Everything went well in Ohio. Dr. Watkins and his staff were great.

I feel really good actually. My Husband and I walked A LOT today. We walked across the bridge into Kentucky, and then drove to Indiana just to say we had been there. There was also a lot of walking in and out of the airports, but I feel great! Now that I have the big worry of the travel and surgery over with, I am now concerned about the weight loss I will achieve. Will my worries ever end??? I just got home and the first posts I read were of people being able to eat too much, and now I am a little freaked out. I guess only time will tell if I made the right choice or not.

I would be happy to tell anyone more about my experience with Dr. Watkins, just PM me. I am going to go to sleep in my own bed now YEAH!

Where was your surgery at? I live north of Cincinnati so I am assuming you were in that area since you said you drove into IN and were in KY too. I had my surgery at The Jewish Hospital in Oct. by Dr. Fegelman. Where do you live?

Try not to worry too much. I know its easier said than done. I just know when I worry too much about how much weight I want to lose, it just makes it slow down.

Enjoy your night in your OWN bed

Keep your chin up... I've only heard good posts from Dr Watkins' patients so hopefully you'll be OK!

Where was your surgery at? I live north of Cincinnati so I am assuming you were in that area since you said you drove into IN and were in KY too. I had my surgery at The Jewish Hospital in Oct. by Dr. Fegelman. Where do you live?

Try not to worry too much. I know its easier said than done. I just know when I worry too much about how much weight I want to lose, it just makes it slow down.

Enjoy your night in your OWN bed

Dr. Watkins' practice is in West Chester. We flew in and out of the CVG airport. I live in utah, so it took a little over 3 hours to fly there. Everything went smoothly, almost to good to be true. I have no desire to eat anything now. I am forcing myself to drink. I just hope that 3 weeks from now I can eat enough, but not too much. I know it is only a tool, and my success depends on me, but I really hope I am not able to eat 3 tacos like another poster said.

That scares the $*@^ out of me.

Welcome back! I've been thinking of you and hoping everything went well for you. I, too, get worried about these other posters who say they can eat more than they thought. But I'm trying to just remember that we are all different and you and I may not have the same experience as they have. Also, even if we are able to eat more than we thought, we still need to stay focused on NOT doing that, if we can!

Welcome back! I've been thinking of you and hoping everything went well for you. I, too, get worried about these other posters who say they can eat more than they thought. But I'm trying to just remember that we are all different and you and I may not have the same experience as they have. Also, even if we are able to eat more than we thought, we still need to stay focused on NOT doing that, if we can!

Hey R!

I have been wondering about you too! How do you feel? Dr. C office finally called me back 3 times while I was gone. A little too late.

By the time we paid for a rental car, baggage fee's and such, the price was probably the same as Dr. C, but I don't have any regrets about traveling so far. Unless something happens in the next 3 months, I'll be wishing I had that BLIS insurance. I was just too impatient to wait around for anyone to call me back.

The surgical center was very small, but the recover rooms were big. It was clean and Modern. The nurses and anest. were so nice and put me at ease. My Husband stayed with me that night.

Did your husband stay with you the night of your plication? What type of liquids are you drinking? I am too scared to try anything besides Clear Liquids yet.

I am happy that I am walking and moving normally. My kids don't know about my surgery, and I am feeling good enough that they have not noticed.

When do you see Dr. Cottam again? Maybe we can meet up and get some lunch (if we can eat by then). So good to hear from you. Keep me posted.

Glad everything went great and u r on the road to recovery. I'm almost 5 weeks out and have noticed that I can eat a bit more. I'm trying to follow the "Just because I can, doesn't mean I should" rule. I'm almost never hungry but do feel empty if I haven't eaten in awhile. Today was the first day I ate food for breakfast - I usually do 1/2 a protein shake. I ate almost 1 scrambled egg with a sprinkle of cheese, about 3 tiny bites of potatoes and a bite of tortilla. I'm still in the midst of a stall so I'm going to increase my exercise, water and protein a bit next week to see if that helps. I have lost inches and am down from a size 22 to a 20. Make sure u record ur measurements because that has really helped me during this stall. Take care and walk!!

Hey R!

I have been wondering about you too! How do you feel? Dr. C office finally called me back 3 times while I was gone. A little too late.

By the time we paid for a rental car, baggage fee's and such, the price was probably the same as Dr. C, but I don't have any regrets about traveling so far. Unless something happens in the next 3 months, I'll be wishing I had that BLIS insurance. I was just too impatient to wait around for anyone to call me back.

The surgical center was very small, but the recover rooms were big. It was clean and Modern. The nurses and anest. were so nice and put me at ease. My Husband stayed with me that night.

Did your husband stay with you the night of your plication? What type of liquids are you drinking? I am too scared to try anything besides clear liquids yet.

I am happy that I am walking and moving normally. My kids don't know about my surgery, and I am feeling good enough that they have not noticed.

When do you see Dr. Cottam again? Maybe we can meet up and get some lunch (if we can eat by then). So good to hear from you. Keep me posted.

Hi L,

I waved at you as we drove through your hometown on our way down there! Nice looking community. I'm feeling much better the past couple of days with very little pain or discomfort now. But, it's a learning experience trying to figure out what the pains are or not to overeat, etc. Yesterday I ate a small amt. of Soup a little too fast and I hurt for about 15 minutes afterwards. Like they say, if you feel like you're full, don't take that one more bite! I'm usually having a Protein shake or cream of wheat for breakfast, then drinking flavored Water, iced tea, crystal light etc, in between meals. Lunch and dinner are usually 4 oz of soup...cream of chicken, split pea, cream of potato, etc. Then I'll try to fit in a little bit of a Protein Shake in the evening but most of the time I'm too full for that. I've been adding unflavored Protein powder to the Soups. I'll ocassionally have a sugar free popsicle or some diluted sugar free pudding. I'm down 17 lbs since starting the preop diet 2 weeks ago! We told my husband's parents last night about my surgery. I thought they would be critical, but they were very supportive and excited for me, although full of advice, of course! I'm not sure when I'll be back down to see Cottam again. I'm thinking 3-6 months with 6 months for sure. I'll definitely let you know and we can meet and share our successes! How are YOU doing so far?

Glad everything went great and u r on the road to recovery. I'm almost 5 weeks out and have noticed that I can eat a bit more. I'm trying to follow the "Just because I can, doesn't mean I should" rule. I'm almost never hungry but do feel empty if I haven't eaten in awhile. Today was the first day I ate food for breakfast - I usually do 1/2 a Protein shake. I ate almost 1 scrambled egg with a sprinkle of cheese, about 3 tiny bites of potatoes and a bite of tortilla. I'm still in the midst of a stall so I'm going to increase my exercise, Water and protein a bit next week to see if that helps. I have lost inches and am down from a size 22 to a 20. Make sure u record ur measurements because that has really helped me during this stall. Take care and walk!!

Good advice about "Just because I can..." I heard a stall is normal about 3-5 weeks out. I'm not looking forward to it myself!

Hi L,

I waved at you as we drove through your hometown on our way down there! Nice looking community. I'm feeling much better the past couple of days with very little pain or discomfort now. But, it's a learning experience trying to figure out what the pains are or not to overeat, etc. Yesterday I ate a small amt. of soup a little too fast and I hurt for about 15 minutes afterwards. Like they say, if you feel like you're full, don't take that one more bite! I'm usually having a Protein shake or cream of wheat for breakfast, then drinking flavored Water, iced tea, crystal light etc, in between meals. lunch and dinner are usually 4 oz of soup...cream of chicken, split pea, cream of potato, etc. Then I'll try to fit in a little bit of a protein shake in the evening but most of the time I'm too full for that. I've been adding unflavored protein powder to the soups. I'll ocassionally have a sugar free popsicle or some diluted sugar free pudding. I'm down 17 lbs since starting the preop diet 2 weeks ago! We told my husband's parents last night about my surgery. I thought they would be critical, but they were very supportive and excited for me, although full of advice, of course! I'm not sure when I'll be back down to see Cottam again. I'm thinking 3-6 months with 6 months for sure. I'll definitely let you know and we can meet and share our successes! How are YOU doing so far?

Glad to hear you are doing so well. I have also been feeling pretty good physically. I am an emotional wreck though. I feel a little cheated that I only hear about these "several" complications after I have had my procedure done. I feel like I should have waited a few more months before I took such a risk on a new surgery. Every little tiny cramp I feel now, I start freaking out thinking that my stomach tissue is rotting. I don't think I will have any peace over my decision until about 6 months from now. I know I am being overly dramatic, but I am seriously worried.

Today I had about 4 oz slimfast, 6 oz apple juice, 4 oz broth, and 4 oz gatorade. looking forward to being able to eat cottage cheese next week.

Sorry to be such a downer, I just feel a little sad and worried today.

I think it's normal to worry. I'm almost 5 weeks out and I'm also a bit worried. I did talk to Dr. Billy about this issue and he said that inadequate blood supply is a concern but the stomach receives blood from about 5 arteries so even if 1 is harmed or injured, the stomach has other ways of getting blood. My question is about how this problem is detected, is it just an Upper GI or a barium swallow?

Lmom - Did you have an Upper GI before being released?

I had an upper GI in the hospital and one at about 2 weeks post-op, that eased my mind quite a bit.

Glad you are recovering nicely.

Hey Genepha

I had a barium swallow about 24 hours after, and everything looked great. I am going to try to line up another one with a local Dr. for next week though.

I talked to Dr. W today, and feeling a little better. Actually, when I think about it, I would be just as worried had I gotten the Lap-band. I have heard too many horror stories about that as well.

Also, on a more posative note. I had 1/2 can of slimfast, and I feel full. I know that my stomach is still swollen, but it is still a good feeling to be full on such a little amount.

I'm two months out and I still worry. That's normal. There are days when I feel I can eat more and others where I don't feel very hungry at all. I have learned that eating slower helps. Best of luck to you.