Things you wish someone had told you?

[Rogofulm 2,440]

Hey, @@Joey Jackson. Here's the stuff I wish someone had told me:

• That it hurts like hell when you first wake up! But the improvement starts almost immediately and after 2 weeks you'll feel pretty decent.
• That the first few trips around the floor are really hard, but after that walking actually starts to feel pretty good.
• That they would transition me from IV pain meds to pills during the night in the hospital. And yes, you can swallow a small pill.
• That the pain meds are only needed for 3 or 4 days.
• That Water is even more important than Protein during the first week or two.
• That if you don't get enough fluids, the Constipation is gonna really suck!
• That you should have some kind of laxative or stool softener ready. (Miralax is pretty good.)
• That food and drink are going to get stuck at various points in your esophagus at various times in the first few weeks, and make weird noises going down. This is normal, and due to swelling, and it improves pretty quickly.
• That tons of fluids (eventually) are the best way to keep your skin elastic, which might help down the road.
• That tons of Protein (eventually) plus Biotin is the best way to try and keep your hair.
• That Vitamin B-12 is a happy pill. (I prefer timed-release to sub-lingual.)
• That around week 3 after surgery, all weight loss may stop for 2-3 weeks! This is completely normal and here's why. good article
• That if I follow ALL the rules about what and when to eat and drink, never eat starches or sweets (or drink alcohol), and get regular exercise, I could lose 111 pounds and reach my goal weight in 7 1/2 months.
• And.... that if I did all of that, I would actually enjoy the journey... and I have!

Good luck! I wish you all the success in the world!!!

Edited February 27, 2015 by Rogofulm

[pinkmommy0409 3]

Love this, everyone!!!

[ProjectMe 909]

I wish someone told me to take others experiences with this surgery with a grain of salt. Based on what I read on forums I thought I would experience all types of issues like pain, trouble swallowing, unable to get my fluids or Protein in, etc. And I had none of those problems. The only one I can relate to is the Constipation issue, which seems to have cleared itself up now that I am 3 months PostOp. So my advice is that this is your experience and it will be different from others.

[Bobby46 327]

^{Biotine mouth spray. If you take nothing else with you at all, take this. You will have the driest mouth ever and ice chips and Water just don't cut it.}

^{As far as what to expect that no one told me about.....Nothing really. This forum had me well prepared.}

^{I had no pain and felt fantastic immediately after surgery. Your experience will be unique.}

^{All the best to you!}

[LipstickLady 25,682]

I wish someone had told me that the leak test was no big deal AT ALL, I was so afraid of it (that swallowing the relatively large amount of liquid all at once would hurt or make me sick) it was about 3/4 of an ounce and went down just fine.and was actually quite pleasant because I hadn't even had an ice chip in something like 27 hours.

I wish someone had warned me how horrific the leak test would be. The liquid made me so nauseated I threw it up the first time in the machine and had to redo it. The doctor was NOT pleased at all.

[minniegirl 258]

I wish someone had warned me how horrific the leak test would be. The liquid made me so nauseated I threw it up the first time in the machine and had to redo it. The doctor was NOT pleased at all.

So sorry to hear that, this is exactly what I was afraid of. It was at the very top of my fear list. We are all just so very different.

[Rovobay 920]

Don't sneeze!!!! seriously, don't do it.

Worst pain ever. sneezed about 6 days post op and thought I was going to die. fight the urge anyway possible. coughing sucks, but not nearly as bad as a sneeze. try to put pressure on your stomach if you do need to cough...

[3Pugaliers 30]

I was going to mention Biotine mouth spray but someone else has already covered that. I strongly recommend it.

The only other thing that I would add that hasn't been mentioned already is to bring one of those little wooden backscratchers. The pain meds made me itch and my husband brought me a backscratcher....it was a life saver. Nothing worse than trying to rest and recover only to have an itch that you can't scratch. My backscratcher came in really handy!

[LipstickLady 25,682]

So sorry to hear that, this is exactly what I was afraid of. It was at the very top of my fear list. We are all just so very different.

Good news, it only sucked for about an hour. Totally worth it.

[mis4may 35]

Ahhhh!!! your day is almost here!!! Best of luck to you :-)

[Elode 8,093]

I wish someone would have had the balls to tell me I could have benefited from surgery sooner! Oh well I Figured it out on my own

[Elode 8,093]

Oh and I wish someone would have told me I would finally not craze food or be hungry anymore! Disclaimer: not everyone loses all sense of hunger like I have. I feel "lucky" but to some that may seem like a bad thing. I have been hungry and overstuffed myself for so many years I'm thrilled I have no desires to do that anymore.....as of now anyway.

Edited March 2, 2015 by Elode

[CowgirlJane 14,261]

I experienced feeling... weird, not myself, sort of disconnected from my reality for probably the first 10-12 weeks post op. I don't know why I went through that and I am not sure it is a common experience. Part of it was that everything tasted weird.. even Water. It is a strange experience for such a basic "sense" to be altered and I found it disorienting.

I was also getting slammed with estrogen as the fat was melting away and releasing the very generous stored quantities. I went through menopause presleeve, but didn't experience any symptoms until I became slender. Weird. Turns out my fat functioned almost like another organ in my body - who knew.

It was temporary and not a problem over the long run, but it made me feel a little worried about living with the sleeve permanently - wondered if I was gonna feel like a stranger in a strange land my whole life. Nope - I am good now!...nah, I am GREAT now!

[samuelsmom 670]

For those who are just starting out- there are surgeons who do the leak test during surgery so you don't have to do it the next day. That was one of my "must haves" and I was lucky to find a local surgeon that routinely does them intra-op.

[samuelsmom 670]

@Elode I was looking forward to having my hunger gone for at least several months. But alas, it was back within 4 weeks. Sigh.....