Hey everyone, I saw a Jan. 12 group, so I thought I'd start a Jan. 13 group. Anyone out there getting banded on the 13th? I live in northern California and will be banded by Dr. Waldrep at Sutter Roseville. Send me a shout if you're scheduled for the 13th.

hi adamsmom my name is sil i am getting band on the 13th, by dr robert bell. in newhaven ct.an the 13th is also my son 20th birthday, how about that.i have pre-admission tests on monday the 5th.so i am so excited.good luck on your new years journey adamsmom shout out.

Count me in! January 13 in Kansas City. My pre-op testing is on January 7.

bee

Welcome Sil and Bumblebee! My pre-op appointment is on the 7th--next Wednesday. Are you telling people? Family, friends, coworkers? I have decided to tell only my DH, BF and mom for now. I am not telling my coworkers--too many unkind comment-makers where I work. I'm going to be having a "hernia repair".:Yawn:

I live with my DH and two sons. aged 13, (will be 14 on Jan 24th and 8. I am a vice principal in an elementary school.

i decided not to tell, i have only told bf, my son, an daughter knows,after everything over maybe then. my sisters, brothers.they live out of state.

I'm not telling very many people. To get around it at work, I'm using vacation days instead of sick days. And I'll happily lie about what I'm planning to do on those vacation days, if anyone asks.

Only a very few important people know now (it's really impossible to tell no one since I need someone to drive me home after surgery), and I will tell a few more important people after it's done. The only people I will tell will be the people who would be hurt to find out about it later from someone else and wish they had heard it from me directly. And part of me feels like I will be lying to them if I don't tell them about the surgery.

I don't want the whole world to know what I'm planning to do and then have something go wrong with the testing or something else founds that will exclude me from surgery. I'd rather not face everyone all knowing that I wanted to do this and it didn't work out. I'm confident that all will go well but there's that tiny shred of doubt or fear holding me back...

bee

I agree, Bumble Bee. I am also not going to tell my children exactly what I'm having done. For one thing, I am having my procedure on an outpatient basis. My kids will know that mom has a doctor's appointment. When they get home from school, I'll be there and they'll be told that mom had a little hernia operation on her tummy and won't be able to eat the same for a while. I'm doing this because my kids are both on the autistic spectrum. Anything medical freaks them out and I don't want to burden them with having to remember not to tell anyone at school what I really had done.

On another note: I am soooooo excited about this surgery coming up. I know it's not the magic pill, but it could be the tool I've needed all these years--to be successful and stay motivated because I know that I will get results if I use the tool properly. My problem always came up when I would exercise my butt off, eat my allotted points, or calories for whatever diet I was on, and end up weighing more at the end of the week or only losing a little bit. This can get really discouraging after a while. :wink: I'm looking forward to pulling out some clothes I haven't been able to wear in a while, as well as getting the chance to buy new clothes. I'm looking forward to being able to wear cute shoes without experiencing excrutiating pain, and to wear rings that my fingers have been to fat to fit for several years. :thumbup: I'm looking forward to being able to take a day trip to San Francisico, like we did on Sunday, and not be out of breath because I had to walk one block up hill. I'm looking forward to my knees and back not hurting. :Yawn: I'm looking forward to joining my guests in the pool during the summer time when I have them over for swim parties. Up till now, I've always had the excuse that I'm too busy taking care of my guests to be able to join them in the pool. I'm looking forward to getting more fun back into my life. What about all of you?

ME! Me! The 13th is my date. I'm excited. I'm nervous... Someone tell me, how important is the pre-op diet? I'm on one but others aren't.

To "perfectforme": From everything I've read on these boards, it's all about what your surgeon's instructions are. I'm choosing to follow mine. I can't imagine going in for surgery and being told that they couldn't do it because my liver was too big. (Do a search for RestlessMonkey to see that can really happen.) If your surgeon didn't give you a pre-op diet, then you're good to go. But if he did, I'd try my best to follow it.

To "adamsmom": I love your stories and ideas. They make me smile! I can relate to so many of them and am looking forward to those days too!

Hey there, "Perfectforme". Glad to have you with the January 13th bandsters. Glad it's not a Friday!!:confused: Anyways, tell us a little about yourself: where are you getting banded,who's your surgeon, etc?

My surgeon does not require the pre-op diet, except for a very few cases. I am yet to get my pre-op meeting, which is on Wednesday, and only 6 days prior to surgery. I guess he could tell me to go on a diet then, but at his seminar he said he rarely requires it. I was the person who actually asked about this. he responded that he didn't think it made much difference in most patients. The ones with lots of belly fat are who end up with the diet. SO I'm sitting there thinking, well, everyone here's got belly fat, dude! I mean, come on, if your BMI is 40+, you got some belly fat, even if you carry your weight on other parts of your body too! But, he says he rarely requires it, so I'm enjoying myself without going over board. :cursing:

My surgeon also moves his patients through to solid foods post-op pretty quickly, too. I can shower the same day, but not get in a bath tub and submerge the incisions, and he is now beginning to do fills on some patients at the first post-op appointment, which is about a week after surgery. Everyone's different. I agree with Bumble Bee, though. You should follow your own doctor's orders. He or she has reasons and knows what works best for them. Keep su posted and hang in there.

Now does anyone do a hospital orientation? I have to go to one called "Band Camp" It is run by the nurses at the hospital and designed specifically for band paients. They do another orientation especially for the bypass patients too. I'll get my appointment for that next week sometime.

Hi All,

Thanks so much for replying so quickly. Although my family is being supportive I don't think anyone understands unless they are going through the same thing.

I have a pre-op appointment with my surgeon today at 2:00. So, I have to run for now but I will check in later and tell everyone more about myself!!

Thanks for your Support! YEAH! January ROCKS!

Perfectforme, Good luck on your pre-op. Please tell us all about it. I will have mine on Wednesday. It will be interesting to know what they tell you. Do you have to do a hospital orientation as well?

OK, ladies. I'm trying to ready myself for the day. I just got back from Costco, where I picked up my liquid multivitamins and chewable calcium/K/D--chocolate flavor :tongue2:. I also purchased one of every flavor of Unjury protein powder, per my nutritionist's directions. This will be for my shakes/smoothies, etc. The flavorless one can go in just about anything, and the chicken broth flavor can go into soupd, or meaty flavored gravies, etc. While at the drug store today, I plan on picking up Gas-X and liquid Tylenol. At the grocery store, I'll be getting some chicken broth, miso soup base, SF popsickles, SF jello. Can you think of anything else? What's on your shopping lists?

My name is Barbara and I'm from Portland Maine. Dr. Wolff will be doing my lapband on the 13th also. I wanted this day to come so badly, but I must admit I'm scared. I don't want to fail. Its nice to now others will be starting their journey with me, I will be thinking of all of you, best of luck!!!

Welcome Whiteb4. I'm a little scared too. I was awake in bed last night thinking, what if I regret doing this? what if it doesn't work? what if I'm one of the ones who gets sick? I think it's healthy to be a little scared. This is a very big step, and we have to be aware of the fact that even though this is isn't as drastic as bypass surgery, it's still a pretty big step. I know my boss will have a cow when I take time off for this. Who knows that I'll be able to work again one week post-op? Then I have to do the positive self-talk: this will work out. My health is more important than my boss getting all bent out of shape because I'm trying to take control of my weight. I deserve this opportunity.

For me, I'm trying to make sure everything is prepared prior to the surgery date. I bought the liquid Tylenol yesterday and Gas-X strips. I'm buying the post-op foods I'll need so there won't be any reason why I can't have the things I need after surgery.

We wil all be fine. ANd a year fom now, we will all be several pounds lighter!:thumbup:

I'm scared too - but in a rational way, I think, I hope. :tt2: Thinking about the "what ifs" is deadly. The pre-op diet is torture.

On the flipside, like AdamsMom, I've been shopping for the foods and supplies I will need. I'm sure that I am over-preparing myself, but that's ok. I live alone and hate asking for help, so I'd rather be home with too many supplies than be missing something that I wish I had. :mad:

With surgery on the 13th, I'm taking four vacation days then Monday is a holiday for my job, so I have to be back at work on the 20th.