N E 1 been Banded at Mt. Carmel col, oh

[SKoenig 0]

Hi all! I was banded on Feb.20 with Dr. choban and she was great. So five dys out I'm doing well only pain now is right at the port site(I think) liquid postop diet is a drag but I've Lost 8lbs since the day before surgery. would love to hear more on events in the area. Keep me posted and good luck I know how excited u all are!! haven't figured out how to updatee my weight loss ticker but I'll give it ANOTHER TRY

[suecasb 0]

Hi Sarah, congratulations on being banded! Would you please walk us through your surgery experience from the time you got to the hospital? For those of us waiting to be banded it would be a big help to know what to expect. Well.....I can only speak for myself, but it would sure comfort me to know what is going to happen. Did you have to stay over night? Any thing you wish you would have known ahead of time?

[SKoenig 0]

I arrrived 2 hrs before surgery,registered and was taken to a room to change. From there I went to pre-op holding so the nurses could get me ready for surgery. In there I got my IV, a shot of Heparin to prevent blood clots and little boots on my feet that they hook up in surgery to a machine that applies pressure to the bottom of your feet to prevent clots in your legs. Dr. choban came in to say hi. The anesthiologist cam in to speak to me and then I waited for surgery time with my husband. As they took me to the operating room anesthesia gave me " a little something" to relax me. By the time I was in the OR and on the table they were giving me something else to make me sleepy and that's all Iremember until I woke up in the recovery room. I woke up and was drowsy but not in pain. I had a urinary catheter during surgery but it was out by the time I got into recovery. Before I went up to my room( i had to spend one night) I asked for pain medication (not because it was really that bad but i was afraid in transfer and getting settled into the new room it would be awhile before I would get pain meds) I was in my room by 2:30(surgery was at noon). Was pretty sleepy after they gave me some medicine for slight nausea, Thank God I never threw up.

I slept the rest of the day and they got me up to the bathroom(burned a little from the catheter but not bad. Got Clear Liquids that night.That evening I got up to walk the hallway got pain meds and went to sleep. by morning i felt 100% better although it hurt to get in and out of bed like muscle soreness. I also had quite a bit of gas pains from the surgery up in my shoulders and back and it felt like there was an air bubble in my stomach.

That morning Dr. Choban came in and told the the surgery had gone well and gave me instructions. After keeping down a liquid Breakfast i could go home. Breakfast was apple juice, cottage cheese(yuck) creamof wheat(yuck) milk. I did the best I could walked around for awhile and went home. If I had to say what I didn't expect or wished i had known is how much gas discomfort there would be(relieves with walking) and that i would be this hungry 5 days out. I keep trucking with the full liquids though. Let me Know if i can help further!! It will be sooo worth i. All in all really better than I expected if that helps....Whew.... I'm done typing I swear!!!

[suecasb 0]

Thanks a bunch Sarah..that is exactly what I wanted. Now I will know what to expect. I worry most about the time between when I get there and when I go into surgery...the longer the wait the more time I have to get scared!:)

[SpecialK 22]

Special Kay- one more thing, were you able to pay your co-pay for the consultation and such? I know there is the program fee and nutritionist fee for them, but I do have to do a pulmonary evaluation and psych eval and was hoping that they take co-pays. Also, were did you do you eval?

Thanks-

NDWife - yes I was able to do co-pays when I went to the Psych and Cardiology and even initial surgeon appt. I had to cover the extra cost of the cardiology tests that insurance did not cover. I went to Dr. Diana Brenner, Phd in Westerville for the psych consult just because she was on my insurance plan and close to Westerville to continue to be a person I could see for depression or other needs.

[SpecialK 22]

Sarah - thanks for the great detail on what to expect the day of surgery. I'm so excited one minute and kind of scared the next just thinking about it.

[SpecialK 22]

Okay I thought I was prepared to tell my male boss (I've only worked for him less than 6 months) about my lap band surgery. I took some pictures in with me and he was really understanding and said to do whatever I had to take care of in the two weeks leading up to surgery and take as much time as I needed after 1-2 weeks would be fine. We'd work it out. I got a little emotional (teary but not blubbering thank goodness) when I tried to explain a little about how hard its been to get through the whole insurance approval process and how there is some worry and fear that coworkers would be judgemental about it once they figure out I've done something like this. On the other hand, I said there are coworkers who are judgemental about severely overweight coworkers too. Anyway, it wasn't too bad and I'm glad he was so supportive. Really didn't want to show any tears though but I'm riding a wave of emotion about this.

I told him I plan to tell a limited number of close coworkers and not tell others and he said that is fine, do what you feel is right. I said at some point I may be more open about it but for now, I'd like to just limit who I have who knows what I have done.

Okay, that is one emotional hurdle down for me in my walk through the last few steps to surgery and a new life.

[SpecialK 22]

As if one surgery and emotion filled two weeks isn't going to be enough, last Friday I twisted my knee while I was still in bed and its really painful and I have a doctor appointment tomorrow a.m. to hopefully get it xrayed and get an order for some physical therapy appointments. My orthopedic guy is very anti-overweight ---warned me years ago to get that weight off or those knees will get worse and worse and of course they have. Then I had a rotator cuff tear in my right shoulder and he said my overweight was a contributing factor on that and would make healing from that only harder. True and painful to admit but I did get better with physical therapy. I am hoping when I see him tomorrow about the knee he won't suggest any surgery. I really don't want to do anything until after I've had the lap band surgery on March 17. I'm able to walk on it but I just have pain if I move it a certain way so I'm not sure what he might say. Wish me luck and say a prayer this knee will get better with just physical therapy until I can get some weight lost that will of course solve the long term problem.

[Lady Q T 0]

I am SOOOOOOOOO excited for you March babies, now SpecialK and Sue you ladies need to get out of your hospital rooms and walk them halls like crazy!!! I was up and out of my bed within an hour or two, and I am telling you ladies it did a great job on the gas pain every one is talking about, I did not have any gas pain. I was up walking every hour, even when I woke up in the middle of the night I got up and walked them hall way got boring doing the same circle, but well worth it.

SpecialK when you go to your Ortho and he starts getting on you again on your weight just tell him I know I know about the weight issue causing some of my problems and the next time you see me I will be looking GOOD! It is so wonderful when I go places and people haven't seen me since I was banded and they make wonderful comments on how GOOD I LOOK. Soon I am going to get Bold like Debbie and post my before and in progress pictures. But for now I need to get my lazy but back to exercising so I can lose more weight. My DH is trying to motivative me but I have the case of Laziness:frown: and need to get over it!!! Dr. Choban will not be happy if I go back March 20 and haven't lost any weight due to not exercising!!!!!!

I read someone post about every one meeting next month can some one please tell me the Date and Time so I can be there?

Also SpecialK I to decided not to tell anyone about my Lap Band surgery that included my Boss and co-workers (I was working back then). I just told my boss I had to have a medical procedure and needed to be off work for a week, by Law your Employer can not ask you why, and you start losing at a much slower pace then some one who has had Gastric By pass that when people start asking question I can tell them that you ar eating a very low cal. diet that your Dr. has put you on. Be careful who you tell because some people just cant keep their mouth shout and it could get around the office to people you don't want to know.

I want to be in Fl. with Nurse Niki!!!!! I am sick and tired of this cold weather I want warm weather NOW!!!!!!!

[Thinner me 1]

Wow Sarah, that was so great of you to go into such detail. Thank you. I love hearing about everyones experiences, it really does help with the jitters.

I'm still waiting for my approval letter.....ARRRRGGG!! I hate waiting, and thats all I've done for almost a year now LOL.

[suecasb 0]

TM you will get here just hang in there, we will be waiting for you!

Is an overnight stay standard procedure with Dr. Choban? I have tried to reach the elusive Charlene with this question so my daughters can request the time off work in advance to get me there and back, but so far have not heard from her. It's almost an hours drive for me and I'm guessing that it is not recommended that you drive yourself ??? :thumbup:

[SpecialK 22]

My orthopedic guy was very positive actually about me saying I was just about 2 weeks out from having my weight loss surgery. I just proactively said I know that losing a major amount of weight will help all the joint pains and issues and he agreed but wasn't judgemental at all. Praise God!

The downside, the Xrays did show my right knee has more arthritis in it than my left but he wasn't sure what was making the crackling and popping sounds so I'm off to have an MRI on my knee tomorrow.

Here's a good one...I had one closed MRI for a shoulder about 3+ years ago and it was really claustrophobic so I said I want an Open MRI and he said No Problem... yea! I don't know if it costs more but I'm happy.

Last, I asked my orthopedic doc about having to give up taking Aleve (I believe its what is called an NSAID) and whether I can get a prescription for something to offset knee pain in the future after my lap band surgery. He said he'd like to see what I will need after he knows the MRI results but he thought I could work my my primary care doc and find a good arthritis medicine that will be okay.

[SpecialK 22]

Suecasb - I haven't heard from Charlene yet on pre-op diet and testing appts, etc. but I figure I will. If it gets to be 10 days out, like about March 7th I will call and be sure I find out if I have to at a minimum do a week of pre-op Optifast type diet. I know we definitely have nothing by mouth after midnight on the night before surgery.

Do you know your surgery time yet? I don't. I suppose we will learn that at the pre-op visit too. I would just as soon get it over in the morning but whatever is fine too.

[SpecialK 22]

Hi all! I was banded on Feb.20 with Dr. choban and she was great. So five dys out I'm doing well only pain now is right at the port site(I think) Liquid postop diet is a drag but I've Lost 8lbs since the day before surgery. would love to hear more on events in the area. Keep me posted and good luck I know how excited u all are!! haven't figured out how to updatee my weight loss ticker but I'll give it ANOTHER TRY

Here is a link over to the thread for our monthly get together for this March but I saw you post over there already too.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f56/central-ohio-get-together-march-8-2008-a-51861/

[suecasb 0]

SpecialK, I got my packet in the mail Tuesday. My surgery is scheduled for noon on the 17th, I have to be there at 10:00am. My pre-admission session is on the 6th at 9am, that takes most of the day, then on the 13th I have a pre-op appointment with Dr. Choban at 2:30.

What I am trying to find out now is if I will have to spend the night. My daughters need to request time off and if they wait to long I may have to drive myself.:rolleyes2: If it's a two day thing, one will go with me the day of and the other one will come get me. I don't want them both to miss 2 days of work.