I ask this because i have never ever had surgery in my whole life, excuse me men that read..but the closest thing to having medical tools inside of me is an annual pap, and i dont have kids as of yet either so i know my body is in for a real shock!...lol but anyways....other than stretch marks, i never had any major scars etc.......ive been a big girl all my life but i have been blessed with good health where i never really need to visit the doctor but for basic yearly check ups....I have failed and succeeded at weight loss in the past but i have been overweight foreeevvver....so the lapband is my final decision...im just nervous about feeling weak and helpless after the surgery, like the post op surgery stuff i read about on here. im still doing my doctor visits..but i would soo appreciate all of yalls support and input on things when the time does come to be poked and bandaged.....thanks

Edited February 27, 200917 yr by ahb08

I'm totally with you on this one. Getting banded was my first surgery EVER! I wasn't nervous at all though. My husband got banded 2 weeks after me and he's had surgery before and our recoveries were night and day. Apparently they had to give me more anesthetic so I had a hard time waking up from surgery. My recovery was longer than my husbands who (against everyones advice) got up and went to work the next day. I rested a lot for about 2 weeks. But now, about 5 weeks out I feel great and my weight loss is going well. This is the best decision I've ever made in my life. I just wish I would have done it sooner!

Good luck to you on your journey!

I am completely with you on that. I've never had surgery and I have a huge phobia of needles. Some how I got through the surgery. I'll tell you, I was expecting the worst. Once I got home the only pain meds that I took were over the counter liquid Tylenol. I worst part for me was the gas pains, it felt like an elephant sitting on my chest. I was sore for a few days when getting out of bed and sitting up. When is your surgery date?

My surgery date isnt for a while tink....im probably looking at around may.....b/c aetna is making do a 90 day disciplinary thing

I had surgery one month after my 40th b-day! Almost to the exact date. B-day is the 26th, surgery was the 25th. The only thing closest I'd had done was my wisdom teeth pulled and In Vitro Fertilization where they knock you out but you're not completely under like major surgery.

I wasn't nervous at all. Shocked me since I always over-analyze everything and like to know EXACTLY what's going to happen, etc. Yes, I'm anal retentive and a control freak! I'm working on that! LOL!

Get as much info as you can. Ask your questions. Make lists, take notes, etc. You'll do fine. The unknown can be scary but if you prepare yourself with as much knowledge as you can, you'll do fine. And it's okay to totally freak out!

I don't know if you're religious but I am and I have to say that prayer helped me a lot. I turned it over to God, I was in His hands. I felt a lot of peace about it. It was strange and very comforting.

Best wishes to you!

Oops! Just realized I posted on the Twenties thread. Sorry!

Edited February 28, 200917 yr by heartfire
My oops!

It just shocks me beyond belief to look at your tickers and see - BMI 42 in Aug 08 and now beginning of March 09 - basically six months later, you have gone from a BMI which is morbidly obese to a BMI which is pretty near healthy. Gives me SO MUCH HOPE

lingling, my ticker is since March '08!

I went through Kaiser and they had a nutrition program that I had to go through that prepared us for surgery and after. We were required to lose as much as we could before surgery. this includes the 7lbs lost on the 10 day liquid diet right before surgery.

Some of my August buddies have lost upwards of 50, 70 + lbs but alas, I'm a slow loser. Pretty steady tho so I'm happy with it! I'm also not "dieting" at all and I'm having a hard time getting exercise in. I'm sure it'd be a lot faster if I was exercising a lot more.

Best wishes to you!!

I ask this because i have never ever had surgery in my whole life, excuse me men that read..but the closest thing to having medical tools inside of me is an annual pap, and i dont have kids as of yet either so i know my body is in for a real shock!...lol but anyways....other than stretch marks, i never had any major scars etc.......ive been a big girl all my life but i have been blessed with good health where i never really need to visit the doctor but for basic yearly check ups....I have failed and succeeded at weight loss in the past but i have been overweight foreeevvver....so the lapband is my final decision...im just nervous about feeling weak and helpless after the surgery, like the post op surgery stuff i read about on here. im still doing my doctor visits..but i would soo appreciate all of yalls support and input on things when the time does come to be poked and bandaged.....thanks

omg haha I have decided that you are my new friend! I have Aetna as well I was apprived for Surgery as of 3/9 I don't know my surgery date yet! This is my first surgery as well! Throw any questions you have my way!

I can totally understand. Reading your situation was like looking in the mirror. I was sooo worried bout the "going to sleep & not waking up." haha. But, it was a quick nap, well it felt like a quick nap. I am soo happy I did it. I did stay with my parents for the first week post-op to help with getting up & down, and get me my water. Good luck!

It was my first surgery. And like you, I only had my well woman exam every year- that's it! I don't go to the dr. ever!

It wasn't bad at all. I was waking up and I had to ask the nurse if they had done the surgery yet! It was awful trying to wake up after the anesthesia. It's like waking up for school when you're young- you just want to yell, Let me sleep! LOL. But once youre up, all you have is soreness.

You'll do great!

This was my first surgery and I was VERY scared. They knew I was really nervous so they didnt even tell me when they were putting me to sleep! When I woke up there was no question if they had done the surgery because I could feel the soreness

It was weird not being able to do everything for myself. But, to be honest, it was also kind of nice. My hubby took the week off of work with me and we slept in the living room on the couches, because I couldnt sleep in my bed for whatever reason. He got everything I needed for me, made sure I was taking all my meds on time, and constantly making sure I was OK. It was a great bonding time.

One week later, I was dying to get out of the house though.

The second week I went back to work and took naps in the breakroom around 3 everyday because I was really tired (I walk A LOT at work).

Fast forward 3 months and I feel as good as new, but better!

So, all this to say...You are going to do great!

I've had multiple abdominal surgeries in the past due to kidney problems, plus I had my appendix out.

For those of you that have never had surgery before, it will be quite a journey. I say this from both personal and professional experience. A lot of people have nausea issues following surgery, myself being one of them - take medicine to prevent it, because the medicine is pointless once you've puked. It's best to medicate yourself around the clock with pain meds for AT LEAST the first 24 hours so you stay on top of your pain - playing pain control catch up is not fun at all. Abdominal surgery is no joke - you will find out that EVERY movement you do involves your stomach muscles. You'll blink your eye and next thing you know you're feeling it in your stomach thinking WTF just happened lol Also with laproscopic surgeries, the technique they use with the laproscopic approach gives you gas pains commonly in your ribs/chest and shoulder areas. You could take the best drugs in the world and it wouldn't necessarily get rid of this - the best thing is deep breaths and walking as much as you can. Farting and burping is good as well And lastly keep in mind that no matter what kind and how many meds you're given, your stomach skin, fat, and muscles were just brutally sliced open - there will be pain, it can't all go away.

I was really afraid since this was my first surgery too. And I've never really been in a lot of pain before so I had no clue if I had a high pain tolerance. Everyone at the hospital was super nice about it though and it was quick. I woke up easily, was walking more than they suggested and was out about 2 or 3 hours later. The first week or two was hell for me only because I am a side sleeper so sleeping on my back caused me pain and I didn't sleep well...other than some abdominal discomfort while getting up from laying or sitting position it was great. I'm glad I didn't chicken out because knowing now that it was so easy I would have felt like an idiot lol