Recently Banded - My Experience So Far

EricaLyn · May 23, 2008

Hello -

I was banded on May 13th at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. I had a great pre-op experience. The nurses were great. The surgery was in the morning, around 10:45 am or so and I was in my hospital room (for a one night overnight) by 2:30 pm or so. I can't remember exact times - some stuff is still a blur.

They gave me Jell-O and broth with sips of Water. I had some Oxy as a pain medication (.5 ounce at a time (a total of 3 in the course of 20 hours). I was released the next day around 1pm. I could have gone sooner, but they were trying to get my prescriptions written for liquid doses instead of tablet.

My pharmacy didn't carry the liquid Oxy so I've been without pain medication since the morning of my discharge from the hospital. I've done quite well without it.

I have six incisions. They're all about 1/2 inch wide except for a large one (I'm assuming this is where the port is), which is about 2 inches wide.

I've not thrown up, gagged or PB'd. I've stuck to my full liquid diet. I'm on a full liquid diet for two weeks post-op, then blended diet for 2 weeks, then mushies for 2 weeks and then regular food.

I do get hungry, but I have some Soup and it typically goes away (about 4-6 ounces of soup). I've been trying to get more Protein in, but that's difficult with being on just liquids.

My husband found me some vanilla yogurt that is high in Protein (12 grams of protein per serving, which is 4 ounces). I add in some honey and it tastes pretty good.

I'm drinking plenty of Water and Crystal Light Iced Tea (I love this stuff). I've lost 11 pounds since the day of surgery. While I haven't measured myself, I can totally tell I've lost inches. My clothes are hanging on me and I just feel fantastic.

The incisions are probably the most irritating part - they itch - all the time, but I know they're healing.

I'm happy with my decision and with my progress!

Edited May 23, 2008 by EricaLyn

Yaherd · May 23, 2008

What is PB'd?

Stay_Tuned · May 23, 2008

Here is a list of common used abbreviations on this board

#/#/# in signatures: weight pre-surgery/current weight/goal weigh

AF: "Aunt Flo" -- menstrual period

BC: Birth control (or BCP: birth-control pills)

BIA: Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis.

BMI: Body Mass Index

BMR: Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the minimum number of calories you need to sustain your current weight. This includes resting and sleeping.

BP: Blood pressure

DS: Duodenal switch (another type of bariatric surgery)

EPGSHFLYADV: Excruciatingly Painful Gagging Sliming Heaving Feels Like You're About to Die Vomitation

FAT MASS: This is how many pounds of your body is fat.

FAT%: The percentage of your body that is fat.

FFM: Fat Free Mass. This is how many pounds of your body is not fat.

GBP: Gastric bypass surgery

GERD: Gastro-esophageal reflux disease

GP: General practitioner

LPD: Liquid Protein Diet

MO: Morbid Obesity (or morbidly obese)

NP: Nurse practitioner

NSAIDS: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (a class of painkillers--which includes ibuprofen--bandsters should try to avoid because they can add to ulcer risk).

NSV: Non-scale victory -- a weight-loss achievement that has little to do with numbers

OTC: Over the counter (i.e., non-prescription medications)

PA: Physician's assistant

PB: Productive Burp -- what happens when something eaten can't go down due to restriction has to come back up

PCP: Primary care physician

RNY: Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery (the most popular type of bariatric surgery)

TBW: Total Body Water. This may be expressed in pounds or as a percentage. The average % for a healthy adult male is 50-65% and for female 45-60%.

WLS: Weight-loss surgery

general_antiope · May 23, 2008

Here is a list of common used abbreviations on this board
EPGSHFLYADV: Excruciatingly Painful Gagging Sliming Heaving Feels Like You're About to Die Vomitation

Hey all right I choked on coffee! LOL