ssriley

I was self-pay. Had an ECG, X-ray, bloodwork - no pre-op diet other than prior 24 hrs (standard), no drain, no post surgery scripts other than the normal pain/nausea ones. Currently 4 weeks out and still singin'.

I asked my surgeon at my first appointment if I would have to be on a pre-op diet to shrink my liver, and he said in thousands of surgeries he's only had one patient whose liver was large enough to be an issue for surgery. He had me lay on the table and palpated me - then said "You're fine. You've struggled enough, let's give you the tool (my VSG) you need to get you're weight off. Just don't go nuts till then". I vote my Dr. for President. He knows most of his patients are professional dieters, and I alone have lost enough weight in my life to equal a small SUV. But without this wonderful tool we've been gifted with, we just couldn't hold our ground. A mechanic can't fix an engine without a wrench, and statistically without surgery the odds of losing most of your body weight and keeping it off for 5 years is ZERO. I really appreciate the compassion my Dr. shows his patients. We should all have at least as much if not more, for our fellow warriors.

I'm 4 weeks out and have a couple of drinks every weekend since week 3 with no issues. I have a cigar with it as well - life is good again. Everything in moderation.

That feeling of needing to burp is my signal that I'm close to over-full, with nausea next if I take one more bite. My wife bought me a bunch of the 3-oz paper bathroom cups for measuring my meals. One cup is my limit, and until I learn to police myself better on speed and food volume, the cups are sparing me the grief of the technicolor yawn.

I have been drinking 1-2 cups a day since one week out also. Cream and Stevia - no prob's.

My surgeons office provided a card explaining that I'd recently had abdominal surgery, which I hear will help a lot with cooperation from restaurants when we go out to eat. I'm 3 weeks post-op on Monday and we'll test it out this week.

At 3 weeks post-op, I have returned to my normal routine of a cup or two of coffee (with cream and Stevia) before breakfast every morning with no problems. The rest of my fluid intake is all caffeine free. Everything in moderation.

Hi Nancidee, I'm 54 and had the surgery on the 11th with pretty much the same goals - make the best of my time left. With a BMI of 51 my career would be about over as the joints just can't carry the load any more. As far as how I felt when came out of surgery - it actually wasn't as bad as I thought it might be - but I definitely was uncomfortable. You want to sleep a lot but the nurses will be coming in regularly to check your BP, etc. Then I had someone coming in regularly to have me practice breathing with the spirometer. I hated that because I had some rib wall pain for the first week that prevented me from getting a full breath. Try to walk often, even though all you want to do is go back to sleep. Going to the bathroom was problematic, but my wife was a trooper and helped get to the bathroom and take care of business and measure the output in private without nurses assistance. I had no nausea after my overnite stay and was released early the next day. I did have some nausea over the next few days but never enough to hurl, thank goodness. Just plan on a tough 1st week overall and remember the goal - and that the price is very much worth the effort invested. Saying a prayer for Tuesday.

My Dr. says 15-20 min's which is a big difference. It seems like the recommendations are all over the board out there.

Hang in there missmachine. I went back to work pretty shaky at day 10 and it was rough, but each day has been a bit better. I'm at day 13 now and I can feel a little more strength and stamina each day. Remember, each day farther away from your surgery date is a day closer to the new life and health you are working so hard for. Let us know how it went.

I'm 10-days post-op, and the reduction in swelling of my calves and ankles post surgery was the most dramatic change I experienced post surgery. My work boots are literally flopping around my ankles now. My first 2 days home from the hospital I was urinating 5-6 times a day initially and even my ring size dropped till I'm concerned about losing my wedding ring already. There really are visible veins in my ankles now. Wow.

I was sleeved on Monday, June 11th and have had a sharp pain in my left chest area when taking more than half a breath since the day after surgery. I used the spirometer a lot but it didn't seem to make any difference. My surgeon wasn't very concerned about it at my 4-day follow-up and said continue the breathing exercises, but I was getting more concerned over the weekend when it did'nt improve at all. But Sunday morning it was very much improved and gone completely by lunch. I can only guess that I had gas trapped in my upper chest cavity that finally was absorbed. I wouldn't expect to still have trapped gasses at 4-weeks however. It definitely needs to be checked, and hopefully it is something simple like chest wall syndrome. Good luck.