May 12th Surgery Stories - Terrific Tuesday!

[Kellster 1]

Hey all of you getting banded on the 12th, canadiangirl.ca, heavyhevicyndi, beekay, Imdowdy, Me (aka Kellster), and whoever else... Here's our spot to share our surgery stories. :thumbup:

I just keep thinking - at this time tomorrow I'll be up and walking around the hospital, with five lil incisions and a silicone thing in my body! WOW! :frown:

Looking forward to hearing from all of you, as well as sharing my own story.

[CyndiMomto3 0]

Thanks for making a spot for our stories! I am so excited and feel like I have so much to do before I go in tomorrow at 8am! I feel like I have a scheduled c-section tomorrow or something! lol I want the house spick and span, the kids bathed, car cleaned out...you get the idea...But the chances that will all be done are slim. I do need to wash my sheets though as my surgery prep instructions are to take a thorough shower with the special scrubby stuff they gave me, sleep on freshly washed, clean sheets and then take a shower in the morning with the special scrubby stuff again! I am planning to stay the night at the hospital and take the laptop so hopefully I will post my story sometime tomorrow. I am the most nervous about not being able to pick my 17 month old NON WALKING son up after the surgery. He is heavy and he REFUSES to walk! That will be hard. It is also going to be hard to explain to my 7 year old daughter why I am a little tired and sore. We decided not to tell her about the surgery itself because she worries too much. She does know that I am dieting and trying to be healthier though. Good luck to everyone tomorrow!!

[CyndiMomto3 0]

Hello, here's my story :smile2:

I started getting ready for the surgery Monday night. I tried to do things that I knew I wouldn't want to do right away after coming back from the hospital. I scrubbed a bath/shower that needed to be cleaned, unloaded & loaded the dishwasher, cleaned the kitchen, (TMI) DTD with hubby lol. I also had to wash our sheets so I could sleep on freshly washed sheets, per my instructions. I also had to take a shower with a hibiclens sponge and then take another one in the morning. I only ended up sleeping 2-3 hours so the showers weren't that far apart but oh well.

I got to the hospital at 8am with surgery scheduled for 10am. (I wasn't early just for fun, they asked me to come that early) lol I signed a couple of papers at the admissions desk and then sat in the waiting room for about 5-10 minutes. Then they took me back to a small pre-op room with a bed, chair and tv. The nurse asked me to get all the way undressed and put on their stylish gown, gray skidproof sockies and blue surgery cap. She had me hop on the bed and asked a bunch of questions and I had to sign another paper. She also collected a urine specimen (to make sure I'm not pregnant I think). About this time my friend Becky arrived, which helped pass the time. (I had driven myself there because hubby needed to be home with the kids.) The nurse came back in and gave me a shot of heparin in the belly and it really didn't hurt or sting, thank goodness. She told me that they would be taking me down to the OR about 10:30 (so I guess it got moved back a little) she also started my IV and gave me some medicine to calm my nerves a little. That stuff was great, it did calm me down and made me mellow. They gave a little light up pager thing to my friend and sent her back to the waiting room until the surgery was over. They wheeled me down to the OR and transferred me over to another bed, put the mask on my face and I was out.

I woke up in a recovery room and coughed a little from the breathing tube they had put down my throat during the surgery. I remember looking at the clock at seeing 11:30am or noon. I honestly don't remember much from the recovery room, just that they told me everything went really well. I think I might have cried a little as I was coming out of the fog, I don't know why, but I'm pretty sure I did. Other than earlier in the day when my surgeon came to say hello, I never even saw him at all.

They wheeled me to my room, which was a double room and already had a lady in there. My roommate had a lot of health issues, I felt so bad for her. She had gastric bypass in 1999 and then a revision and she came in to have a hernia repaired for the 3rd time. After being in the room for awhile, I wondered where my friend was and called her cell phone. She, my husband and my 17 month old son were waiting to come to my room, but no one let them know that they could come up. That was kind of annoying...but I understand they get busy.

They came up to visit and my son seemed a little scared by the IV, oxygen in my nose and leg compression thingees. My daughter was at school, thank goodness, I think she would have been really worried about me. After they left, I tried to take a nap and nodded off a little here and there. My roomate got discharged so then I had the room all to myself. :tt2: I got up a little while later to go to the bathroom and walk the halls.

I spent the evening dozing off and on, getting woken up constantly for vitals, blood sugar testing (even though I'm not diabetic) and once, around midnight, I woke up to find housekeeping stripping down the other bed in the room and cleaning that side of the room. Really, at midnight??

As of right now, I am still waiting to be discharged. I actually kind of wonder if they forgot about me...I was able to get the IV unhooked and took a shower. They also wheeled me downstairs to do the swallow test to make sure the band was in the right place (it is). They have not allowed me to eat or drink anything, other than a small amount of Water...it has been 36 hrs since i ate!! I don't know what is going on but I am not having any problems so hopefully they will let me go soon.

[hallelujah.girl 1]

Wow Cyndi! Sounds like you have your hands full with your 17 month old.

Congrats on getting through the surgery.! My doc mad me wash with soap before bed and again in the morning as well, I had not ever heard of anybody doing that before.

Yeah changing sheets at midnight? That's a little crazy.

You didn't mention much about pain I hope that means your doing great!

I Hope you are doing well too KELLSTER!

[Kellster 1]

Well I've been home for awhile but finally dragged out the ole laptop to let you all know what's up.

Arrived at the hospital with my sister around 5:40, surgery was scheduled for 8:30. Checked in, paid my copay (ouch, but not as bad as self-pay), and went up to surgery waiting room and hung out for a couple hours. Parents arrived and I was finally called to pre-op around 7:30ish. Put on the sexy gown and waited. For about two hours. Why you ask? Because my PCP apparently can't read directions well and didn't dictate my pre-op physical, and faxed it instead. Saw a bunch of nurses/anesthesiologists, got an IV and answered tons of questions. Finally rolled back to the OR around 10:00 after they got everything straightened out. Moved onto the deliciously warm OR bed and got strapped down. My surgeon was finishing up another surgery, so I didn't see him - but when they got the call to put me to sleep, I took three deep breaths and then faded to black.

Woke up in recovery, felt pretty good, was smiling and answering tons of questions again. All I could focus on was the TV - everything else was blurry for a bit. Changed the channel to softball, and got a bit emotional thinking that I will be able to play again soon! :w00t: The anesthesiologist said I woke right up after surgery, and he was quite happy with how I did. A nurse asked how my pain was, I told her I had some discomfort between my shoulder blades in my back like I had slept for wayyy too long, and my incisions were burning a lil bit. She gave me a bit of morphine, and all was great. Rolled out of recovery on my way up to my room at 12:30.

My parents and sis were waiting in my room, and I was so glad to see them! Got up and walked a bit, man that felt good to get out of bed. Walked 5 laps and then I was pretty much sitting in a chair or walking the rest of the night. I was a lucky girl, quite a few of my best friends and my boyfriend came by and brought flowers. :tt1: That cheered me up a lot. I kept walking, and it realllly helped me feel good. Had some clear liquid dinner and was able to tolerate it, drank all the broth, all the juice, and the Protein beverage. I didn't have any problem getting anything down or keeping it down. Didn't really have any gas pain in my left shoulder, but I think the pain in my back between my shoulder blades was gas. It wasn't horrible, very tolerable and walking helped a LOT.

Had the leg massagers in bed, they were pretty nifty. Slept from 9:30-6am, with a break at 3am for another heparin shot. It did pinch and burned a teeny bit but not too bad. sleep was fitfull, because I'm a tall girl and I kept sliding down so my feet were at the bottom of the bed. I was even able to roll over to my side a bit, so that was nice. Woke up this morning and had to get out of bed, I was so over laying still. Walked a bunch more today and was feeling great! My surgeon, bariatric coordinator, and a handful of other folks stopped by to see how I was doing (all said I was doing GREAT!) Finally got discharged about noon, and was able to walk out to the car.

At home at last, it is so nice to be in my own space. I'm a little bit tired, so after a few laps of my complex, I took a quick nap. I've had some broth and a Protein Drink and some Water so far and I am FULL. Going to go on another walk soon. I'm still pretty sleepy but feeling good. Had my mom get my prescription for Loritab Elixir, and took some after my broth. Incisions look great - my doc just switched to dermabond (skin glue) instead of staples, thank goodness. One is a bit weepy but that's ok. All of my incisions are in a row, it's interesting. My port incision is the biggest, and the most sore, and there's a small hematoma (bruise) underneath it which is quite snesitive. I'll try to post pics soon. Abs are sore, neck is sore from sleeping weird, but I feel great overall!

Now I am in my favorite chair, with my water bottle at my side, and one of my best friends chillin with me. Gotta get up and walk so I feel even better. SO glad to have this behind me, I'm ready to heal and start eating right and exercising. :crying: Also looking forward to being able to cuddle comfortably again... hehe.

[John337 2]

Congrats to all you May 12th Bandsters......Glad you are all progressing well.

[meem 0]

Way to go may 12th-ers! Everyone sounds in good spirits and glad everyone came out ok.

Hey Kellster, I know how you feel about playing softball again. I went to a junior college on a scholarship for softball (many, many years ago) and I havent played since. I am so looking forward to joining a league, maybe a co-ed league, LOL!!

[Kellster 1]

Hey everyone, just wanted to give an update.

I was able to walk around the block yesterday without much of a slowdown (yay!), and again - the walking makes me feel so much better and gives me energy. Some friends came over and it was great to chat and have normal conversation. And it was fun to show them my incisions and have them be grossed out, bwahahahaha.

I tried to stay up as late as possible so I could sleep well, finally went to bed around 11. I got into my deliciously comfy bed with my clean soft sheets and multiple (6) pillows, lay down on my right side (port is on the left), and fell fast asleep. And I didn't wake up til this morning sometime, when I awoke laying on my back, surprised that I had slept so long. I lay there for a moment thinking, "Do I have any pain? How do I feel? How are my incisions?" I was surprised at how little pain I felt. So I rolled over on my right side again (left side is still questionable) and went back to sleep.< /p>

When I woke up, I felt great! Incisions themselves are a tiny bit sore, the hematoma below my port incision is still swollen, ugly, and pretty darn tender. But my energy feels good, I can take a big deep breath (still using my incentive spirometer) without pain, and I've had some Water and Protein shake. Gonna pop in some Vitamins, since I've had some muscle cramping, etc., and go for a walk around the block. Also, I'm going to get out of the house and get a pedicure today, woohoo!

I honestly think my surgeon is a miracle worker, because I feel so great and have so little gas pain and soreness. Now time to schedule a follow-up appt.

[ellendeette 1]

Congratulations on a successful lapband procedure. Thank you so much for the low down on your hospital experience. You sound like your are doing excellent. Hope to see you at our next lapband meeting later this month!

Ellen

[CanadianGirl.ca 0]

Hi everyone. I wanted to post on here earlier but have been feeling pretty tired from my pain meds and haven't felt much like going on the computer until today. I'm so glad to read that everyone's surgery went well on Tuesday. Mine did too, for the most part. When I woke up the first thing I noticed was pain in my left side (just discomfort) and my bottom lip hurt like heck. When I felt my lip it was huge! It must've been caught under the tube they put down your throat because I have never had such a bruised, fat lip. It still is swollen and now it really looks yucky cause the skin is peeling off and I have a blister on top of it. My kids think I got beat up! I think that if that is the worst thing I have to complain about though I'm pretty lucky. :tt1:

I have always reacted to being put under by vomitting when I wake up and I was quite nervous about this because I thought vomitting after this surgery would be BAD. I informed everyone of this reation before I went in and they said not to worry they would give me medication to avoid this. As soon as I woke up I felt a lot of nausea so they gave me meds. I slept a lot after and the next thing I know they are getting me dressed and sitting me up in a chair with my husband there with me. It seemed like a minute later but my hubby said it was a good hour and they were saying I could leave and go back to our hotel to rest. It was not long after getting back to the hotel that the nausea kicked in again and this time I did vomit and it sure was painful. I'm now really hoping that I didn't wreck my stitches or have my band slip. The muscles in my tummy feel very sore, especially when I try to sit up or lay down, like u feel after you've had the flu and vomitted a lot. I don't know if that is just normal from the surgery or if it is from throwing up.

I stayed at a hotel for one night and then did the dreaded six hour drive home on Wednesday. That was pretty tough! So yesterday I was exhausted and just rested all day. Last night I had a lot of chest pain and it hurt to take deep breaths. I also started burping a lot and passing gas and I feel a lot better this morning so I think the pain was just gas build up. I haven't had anything but a bit of chicken broth and some apple juice, besides Water, so I actually got brave this morning and had a Breakfast shake. My stomach was gurgling away when I woke up today and I think I was hungry cause since having the shake my tummy has stoppped talking to me.

So overall the surgery experience was a good one and I can't wait for the recovery time to be over so I can get to work on losing some weight!

Thanks to everyone who shared their surgery stories. It really helped me to hear that everyone else did ok before I went in. It's so nice to have you guys for support as we go through this together!!

[GonnaRide 0]

CanadianGirl, I'm going to give you my .02 so please take it as just someone who's been puking after surgery too, and not as medical advice (lol!).

After going home, I started violently throwing up. Really ferociously heaving and vomiting until bile started coming up. (Gross, I know, bear with me.) I even had to ask my doctor to hold on while I set the phone down and threw up more.

Once I went back into the hospital, I threw up a time or two more before they did the radiation/x-ray swallow thing. My band was exactly where it belonged. I even threw up really badly again after the test in the x-ray room and they weren't concerned.

It is horribly, horribly painful and still feels really achy, but apparently nothing moved. So it's probably that your band is okay, too. I would say though, if you're at all worried, have it checked. Better to be safe than sorry.

*hugs* I hope your recovery gets easier!

[Juniper 0]

oh my gosh, gonnaride, i'm so sorry you had to go through that!!

i think vomiting terrifies me more than needles, and that's saying something. i plan on BEGGING them to give me anti-nausea medicine before i leave. i mean, it's so bad, that just TALKING about throwing up with the nutritionist made me start crying. :grouphug:

i'm glad your band stayed in place, and i wish you a vomit-free future!!

[CanadianGirl.ca 0]

Thanks GonnaRide for telling me that u threw up too- I feel better now cause it sounds like it was way worse for you and your band is still ok so I think mine should be. (Sorry to hear how bad it was!) I'm feeling better each day and my stomach muscles aren't nearly as sore today as they have been.

[GonnaRide 0]

You're welcome :scared2: It totally sucks, but at least yours was pretty mild from the sounds of it. I'm sooo glad to hear it's not continued. That's wonderful.

[Sarah.R 2]

I was banded on the 12th as well and the soap is just antiseptic so that your clean before surgery and after so that your incisions don't get infected. As for vomitting, felt like I was going to as soon as I woke up, they gave me the drugs to stop it but still felt like I was going to so they gave me a vomit bag, stomach muscles where painful because I kept convulsing them I guess and they where tightening - Gagged like I was going to throw up but all that came up was the gas that I burped up thank god lol. A week later today and I feel great. How about the rest of you?