Hello Everyone,

I am very new to this Journey and while I am excited, I am also nervous. I am in the "multitude" of tests phase prior to setting a surgery date. How long after all the tests are done does surgery normally happen?

I am afraid of the diet before and after surgery because I am not a Soup eater as I do not enjoy hot liquids. I hope that will change after the fact.

Any information anyone can give would be greatly appreciated as to what I can expect shortly prior to and directly after the surgery.

Thank you all

Hello and welcome!

Your insurance co. will probably set the pace for your preop tests and schedule your surgery according to how you do. Some require a six month supervised diet before surgery... Your doctor's office should be able to help you communicate with them on what their requirements are. If you are self- pay you only need to meet the surgeons pre-op test requirements and that can go quite quickly.

good luck!

I'm not big on hot liquids, either. What I ended up doing instead of the liquid pre-op diet, was dropped ALL carbs and ate nothing but Protein for 2 weeks. My liver was good and flat at the end but the first three days were hard because you literally go through a carb detox and have headaches, etc. But, by the end, it's pretty smooth sailing.

It's all worth it. Trust me. I LOVE my band!

Annie,

Thank you for the response...My insurance company has already approved the surgery, the requirements are for me to have the preop testing completed. Once those are completed, I will meet with the Dr. and set a surgery date.

Ginger,

Thank you for the heads up on the carbs withdrawal...I had no idea. Considering I am a paasta eater, I would venture to say I crave carbs big time. In the end it will all be worth it...I am only 46 years old and have a whole host of medical issues that this surgery will put under control. I have an 8 year old and I was flat out told, if I continue on the road I am on, I will not be here to see her graduate. So...this needs to be done and I need to change my life.

Welcome to the lapband journey. I went to my first orientation meeting in October and by the end of December had finished jumping through all the hoops of clearances that both the bariatric program and/or my insurance required from me. I had a documented history of the weight with my doctor and weight watcher books showing I had been doing that for 6 months faithfully. Once they got the insurance submission in, it was back in about 2 weeks. Then it took 6 weeks to get on the surgery schedule. I had my surgery on March 17 and I've never regretted it. Still need to lose about another 60 lbs but its going slowly now. Mostly due to my own stubborness at wanting to eat 'easy' foods when I want comfort - even though I know better. The key for me is to keep trying and remember I never want to go back to where I was 140 lbs ago!

Best wishes.