I wanted to start a thread for those of us who are waiting "with bated breath" for our surgeries in March.

I am supposed to start Optifast on February 26th. I am currently waiting for the shipment, including my surgical package to be delivered. Once I get my package I am supposed to call the clinic.

Ever since committing to this surgery (which I am paying for myself via a personal loan) I have been obsessed with reading everything I can about it and about people who have had it. I am still kind of hoping for some kind of "divine word" about whether or not it is the right thing for me to do.

I am "only" 75 lbs over my ideal weight but am type II diabetic. I am trying to figure out if my reason for doing this is my health or my vanity or a combination of both. The diabetes needs to be gone (when I am 20 lbs lighter it is gone) but I am sure looking forward to losing the weight and actually keeping it off for more than 20 minutes...

An awesome site to find answers after getting banded is: www.lapbandlifestyle.com .

Great things are coming your way hang in there if you just got your band, is soooo worthed!!!

persistance--------

thanks for your update... that really helps alot to put my mind at ease that soon, someday I may too be where I need and want to be...

Thanks

I was pretty much on my own as far as taking care of myself and in that regard I wish I had taking a closer look around my room and put things at standing level.

Also, slip on shoes. It took me a week before I could tie my sneakers and I still have a problem tying the left one.

Good Luck on the 30th!!

OH MY GOSH! Wentworth Miller speaking in spanish on Prison Break!!!! That just made this night a little easier. Sugery on Friday

Well I think I've reached my breaking point with this stupid liquid diet. I just can't stand just having broth and jello and clear stuff. I want something SUBSTANTIVE in my stomach. I'd kill for an egg - and I want to make scrambled eggs with skim milk so badly, but my husband is such a stickler for the 2 week diet. I'm sitting here crying because I can't eat what I really want. Doesn't help that I dreamed of eating a bacon egg and cheese biscuit from McDonalds. And of eating home fries from my favorite diner. I would kill for some stir fried veggies right now - which is funny because I don't usually like veggies. I just want something DIFFERENT. If they want me tdrink milk then they are going to have to let me put some chocolate in it, because I can't stomach plain milk.

*sigh* Just feeling sorry for myself *lol*

I've been keeping to a 4-6 hr regime for the pain meds. The new pain I'm having is just intolerable though. Even with the pain meds I still feel it. However the doc on call said it is normal and to just increase the pain meds if I need to, but then I'm worried about running out of the pills *lol*

If you run out you can get a refill... :bolt: Thats what I did. Honestly. The first couple of days post op it hurt more than I expected it to and DH and I looked at the bottle and so forth and based on the tylenol amounts we did a couple of calculations and figured I could increase my dose (It was only vicodin. And I have taken a lot of pain meds in my past so I have experience calculating dosages and stuff, honest. While doing this we also noticed that while that darvocet I have ( I have a big ole bottle of darvocet lying around. doesn't everyone LOL) says I can take two pills at a time I really can't because of the amount of tylenol in it. All the opiods come in various doses with different amounts of tylenol. But the darvocet tabs I had were too big for me and it was too difficult to take them broken up because of the number of pieces (darvocet is stronger for me than vicoden but it doesn't come in liquid). So I just increased my vicoden. I also took it with hydroxezine. Its a prescription antihistamine that helps with nausea and also increases the efficacy of pain meds. I take it for my sinuses at bed time, but I first discovered it in the ER for pain... they give it with demerol a lot. And then when I ran out of vicoden I got a refill. I didn't even use all of the refill.

So try asking for hydroxezine and a refill. Take the higher dose now if you need it.

Well, just like my pants, the band is getting looser. I can now, finally, drink with ease. I was really restricted so it was just sips and waiting and burping. But now I get to have a good gulp. Its so wonderful!

I'm a little surprised by how fast I am losing weight. I lost another two pounds already (not shown on my ticker). I need to go buy a belt so my trousers will stay up (seriously). I went to walgreens last night and I had to keep yanking them back up to where they are supposed to be. I tried on the size 20 jeans I had in the closet the other day and they were too tight (sure I could fasten them and breathe but the fat was all over the top and I bet sitting wouldn't be comfortable). I figured I would try them on again in a couple of weeks, but at the rate I am going...

Right now I have lost 14 pounds in less than 2 weeks since the surgery. I know I should be thrilled about that, and I am for the most part, but I am wondering when the rate of weight loss is going to slow down. I want to lose a lot of weight, of course, but 7 or 8 pounds a week is just a bit fast. After all, thats one of the reasons I chose the band. I start on mushies in a couple of days and I imagine that will slow the rate of loss down a bit. And if that doesn't, I'm sure solids will.

I can see why I am losing weight-- I am not comsuming very many calories. There has only been a couple of days where I got up to 1000 calories. Yesterday I had 750 calories. And I took a long walk (too long, I over did it actually) and even had ice cream! But my dietician didn't give me a minimum number of calories to consume, only a maximum (1400). And I'm working on getting my protein in.

Am I the only one a little nervous about their rate of weight loss? I feel so silly being nervous about it at all.

On the other hand, I do feel like I have to work with some of my overeating issues that I wasnt necessarily aware of. And that is a good thing. Last night, for example, I was feeling a little blue. Maybe because I was sore and tired after overdoing it-- I don't know. It happens. And I was sitting and thinking about things I could do to give myself a lift and the first "good" idea I had involved food. I thought of making something and eating something. It would give me something to do that I enjoyed and then I could which I also liked. And I wasn't even hungry when I thought that. So I think realizing that was a good thing. Since I'm still on liquids that obviously wasn't an option. So instead I went to favorite comfort number 2: a good read. I grabbed a Mary Higgens Clark novel when I was at walgreens. Those always cheer me up- basic whodunits that always have happy endings. Quick reads. I like them. The books I have in my current reading pile are either school books about catologing (not cheeful), 1984 (not cheerful), or a Margret Atwood novel (Life Before Man and while I greatly enjoy Margret Atwood she isn't what I would call cheerful). It worked.

I also am findng myself being mindful of my "rules" like no more than one serving of juice per day. If that wasn't a rule than I would drink more juice because I like juice, but I know it is a rule for good reasons so I do follow it. Before the band it would have been a lot harder for me to do that. Now when I think about getting something to drink and I have already had juice and I want it I just drink water or crystal lite instead. Or tea.

DH is being good too. Not in his eating habits- if anything those have gotten worse since my surgery. But about taking care of me I mean. Like the other day he wanted pizza but he asked if it would be ok with me if he ordered pizza and how I would feel about it and we talked about it first. I also made him cuddle with me when I was feeling blue and talk to me about that.

BTW does anyone know when we can have alchohol again? I have this sugar free margarita mix so its not like I'm going to have a billion calories with just one drink. But I know my tummy must still be swollen, and alchohol on a swollen tummy would be a bad idea.

Am I the only one a little nervous about their rate of weight loss? I feel so silly being nervous about it at all.

I'm a bit nervous about the rate of weight loss too. I was really expecting it to go a little slower, and would be happy with 1-2 lbs a week. I'm fitting into clothes I haven't gotten in to for a while, which is good, but the possibility of the skin not shrinking back and more stretch marks and sagging skin make me nervous. Plus my mind needs to catch up with what is going on here.

I'm supposed to have a fill in 3 weeks, but I think I'm going to wait if I'm still as restricted as I am now. I'm full on 3/4 cup of mushies, and can only get 1000 calories in. Maybe 3 weeks will make a big difference though.....we'll see.

Kyethra,

I have to ask when does the swelling go down in the upper tummy.

My pants are loose in the butt, and thighs, but my bra and waist area is still so swollen. I have my heaviest pants on and I am down 15 lbs. I am 7 days out.

I am still confused about 1 thing. On full liquids do we have to wait the 30 minutes to drink, or is that only with solids?

And does the pureed/mushie stage include egg salad/with mayo?

My husband just bought me a magic bullet I just don't seem to get it! LOL:guess

I put cottage cheese in it turned to paste?

I love my COCO Wheats, it is so yummy. 1 serving lasted 3 days.

Toodles, Gang

Question for bandsters done on the 15th...

Is anyone hungry yet? Yikes I am so hungry all of the time! I guess this means my swelling is just about gone. I was liking the tightness it held me in check. I can swallow just about normal but I am still watching what I eat and going by my doctors list which seems a little easy compared to some of your lists. Thank goodness...I would be dead by now if I had to still be on liquids. Forget to tell anyone who is interested...I never filled my pain meds from the hospital. Just used liquid tylenol. I do not like the way drugs make me feel.

I'm not sure when all my swelling went down up there... I know about three days I got less restriction. And I was banded on the 14th and today is the 26th... So if I do math that means that about nine days I guess for me based on restriction.

Most of my swelling was above my belly button where my incisions are. I just have a tiny tiny incision by my bra and it is about healed.

Right now I am eating cottage cheese! The dietician said I could start on that a couple of days early. It is so good! And no I didn't blend it. I did however, promise to chew it really well and eat it very slowly. I've always really liked cottage cheese so I have been wanting it for a month now... Ice cream, cottage cheese, protein shakes, I don't know what I would do without my dairy. Other than this though I am still on liquids until Wednesday and then I get to start on my two weeks of Mushies.

sushiqwn - 03/27

Rockn4u - 03/27

lisa - 03/27

:gluck:

I'm about to go for my walk, but I will check back soon to see what everyone's been up to.

Question for bandsters done on the 15th...

Is anyone hungry yet?

I am starting to get hungrier in the afternoons but it is still very manageable. And although I can swallow liquids MUCH faster I notice that when I eat I get full SO MUCH faster. It is truly amazing.

I was banded on the 12th.

I am one week banded today!!! And like you kyethra, I am worried about the speed of weight loss. This morning I am down 19 pounds. I think that is way too much for one week. Don't get me wrong, I am happy about being down 19 pounds and I know that I might put some back on when I start eating solids, but I was thinking that It would only be like 7 or 8 pounds in a week. I want to take it slow because I know what the back of thighs look like now (not pretty) and was hopeing to "shrink" some of that skin as I lose weight.

I feel a lot better today. My nose has quit running, thanks to Sudafed PE quick dissolve strips, I didn't take any pain meds at all yesterday, and I slept well last night. I still have a bit a pain if I try to take a deep breath, and am a little sore still under my left rib cage. But it didn't hurt when I went to put on my socks this morning. I am thinking that my recovery was helped along by all the walking that I have been doing. By 5:00 the day of surgery, I started walking and kept walking about 10 min. every 2 hours. When I got home I would still walk every two hours. I went back to work yesterday and walked in the morning before work, did 1/2 hour at lunch and walked for 20 minutes twice after work and before bed. I plan on keeping this up and increasing how long I walk.

I think I cheated last night. Okay, I know I did. I made homemade chicken noodle soup for my family using my own canned chicken and chicken broth ( I love canning and put anything into my pressure canner). I used a can of campbells cream of chicken soup in it. It smelled soooooooo good that I had to have some and I wasn't even hungery. So I skimmed off about 1/2 cup of the broth and ate it with a baby spoon. It was heaven. I also had 1/2 cup of unsweetened prune juice, which I love. I know that I wasn't to have the juice until next week but I want to get thing "moving", if you know what I mean. I just feel weird not having a bm everyday. But I wonder, am I constipated or just empty?

Best of luck to the 3/27 bandster. Praying for your speedy recovery.

Hello, I had my surgery on March 5th. I am doing well and feel great. I am new here so not don't have the weight tracker as of yet. Good luck everyone on your journey

:welcomeB: emilymor and Congratulations!!!