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Feeling anxiety about surgery


Guest austrolatrishy

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I woke up during my C-section and felt like I was being murdered! No problem at all with this surgery. Don't worry, shortly after they wheel you into surgery you will drop off like you are off to another planet! Good luck!

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I totally had doubts, self-questioned. . wondered if maybe I shouldn't call it all off and just go back on WW. But, I wrote out a pro/con list and kept it with me up to the point I went in the OR. When I set out all of the pros and cons on paper, it was so clear that this was the right thing for me.

I am now just over 13 months post-op. . . and only ten measley pounds from goal (!!). This year has been so well-spent, and I love my band. This is the best decision I've ever made, and not only did it make losing easier . . it's also great to not have to fear every second that all of the weight and more will come back on.

Check out my blog if you're interested. I posted my pro/con list a few monts ago, before/during (not "after" yet!) photos, etc.

My best advice for you is not to worry so much about these fears and to take the time out now to take your measurements and a bunch of "before" photos. You will definitely want them as you move forward!

Best wishes for your success!

Catherine

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My band was done on 7/27/09. I was so nervous that I had an upset stomach and the runs that morning. It is nerve-racking. But it really wasn't too bad. When I got there I told the nurse about my stomach issues and she gave me something to calm it down.

The anesthesia really didn't bother me at all. When I woke up they gave me some ice chips. That really hurt my tummy so they gave me some pain meds and that controlled it pretty quick. I was really sleepy though and they told me not to go back to sleep.

I had surgery at 8:30 and was home by 12:30 the same day. My nurse told me the best instructions for what to do when I got home. He told me that even though I would want to go home and sleep for a few hours to not do it. He told me to lie down, then about every half hour or so to get up and walk around in the house. He said that if I didn't that the gas they used to inflate my abdomen to put the band in would build up and I would have alot of pain from it. So I did what he said. Sometimes it was just a trip around the kitchen table and through the living and then back to bed. I did have some pain but nothing like what I see posted on here.

That evening I was outside walking around in the yard a little bit. Just make sure you get a little bit of Fluid in you and try to follow your doctor's nutritional guidelines for the post surgery eating. It's scary at first. I was really worried about how to eat and drink. But you learn as you go and now it's not hard to do at all.

Good luck to you. I hope your experience is as good as mine was!

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Guest austrolatrishy

Thank you all again for your kind words! I found that once I got to the center, and they hooked me up to my IV, that a sense of peace came over me. And it was only fluids in the IV, no happy juice!

I found that making a list of pros and cons really helped me. I was thinking about my mother, and how she passed away at such a young age from a heart attack. I knew that I would be a ticking time bomb if I didn't do something about my weight. When I thought about it, it was either have this surgery on my terms, or possibly have heart surgery later (which would be much worse!). I'm glad I took my life back! It hasn't been an easy few days, but right now, I can guarantee it's worth it. Of course, that could be the pain medicine talking... but we'll just say right now, I'm good to go! :thumbup:

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So glad to hear that the pro/con list helped! That was really a big help for me.

As of this morning, I'm only 8.2 pounds from goal! Had I known that all of my "cons" would turn out to be so minor, I would have gone into the surgery feeling even better than I did!

Catherine

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I'm somewhat nervous myself. My surgery date is 12/18 and I'm not so much scared of the surgery itself as I am how I will feel afterward. I had one girl tell me that when she left the hospital (was done outpatient) she had to return to have some saline taken "out" cause she couldn't swallow saliva. God! As for the anesthesia, my last surgery was in October, and it was so wierd. I remember the mask coming on my face...and like immediatley after, waking up in recovery...no sense of time loss.

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So glad to hear that the pro/con list helped! That was really a big help for me.

As of this morning, I'm only 8.2 pounds from goal! Had I known that all of my "cons" would turn out to be so minor, I would have gone into the surgery feeling even better than I did!

Catherine

Congrats on being so darn close to your goal! You must be extremely excited and proud. I cant wait until I start to get closer to my goal. Each pound loss is a step closer to a healthier, thinner me. Keep up the great work!:rolleyes2:

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Anasthesia is one of my ultimate fears. I don't know how I will deal with that. 2 weeks to either worry or find peace!

I'm so glad you found peace. It gives me hope!

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2 mar is THE BIG DAY!!!!! I can't wait! YAY!!!!! Good luck to everyone else as well:)

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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. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • 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

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

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

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