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first blog post

so yesterday i met with Dr. Bui and it went well. very nice guy. very detailed answers to my questions.   after looking over my health history and all my paperwork, he feels that i am very proactive about my goal and that i am an excellent surgical candidate. this makes me incredibly happy. he was also very pleased to see that Psyko (DH):wink2: was with me since support is a VERY big deal.   we discussed the Roux-en-Y and the lap band and he wanted to know why i was insistent on the Lap Band rather than the Roux-en-Y so i explained that i dont want my digestive system cut up, theres less serious complications (staples can leak, etc), shorter recovery time, its adjustable, and the weight loss is more gradual. he agrees these are good reasons. so yeah, it all went very well.   he gave me a list of things that he wants me to call around on base and schedule for. ideally i should have this list fully completed by October.   checklist for bariatric work-up:     Nutritional Medicine Consultation   Behavioural Health Consultation   LAB-fasting overnight (blood work)   Radiology *chest x-ray *pulmonary function tests   Pulmonary Medicine *sleep study   General Surgery Clinic *upper endoscopy         thats a lot of stuff to do! we are calling on monday to start scheduling things and im heading to the LAB on Tuesday for the blood work. Tuesday i also have an appointment to have a rash checked out.     oh...Dr. Bui also showed me a working model of the Lap Band. CAN I JUST TELL YOU HOW COOL THAT WAS?? awesome. so freaking cool.:cool2:   im still freaked out at the thought of an endoscopy. *shudders*:ohmy:
harliquinn

harliquinn

3
 

is this normal???

im 4 and a half weeks post op. i havent lost any weight in at least 3 weeks. i can eat pretty much anything (tomato is problematic.)   is it normal to stop losing weight so early on? will a fill help this?   it seems like once i started mushies and then solids, the weight stopped coming off. :thumbup:
harliquinn

harliquinn

2
 

first fill

my first fill (aside from the 2ccs that were put in during surgery) is april 2nd.   i cant wait. i can eat entirely too much at the moment and im hungry all the time.
harliquinn

harliquinn

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i found a new love

oh mushies, how i love thee!     especially you, pureed low fat cottage cheese. oh baby. ive missed you. i promise, ill never leave you again.     love, Harli:wub:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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grrrrrr bad day

my port is bothering me/painful and i havent lost a single pound in 2 weeks. i have a fill on friday. i cant freaking wait. *grumbles*
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

back vs side

im finally able to sleep on my side for short periods! 2 and a half weeks after surgery. its about damn time!   i cant stand sleeping on my back. most uncomfortable thing ever!   for the record, im a side/stomach sleeper.
harliquinn

harliquinn

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why staying off the scale might be best for my sanity and motivation...

ive gotten into the bad habit of hoping on the scale every morning. after losing 11 pounds between monday and wednesday, i was thrilled. on thursday i hopped on the scale only to have it tell me that i GAINED a pound! and that little bit of news resulted in a terrible day and a terrible mood. since then, despite counting calories and exercising, the scale wont budge from that cursed number!   ...i think the scale may have sentience. and it may be trying to drive me mad.
harliquinn

harliquinn

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2 days post-op

i felt a little better after getting a shower today. back, shoulders, neck and upper arms are all sore as hell. i got to take the gauze and plastic stuff off of my incisions. theres just steri-strips holding everything together now. 5 incisions. my port is located just to the left of my belly button.   ive discovered that laughing SUCKS. it really hurts to laugh or chuckle at all. hiccups hurt too.   besides that, im alright. doing a little walking here and there. last night i slept on the couch...sitting upright because getting into bed was just NOT possible.
harliquinn

harliquinn

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not a good day. :(

i had to stop taking the Oxycodone that was given to me by my surgeon because im itching like crazy and breaking out in red rashes. this is an allergic side effect of the drug but thankfully not a severe one.   and since i went all night and morning without pain meds, im in a lot of pain. my port area hurts the most but a couple other parts of my abdomen are sore as well. sitting up on my own and laying down on my own need to be done VERY slowly or else BAM! pain city.   feeling very down. depressed. upset. hating my life.   my dog just slammed her paw into my side. she hit an incision, causing a sharp jab of pain. shes not a small dog, shes a boxer. thanks, dog. :closedeyes:   im going back to bed until tomorrow.:tt1:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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one week to go!

i know its only a few pounds but i swear i can see a difference. ive easily lost a couple inches off my stomach. this makes me ridiculously happy.   also, apparently my stomach was making grumbly noises for an hour before i realized i was hungry. i was like, "what the hell is that sound? ooh that doesnt sound good. OH, im hungry!" LOL! time for another protein shake i guess.
harliquinn

harliquinn

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getting stuck a lot after a fill.

i got a 2 cc fill 17 days ago, bringing me to a total of 4 ccs in a 10 cc band and i find myself getting stuck nearly every day.   things that go down okay: soft pieces of beef jerky (the dry stuff doesnt go down well even if chewed like crazy) egg salad tuna salad cottage cheese bagel chips (trying to stay away from these. too many carbs) chocolate (again trying to steer clear of this but its been tough this week as its my girly week and the chocolate helps my mood and cramps) shrimp cheese cashews and walnuts   turkey and chicken and beef dont go down well. even ground turkey breast, cooked and mashed into tiny pieces in gravy....yeah even the smallest most well chewed bite gets stuck. steamed summer squash gets stuck. string cheese gets stuck. most solids get stuck. i think i might be a bit too tight? ive gained a few pounds due to only being able to eat soft/slider foods. my surgeon thinks ill need a fill in a week or two. i think thats possibly the worst idea ever. i cant imagine being even tighter.   does this sound like a too-tight band?
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

difficulty getting enough calories!

i still has several more days left to go on my liquid diet (post fill). according to my food and exercise journal, im getting less than 800 calories a day!   im finding it really hard to get 1000-1200 calories a day.   any tips? advice? im adding protein powder to nearly everything and im getting 3 meals and a healthy dessert daily.
harliquinn

harliquinn

0
 

One month!

it has officially been one month since i got my band. <3 already its my best friend. even tho i dont have restriction yet, its teaching me how to eat properly. tiny bites, chewing well, eating slowly.   i hope my band will be with me for years to come.
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

belly pic!

3 weeks post op. pic taken just before i removed the last 2 steri-strips. p.s. im not really yellow. its just bad lighting. :mad:   all the steri-strips were removed a week ago and 2 new ones were placed over the port incision. those are now gone. :eek:  
harliquinn

harliquinn

5
 

hmmmmm i wonder....

im starting to wonder if people lose weight with the band because it becomes a hassle to eat anything. XD   it took me 20 minutes to eat two chicken nuggets. :thumbup:
harliquinn

harliquinn

3
 

Yes we can!

today was a fantastic day! ive finally got a date for my surgery! February 25th! i am ecstatic. :thumbup:   i have to meet with Dr. Bui on the 16th (10 am) for the pre-op consult, signing of papers, taking of vitals, weigh in, etc.   ill be meeting with the anesthesiologist on the 17th (7 am) to have blood drawn, consult, signing of papers, etc.   and then on the 25th...i am FINALLY getting my band! ive been working toward this goal since Nov 2008. im so happy. a little nervous since it seems its coming up so quickly but i am ready!   as of right now, im on the pre-op diet for 2 weeks. itll be a rough 2 weeks but well worth it!!:confused:
harliquinn

harliquinn

5
 

thank you

thank you so much to the people who comment here in my blog. i really appreciate your insight and soothing words as well as recipes. :thumbdown: im so glad that there are so many wonderful, friendly, supportive people here.:closedeyes:   you are all fantastic. we can kick butt on this journey together!:tt1:
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

here goes

im a little less nervous now. not sure how well i will sleep tonight. i had a can of beef broth this afternoon (doctor has had me on sugar free, fat free liquids only for the last 2 weeks), but i cant really handle anything tonight. my stomach just isnt up for it. probably all for the best but i know ill be starving tomorrow.   for now, im sticking with water.   since my doctor is making me stay in the hospital overnight tomorrow, i guess i should go pack my overnight bag.   ill see you guys tomorrow when im on the band-wagon!
harliquinn

harliquinn

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day 6 post-op

i went to see my surgeon today for a surprise visit. one of my incisions had a bit of discharge and my post incision is a little red and starting to bruise. my surgeon looked it over, said its all normal, cleaned the weeping incision and put new tape on it.   on the ride home, i felt a sneeze coming on so i placed my hands on my belly and braced for it. unfortunately, it wasnt enough. because i felt an incredibly sharp pain followed by an all day long dull ache. i have no idea whats wrong. do i have a hernia now? did i flip my port? was the pain just caused by the port bouncing or something when i sneezed? i have no idea.   im worried but i dont want to bug my surgeon a second day in a row without an appointment. i hope the pain will be gone tomorrow. :tt2:   liquids are going own easy as anything. some mushies are going down fine as well. some mushies tend to stick a bit but they still go down after a minute or so. im making progress. im just worried about this pain. :smile2: i hope i didnt mess things up somehow! :thumbup:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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surgery tomorrow...scared to death!

well, its official!   im being banded tomorrow morning. ill be excited once its over im sure, but right now im a huge bundle of nerves and im scared to death! what if i have some sort of undiagnosed heart problem and something happens during anesthesia?:cursing:   is it normal to feel like this? i definitely dont have doubts about getting my band but the surgery itself scares me. :rolleyes2:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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liver herniation

im a bit concerned that i may have a liver herniation or something similar. one spot an inch or two above an incision, is very tender, swollen (not red), and quite painful. its only painful when i bend, laugh, cough, sneeze, move too quickly or touch it. when it *does* hurt, id rate the pain a 6 or a 7. when i lay down and press on the area, theres no pain.   i called my surgeon to see if i should come in or something and was told it was only the stitches inside healing. um. im not sure i believe that....   so i asked if there was any chance of it being a hernia or something and get this...   ...I GOT LAUGHED AT and told there was NO CHANCE of it being a hernia. well....correct me if im wrong, but after surgery penetrating the muscle wall, a hernia is indeed possible.   im so upset right now. im in a fair amount of pain that my liquid oxycodone isnt even touching. my surgeon had a free slot this afternoon to see me but would rather i wait until our appointment on friday. how hard is it for him to just check this spot and put my mind at ease so im not stressed and worried sick all week?   i just want to curl up in bed and cry.:thumbup:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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randomness...2 weeks post-op

i will be meeting with my surgeon on friday. looking forward to that. maybe he will pull off these steri-strips!   tuna, turkey and gravy, and mashed potatoes are all that ive been eating his week. yummy tho! im going to try scrambled eggs for lunch tomorrow!   my husband says he can definitely tell im losing weight from the belly region. it makes me happy to hear but i wish i could see it.   anyway, im off to bed. just wanted to update so people know im still alive.
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

an open letter to my stomach

dear stomach,   i just finished eating applesauce. so why in the hell are you growling at me? you JUST ate! please settle down. youre being really unpleasant and i dont appreciate it one bit. ill make a scrambled egg for you a bit later...with ketchup! youll love it, i promise.   Harli
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
 

...so you didnt put a small fill in my band, eh? suuuuurrrre.

follow-up with Dr. Bui went very well. no sign of infection, minimal pain (and only occasionally), incisions are healing nicely. the port incision is healing a little more slowly but thats to be expected since its the largest. Dr. Bui says it looks good tho. steri-strips have been removed but he put 2 new ones over the port incision. i can take them off in a week. lol im sorta tempted to get a picture of my stomach. the scars arent anywhere near as bad as i thought they were going to be. but i doubt anyone wants to see my fat belly LOL! :bored:   we went over diet, exercise, wound care, portion control, etc. we also talked about fills. i have a 10 cc band and had 2 ccs in at the time of surgery (which would account for the crazy restriction i had at first. he said the band would be empty!). he is having his coordinator call me to schedule a fill for me in the first week of April.:glare:   im doing good tho! started solid foods last night. despite having 2 ccs in a 10 cc band, i no longer have restriction. so the hunger is back. and i dont feel full. :tt1: so itll be a struggle to make it to the first week of April without wanting to stuff myself but ill do it.:tt2:
harliquinn

harliquinn

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dinner

i had a Campbells soup at hand (creamy tomato) and 1/4 cup of mashed potatoes. im stuffed. i couldnt eat another molecule if my life depended on it.   are some people on mushies actually able to eat as much as they want? i get full really quick these days and i dont have much of an appetite.   its that time of the month too. is it just me or does the band feel tighter during this time of the month?
harliquinn

harliquinn

1
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