Search the Community

Thanks everyone. I have my PAT next week so I will be sure to ask dr but its good to know if necessary I can do it. :-)

I had no complications, and I did have my gall bladder removed at the same time, but I would not recommend endangering yourself like that so soon after surgery. I would honestly wait until you are out of pain. For me this was 10 days. Maybe another mom won't mind taking your kids to school with hers for a week. Maybe you can keep your 3y old at home (I had mine after the 4th day post-op, I have 4 boys! it wasn't great, but it was doable). You can do this if you don't want to postpone (no one would), but please don't plan to drive. Some of us take longer to heal.

Dear trynagain, Hang in there, you will feel better. are u moving around or laying a lot? Moving around helps with the trapped air, that's what causes most of the pain you experience. Do u have like maybe a runners cramp feeling on your left side? This is normal for its where most of the work in your belly was done. Take it easy, two weeks after a major surgery isn't long. I hope you get to feeling a bit better. Keep us posted on your progress.

My doctor says for her smoking patients they have to be smoke free for at least 6 weeks and she tests urine at the pr-op appt for nicotine. She says there is a higher risk of bleeding, healing is slowed, higher risk of leak, and higher risk of death. That to me is scary I would let them know when you quit and if it pushes your surgery back a little but means you will heal faster and be at less risk then isn't it worth it? Good luck, and congrats on quitting!

I agree! So far, the shakes are not good. I have resulted to not trying to enjoy them and sometime plugging my nose and just drinking it quickly. I don't think they are meant to enjoy:( I figure we can do anything for 4 weeks, right:)?

I felt the same way when I was supposed to start my 2 week preop diet. I flat out binged on fast-food the first 3 days (not saying this to encourage you to do that). But it was just hard for me too. I finally started my liquid diet for 1.5 wks and lost 10lbs before surgery this past Tuesday. Mentally I was exhausted. Good luck to you, so far it seems worth it when you get to the other side!

Just a thought, but at 3 weeks this happened to me and it turned out that I developed lactose intolerance. Every time I drank my protein drink mixed with milk, it made me so sick. I would break out in a sweat, become extremely nauseated and be sick for hours afterward. As soon as it occurred to me that it was the milk and I stopped drinking it, I didn't have any more problems. I hope this helps!! Keep us posted!!

Sleeved 9 weeks ago. No runny nose here. Odd.

No clue, I stayed off the scale entirely for the first few months except for weigh-ins at my doctor's office. So I didn't get on the scale until a month post-op (my surgeon doesn't weigh people at 2 week follow-up because that information is not meaningful). So, I was completely free from worry as to how much I was losing or how fast or was I having a stall. All I had to focus on was how well I was following my medical team's plan -- and that's all any of us really can control anyway.

Everyone is different, so answers will vary. It's all going to depend on your starting weight (the more you weigh, the more you will lose at first), age, whether you retain Water, etc.... I've seen people GAIN weight home from the hospital because of all the Fluid retention. I've seen people lose anywhere from 10-25 pounds the first 3 weeks. I think I'd lost 15. Like I said, it varies so much for so many reasons. Also, expect a stall soon after (usually starts around the 3rd or 4th week) Just the body taking a break after the quick weight loss. Then you will stabilize to a normal rate of loss of about 2-4 pounds a week.

I was 318 and at my 2 week check up I was 284....alot was fat from my breast...lol got to buy new bras now!

@@jfzimmerman . . . I was also sleeved August 5th. I've stalled too, but expected it (maybe not quite this soon) thanks to this community! Stalled at 11 pounds post surgery.

Wednesday will be 3 weeks for me, i have lost 16 lbs so far, but most of that was in the first 10 days, loss has slowed down. So i guess i will be about 17-18 down. I was hoping to lose a bit more, but i will take every lb i get.

@@Thinside I'm stilled stalled; six days now. scale won't budge. I saw my surgeon yesterday and he said I have to start walking to get my metabolism working again. He's asking for 15 min a day at least 4 days a week; more days if I can do it. So today, I start walking! Yay! lol!

I know why they want us to quit smoking. It's awful for ones body. I know exactly what it's doing to me. Before anyone preaches , believe me I know. Just like we all know how unhealthy it is to be massively overweight........ But I have a question I was suppose to stop smoking all together but I have not completely stopped. My surgery date is 02/25/2017 and I still have approx 3-6 cigarettes a week. Has anyone still smoked a little ? Before or after ??? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

After trying years of diets and yo-yoing up 5-10 pounds each time, I decided to go with the Lap Band device. I went through the pre-surgical testing and got my insurance company to approve it upon my first appeal and an additional six-month waiting period. In that time I dropped from 380 pounds down to 360 (which was my pre-surgery goal) and on Valentine's Day in 2008 I got the surgery. I was in at 7 am, and home in my recliner by 5 pm. The abdominal pain was absolutely minimal. I was able to get out of bed and walk within the first hour, and was voiding my bladder and cruising the hallways soon thereafter. I refused the morphine they were offering as I wanted to go home, and honestly there was no need for it as I was in minimal discomfort. Once home I quickly adjusted to the phase-one diet and ate the clear liquids and developed an affinity for nice cool Jell-o (lime or orange). I no longer experienced "hunger" as I once did. Even though I knew I hadn't eaten but a handful of calories in any given day, I did not feel "hunger". As I approached phase-two I began to develop some "cravings" which after discussing with my nutritionist I found to be a healthy response to the surgery--a way for your body to tell you what you're needing. I don't even question it when my body tells me that raw calf's liver would be SOOOO good right now. I just do it. Once onto phase-three and normal life I began to feel better about myself as I (rapidly) dropped weight. Within 12 months I had dropped nearly 100 pounds, 3 trouser sizes, two inches from my neck, 2 shirt sizes (from a XXXL-Tall to a XXL) and amazingly--TWO shoe sizes--I once wore a 14 and can now fit a 12 comfortably. My knees stopped making horrible grinding noises, my hips stopped hurting and I found I had more energy to tackle my tasks with. To make myself feel even better I once loaded 100 boxes of butter (sorry Safeway) into a cart just to see the physical quantity of weight I had lost. Likewise--I have thrown a pair of 40 pound bags of dog food on my shoulders to experience just SOME of what I was carrying around. It makes all the difference in the world when you still perceive yourself as a "fat man" to look at some tangible facsimiles of your achievements. Now--about my device, my post-op life and the joys of living with the Lap Band: I received an "AP Standard" device in lieu of the "AP Large." My surgeon has never been able to give me a reason why other that "I have never used an AP Large device and didn't feel comfortable doing so here." Initially I thought this was a bonus as I would lose weight a little mroe rapidly. What I did NOT know whas what to expect in the process. Yes, I went to ALL of my classes, nutritional counseling, etc. Yes, I understand fully how to eat. NO! I did not sign on for this. Each bite of food I take--regardless of how I chew, registers somewhere in the 7 range on the pain scale. Even water--is about a 5 for 10-15 minutes after I swallow. The surgeons (I have multiple) have all scoped me, barium'd me, fluoroscope'd, swallow studied, etc me to no end. There is no slippage, no obstruction, no swelling, and no redness. Only "An extremely small pouch with very tight restriction." During my first adjustment (more on that later) my surgeon primed my device and in doing so, completely closed my esophagus and rocketed me into a vasovaglic episode. Since that time I have had ZERO Fluid in my device--not a single CC in the bladder, not even a drop of saline to prime it. Of course in order to make sure of this, each surgeon has to attempt to drain it again--so I got very used to being adjusted. As long as your surgeon is competent (NOT like Colin MacColl) you don't even need any of that local anesthetic-stuff. None at all. It's just more needle-sticks and to tell you the honest truth--the "big" adjusting needle doesn't hurt AT ALL. If you'd like to see what it's all about, go to YouTube and search "POV LapBand" and you'll see Colin MacColl failing miserably and repeatedly at accessing my (very easy) port. While this particular procedure was uncomfortable for me (as evidenced by my toes in the video...) it was NOT painful and I had zero anesthetic. When I finally grew tired of a life in pain and constant medical testing with no results I accused one of my surgeons (Colin MacColl) of practicing "diagnostic medicine" on me and demanded that he do something other than shrugging and saying "Let's try this." The next week I received a letter informing me that I was "fired" as a patient of Oregon Bariatric and would have to seek a new doctor. In the end--I am now 18 months post-op, sitting at 235 pounds (down 155 pounds) with an un-regulated and completely un-restricted device. I have no surgeon/bariatric doctor. I am hypoglycemic, I have 3 major Vitamin deficiencies, I vomit at least twice a day, I eat less than 200 food-calories in any given 24 hour period and when I do I am down-and-out-in-pain for a good 90 minutes after I eat it--IF I can keep it down without vomiting. Am I happy being the "new-man?" Hell yes! It's GREAT being "Skinny(er)." Would I recommend the Lap Band procedure to anyone? HELL NO! Looking forward to talking with you all. Cheers!

I have had depression for years, waaaayyyyyy before surgery. It has not gotten any worse/better 2 years post-op. I am a little happier overall and my self-esteem is much much higher with the weight loss. But the 2 weeks right after surgery, I was pissed at the world an was ready to fight anyone and everyone - for no reason I can figure out! But, for everything I've gone though, it was sooooooo worth it to be released from the Fat Suit I was trapped in and to realize the dream of being a normal sized person. But you gotta be willing to commit to the necessary changes it will entail. I was a rock bottom before I committed to surgery. You are stronger than you think. You CAN make BIG changes. Imagine yourself a year from now. What chances will you regret not taking? What opportunities will you regret having turned down? Certain sacrifices are worth it. I wish upon you the wisdom to know which ones are right.

Hi guys . My surgery date it's aug17 . I'm 5'2 and was 226 started protein diet last week and now I'm down to 218 .. Anyone else doing it same day ??

yes it is.. give your body a moment to adjust... its a huge thing you just did.. and its like still in shock over it.. trust me it will start coming off.. just keep up the protein and keep up the fluids.. and in no time you well see a difference.. just remember to also walk walk walk.. that helps with pain too.. and will make you feel better.. good luck and keep us posted here.. dont get discouraged.. it will happen.. and dont let the scale rule you.. I dont ever weigh until I go to the doctor.. then im like so totally suprised and happy.. .. maybe if you just weighed once a week. or just waited til the doctor appt..

I did preop diet 2 weeks. Mine consisted of liquid protein drinks 4 x per day for 3 days then I could substitute one protein drink with a garden fresh salad daily starting day 4. I wasnt hungy at all. I can only find my protein drinks at Sams and they are Premier protein with 30g protein 1gm sugar and 160 calories. They come in choc and vanilla. I was taking in less than 700 calories a day and lost about 12 or 13 lbs preop. I was told its to get the fat out of the liver to reduce risk of damaging the liver during surgery. The weight loss feels good though.

*doin a happy dance for Wishes* Congrats! Hopefully you dont have to do a 3 week pre-op diet or anything....

This has nothing to do with my band, I just need to get it out... I have a Chihuahua that I love. The hubby and I decide to start looking for a brother or sister for her. He knows someone giving away a Chihuahua at the end of march. In conversation with Mom, I mention the free dog and how we are excited to get her. Last night, she says "dad wants the dog." HUH? So today, I call Mom and she says Dad is excited about the dog. Again... HUH? I never once offered her the dog and now they want MY dog????:frown: I offered them Wiley and the neighbor got them a dog that they said no to and she is stuck with. So I am now conflicted. Do I give my parents the new dog? Do I tell them that we want the dog? I want to give them the dog but hubby wants to keep the dog (I also want to keep the dog). I have spent all night on petfinder, craigslist, shelter sites, you name it, I have been there seeking a dog for them. I am concerned that if I find them a dog I will be stuck with it like their neighbor. I have 3 cats and a dog and one dog on the way. I dont want 3 dogs. (Okay, I do but I gotta draw the line somewhere). On a band note, I go for my 2nd fill on saturday. If it hurts like the 1st fill, I am so gonna punch Dr. F. in the chops.:biggrin: I have been eating fine but not exercising and that is my downfall. I refuse to step on the scale but I feel like I am gaining not losing. I am a bit frustrated but I have no reason to be frustrated if I cant get my tub-o-lard self motivated enough to look at the treadmill much less use the damn thing. I had a salad incedent last saturday... I ate too much too fast and felt like I was gonna die. When I over-eat, I get sleepy. I started to fall asleep but my chest felt like it was gonna rip open. I dont ever want to feel like that again. It was wild (in a bad way). I ate salad all week and have not had any adverse reactions to it. I love salad and I hope I can continue to eat it. Okay, bitch session over.:tt2: I am stressed out but going to bed now. I hope I can relax enough to sleep. 4:30 comes way too early for my liking. Thanks for letting me vent... SIGH:leaving:

For forum and group purposes I do the whole breakdown.... High Weight, Pre Op Weight, Day of Surgery Weight.... For everyone else I just do a total. I hate feeling like it is necessary to break it down. A loss is a loss, why does it matter if it came from surgery or before surgery? Honestly my highest was around a week before I had my first bariatric appt. I have lost all of my weight from my highest since starting this journey, part of it was required (a 5lb loss before paperwork was submitted) but I was already down 7lbs from my heaviest when I met with the clinic. Granted what he doesn't know is that during my 6mo pre op diet I actually gained to my heaviest at one point.

quit date is a week after starting--i didn't do it that way, i just took the pills and that was it--i didn't set a quit date or anything--it just happened --my month supply was finished off when hubby took it to quit--daughter got her own and shared it with her sister in law who also quit i know youare not supposed to share meds--but that is what we did and it worked