i am sure this question has been asked many times, but here it is again. I just had my surgery at about 2pm on thursday the 2nd (2 days ago). I am still in pretty bad pain. I am stiff all over, but i figure that is from lack of motion. the gas has been pretty bad, but it is calming down. Right now the main thing that is causing me pain is the area around the insicions as well as my stomach in general (like sharp pains every couple of minutes). It also is very painful when i try to cough or take deep breaths and move around as well. What i want to know is how long this lasts and at what point is all the pain gone (as in the band isnt always on your mind anymore due to its pain)? also any tips would be appriciated... thanks very much.

i know this post is all over the place, but i would appriciate any help. thanks.

MBL

I was very unconfortable for 4 - 5 days, but it did get better each day. I didn't feel like myselft again for a couple of weeks. Good luck to you. Give yourself the rest you need. It is really worth it.

My hubby had surgery almost 3 wks ago. He says he doesn't feel like anything was done other than an occasiaon pain from his port.

Give your body time to heal. And don't forget to use the breathing thingy even though you are hurting!!

Best of luck to ya!

I've had quite a few surgeries over the past 12 years and never had a moment's discomfort. I truly could have walked out of the recovery room after my ovariohysterectomy and gone back to my office job. Same for sinus surgeries and carpal tunnel surgeries. So I sure wasnt expecting to have any discomfort after a simple banding.

Wrong! I was fine the first day but the 2nd and 3rd days were killers; the 3rd day was worse than the 2nd. My port area hurt 24/7, especially when I tried to get in or out of bed. I whimpered so much my dog got stressed! I couldnt believe how much it hurt and I was even regretting having had the surgery. I couldnt imagine how people say they went back to work on the 3rd day. But we're all different. It was better on the 4th day and, by the 5th day, I was feeling fine (although still somewhat tired).

About two weeks after banding I was sitting at my office desk and started getting sharp pains that didnt go away. I called the doctor the next day and learned that's normal. They were some kind of muscle spasms and finally did go away a day later.

So today and tomorrow may be your worst days but you WILL feel better and you'll be as happy as I am about being banded. Good luck!

Oh geeze. I remember how bad it hurt to try and take a deep breath. I was sent home with a Incentive Spirometer, which was a gadget I had to suck on to get this blue marker to rise to a certain level. Gawd I hated doing that. It always made me cough, which as the purpose. It hurts to breath in because of the diaphram. There has been trauma to the area, and there is a lot of gas left in there pushing up against the diaphram as well. This means you will want to avoid breathing in deeply, but you must to prevent pneumonia.

I also had a band of pressure around my lower rib cage that made me groan and whine whenever I had to sit up. I moved slowly, I felt like I had been hit by a truck!

But I'm just ending week four now and all of that has been gone so long I had almost forgotten it. I need to get that in my journal before it's lost for good!

Hang in there buddy. We are all different. Some walk out happy and not hurting. Some take two or three weeks to get on their feet again. Just go with what your body tells you it needs. Take it easy, follow doc's orders, and call him or her if you have any significant pain or worries.

Best of luck to you, and grats on your Band!

thank you guys for the helpful answers, it gives me something to look forward too. also, it has been about six hours since i posted my question, and i already feel 10 times better (not great by any means, but much much better). so thanks lots.

MBL

I felt much better on the 4th day. Not totally pain free, but mostly not uncomfortable. It wasn't until 3 months did I feel NO pain whatsoever (sleeping on stomach, bending, etc).

Every day, you should see improvement...Shawn

I love this site : -) I always relate to people and say ..."oh, good others feel the same way I do".

I am three weeks out and feeling good. It took over a week before i changed from pain to discomfort. another week after that the discomfort wasn't there all the time... Now sometimes when I get up and pull on those muscles... OHHHHH! I had added pain from a hernia repair.

I still get real tired in the late afternoon... my DH will say.."honey, you just had surgery, take it slow". Everyone is different. Be good to yourself....