IowaAndy

So sorry that it took them that long to figure that out but I am glad that you are doing better and got to go home. I know that I felt much better after being gone to Mexico for 6 days and was sleeping in my own bed. I hope that you continue to come along with no problems and best of luck on your new journey

It can be because of decreased fluid intake and also the fact that you are not eating the same amounts of fat that you used to consume. I had the same thing when I was on the liquid fast for 8 months several years ago. You still need to get all of your fluids and also consume some fat. Peanut butter is an excellent source of fat and protein. I take a tablespoon and just slowly lick it off the spoon. This will also help with reducing your hair loss as your hair needs fat also.

I totally understand her pain. I had my first surgery here in Des Moines IA. with Dr Eibes who did my lapband. When I went back to him when I stopped losing weight he told me that I should have probably had the sleeve in the first place. Nice of his to tell me then. We talked about a revision to the sleeve and they sent it into my insurance who denied me. Dr Eibes told me that it would take 2 surgeries from him.....the first to remove the lapband and then in another 5 months a second to do the sleeve. This would have cost me about $40,000 out of pocket. I could no way afford that so I too went to Tijuana Mexico and had both procedures for a total of $6000. When I came back I called his office and they told me that since I had the surgery in Mexico that Dr Eibes would not longer see me as a patient and that I too was not welcome at their support sessions. Told them fine. I have been following up with my primary care physician and she checks my blood work. I take all of my supplements and watch what I eat. If I should develop a problem I will just go to the ER and they will have to call and they will then have to take care of me if I need surgery etc. Other than that they can screw themselves. I am so sorry that this happened to you and that you too have no options. There are other surgeons within 2-3 hours of me but I have not contacted any of them as I had my surgery on Dec 11, 2011 and I am doing good. My primary care checks me on occassion and if I need she will send me to the ER> It is all about the almighty dollar for the bariatric surgeons here in the US. They all took an oath of "Do no harm". Guess they conveniently forgot that part.

I doubt the trainer will have any idea as I doubt he know what your surgery entailed. I would check with my surgeon. My first surgeons office actually had an exercise person. I am not sure if your surgeon's office might have one but I would check with their office to make sure.

Glad that you were at a place that had an ICU. I know that some places that they do the surgeries are more like outpatient clinics and if they need an ICU they have to be transferred by ambulance. I am glad that things turned out well for you and I wish you all the best on your journey and "NEW LIFE"

This is just an example of the different diets that patients are given by the many different surgeons and NUTS out there. I was not eating cold meats until at least a month out. I do not understand why there is such a great difference from what one program says you can eat to another. We all have similiar stomachs and have basically had the same surgery. I am glad that I took it slow and stayed on the liquids and then onto soft pureed foods before finally starting on eggs and sliced meats and cheese.

I would say that it is because you are dehydrated. When you urinate is your urine a dark yellow of almost clear. The darker the urine the more dehydrated you are. Before standing try and march a little while sitting with your feet on the floor. This will get the blood moving from your lower extremities back up to your brain and should help reduce your lightheadedness when you stand up. I would say make sure that you are getting all of your fluids. If you are getting all of your fluids then you might want to look at your blood sugar but I am betting that it is the fluid intake.

It is better than they say. I had my band for over 2 years and even though I lost weight I was constantly going to the doctor to have the fill adjusted and finally I just stopped losing weight and was at the maxium fill. I was also constantly vomiting when eating food as due to the high fill foods would not go through. I wish that I had never heard of a lapband and had the sleeve initially.

I feel your pain. I had the band over 2 years ago and actually lost about 90 pounds with the band. When I reached that point I vitually stopped losing weight and the scale never moved again. I too was tired of the constant checks and fills and at this point I was at the max fill. I was having constant vomiting due to food getting stuck and not being able to go through. No matter how much I chewed my food I was having constant problems. I went to my surgeon and he told me that there was not much that they could do and that looking back I probably should have had the sleeve due to the amount of weight that I had to lose. Well I thought thats great.....fine time to tell me now. My insurance denied the removal of the band and they would not pay for the sleeve. The cost for me to have it done out of pocket would have been over $40,000. This would have been a surgery to removed the band and then 5 months later they would have done the sleeve. I was really down and when talking to my brother in CA one day he told me that a friend of his had just has surgery in Tijuana and was doing great. I got her number and called and spoke to her several times. I did some research on the surgery in Mexico and found that if I did not have a lot of scaring from the band that they could take it out and do the sleeve in a single procedure. I called to schedule the surgery and was planning on going with the doctor that my brothers friend had but he was not available when I could get time off to have the surgery so I went with Dr F Garcia. He was wonderful and I had my surgery on Dec 11, 2011. My surgery in Mexico with travel costs came to around $6000......BIG DIFFERENCE. I am so happy with my sleeve that I can not believe it. I have only vomited once since I had the surgery and that was totally my fault. I do not miss the fills or the vomiting. If this is what you want I support you 1000%. Do not wait to long as you could end up having your band slip or risk the formation of scar tissue forming around the band. If you have any other questions for me please ask. Best of luck and you new life with the band,

3 weeks here

Not much in and not much out. I did however start adding benefiber to my morning shake to help things along. I did have some constipation as I do not think that I was getting enough fiber. As you increase your regular food you will start to have more regular bowel movements. Keep track of when you had the last movement and make sure that is it not too long before the next one. I also have certain foods that seem to want to pass through me faster than others. Guess that is something you need to take note of. I would recommend you taking some extra fiber as this will help to keep you more regular.

Yes for the first 2 months I did not sleep well of that much. I was waking up at 3 in he morning and not going back to sleep. It has to do with the change in your diet and how your body reacts. I could get into more detail but that is the just of it all. I am not back to normal sleeping but you may want to check with your doctor about something to take until you are back to normal

Do you cut the calories in half if you are alone???????????????????????? Just had to ask that one.............

I ride the stationery bike at the gym and do not have hemmorhoids. I also had some constipation post surgery until I started to add benefiber to my shakes in the morning and taking an occassional stool softner. Curious......did you have them before you had the surgery or is this something new.

Have you tried gummy bear vitamins. I also went to Muscle Max and bought protein drink that was wild berry flavor so it is more like a soda than a shake of choc, vanilla or some other flavor

I did have a couple of my most favorite foods before I had surgery also. I did not go pig wild as the reason I was having the surgery was to lose weight but I did enjoy pizza and steak. I had surgery on Dec 11. 2011 and it is going to be sometime before I have either of these.

Since I work in the medical field and I am looking for a new job I went to try on some new work scrubs today. Last year before I had my surgery I was wearing a 5X top and a 4X pants. Today when I went to try one some new ones I am sown to an XL pant and top. I think I could get into the L but it would be a little snug sitting down and do not want my junk showing. I have already given most of my old clothes to the homeless shelter here in Des Moines. Feels great.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!! Congratulations on all of your NSV's. They are all amazing and you should be proud...........

I think that for all you had done you sound like you are doing well. I do not think that the pill will cause any problem for you as they pretty much disolve in your stomach. Food however does not dissolve like pills and that is why you are restricted to eat only certain foods until you stomach is healed. The longer you are out from surgery the more variety of foods that you can eat. I would refer to the diet that was given to you from your surgeon or NUT and see what you should be eating in the first 2 weeks and then see what you can add each week. My diet was very specific what I could add each week and goes out for at least 1 year. Since you just had your surgery I would think that you would pretty much be still on liquids for at least a week or 2 and then progess slowly to pureed and then onto eggs and other softer foods.

depends on if it last 5 minutes or an hour

I think that if you are eating things that are on your diet plan you will be doing fine. If you are frying your eggs in butter or eating butter by the stick I do not think that you have much to worry about with fat. That is one reason why lots of WLS patients lose their hair is because of the lack of fats in their diets. Granted fats are high in calories and do not fill you up but the body needs a certain amount of fats to survive. I think that if you are careful as to what you eat you can have some fats on or in your foods without much problem. Moderation is the word for fats and carbs when you get to that point. I am almost 3 months post op and I do not track my fats or my carbs as I do not eat much of either unless they are contained in the foods that I am eating.

I would ask how many surgeries that the surgeon has performed. Also what types of complications that are most common for his surgeries. What medications that you will be taking for the rest of your life. What the pre op diet is like and how long do they require? How long you will be off work and this will depend on the type of work that you do. How often does the surgeon see you post surgery. You are probably going to have a drain as most people that have the surgery have one. The catheter is not as common depending on the surgeon. What side gougie he uses and does he use sutures or staples or both. How many days you will be staying in the hospital. I know there are more but I am sure that others will reply. Good luck and hope all goes well.

I was weighing everyday but then I started to get down when I did not think that I was losing weight period or fast enough. I then went to just weighing on Monday mornings and now I have gone to every 2 weeks. It is just to self destructive to myself to get on the scale and gain or lose just a pound. I hope that you do not fall into this trap of being a slave to the scale.

Cipro can be cut with a pill cutter that you can get at walmart or most drugstores. Try taking the cut up pills with a bite of jello as it will help mask the taste and also help to open up the stomach a little for the pill to enter. My doctor had me doing this several days after having surgery. I think that this will help you a lot. Best wishes

I think that you are going to be fine. You have a good surgeon that you apparently have faith in and that is a major plus for you. I doubt that smoking for 5 years is going to be of big concern and as long as you are in good health otherwise you should be fine. I wish you all the best with your surgery and hope that all goes well for you.