Any bandsters who quit before surgery? after surgery? Smoked before and after? How did you quit, if you did?

I know all the horrific stuff about smoking~ I am working on quitting, am down to half of usual cigs per day~

If you couldn't quit before surgery, did you have problems with anasthesia? I am trying hard to totally quit, but haven't gotten there quite yet.

I love Zyban. I took that and about a month later I could not stand the taste of a cig!

Here is some information from an anesthesiologist friend of mine:

"The most common post-op complication that we see is a pulmonary problem. There are multiple reasons for is, and surgeons are quick to point the finger and say "it's the anesthesia." The cause is much more complex than that. A quick physiology lesson:

Think of your lungs as being a bunch of tiny balloons at the end of straws. When you exhale, you compress the balloons using your chest muscles to squeeze the air out. However, you never really empty them. A small amount of air remains in the balloon. This is called the "functional residual capacity" (FRC). However, some of the balloons (the ones at the base - bottom - of the lung) may indeed collapse. The only way to get these to open is to "pop" them open by taking deep breaths. There's the dreaded word - "deep breaths." After surgery, deep breaths are more difficult (painful) to take, and people tend to not do it because it hurts. Larger people have more work to do to move the chestwall, and it takes more effort to get those big breaths in.

When you don't keep those sacs (alveoli) open, you set up a situation in which bacteria like to grow. Bingo - pneumonia.

There a couple of things to keep in mind in your case:

1) I assume that you're basically in good health, and there's nothing other than what I mentioned above (surgery and size) keeping you from taking big deep breaths.

2) Laparoscopic surgery is MUCH less of an insult to the breathing mechanism. The incisions are small, it doesn't hurt as much, and you're less disinclined to deep breathe.

3) It sounds like your surgeon is a pro, and face it, you're good at what you do a lot of. Experience means faster surgery, and faster is better because there are a bunch of other pulmonary things that won't happen. (For a discussion of the effects of anesthesia on pulmonary function, see next week's lecture).

4) The difference between what they set as their "goal" for the spirometer and what you can actually do doesn't sound like much to me. The important thing is that you deep breathe and keep moving as much as the surgeon allows. Lying around in bed afterward sets you up for the things I mentioned. "

I had a little breathing exercise machine the doctor gave me to take home, and I had to bring it to the hospital with me. They said do it pre-op to strengthen my lungs.

They said when I awoke from surgery I needed to be doing the exercises on it (you breath into it, and balance a ball at a certain pressure of blowing).

I was so out of it, I don't remember doing it, but the nurse said they'd make sure my family would make me do it, so I assume they did. They also had to make me walk the halls, and I fuzzily remember that.

chantix...

chantix.... New pill to quit smoking.. You smoke while taking the pill.. Everyone I know that has tried it quit with no problem....

Wasa - I would never have figured you for a smoker ... I really thought you would be so anti-smokeing being a nurse and all...

Well, I'm a nurse and I was fat too. Not a great example.

I think you might be surprised at how many medical folks smoke, docs, nurses, resp care folks, the works.

chantix.... New pill to quit smoking.. You smoke while taking the pill.. Everyone I know that has tried it quit with no problem....

Well, now you know someone that it didn't work for. Didn't do a thing for me.

Bupropion (generic of Zyban) made a huge difference but the side effects were so horrible I couldn't stand it. I was sleeping about one to two hours a night.

You know, when I got into all of this, I never really thought about all the other "bad" things I was doing. I was worried about losing weight. That's what my goal is and has been since I made my first appointment about LB. Then, they told me I would have to give up my diet mountain dew, AND my cigarettes! Im like "yeah right, I might as well give up on this idea right now". Well, guess what? I gave up the dew, no problem, and believe me I was truely a "dew-aholic". 24/7 it was in my hand! Never really looked back on that, although I still have a bottle now and again, just cuz. Next, came smoking...... NEVER gonna happen! Well, I got the prescription for chantix, took me about a month to actually fill it.... cost over $100! And, I went back and forth on that before I did do it. Waited over a week before I actually started taking it. Still believed there was NO WAY it was going to happen. Oh, and let me add, I am 43, started smoking at about 15, so it's been awhile! It actually took me quite a while before I really "quit" smoking, but that was only because Im so fricking stubborn. I LIKE to smoke. I don't LIKE "having" to smoke. I LIKE to have a smoke when I want one. I don't LIKE feeling that I need one all the time. Anyway, I've quit. I don't believe it. If you'd have asked me six months ago, I'd have said no way. But, it's worked. Don't ask me how or why, but this Chantix stuff works. I took it for about a month, and haven't had it for about 2 weeks, and Im doing real well. I've probably in over 2 months smoked LESS than a pack, and in the last 2 weeks, I haven't smoked at all! Im now ready, I hope, to begin the last leg of this very long journey!:whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo:

Well, I'm a nurse and I was fat too. Not a great example.

I think you might be surprised at how many medical folks smoke, docs, nurses, resp care folks, the works.

My DIL is a fat nurse to . but she doesn't smoke or drink.. Just eats - but being married to my son - you just gotta have some kind of vice

It just seems like everyone in the medical field is always yelling at you to quit.. It seems like 3/4 of the world is now a days

You know, when I got into all of this, I never really thought about all the other "bad" things I was doing. I was worried about losing weight. That's what my goal is and has been since I made my first appointment about LB. Then, they told me I would have to give up my diet mountain dew, AND my cigarettes! Im like "yeah right, I might as well give up on this idea right now". Well, guess what? I gave up the dew, no problem, and believe me I was truely a "dew-aholic". 24/7 it was in my hand! Never really looked back on that, although I still have a bottle now and again, just cuz. Next, came smoking...... NEVER gonna happen! Well, I got the prescription for chantix, took me about a month to actually fill it.... cost over $100! And, I went back and forth on that before I did do it. Waited over a week before I actually started taking it. Still believed there was NO WAY it was going to happen. Oh, and let me add, I am 43, started smoking at about 15, so it's been awhile! It actually took me quite a while before I really "quit" smoking, but that was only because Im so fricking stubborn. I LIKE to smoke. I don't LIKE "having" to smoke. I LIKE to have a smoke when I want one. I don't LIKE feeling that I need one all the time. Anyway, I've quit. I don't believe it. If you'd have asked me six months ago, I'd have said no way. But, it's worked. Don't ask me how or why, but this Chantix stuff works. I took it for about a month, and haven't had it for about 2 weeks, and Im doing real well. I've probably in over 2 months smoked LESS than a pack, and in the last 2 weeks, I haven't smoked at all! Im now ready, I hope, to begin the last leg of this very long journey!:whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo:

CJ' The Nurse at my surgeon's office is on me about quiting - in fact last time i was there she was going to have the doc write me a scrip for it.. I told her wait til i got the weight off - You sound just like me with the Ya Right quote - I enjoy smoking - I about the only smoker in my group of friends - I have 2 gf who can just smoke every now and then (when they are around me)

Congrats on the quiting - and good luck on your lb journey