Shrinking Violets - Part 5!

[janiebug 0]

Michelle, words mean little at a time like this, but I am sorry and offer up prayers for your family! Hugs!!

[Daisalana 33]

You and your family are in my thoughts today Michelle ((HUGS)).

[HeatherO 7]

Michelle, I am so sorry for your loss and my heart goes out to you and your family and especially your father in law. I am so happy that you were able to bring the kids there last weekend as well. It was a real blessing to share that last bit of time with her.

[HeatherO 7]

Oh my sad Carson update, he acts fine during the day but when the sun goes down he is so pathetic!!! He was just wailing in pain last night and the wailing would make him cough so much he couldn't breathe, repeat. So we let him stay in bed with us all night (one of us held him all night long). Long night. I am hoping so much the antibiotics have him feeling better today. I don't know since he doesn't seem to care during the day, but fingers crossed he has relief tonight!!

Laura, I can't stress enough how much changing Ayla's position when she was sleeping affected her with the ear infections. She was moderately normal during the day but was absolutely miserable at night. The only way she slept at first was in my arms sitting in the recliner. The doctor said that laying down causes the pressure to build up and hence the pain. That is why they are fine during the day . . . they are running around or sitting upright.

If only I knew then what I know now . . . keeping her in a semi sitting position allowed her to sleep. Once she was in a car seat or swing to sleep she was semi-ok, if I laid her in bed she was screaming in 10-15 minutes.

Good luck and I hope he is feeling much better already.

[Haydee 2]

Aww, I feel so bad for all the sick bebes. Hopefully they will be better soon...

Sorry I've been MIA but its getting pretty hectic over here. I'm up at 430 for bootcamp so most days I'm snoozing around 830. I know, pathetic. I don't feel any difference yet but only one week so far.

Major drama with the venue the my mother in law is building for my wedding. It might have to be outside afterall... so I've been sad and upset but what am I gonna do at this point. I just let myself be carried away with one vision and now that it might not happen its just hard. Anyway, I feel so bad about complainig about somethig so pett when so much other stuff going on. There will be lots of good food and lots of good tequila lol. Love y'all lots...

[Daisalana 33]

Our Augmentin, has less than half of the bottle left, we've given 5 doses, out of 20. I talked to the doc this morn, he told me to take it to the pharmacy with the dropper I use... so I did, and the kid was like 'well the bottle holds 75ml, so this should be enough'. I stressed that 5 doses took half the bottle, and he goes "Well, this bottle holds 75ml, so it should all be there". So that was his brilliant answer. Then he throws in there, I need a new Rx if I am asking for more. Really, I'm here because I'm trying to illegally obtain Antibiotics?! Don't understand why they are running short!! It makes no sense. I know how to measure, and even if I didn't they make the dropper pretty dummy proof, it says 3.5ml on the dropper.

Plus side is he feels tons better. Last night was the big deciding factor; he slept beautifully. Didn't even cough for as long as I was up, which actually worried me. He is still coughing today, but last night he slept fine. We did put one side of his bed up on books (big computer programming books heh), so he slept at an incline.

He went back to daycare today. Normally 3-4 kids in his class, today they said they plan to have 8. Oh good, lots more new germs! I am hoping we can go 1 week without catching something.

[suzyt 0]

Oh, Michelle..... I am so sorry to hear about your MIL. Glad everyone got to visit beforehand. Hugs to you and your family!! You all are in my thoughts and prayers!

[janiebug 0]

Michelle, thoughts are with you and your family!

Haydee, I am sure your reception will still be great inside or out! Can they just not build it that fast?

Have fun on your break Pamela!!!!!!!

[janiebug 0]

How was Carson today/yesterday? I hope better!!

[Daisalana 33]

Much better!!! The antibiotics are definitely working. He slept through the night 2x in a row now, so no pains.

I feel kind of bad, someone PMd me, asking about my doc (they are thinking of using him). I don't have that gung-ho about the lap-band that I did when I started, and I know she does. I don't want to discourage it, but I can't muster the faux enthusiasm.

Only reason I don't have a sleeve now is that I didn't have the fight in me when it was time for the revision to get them all on board. I plan to do it one day!

But I'm not going to try to tell someone to get it over the band. The band worked beautiful for me until I got pregnant. 120lb in a year, no effort.. I don't know why it doesn't work the same anymore.

[HeatherO 7]

I feel the same. If you would have asked me anytime prior to pregnancy I would have been the poster child for banding. It worked well, I lost the weight and had enthusiasm galore.

If you ask me now . . . it is a great choice for some but not all and complications absolutely do happen. I never had any hormonal problems prior to banding but I find that the band is exxxttrreemely sensitive to hormonal fluctuations in my case. Pregnancy and banding did not mix in my case. It was several emergency unfills and then a slip.

Even if the chances of a complication are less than 5% (I forgot the actual rates and don't have the time to look them up) . . . if it happens to you it makes you 100% miserable. I never had health problems prior to banding . . . even with the extra weight I was as healthy as a horse and got plenty of exercise and good healthy food (albeit more than I needed, lol). My potassium was so low at a 2.5 when I was hospitalized that they said it was critical. I could have had a complication with my heart at any time and potentially lost my life over it. It took days of hospitalization and IV fluids before I was even healthy enough to consider having corrective surgery.

Banding does work somewhat for most, but not for everyone and the risks are very real. Honestly, if I could start over from the beginning I would have also gone to a sleeve. Even with losing the excess weight and being on the cusp of a normal BMI post pregnancy now, it wasn't worth my experiences of last summer.

Edited March 26, 2010 by HeatherO
Added note to complication rates

[kity 2]

drive by posting!

Why the sleeve...what are your personal reasons for it being better. I failed the band...it is either too loose and I eat (my responsibility) or it is too tight and I puke (my responsibility for eating what I shouldn't)...plus I felt hungry...often. My stomach growls so loud my students hear it.

Can you give me the cliff notes version of your takes (Heather and Laura) on the sleeve...and why not bypass.

if you have time. I can do my own research, but want the "friends" perspective.

[HeatherO 7]

Why the sleeve...what are your personal reasons for it being better. I failed the band...it is either too loose and I eat (my responsibility) or it is too tight and I puke (my responsibility for eating what I shouldn't)...plus I felt hungry...often. My stomach growls so loud my students hear it.

Why you already said the reasons . . .

Banding seemed like the best choice prior to being banded but what I didn't know is that the band could be so fickle.

Restriction can be elusive. Either it is too loose, you eat too much and don't lose the weight or it is too tight and most things are PB'd. The sweet spot for me changes. I can tell you some days I PB from tightness and other days I can eat a whole chinese buffet if I wanted to, lol.

Most days when I am at my sweet spot it means liquid Breakfast, relatively mild lunch (I have to be careful with choices because my band will reject certain things) and dinner or after dinner could be a free for all. That is as good as it gets for me.

With the sleeve, I feel like I would not be a slave to how fast things empty (or don't) from my stomach. When you reach capacity that's it. Of course good choices are still necessary and overeating consistently could cause dilation which is the same with all of the surgeries. However, capacity wouldn't vary completely based on time of day, time of month, current fill level, current stress level, etc.

While it may not be perfect (no solution is perfect yet) it seems like it could be better than the band in my case. R&Y would be much too drastic and I have known people who become very sickly thereafter or gain their weight back.

Anyways, that is my two cents for what it is worth considering I don't have real life experience with the sleeve. :0)

Edited March 26, 2010 by HeatherO

[HeatherO 7]

There is one more thing I should mention. This week I am not quite loving my band. Next week I might be fine with it. Just keep in mind that my opinion is shadowed by how well it is working for me at any moment in time. :0)

[Haydee 2]

Ditto on not being such an enthusuastic supporter of the band. I would do sleeve in a heart beat if I had the money. For me its so hard to get "good" stuff in me. I have a hard time with fruits and veggies. Everythinh has to be drenched in sauce. And if I get even a slight unfill I can eat vast amounts of food and am starving most of the time if I try to have bandster portions....