Hello Everyone,

I have been reading everyone's posts, and wanted to say thanks for all the good information during this journey.

Figured I would try to pass this information to the next person who is waiting for surgery. These are my experiences so far, so I hope I do not scare anyone. I just want to be honest about what I feel and how things have went so far. I am trying to be very detailed, so sorry if this is a bit boring.:biggrin:

I went to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, MO yesterday, March 1st, 2010, at 5:30am in the morning for LAP-BAND®® Surgery with surgeon Dr. Robert Cavagnol.

I weighed in at 381 lbs. I was 400 lbs two weeks before after returning from a 7 day Carnival Cruise where I gained 10 lbs. I went straight from eating anything I wanted on the ship to a liquid diet. Not very smart, but the vacation was planned before the surgery and my surgeon felt I could handle the challenge.

I undressed my sweat pants and cotton t-shirt, put on the hospital gown, and waited an hour for the other staff to arrive. The registration and lab staff verified who I was, checked my blood sugar, and placed an IV in my right arm to prep me for surgery.

I was not sure why we had to be there so early. My spouse and I were tired, but enjoyed the intimate moments to talk and spend quite time together with no kids. I was very nervous about this surgery, as I had lost a friend I worked with a few years before during a routine gall stone procedure. He died in the recovery area very unexpectedly.

Soon things started to move quicker. At 7am it seemed like all the staff had come in for their shifts. The anesthesiologist entered my room, gave me an idea what to expect during surgery and gave me some Versed in my IV to calm me, and my surgeon popped his head not too long after for a quick handshake and some last minute discussion on how I would feel post op and promised to talk to my wife Lindsey in the waiting room when finished operating.

My wife was then taken to the waiting room, and a male surgical nurse came in to wheel me off to surgery. Once in the operating room, I was given extra blankets that were warmed and given a mask to breath through. The warm blankets felt great! I went to sleep very quickly after that not even knowing I was getting put to sleep. No time to even worry about it. Everyone was very nice and I really felt comfortable before surgery. I even thanked the staff a few times as they really did everything possible to keep me comfortable and calm. St. John's does a great job and their people make the difference.

I awoke in the recovery room about an hour later. I was very tired and could immediately feel a large amount of pressure on my chest. It was very difficult to breathe. I went back to sleep for a few minutes before waking again. A female nurse asked how I was doing, and I asked the bed to be raised as my lower back was hurting and I hoped that this would help me breathe. She moved the bed immediately. The nurse also explained the pressure in my chest was the carbon dioxide used by the surgeon to inflate my inner stomach area during surgery so he could see better around my stomach and liver. I was told this pain would last for 1-2 days, as my body would need to break the gas down and get rid of it over time. I felt really panicked about this, as it felt like a small child was sitting on my chest. My thoughts wandered to heart attacks and other scenarios I could dream up. My mind always thinks that way. I wish I could stop it, but oh well. I was over reacting in the moment.

I was soon rolled to the room I was in earlier, where I originally undressed and put on my gown.

My wife joined me soon afterwards and told me my surgeon stopped into the waiting room to speak with her. He felt things went very well. He told her that my 2 week pre-op liquid diet had helped, as I had lost weight around my liver and made it easier for him during surgery. This was a relief, because I really wanted to succeed with this goal, and it was hard to go from solid foods on my vacation to broth and protein shakes. Probably one of the hardest things I have ever done diet wise, as I really have little to no willpower.

I tried to get comfortable in the room, and asked the nurse if I could stand. The nurse there was happy that I wanted to get up. She helped me immediately. Standing seemed to help me breathe as my body weight did not press down on my chest as much. I was suprised how easy I could move around. There was little pain.

My wife helped me into my sweat pants and t-shirt and helped me with my shoes. I was asked to pee in the bathroom and not flush by the nurse. Once this was done, they took my wife to get the car, and put me in a wheel chair to meet her at the patient exit and go home. My wife went to a pharmacy to pick up some pain meds, and I slept in the car off and on during the trip home.

Once we got to our house, I plopped into a recliner and again could not get comfortable. The pressure in my chest was really difficult to bear. I eventually asked my wife to help me to the bedroom where I was able to lay sideways and sleep. The stomach area hurt as this pulled on my incisions, but this seemed to relieve the pressure I was feeling in my chest. i was glad to trade one uncomfortable thing for something else taht was more bearable.

I awoke a few hours later and walked around the house, as the medical staff stated this would help the gas pressure from moving to my shoulder. As the day progressed, the pressure seemed to diminish. Walking did help.

I sipped water during the daytime and at night drank some chicken broth. The broth filled my stomach greatly and I began to have horrible hiccups before bed that hurt my incisions. These hiccups moved my whole chest, and there was a strange feeling that I need to burp, but could not. Eventually I was sick and felt better after getting some of the chicken broth out of my stomach.

All I can say, is that after surgery, it is very hard to listen to your body. Especially your stomach. You cannot figure out if you are hungry, ill, or just experiencing pressure from the carbon dioxide. This continued into my first day Post Op (today).

I woke after sleeping comfortably through the night. I was feeling great, the pressure was mostly gone, and I felt hungry. I mixed a strawberry protein shake, thinking I was allowed to have it, since my discharge instructions stated to return to a liquid diet and asked for 50-70 grams of protein a day. BIG MISTAKE! I was sick as a dog all morning. My stomach was angry, and the milk curdled. Took me a few hours to stop vomiting. When my wife came home from work, she quickly reminded me I was to drink only broth and water until my visit with the surgeon on March 8th. I am also allowed sugar free popsicles. I sipped water for the rest of the day and drank half a can of chicken broth for dinner.

Even the chicken broth sat heavy on my stomach and for a while I thought I would again be sick. By the grace of God I have kept it down and was able to type this blog post.

The only real problem now is just eating again. My tummy does not seem comfortable and I am desperately trying to listen to the signs as to what it needs right now. I have these strong hiccups that move my whole chest and occur frequently and put additional pressure on my chest and incisions. They last about 5-10 minutes, and are more of an aggregation that painful. I am guessing this too is normal.

I am not having doubts about the surgery, but it is starting to occur to me this will be a rough few weeks of adapting. I guess I thought I might be the lucky one, but it appears that I will have to tough it out like everyone else these first few days. I can actually feel the band sitting on my stomach, and it feels weird and heavy. I think it causes the hiccups. I do not feel the port, as some have posted. Not even sure what side it is on.

I can sleep on my back and side, get up from my recliner unassisted, and even managed a shower on my own today. I am doing okay with the pain, and really was surprised how little the incisions have hurt. So in some ways I am lucky.

I just keep reminding myself all this discomfort will go away and eventually I will feel some sense of normal. I just don't like feeling this way at the moment.

I keep thinking about the 4th of July and how happy I am going to be that I had this surgery by then. Hopefully I will be much trimmer and more comfortable with the band by then.

As for being comfortable at home, I snuggle with a foam spa pillow that helps when I push it against my stomach. I purchased it at Sam's Club and love it! it has made the difference in sleeping in bed, as I can move it under my feet or back if needed.

I also went to BlockBuster and rented a few movies to keep me entertained.

One thing that has helped me feel better is getting up and moving. I made a taco dinner for the family tonight, even though I could not eat them, it felt good to do something for them. They seemed suprised I could do it.

Tomorrow I am going to walk around the block in my neighborhood for some excercise. It's only 1/4 of a mile, but I know this will be a good goal for the energy I have. Looking forward to the gym in a few more weeks.

Well, thats all for now. Feel like I wrote a book, but this has been the last 48 hours of my life. Good luck to all of you waiting for surgery. I hope to see your journey's and success stories here later.

Would love to read any comments if you had the surgery already and shared similar experiences. I kind of feel abnormal at the moment. I could use some reassurance that others went through the same stuff and survived! LOL!

Thanks for reading.

-Chris

Sorry to hear it has been that rough on you. A lot of the experiences I've read about sound just like yours. So, I wouldn't worry at all. That is what I was expecting to feel like.

I had surgery yesterday as well and have a little gas but nothing nearly as bad as you.

I drank a protein shake as soon as I got home and felt no worse than I did the day before. I chugged 2 more down before bed time.

I guess for once in my life I am one of the lucky ones.

I hope you get over it soon. I am feeling guilty for not hurting.

Wow.. After surgery I did very well.. I am so sorry that you are not having a good experience.. but as your wounds heal you will feel better and feel like your old self. The gassy feeling is probably the worst thing that you will have to deal with.

Just stay positive and walk walk walk.. the pounds will come off and when you go back for your visit next Monday.. I am sure that you will be smiling from head to toe!

Hi CHris-

My surgery was Jan 25th.2010. I just had my first fill on Monday (03-01-10).

I did not have as much gas/shoulder pain, but day 2 was by far the worst ever for me. I was loving my liquid pain meds-every 4 hours like clockwork and did not even get out of bed, I dont think I could of if I tried, but then day 3 I went furniture shopping, and I went back to work on day 5 for 1/2 day. sitting put too much pressure on my stomach, but I was good to go by monday.I know every person is different as far as pain tolerance. The hardest part for me is figuring out what to eat. I have been loving cottage cheese, but my surgeon told me it is too soft and goes through quickly. I have a hard time with hamburger. its odd, this experience is not what I expected, not in a bad way, but it is just different. the scale did not move much the first month for me which frustrated me, but I can tell I have lost inches. a close friend of mine had the surgery last June, and I always talk to her for advise. she said after the first fill, is when the weight really starts to come off. So dont get discouraged, I know I made the right decision!!

I am one day post op and I am so sore that I cant even pick up a roll of toliet paper! anyone have the sore ness? and I think Im getting a sore throught too!

This has been such a helpful post for me. I had my banding yesterday and am experiencing everything you described. I don't have any pain, but more of a pressure in my chest and back. Keeping a heating pad on when lying down and taking short walks around the house have been helping. I'm hoping the gas will subside so I can tell what my stomach needs. I'm afraid to have anything other than water. I've had about 2oz of protein shake and it's stayed down fine. I'm guessing that's a good sign.

thanks so much for the details...I'm having my surgery 7-12-10 at 3 pm....this will help me alot!! How has your weight loss been to date? I know this is the best thing I've done for myself, hope I go as well as everyone! Anyone have any more advice, I'd love to hear from you. good luck to all and to those "keep up the good work"!