Just checking in to see how everyone else is doing that had their surgery on 1/27/09. I did end up having both the lap band placement and hiatal hernia repair surgeries at the same time. I guess that's why I feel double-sore! I have little or no appetite but I am trying to keep my Fluid intake up. I use Boost High Protein as my supplement along with chewable Vitamins. I am supposed to drink three bottles of Boost each day but that has been difficult. I have managed two per day as long as I take a long time to drink them.

I am having a horrible time with this left shoulder pain. I had no idea what the heck that was about but the day after surgery I checked this forum and found many entries about it being a common occurance. I am using a heating pad and ground up Aleve for the pain. It is lessening each day. I am very glad I purchased liquid Tylenol before surgery also.

All in all, I am taking things slowly. I am trying to decide if I will be returning to work on Monday or not at this point. That my be a bit optimistic but one day can make a huge difference. I won't decide until Sunday. I know that if I can't make it through the day it will be okay for me to leave early.

My surgeon reguired two weeks of liquids prior to surgery and requires two weeks after surgery. Then two weeks of soft foods, then regular foods. What does your doc require?

I hope all of you are doing well and it will be interesting to hear from you on how you are doing.

Hi everyone,

I was banded on the 27th also. I am so relieved to hear that others aren't feeling so great. Never did I anticipate this much discomfort! After having three c-sections, I thought this surgery would be much easier. It hurts when I burp, I almost passed out after my shower this afternoon from low blood sugar, the smell of food makes me throw-up and I am as weak as can be. Each day has gotten a little better. I can eat pureed Protein for my mushies . It looks disgusting. Cottage cheese is the only thing that doesn't need to get pureed. I have a horrible taste in my mouth, also. I keep telling myself that this will be worth it in the long run but now, I am totally second-guessing myself.

Thanks for listening to my rant!

For my pre op diet I am drinking Whey protein with 8 oz of skimmed milk blended. Lunch is either grilled, baked, or boiled chicken, beef, or fish with sugar free jello for a snack.

I thought it was fascinating, interesting, frustrating and odd how different pre-op instructions were for many of us. It seems that some had two weeks of clear liquids, some had a few days and some had none.

Now for the post-op diets, again I note many differences. Some of you have mentioned a couple days of clear liquids then on to full liquids and it seems some are already at eating mushy/soft foods.

I had two weeks of clear liquids pre-op and now another two weeks of clear liquids post-op. This will be followed by two weeks of full liquids, then on to mushies, then on to soft foods.

It's very clear to me that these differences must be based on surgeon preference - and I assume, created out of their past experiences with their patients.

Anyone else notice this and wonder why such differences?

Glad to hear you are up and about! How are you feeling now? Yes, I had a hiatal hernia. The first two nights I woke up in the middle of the night with this horrible pain. I thought someone was squeezing the life outta me. I ended up mentioning to the nurse when she called me and she said it was pain from the hernia. I dont feel it anymore. thank God. It was very painful and scary. I wish you a speedy recovery!

Keep walking!

I was banded Jan 27th. Seem to be doing good for the most part. That first night was the worst, they were having trouble managing my pain. I was on Clear liquids the first 2 days, and then switched to full liquids for 2 weeks. I am on full liquids now, just having trouble getting all 64 oz in as well as Protein, hardly have any appetite. Soup seems to be my favorite by far as it is warm and comforting, feels good going down.

The thing that bothers me most is the pain in my left shoulder. Does anyone know the cause of this? I have been using a heat pack and liquid Tylenol for it, but it doesn't seem to want to go away.

Overall I feel like I've made a wonderful choice, am able to get up and walk around quite a bit, which definitely helps with the gas. My tummy is very bubble/gassy, but that is getting better the more I move about.

Am anxious to get back to work, have to wait 4 weeks, since I can't lift more than 10 lbs for 4 weeks and the infant I care for is 25-30ish lbs. I know I need the recovery time so I am taking full advantage of it.

Audrey

Woohoo Jan 27th Bandsters! :thumbup:

Yes, the pain you are feeling in your shoulder is from the gas. I was banded on the 20th and I swore the pain in my shoulder hurt more than anything else!! The gas is sooo annoying. Keep walking around. That seems to help alot. You will definitely know when you have gotten it all out. YOu will feel what a difference and not feel so bloated all the time.

I spoke to soon and pulled a muscle around my port area. Imagine getting a Charlie horse but in your belly!! :thumbup:

Worst pain I ever felt in my life! I wasnt sure if I messed something up til I called my doc and he said it was normal.

Got a huge purple bruise and it took about 2 days for the swelling to go down. So whatever you do pls. take it easy. I wouldnt wish that pain on no one!

Btw, I see you are from Lynnwood...we used to live in Mt Lake Terrace. :thumbup: Remember going to Alderwood Mall all the time! I miss Wa.

Take Care All!

Hello...I'm Che B. I had surgery on 1-27-09. I didn't have any shoulder pain but yes it did feel like I'd done a million sit-ups...that pain is all but gone now.

My problem now is that I am having problems drinking enough. Even Water seems to make me nauseous...today I actually threw-up and I'd only had a few sips of water. My doctor only restricted my diet to clear liquids for 1 week. I tried having a Protein shake...I only was able to get about 8oz down and it took a long time, only 2 sips and then rest while it goes down trying not to have it come back up. I was feeling a little better 2 days ago...bloating was less and was able to finally burp, which felt good. But if I continue to feel as bad as I am right now then I know I'll have to go in to the doctor.

I was wondering if anyone is having similar problems and if so what have you done to get the liquids, even water, down?

Also...I am having a serious problem with hiccups. I can't even take a sip of water without getting a bout of hiccups. Has anyone else had this problem?

Reading the LapBand website I am wondering if my band is too tight? With my size I think that could be possible even without getting a "fill". I will be contacting my doctor tomorrow.

Edited February 1, 200917 yr by cheb

Che

My doctor has me on sea-sickness Patches and I've had verly little nausea. It is so important not to throw up.

I take little sips of stuff, it seems like all day long. I feel very "tight" right under my breastbone - I'm assuming it is swelling and will go down soon.

Good Luck.

Deb

Hey Carolina Mom and catho72,

Please don't give up. I'm having a pretty rough time as well, but I know that this will eventually pass. I was nauseated immediately after I woke up from surgery, even after they gave me Pepcid and Reglan prior to going into the OR. The nausea went away the next day, but I've been having alot of pain. It seems to be improving every day, but it hurts like heck if I cough, laugh, or sneeze. I'm sitting here with a pillow over my tummy as I type. This is way harder than I expected. I'm just getting to the point of feeling like I've done a million sit ups. Up until Friday, I was feeling horrendous PAIN!! I have to stay on top of the pain by taking the Lortab elixir that the doctor prescribed for me. My port is giving me the most pain now. I have a hard time trying to get my protein in let alone 64oz of fluid. I'm still having gas pains but it's not as bad as it was. It's starting to escape, which is a huge relief!! Hopefully it will help knowing you are not alone in this. We have to support each other through the difficult times as well as our upcoming victories. Keep your head up. WE CAN DO THIS!

And for Carolina Mom, if you're running a fever you really should go see your doctor or go to the ER. That's one of the things my doctor told me to watch for post op.

Yes, the pain you are feeling in your shoulder is from the gas. I was banded on the 20th and I swore the pain in my shoulder hurt more than anything else!! The gas is sooo annoying. Keep walking around. That seems to help alot. You will definitely know when you have gotten it all out. YOu will feel what a difference and not feel so bloated all the time.

I spoke to soon and pulled a muscle around my port area. Imagine getting a Charlie horse but in your belly!! :cheated:

Worst pain I ever felt in my life! I wasnt sure if I messed something up til I called my doc and he said it was normal.

Got a huge purple bruise and it took about 2 days for the swelling to go down. So whatever you do pls. take it easy. I wouldnt wish that pain on no one!

Btw, I see you are from Lynnwood...we used to live in Mt Lake Terrace. :drool: Remember going to Alderwood Mall all the time! I miss Wa.

Take Care All!

The pain in my shoulder is decreasing and is better, I keep on walking and moving around. The gas keeps on coming so I'm assuming there is still more to come! I never thought one could have gas in their shoulder.

I can't imagine a Charlie horse in the belly, how terrible!! :tongue2: I hope you are feeling much less pain now. I know where Mt Lake Terrace is, go through there all the time. I live about 5 min from the Alderwood mall. I love WA, been here almost my whole life. Take care!

I too was banded on the 27th. The first two days were awful. I felt so out if it and my stomach hurt so bad. Today is the first day that I am feeling stronger and hungry. I had to stop taking the liquid percocet because it made me way too emotional. My boyf would look at me and I would start crying! My pain is totally manageable with liquid tylenol. I still have chest pains after I drink which I know is the gas and the area around my port is sore and tight. I started full liquid today and it has really helped with my blood sugar levels. I dont feel so lightheaded all of the time. This sight has really helped me get through this and everyones support is so nice. Keep up the hard work! It gets better with each passing day!

Wow! Hello fellow 27th Bandsters! It truly helps having this forum and site to look all of this information up. I too was banded on the 27th of Jan and quickly started regretting my decision. I do not even remember the surgery or coming home. The med's were great....hehe. They gave me one of the sea-sick patches to wear behind my ear until Friday so I did not experience the nausea, but the gas pain was certainly more than I expected and I quickly got the Gas-X strips and a heating pad and that helped a lot. I have also been walking a lot. It's strange, it felt like the gas was moving up. Yesterday I hurt in my neck and shoulder, but after my f/u w/my surgeon and reading this site I learned that was normal and now that I am on liquids until Friday, I am much better. Clear liquids was getting boring. Luckily, my surgeon gave me liquid Hydrocodone for the first few days so I took that at night and if needed I take the liquid Tylenol. I am starting to feel better and am just taking it one day at a time. My surgeon said I can walk on the treadmill, so I am hopeful that will help pass the time, since I am not working at the moment. I would definitely have to say that today has been the best day so far, but I have been bloated and gassy for most of this experience so far. I don't go for my first fill until 3/5/09, so we'll see how I do with the rest of this month. Good luck to all! It will get better!

Well Hello - I was banded on 1/27. First 2 days were pretty bad, feeling better now, but having a hard time with energy levels on the limited diet I am on. I have trying to focus on high protein options, but I feel hungry and have little energy. I have my postop check up with the Dr. tomorrow - hoping it gets better

Every day is getting easier. pureed Protein is disgusting. On Monday, I switch to 1.5 oz solid protein 3 times a day. I worry with that, things will get stuck. I had a very unpleasant encounter with a scrambled egg that I'm not looking forward to repeating. Cottage cheese is the only thing that feels OK going down besides shakes/liquids. Not to gross anyone out but I can't trust my farts, either! I'm still gassier than I would like to be.

Hope everyone is doing better since the 27th! Thanks for all the kind words of encouragement. We can do this!

Hello fellow 1/27 bandsters! Just checking in. I think I am finally getting past the gas build up in my system. I am still mostly doing the soft liquids and my surgeon did not mention "mushies", he just mentioned soft foods; so last night I ate a small helping of my dad's spaghetti. I have been saving up for this moment..and it was so good. I was proud of myself for not eating very much; but last night and this morning I have a terrible pain in the breastbone area. It almost feels like heartburn. I am not sure what to make of it, but I don't think I will be doing that again anytime soon. Any suggestions? Good Luck to everyone.

The best thing I did was walk alot. I had people take turns rubbing my back. that helped push the gas out and helped with the shoulder pain.