest problem, if it is, you'll likely do well with the band. I never ate HUGE portions as it was, so I don't think the band was the best choice from me, I just didn't want to go as far as cutting up my stomach at the time. I think my food choices as well as my PCOS have had a large part in my weight, so now that I have the eating down right and I'm still hovering in the morbidly obese category, my surgeon and I decided the VSG is not right either and the bypass will combat my PCOS the best.

Ultimately, you and your surgeon will be able to make the best informed decision for you. Less and less surgeons are performing the band at all, so that may play in your decision as well. In fact, my band is no longer in production, so if it has failed or were to ever fail, I have no choice but to have it removed as replacement parts aren't offered anymore. Good luck with your decision, I applaud you for doing your research before making a final choice!