Whey ready

Chewable ones from healthy u..its a health store in my town that has all natural and more healthy choices, plus they have an entire bariatric section of supplements so my NUT really likes them...I would assume caltrate is just as good, just as long and they have enough calcium per tablet to get u to that goal

not the day of surgery but 5 days before in the pre-op testing, the day of they didn't

Idk about the age part, I think its a lifetime choice so why not extend that lifetime? I don't like bypass from a nursing point for these reasons...it messes with the bodys natural digestion, there is loss of intrinsic factor, vit B12 and lots of other natural ways the body digests and autoregulates itself. Yes, bypassers take pills for these but they are synthetic not natural. Dumping syndrome runs ramped with bypassers and their "fail" rate is onpar with band if not worse. Yes, they do tend to lose more wt quicker then bands but that too has consequences...hair loss, nail growth, metabolism changes ect. Its a personal decision and although it looks like I am anti-bypass I'm truly not, I just feel strongly that u should keep some things natural and some mostly natural (like theband). Good luck with ur choice

Thanks for the replys, makes me look forward to trying them again when back to solids

Joan- my NUT said to start calcium supplements when I'm on soft foods, next week, and she gave me a 30 day supply of them and we have a meeting after they are done to make sure I'm getting enoughcalcium in my diet before I stop taking them...I love cheese, milk, yogurt so I doubt it will be a problem but I will take them- hello they taste like guilt free chocolate! Good luck lavender, you will do fine OH and now that I'm on pureed I love my stick blender, best gift ever! Any other ideas then soup/chili/chowders I can mash to pieces (and less then) with it?

I had to lose 5% but was down 10% by the time of surgery because of all the life changing steps u take. You see it here all the time, but walking really does help shed the pouunds and drinking the 64oz water really helped me...one your so full of water you don't feel like eating a lot and 2 it gets rid of the toxins in ur system so u start to lose them too. Also preparing for post band with the food scale and weighing it all out really made a difference. Do they weigh u before they will send in the paperwork or just before surgery because the week of clears only I had to do added onto the wt loss by almost double. As for different they whey, people talk about this isopure stuff in drink containers...idk if its whey or soy but I had one once that had a crystal light package mixed into it and I couldn't tell the difference, just slightly thicker crystal light, hope that helps

Banded on 12/15 and had my first pureed food today, black bean soup blended all to heck, but omg it tasted like all my wildest dreams come true! i only gave myself a half of cup, didnt even get close to finishing all that, and then put it away- something i would have never done before. I doubt its the band working right now since there is no fill in it, just mind over matter but wow, wouldnt it be amazing if i could make myself stop forever and be that 5% that never gets a fill? probably wont happen as i learned through the pre-op part i most likley was addicted to food and right now im sure in the back of my mind i stop just to make sure i dont puke b/c thats my biggest fear right now, but still...nice to dream =) any of my other 12/15 banders out there on pureed yet or is my NUT just a true nut-job?

Good luck all, I was banded wed but after being on the other side now I see all my pre worries (first anesthesia, night in hospital, what to expect first time up, ect) weren't as bad as I thought they would be (nice nap, crazy roomate but able to get more pain meds, easy just go slow) see you all on the post site soon

Most do still have calories, check the package, even only 10 will add up if u eat 10 of them, but my NUT said to keep them onhand as they help with the fake hunger and sometimes just eating one or 2 can hold you off till your next meal, but she also aggreed they are just frozen sugar free liquid like the stuff we should be sipping on all day long, so I say go for it, in moderation just like everything else with this band

Anyone have problems with salads ie lettuce? I'm scared to try one as lots of people told me it makes them slime and my NUT said to limit them as they are mostly empty calories but I loved salads pre op and just wonderin if I will ever eat them again

Banded wed, 12/15.. gained 4 lbs from fluid by Thursday, now down 8 lbs from surgery wt today (Sunday). I'm walking as much as I can and think I feel good enough to drive to the gym today and use the tredmill, but my doc said no driving for 1 week postop, and idk about the rest of you but my ride home was the worst, I cried in pain by the time we got home- every bump felt like a ltl knife in my belly, even with a pillow and pain meds right before I left! Anyone else having problems having a solid BM? I know I'm still on clears till tonight, gonna try skim milk protein shake, so there is not a lot in there but I've only taken 2 doses of pain meds and liquid colace every night...I heard it hurts the first time but I would feel better knowing its all in working order

For liquid tylenol you have to look at the package, if 12.5ml is 160 mg the normal tylenol dose is 650mg so do the math and take that much...if you can get pain relief from 320mg...25ml that's better but if not you may have to sip it over a couple mins..

True, its stuck in the lining, but it helps cause peristalsis..tummy movement and that way it is dispersed and eventually gets absorbed and down the gi tract and out if ur cells don't need it so I am willing to keep taking them...and since everything else I'm stuck eating is sweet the nice harsher peppermint tastes amazing to me I can eat all clears but its funny, the first sip always hits mybelly hard and I start to grumble, plus I feel like I can only have the 4oz before I start to feel full, but isn't that also a placebo effect as there is no fluid in the band and thus no restriction other then swelling yet?

Good luck everyone, I was banded on wed and I tell u, its over before u know it...last thing I remember is being given the versed (sedation med that makes it so u fall asleep and don't remember anything) being told to move to the table and then breath in the oxygen, and tada wake up on the way to recovery thinking we didn't even start, you will all be fine and goooooodddd luck

Ya the way the hospital was set up was that 4 people, 2 rooms shared one bathroom with 2 doors so I started using the second room with the pts in there's permission to go out walking more, then I got out about 3pm so its much better now I feel like all I do is nap and wake up and walk and drink and fall back asleep when I sit back down but the gas pain is getting much better with the gas x strips, they are the way to go!! Now I just gotta learn to tell the difference between gas pain and hunger pain and when to eat

I survived, now if I could just pass some gas I'm sure I would feel better. Plus it doesent help that I'm still stuck at the hospital awaiting discharge and watching true life I had gastric surgery..and that my roomate is crazy and throwing stuff at the staff so I can only safely walk on my half of the room bc when I try to leave she throws stuff at me :/

T minus 3 hrs and counting...only slightly tweeked out, see you all on the post site soon

I work nights in the hospital and know I'm not goin g to be monitored THAT close but am willing to put up with the crazy old lady I'm sure I will get stuck next to who will keep me up all night tomorrow just to keep the iv meds till some of the expected gas pain is gone and for hydration...but if I had my way I would be in my own bed tomorrow night

anyone else feel like they are going to explode with all the anxiety and excitement and worry and happiness and ect. that its only 2 days away? i have packed, re-packed, unpacked and then packed again, and i still know i will forget something. I even have a final in school tomorrow, went back for my masters-blah!, that i dont care about nearly as much as the following days surgery. ahh, its really coming up fast, everyone surviving the liquids ok?

i had to do 5% (12 lbs) and have it documented, so every time i went to a support meeting or a pre-surgical meeting they weighed me, and thank god for that because as soon as i lost the 12 i was able to submit it all to insurance. Now i have my surgery in 2 days...60 days after i started this whole process =)

JD don't worry about not being able to eat that after, I hear from lots of people they don't even crave that stuff anymore postop, and remember this surg is only a tool to help u get over your food addiction, this is the hard part coming to terms with this and trying to move forward...idk about u but sometimes I feel like I lost a friend and its depressing right now watching my bf eat chicken fingers while the best I can have is chicken broth but its only temporary. I keep trying to focus on this summer and not being ashamed to wear shorts or go to the beach...this too will pass You have made it this far, think of all the weight u have already lost and keep going. Not only for urself but ur son too

Had all the pre testing today and got to speak with the anesthesia np and she made me feel loads better about my first time with general anesthesia. And I get fentanyl and versed before I even get into the room, and as a conscious sedation certified nurse that makes me feel so much better knowing I will be out with 100% reversable meds for the most part, plus versed causes retrograde amnesia so woot, no memory of being scared poop-less Starting the liquid diet today and can u believe it...surgery only one week away, eek! Anyone have any salty/ non sweet clears other then broth I should try?

JD: you are sooo close to a new you, don't lose it at the end here...easier said then done but its important for ur liver to shrink or else the doc won't be able to lift it to place the band and u will have undergone anesthesia for nothing only to be sent home to try again, and idk about u but I won't go through this twice. My insurance and doc made me go to group meetings before surg and after surg they are required for 6 months and before any fills I get and I think its a good thing, they help u realise ur not alone and give u tips and ideas on how to help with problems ur going through...even with a supportive SO they have truly become my other family and support system. The thing is they helped me realise I am addicted to food and how to help treat my addiction to it and find ways to manage it before the surg so I don't set myself up for failure after...remember this is just a tool not a cure. Try to see what it is ur really after...is it just the chewng of food or salt or cheezy taste? Find a substitute that's in ur diet and remember, this is only temporary...the new you can be permenant and what an example u will be setting for ur child when u get back to a healthy weight and a healthier u, good luck 10 days till new us

thanks for the suggestions ajames and cindy, milkshakes do sound way better then just drinkins, and im sure after 5 days of sweets a soup will taste like a god-send. Where is everyone getting unflavored Protein powder? i looked in 2 places today and couldnt find it and think it will be necessary for my week of clears. loralee- i too am scared of the anesthesia, but they do have stuff to reverse it and having talked to an OR nurse about 1 in 20 people do have a reaction and they just give this med, reverse it, and try another sedation method. I also talked to my ER doc who did a surgical residency and he said that without family history or previous reaction your chances are very slim, just dont drink alcohol or smoke the week before and make sure they know ALL of your meds, otc and scripts, and the chances decrease even more. Most of the time someone does not tell them about a heart problem or their lungs are so fibrotic from smoking/aspestos/ect. that they get the tube in and start to give meds and the person's lungs cannot handle that, just be honest and you will be fine =). That helped me relax a little about it, but i doubt i will be turning down the pre-anesthesia sedation iv meds the day of. What is everyone bringing to the hospital? I have to stay overnight per the doc, all his pt's do, and since i have only worked nights, never been a pt, im not sure what to bring...i have chapstick, change of clothes, magazines, ipod, slippers, and a robe packed already (yup, all set!) what else would you bring? Here we go everyone, 10 days till a new you =)

Ur doc or NUT will explain to u the pre op diet, mine is a little different then others as I had to lose 5% bodyweight, 12 lbs for me, and since I lost it in a month they think my liver has already shrunk some so the doc will be able to get in there with ease. I still have to do 5 days of 2 meas of protine shakes with Water and one 3oz lean meat and 1/2 cup raw veggie a day till 12 hrs before surg....not gonna lie, knowing that my bf and I went out for dinner and I had the best last meal ever (and still not even half of what I use to eat portion wise). Anyone find a non-gritty no flavor Protein powder for post op Soups and such? Only 11 days till new us