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Mel: I know what you mean. I considered myself to have a high threshold of pain but the band so far has been doing a number on me!

Personally I found Gax-X to be my biggest helper as a lot of my pains are gas pains which will hopefully pass soon as I continue to heal and my body adjusts. The liquid pain meds take the edge off.. which has helped as well.

I haven't tried the heating pad/cold compress on my stomach.. does it really help much? that might be something I have to pick up tomorrow when I am out! :confused:

stay strong.. we'll all get through it :cursing:

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just joe

The cold compress on the stomach feels good and reduces swelling . I have the bag with flax seed that I reuse bought it at helath stor e'i think . i put heating pad on my back just to keep muscles from getting sore. I think it also moves the gas around because i get some chest pressure sometimes . I am post op 2 days now and still pretty sore and tired not sleeping well between sore tummy and hubby who snores. i think its time for a nap so i will check in later. mel

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My story:

I overslept and so I was rushing to get my bags packed and and check out of my hotel room. I was able to get the cab secured and checked out and I thought Id have enough time to get to the hospital. Well then the cab made a stop to get gas, and a stop to pick up another couple who were going somewhere next to the hospital so I wound up late. They made me fill out a few forms and took me to my room. I dropped off my bags and they took me to surgery floor. I got naked as a Jay-Bird and put on my cute gown (ha ha) with the open part at my backside. I was in a section of rooms made by hanging sheets. I had my own little room section. They started an IV and gave me a pill to 'relax'. I asked for my book and they went and got it out of my room for me, but by the time they brought it to me I had fallen asleep. My doc wakes me up two hours later and it was time for surgery. Because I had been late they did someone else before me. I called hubby to let him know I hadn't had mine yet and was just getting ready to go in. Doc told hubby he'd call him when it was over. They wheel me into a room and a anesthesia doc asks me what I want to dream about. I laugh and say Hawaii. He says, "How bout Hawaii in a bikini?" and so I say, "sure......" Then there is nothing. I wake up to my doc and anesthesia doc both calling my name loudly and firmly over and over. I am being lifted onto another table. I try to schootch myself and help them a bit, but I'm really out of it. They wheel me to a recovery room that has a glass wall looking to the nurses station. The nurses rarely come in because they can see me and the monitors from their station, plus they don't speak English so its not like they come in to talk to me. They only come in to give me Water and make sure its going down. I drift in and out, but I'm trying to stay awake because I want to go back to my room. I am surprised at the pain. I didn't think I would be in pain, but I am slowly noticing the pain a little more and a little more at a time as the drugs wear off. It was bearable, but more than I had expected. After I can make myself stay awake for a half hour strait they wheel me back to my room. Its been over two hours but feels so much shorter. My Dr assistant Dr Guzman comes in and talks to me. I don't remember much. I ask him to tell the nurses to bring me ice chips since I don't know how to ask them in Spanish. I cant remember what we talk about. I think he watches me drink Water to make sure it goes down. Then I get dinner a few hours later consisting of chicken broth and watered down juice. It goes down fine. Then bring me a crushed up sleeping pill in water. Its gross, but it helps me fall asleep and not wake up until morning.

Edited by headin_to_mxico

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I was banded July 13. My surgery started at 730am, and I was home by 930am. My least favorite part of surgery has always been coming out of anesthesia, being in that "groggy" half awake half asleep phase. I remember coming out of surgery, telling them I couldn't breath (I guess because I couldn't take deep breaths?) so they put oxygen on me. They tried to get me to take some ice chips but I didn't want to. They let me sleep for about 30 minutes, I started to wake up then and was asking for ice chips and they gave me pain meds. Walked to the bathroom to pee, sat up in the chair for another 15 minutes or so, and was on my way out the door. Took about a 2 hour nap at home, and then spent the rest of the day walking around the house. I've had tons of surgeries in the past but this was my first laparoscopic surgery and I was absolutely amazed at how great I felt in comparison. And thankfully I didn't get hungry that day!

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

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        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

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