ukgrad89

Ditto this, I love the Muscle Milk Light, taste pretty darn good to me. I tried the powders, they just smelled bad and had a chemical aftertaste like crap.

Damn, that's a new one, didn't know of that benefit, its like the ultimate Christmas present, it just keeps getting better and better!

I'll tell you what, dude to dude, don't be scared. Stare it down, believe in yourself, know that you can do it. You'll be much happier afterwards, and the little pain issues, you'll deal with them and be better for it. I'm thinking of getting some tats eventually to disguise whatever scarring there is, no biggie. Best of luck to you, keep us updated

I had my AGB surgery yesterday. Whew, what a day! I wanted to document my experiences for others and myself when I reflect back on the day I got banded. The surgery went well according to my doctor, Dr. Minkin. The pain was not as bad as I expected. Noticeable-yes. Unbearable with massive pain killers-no. The last thing I remembered as I was being wheeled into the operating room was looking up at the big light and how it felt like being in a mad scientist laboratory, then....nothing.....until I was in the recovery room. One thing they keep telling you is to take deep breaths. My throat was a little sore because of the breathing tube. I didn't feel hot or cold. I remember just looking at the wall clock and doing deep breaths in time. Inhale for 15 seconds, hold for 5 seconds, release slowly for 15 seconds. Did that I think for about an hour. I felt a sense of relief when they were ready to wheel me up to my room, meant to me that things were going good. I don't like IVs. And I hate catheters. More about catheters later. They had trouble getting an IV started in me in admitting and later in pre-op, but I noticed I had two IVs started, but only one was connected when I got back to my room. The whole concept of being forced to ingest stuff just doesn't sit well with me, but I understand why it is necessary. I knew it was important to get up and walking. So, I was constantly monitoring myself for when I felt okay to get up and start walking. I asked the nurse for something for nausea, and once I got that, I think it was around 4 or 5 hours later that I was asked to be helped up so I could walk around. No ill effects, I was able to walk pretty easily. A word to the wise: make sure you bring someone with you to the hospital that will help you. I brought my mom, and she was a tremendous help. For example, shortly after I got back to my room, I wanted to start sucking on some ice chips. Obviously I couldn't ask a nurse to do this. My mom did a fine job helping me do that. You need to start taking in fluids. One, because your throat will be dry from the breathing tube. Two, because you need fluids in order to urinate, since you are essentially dehydrated. If I have a a hate in my life, something I despise, its catheters. I don't think its as bad for women as it is for men. The fires of Hell were felt when I tried to urinate. I screamed like a little girl, I'll admit it. I think its because you are dehydrated as much as the fact that something foreign got inserted where nothing should be inserted. Men, you will know pain. I can tell you it will get better once you start urinating semi-regularly. Just go to that spot that tells you you are a man and by God you will take the pain, and go ahead and scream like a banshee. It will get better I had five incisions. I think they're all healing well, no discharge. I took photos of mine. I've heard some comments about the gas pain. And to be sure, it exists. I think the sure fire cure for this is to get walking. And walk. And walk. That's what worked for me. The more you walk, the less you'll have an issue. Crushing pills is disgusting, they taste like crap. Have some decaf tea or protein shake while you are sipping them down, it won't be as bad. My doc gave me suppository for nausea. I am not a fan of suppositories either, same as catheters, without the pain. Not fun sticking them in, but they work. Well, that's about all I can think of for now, feel pretty darn good for having had a surgery under GA less than 24 hours ago. Isn't modern medicine great or what?

That is AWESOME! I so hope that I can drop my meds. I currently take stuff for HBP and cholesterol and use a CPAP. I could care less about my appearance, that isn't why I got banded on 7/28. My health is my concern, and I want to get off the meds and the CPAP. Your achievement makes this feel all the more worthwhile. Thanks for sharing this, and continued good wishes

I'll tell you what, I hate hospitals generally. If I had a suggestion for someone getting ready for surgery, try to get up and walking whenever you think you can do it. My goal was not to spend the night, and I have sleep apnea and had a hiatal hernia taken care of, still was able to leave about 8pm, surgery was around noon. Working on your deep breathing, start sucking those ice chips so you can urinate, get up and walk around, and you'll be ready to go home. The pain is manageable. Best of luck, and if I can be of any help with questions, let me know

Best of luck on the surgery. I am done some blogs on here about my experiences. Feel free to ask me anything if I can be of help, I'm a total believer in the lap-band, and I haven't even had it for 24 hours LOL! Have faith, pray for God's strength, you will do fine.

Thanks for the well wishes You are right, I see alot of whining on here. Look, I'll complain about the catheter and all that, but you know what? The actual surgery was not that bad, and I had a hiatal hernia taken care of as well. I'm already on record as saying, I would definitely to it again if I had to. Pain is something you deal with, no pain, no gain. Unusual pain, you should get checked, but life is a pain at times too, and being overweight has been a huge pain. I almost feel cleansed, baptized, ready for a new life. I'm not foolish enough to think there won't be challenges, and at times disappointment. But, overall, the benefits of this I'm quite confident will way exceed any costs, even the $4,000 out of pocket after insurance I had to pay. That's a drop in the bucket from avoiding diabetes and other nasty conditions I'd be staring at in the future. So, a little pain? Bring it on, and I'll wear my incision scars with pride once I lose the tire around the middle.

I know, I was surprised when they told me that they were putting in a catheter in pre-op. I guess it was to dehydrate me thoroughly for the surgery. I hadn't had a catheter before, and hope a long time goes by before I have another. I thought a colonscopy was bad, but heck, that was a picnic compared to the catheter. With the suppository, it isn't fun, but I'll admit, it works fast. I called the doc's office today just to be sure there wasn't an alternative, and they said no. I'm thinking at some point I'll get Pepcid chewables or just crush something and add to Water. Thanks for the well wishes!

I can only echo some of the other comments. One thing I would add is to find a Protein drink you like, because you will be drinking it often. I had to experiment. I like Muscle Milk light myself, but I don't want to sound like a paid spokesman. It works for me, you have to find what works for you. As was said, you should get off the carbs in advance. You want to help your surgeon, right? Shrink your liver by reducing/eliminating carbs before surgery. As they say, no soda/beer. I do like to drink on occasion, and I've already decided that once the dust settles after surgery, I'm drinking cranberry and vodka and bloody mary's, and maybe a bourbon and Water. But realize, these are not going to help you lose any weight.

Best of luck to you, I had my surgery yesterday (7/28), you will do great! See my blog for my recollections about my surgery, and feel free to ask me anything

Ooops, I also want to give a shout-out to Dr. Minkin, he ROCKS! If you are in the St Louis, MO area, he is the man with the plan for lap-band. And Des Peres Hospital is pretty darn good too. Thanks guys!

Hello, sorry to say, I do not think Gas-X will help you. That is for intestinal gas; unfortunately, you don't have that type of gas. Besides, how are you swallowing it? Hope it isn't solid, you should be crushing it or drinking it if anything. The best thing I think that will help you is walk, walk, walk, and make sure you are taking little sips, not gulping when you drink something. Hope that helps Alan NOTE: I'm not going to change my original post, but I will say that I have been taking Gas-X strips, and they DO work for me. I'm not sure why, maybe its mental, but I do not have the bloated feeling I had yesterday. I do feel more nausea this morning, but I took my nausea med and I feel better since I had some Muscle Milk Light.

I'm wondering how I'm going to do with the whole concept of small bites whenever I go back to eating after the surgery. I've read that your bite sizes should generally be no larger than the tip of your index finger. I've even gone and bought baby spoons. But, to be honest, in the past, I ate huge bite sizes, and pretty fast too. I know I have to slow down and chew forever, but with just a baby-spoon size, it must take forever just to eat a scoop of something. I know I'll just have to do it, but I think I'll need a couple of PB's to keep me in line. Old habits die hard. We'll see.

Its all over the place in terms of length of pre-op diet. Mine is only 4 days, but 100% Protein shakes/clear liquids. Not sure why. I'm having headaches, too, but they're manageable.