Hi,

I've been lurking for a couple of weeks, but i'm starting to think that it might be a good idea for me to participate. A little about me...

I'm 26 and was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes last April. Whee! As much as I loved shooting up with insulin (oral meds didn't seem to control things as much as the dr had hoped), i wanted off of the whole injection train. I was referred to a bariatric specialist, who told me about a study being done to study the effects of WLS on diabetics, and I was on board. It was a month crammed full of pre-op testing and all of that fun stuff. I wanted the gastric bypass, but you get randomly put into the band, the bypass or medical management for a year. So here I am, a future bander.

My surgery date is January 14th... which is soo freaking close. I'm doing the whole Optifast and Clear Liquids for 2 weeks prior to surgery. It's working out well. It's only been 3 full days and I'm down 8.5 lbs. The optifast is starting to taste good, however. That concerns me, because that stuff made me gag the first day and now i actually look forward to it.

Anyway, thought i'd introduce myself. I like all of the tips posted on here. I went out and bought sippy cups a couple of days ago and gas x strips. I sure hope it all makes things easier!

welcome

Good luck. my band date is 27th jan, i start optifast on the 13th yay (not)

tas

Hi,

I've been lurking for a couple of weeks, but i'm starting to think that it might be a good idea for me to participate. A little about me...

I'm 26 and was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes last April. Whee! As much as I loved shooting up with insulin (oral meds didn't seem to control things as much as the dr had hoped), i wanted off of the whole injection train. I was referred to a bariatric specialist, who told me about a study being done to study the effects of WLS on diabetics, and I was on board. It was a month crammed full of pre-op testing and all of that fun stuff. I wanted the gastric bypass, but you get randomly put into the band, the bypass or medical management for a year. So here I am, a future bander.

My surgery date is January 14th... which is soo freaking close. I'm doing the whole Optifast and clear liquids for 2 weeks prior to surgery. It's working out well. It's only been 3 full days and I'm down 8.5 lbs. The optifast is starting to taste good, however. That concerns me, because that stuff made me gag the first day and now i actually look forward to it.

Anyway, thought i'd introduce myself. I like all of the tips posted on here. I went out and bought sippy cups a couple of days ago and gas x strips. I sure hope it all makes things easier!

I too am getting banded on Jan 14th , I start my liquid phase today ,since I just received my date yesterday . I like you went out and picked up everything I needed for the hospital and home . I also grabbed lip balm for after surgery ,since I've read a lot of people on here say your lips dry out , my pillow is waiting for the ride home . I don't know if I'll be staying overnight due to the fact I have CPAP MACHINE now . I really wouldn't mind that anyway,since I'm a big baby when it comes to pain (LOL). Well please keep me posted on your progress,since we are starting out on the same day ,I think we will have alot to talk about .Congrats to you !!!!

Thank you both! It's nice to know that there are other people that are drinking their "meals" the same time I am.

I honestly did hate Optifast when I started it. I was told that chocolate was the "good flavour" and a bypass patient told me that when you add a little ice and mix it up in the magic bullet that it was just like chocolate. That first day, i was like, "that woman is the biggest liar EVER!". Now it's growing on me. I have to do Optifast and clear liquids for 2 weeks, but since I didn't do proper calendar math, it'll only be 13 days. Whoops!

As much as I hate the taste (it's a little better everyday), I love getting on the scale in the morning. So far I've lost 10 lbs and i'm just starting day 5. It's encouraging and makes me feel like I can do this.

A couple of things that I've done to make life a little easier are adding banana and peppermint extract to the optifast at the beginning to hide the taste of cold cake batter (which is all I could taste), and adding a couple of drops of Frank's hot sauce to my chicken broth. It's like liquid hot wings!

Ronda, I'm happy that there's someone else with my exact date. It's a week and a half away.... getting scared/nervous/excited yet? :thumbup:

Welcome...Good luck with your upcoming surgery...I am also a type 2 diabetic and I am being told the bypass will get me off my meds really quickly including my high blood pressure meds...But I still want to do the lap band. I may not be off the meds as quick but I will eventually be off of them. Because of healing time I can't afford to much time out of work. When I meet with the surgeon I will listen to her advise. I meet with her on Jan 27th...Again good luck with your surgery and to everyone in January getting banded...

Thank you both! It's nice to know that there are other people that are drinking their "meals" the same time I am.

I honestly did hate Optifast when I started it. I was told that chocolate was the "good flavour" and a bypass patient told me that when you add a little ice and mix it up in the magic bullet that it was just like chocolate. That first day, i was like, "that woman is the biggest liar EVER!". Now it's growing on me. I have to do Optifast and clear liquids for 2 weeks, but since I didn't do proper calendar math, it'll only be 13 days. Whoops!

As much as I hate the taste (it's a little better everyday), I love getting on the scale in the morning. So far I've lost 10 lbs and i'm just starting day 5. It's encouraging and makes me feel like I can do this.

A couple of things that I've done to make life a little easier are adding banana and peppermint extract to the optifast at the beginning to hide the taste of cold cake batter (which is all I could taste), and adding a couple of drops of Frank's hot sauce to my chicken broth. It's like liquid hot wings!

Ronda, I'm happy that there's someone else with my exact date. It's a week and a half away.... getting scared/nervous/excited yet? :thumbup:

Thanks for the food tips I would of never thought of adding favoring to my liquid drinks. Now I won't be making those messed up face as I try and force the drink down .You asked how I feel well I can't even find the right words ,but excited and scared do come to mind .I have never been so nervous in my life and I've had plenty of surgeries. This one is so different because someday in the near future I'm going to wake up to seeing someone I don't know . That really freaks me out in a way ,but I look forward to that . Make sense ? I can't believe you've already lost 10 pounds your doing so good you should be so proud of yourself .Now I gotta get my butt in gear I really should walk ,but my knees are so bad and with this cold air here in New York that's not likely to happen .I have had surgery on my right knee twice so far and the last one really made me worst then ever .

I know once the weigh comes off I'll be walking like a normal person again. I had lost 98 pounds in the pass with Weight Watches only to gain it back in a year (after the second surgery). I was in so much pain I was crying all the time ,but when I had lost all that weight walking was no problem . I was a manger of a hotel chain Best Western,then the knee surgery put me out of work and I just could not stand on my legs all day . Now I'm a stay at home house wife .(not for long I hope ) I miss the people and the excitement hell I miss my fat pay check . I say let my new life begin now!!! I'll be here if you ever won't to talk ,and keep me updated talk with you soon .

Thanks for the food tips I have got to try that . I can't believe you have lost 10 pounds already way to go !!! You should be very proud of yourself I know I would be . You asked me how I feel well words really can't explain ,but I will try EXCITED ,THRILLED ,SCARED:scared:. I'm all over the place with emotions every time I think about it (13days away my heart starts to pound out of my chest). I will keep you posted on how I'm doing and you do the same please .We can bounce advice and information off each other ,also be there for each other as we go through all this .Have a wonderful day and talk with you soon .

:thumbup:

yeah... a friend at work asked me if i'd tried any spices for my Soup. I like hot sauce on EVERYTHING, so it worked out really well :thumbup:

I can't believe how fast the pounds are dropping off. Today I was only down 1.5, so i'm sure the dream is about to end, but i've started to work out again.

I don't have problems with my knees, but my right hip gets very stiff sometimes. It hurts a lot. I can't wait to lose this damn weight and stop slouching. It'll be nice when this big tummy blob goes away and i don't look so round when i sit. There's so much I'm looking forward to.

You're lucky you live in the US, where you can get all sorts of that carnation Breakfast anytime in the sugar free version. All we have in canada (that i can find) is diabetic boost. It's sooo expensive if i need to be drinking it 3 times a day after surgery. My best friend was in Indiana last week and picked me up six cases of the Carnation stuff. I sure hope it tastes ok!

How long do you have to wait to have solid foods? My dr is telling me 7 weeks, but they do the first fill at 6 weeks and then it's back to liquids for a few days, so i assume that it'll be closer to 8 weeks.

sigh... i have to go make cupcakes for my friend's birthday. This is going to be torture...