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Blog 69714

A blog by bestbette

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H&P and Labs Day

Most of my time today was spent waiting... The pre-op history and physical consisted of the nurse practioner saying "well are you ready for surgery?" then listening to my lungs and giving me some papers. We were probably in the same room together for 90 seconds (after an hour wait). The tests were pretty speedy and consisted of a pee test, blood draw, 2 chest films, and an EKG. That was it and they told me to show up on my surgery date! Today is day 2 of the LSD diet. I got through it by having a small green salad at lunch with a hard boiled egg. It's currently 5:37p my time and I'm going to wait to have my second shake until 6:00p and then go to bed early. The good news? I weighed in at 270lbs at the Drs office today! I think their scale is light, I couldn't believe it!

July 7, 2009

0

Three Months Out

Greetings! I thought I would do a post since I'm at the three month post op mark and a couple of different things are happening. I'm down a total of 62lbs already, which seems to be a little fast and I'm experiencing the repercussions of that, for sure. Most notably headaches and hair loss. I'm going to have the last bit of my hair cut off tomorrow. Eating is going ok. I really need to add a protein shake to my daily intake and increase my water. I just have, at this point, no hunger. And no real anything to put anything in my mouth or down the hatch. I'm going in on Monday for a review under xray, to make sure that the positioning is still good and that the pouch looks ok. May get a smidge more of a fill but not over .2 cc I'm quite sure. As I feel quite snug as it is. I guess my only other real complaint is occasional pain. But this isn't serious pain at all...more transient really. I'm not taking Tylenol for it or anything. Plus I'm doing ok with my exercising. I went for a run tonight but with the seasonal weather etc, it's not happening as regularly as it should. But I'm not experiencing any of the things I was worried about pre-op, like port torsion or band slippage, PBs etc. So I hope that everyone else out there is doing equally well, and that a few of your can attest that hair will grow back after weight loss stabilizes. Regards, :huh2:

October 22, 2009

3

Long Time...Life Continues

Greetings! I am happy to say that my wt loss is continuing to progress. I've lost 110lb since my surgery 7/20/09 (actually, that includes pre-op diet), but regardless, I'm only 20lb away from my goal. I'm really finding that sugar impedes my wt loss dramatically, so am re-focusing on whole foods, veggies and meats mostly. I will say that over the last few months I have become a HUGE fan of Muscle Milk and have at least one per day, two if I'm being good. No PBing and sometimes band irritation, but it passes in a day or two. I can't expect to have zero pain with a plastic zip tie cinched around my stomach. My only other real news is that I was diagnosed with uterine cancer at the end of Feb 2010, related to my previous obesity and PCOS. A shock really (esp at 31yo) and very sad as I have not yet had any children. But I'm working through it and doing my best to remain positive. I'm also trying to stay away from refined foods for cancer health. It's finally warm here again, 95 degrees I think and I have to say I'm ok to say goodbye to the snow for now. So hope you are all doing well out there in the interweb. Until next time.

April 7, 2010

4

Blog Comments

Ok. Before signing off I noticed that I had some comments to my previous posting. A) that's pretty cool, I didn't know you could comment and I'm not sure how to best respond except in another post? If there's something better, please advise. Anyway, many thanks to all of your well wishes - please consider them equally returned :confused3:. I found out more details about my pre-op diet today and while I am allowed non starchy vegetables, the main point is to keep the daily caloric intake between 500-700 per day. That's a big cut for me. Today I've had 4 regular slimfast cans and water. I thought maybe I could drink unlimited slimfast but not so. The diet is called LSD (Liver Shrinking Diet) and is to be low carb, low fat, and low sugar. To the person who asked about tea - unfortunately my answer is no. I'm traditionally a strong black tea drinker but I think the other part of that equation really for me was the sugar. I tried many different artificial sweetners in the tea but it wasn't the same w/o the copious amounts of sugar added. I have some decaf green tea in the cupboard that I'm planning on brewing tomorrow. If it's any good I'll post the brand. Thx for the responses and here's to all of our current and future success!

July 7, 2009

1

Surgery is Tomorrow!

My surgery is tomorrow and I'm playing it cool. I've completed my "to-do" list (including pedicure) and have just had my final shake of the day. It's almost 7:00p here and I'm about to set my alarm for 5:00a as I have to be at the hosptial at 7:00a tomorrow. I have everything in order to the very best of my ability and am keeping a positive attitude that things will go well with the surgery. The only thing that I'm concerned about is my past history of very bad nausea/vomiting after going under general anesthesia. My solution is that I'm going to write in Sharpie on both of my forearms "HIGH NAUSEA RISK" before I leave for the hosptial. Yes, I may be the laughing stock of the OR but I really don't care and hopefully it will ensure that I get the drugs that I need in the recovery room. I'm a little tired of the High Protien Slimfast shakes that I've been drinking for the last two weeks, but honestly the shakes weren't that bad. The hunger was bad, but the shakes were entirely bearable. So I'm off to watch a movie or something and turn in early. Wish me luck tomorrow!

July 19, 2009

4

Third Fill

I went to the hospital and received my third fill today; .5 ccs. I thought I needed .2 or .3 but got .5, under flouro. The PA and tech said that I have a "cute pouch." What does that mean I wonder? I guess that it means that it's really small. :wink: That makes me happy. So I'm on liquids then mushies until the weekend. I'm really hoping to kick this next 20-30 lbs in the butt and thus far I haven't failed to loose after getting a fill. I'm about to go and make my breakfast, which will consist of 8oz skim milk, one scoop vanilla unjury protien powder, and 1/2 cup of blueberry, blackberry, and raspberry mixture. I'm eating some protien pudding as well. Although now that I'm thinking about it, some tomato soup sounds great for lunch tomorrow. Anyway, wish me luck in adjusting to my new adjustment, lol.

October 26, 2009

4

Second Fill

Well I went into the office and got my second fill today. Not nearly as traumatic as the first one, not as painful and not so much bleeding everywhere. I saw the NP and she only gave me a touch of a fill, .6cc. That seems small to me since my first fill was a full 2.6cc. She told me to wait 2 weeks and then touch base with how it was going. Since I'm self pay all visits are free for me for the first year, so I don't mind going in again if need be. The second fill puts me at a total of 6.2cc in the AP band. My Dr office has me fill out a diet summary and the NP was pretty stern with me saying that I was eating too much soft foods and that I need to eat a more substantative fare. I guess this will commence after my two days of liquids and two days of solids... I was pretty unhappy since I've only lost 5lbs in the last 3 weeks. The NP said that too much soft/mushy food = weight gain. I'm syncing up my i pod right now as I've started to jog around the neighborhood pretty successfully. My neighbors think I'm a riot. Until later!

September 14, 2009

1

Post-op

Dang. It's been quite a while since I've posted here. I'll proceed with the short version. Surgery was very good, post-op recovery was awesome. Writing on my forearms with the Sharpie was definately a score. Post surgery, at home recovery sucked and was very very painful. Not a fun time. It took for freaking ever to heal and is much more of a "deal" than I anticipated. I had my first fill 5 weeks post-op. They took out and measured the 3ccs in my band (unbeknownst to me) and then added 2.6cc more for a totall of 5.6cc for all of you math whizzes out there. 10cc AP Band. My weight loss is hopping at 40lbs down as of today. And, I just made and ate the famed ricotta bake for my dinner and damn does it sit well in my stomach. So things are going well now that most of the recovery is over. Worth it? Definately! Pain-free? That's a no. Well wishes to all of you floating around out there. I will try to post more frequently.

August 31, 2009

3

Monday, Monday

Today I went to my last mandatory seminar prior to surgery, which was a 4 hour educational course. Half of the course was devoted to what to expect and risks, the second half to diet, both pre-op (which I am enjoying now) and the first phase of post op. I'm looking for the High Protien Slim Fast cans but they were not at my local grocery or WalMart. I might let my fingers do the walking instead of driving all around town wasting gas. I'm excited about the procedure and think I've decided on getting the LapBand version. They passed around both the Lap and Realize bands for us to inspect today and although I know the statistics say the results are identical I liked the LapBand better (except for the port). The band itself seemed more sturdy and honestly it looked to me like the balloon on the inside of the Realize band was visibly glued on? Not the most encouraging. As I'm self pay, the instructor said that they will most likely try to get me in early in the morning...arrival time 5am and Sx at 7a and then in the car on the way home by 1 or 2p??? Wow. I'm very thankful that I have a strong support system. I would be much more concerned if I was going home alone.

July 7, 2009

3

Weight Gain and PBs

Greetings. This has not been a wonderful week for me. I started a new job and have made some really crappy food/eating choices and as a result have gained 1 lb. My first non weight loss week since starting this journey. A combination of lack of protien rich foods and eating more than three times a day is *not* good! Also, I pb'd last night for the first time since getting the band. It was weird, the milk I'd just sipped to get it to go down was still cold. Gross. So I'm about to get up and start my exercise regimine, which up until now has been ignored. My dog will be so excited. It's a beautiful time of year here in Richmond and absolutely zero reason why I should not go walk/jog around. I'm extremely optimistic that next week will be a loss and Monday after the holiday I have an appointment for my second fill! Warm wishes to you all.

September 5, 2009

3

One Week Until Surgery

Well at this time next week I will be at home recouping from my procedure. Things have passed by swiftly. I'm going to my first support group meeting tonight and am glad because I feel like I could use a little support. This past weekend was reeeeaaallly tough on the pre-op diet and I had one slip-up, which is discouraging. And honestly, I'm feeling a little depressed and not sure why. It will be good to get around some other people who are experiencing similar situations. I have been having one day full liquid then one day with a salad allowed. Today was my salad day, which obviously makes tomorrow my liquid day and being so hungry puts me in a crap mood. I'm dropping weight like nobody's business though and am down 15lbs. That's more than 1lb per day, which seems a little fast. Things are also complicated in my non WLS world, work is crazy, I've just interviewed for another job, my best friend is pregnant and sick, and others in my family are ill as well. All in all stressfull. I think that the day of surgery I might have to ask for some vitamin V as the nurse suggested...I wonder if she'll let me take any home? :cursing:

July 13, 2009

3

Final Pre-Op Seminar

I just returned home from my final pre-op seminar. Whew. It seemed like a lot of hoops to jump through to get to surgery but I'm sure it's nothing compared to those wrangling with insurance denials and I've probably just been watching too much Nip/Tuck. Tonight's seminar was more like group and the moderator was great and we had some good discussion. I think I'm going to start going to the regular support group at my hospital to get to know some of these folks better. I know one other person who's been banded but she's not a close friend and I would like to connect with some more locals. They're offering fun things like shopping trips, cooking lessons, and even pilates class. I've always read that follow up and support is of utmost importance but I guess you gotta show up first! Today is my fourth day of pre-op diet. I had a really hard time finding the High Protien Slimfast that my Dr recommended and even now I only have enough to last me another day or so. I'll have more time to hunt during the weekend. I got a really good invitation to a friend's birthday party at a local bar/restaurant tomorrow night and another invite to a good band playing tomorrow night. I don't want to seem anti social but I'm not sure that I'm up for going out when I'm on a liquid diet. I think it might just be a weekend for reading a book and going to bed early......

July 9, 2009

1

Last Supper

Well I just finished an oh-so-healthy dinner with my mother, which consisted of chips and dip and double pepperoni pizza. Mmm. Over the last month I've tried to "get in" all of the bad foods that I will not be able to have once banded. I think I'm most sad about sushi. I might have to be a sashimi girl from now on. Tomorrow marks the two week date until my surgery. I don't officially meet with the dietician until Tuesday but I've committed to starting liquid tomorrow. If I find out that I can also have a small salad and/or chicken, then great. I also drank the last sweet tea in my fridge this morning :confused3: I'm a little bit worried about this one as I'm a sweet tea aholic. I'm throwing out the remaining caffiene tea bags and sugar that I have in the house. Tomorrow I will also start caffiene free...honestly, that's what I'm really bracing for. I've done some research over the past few days comparing Lap and Realize Bands. I think I'm going to go with the LapBand unless my surgeon tells me strongly otherwise for some reason. I weighed in a 278 this morning and am 5'11'' so here's looking for that scale to be starting a downward trend that will continue for quite a while. I have a 4 hour mandatory seminar tomorrow so hopefully it will be informative, the presenters good, and I won't recv a million work calls throughout. Till then!

July 5, 2009

5

Two More Days

Well it's Friday night and I'm about to turn in. I finally got my arrival for the hosptial time this afternoon, which is Monday morning at 7:00am. That means just Saturday and Sunday and then I'll be off this godforsaken LSD diet and the band will be in place! I'm very excited. Scratch that, I'm very very excited! I think that the next two days will pass quickly as the things that I have to do to before surgery day is a bit long. So busy busy over the weekend...hopefully will be able to squeeze in seeing the new Potter movie, and then my day will be here. Wheeeeee.... I can't wait!!! :smile2:

July 18, 2009

1

Cheating

I cheated on my pre-op diet today :blushing: I stopped and got a burger on my way home. I had a bad day at work and auto drove to fast food and ate it even really before thinking. I am in complete shock... Actually I think I might be past shock and on to rationalization. So here's my rationalizing...my surgeon said that everyday for dinner we can have a sandwich with two slices of bread. Since last Monday I have had only high protien slimfast shakes and a total of 4 salads...that's it. If I'd had a sandwich every night that would have been more bread than 1 bun and more meat than 1 burger. That being said I'm sure what I did have was loaded with calories and fat and all kinds of trans badness. I feel guilty and have horrible indigestion to boot. My surgery is next Monday and I'm vowing to 3 shakes per day until that and water. Nothing more, nothing less. Sigh.

July 15, 2009

2

First Post

Hello to all of the bandsters out there. I decided to keep a quick blog here to keep track of myself and to share with others. I find that the message boards are a bit busy and I do a poor job of keeping up. Here I can say what's going on for my own reference as well as anyone else who might stop by (welcome). I am scheduled to be banded on Monday, July 20, 2009. WLS was first suggested to me back in 1997 but I think I was too young and generally not ready. I recently have had a family sponsor come forth to self pay my surgery and am very very grateful that I'm able to start this journey. I've already completed my initial surgeon consult and psych exam. I'm scheduled for an additional educational seminar and my H&P next week. I'm a little nervous about starting the pre-op diet and getting underway with giving up my guilty pleasure food but I'm 110% sure that it's for the best. I'll try to post again after my next dr appt!

July 2, 2009

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