nightingale2u

Welcome Sissyfaye! Hang in there... you've done a wonderful job so far! I'm sure once you have restriction from your fills... you'll see the pounds fall off once again. I'm newly banded so be ready to give me the same pep talk a few weeks from now! Darcy

Good Luck Janis and Kiley!!!! I was just banded on June 30th and was a nervous wreck prior to having surgery! I think it would be pretty strange if you weren't nervous! Soon it will all be behind you and I hope you will love being in bandland as much as I do! I did go through some ups and downs emotionally after surgery as food was such a HUGE part of my life before but I adjusted pretty quickly and have found a lot of joy in being in control and watching the pounds fall off! Wishing you the best... Darcy

Welcome B! You've come to the right place! I can't imagine that there is a question you would have, that wouldn't find a response here at LBT. Wishing you the best of luck and I can tell you that I LOVE my band! Darcy

Welcome Blossom! I still remember how hard all of the waiting was but hang in there! I thought the day was just never going to arrive and now... here I am banded! Good luck with with everything and I hope that posting here will help you get through the waiting just as it did for me! Oh... I love gardening too. Darcy

Hi Tasha, AWWWWWWW.... what an adorable puppy!!!!! It sounds like you are doing and awesome job with your band!!! Congratulations and wishing you a lot more success with your band in the future! Darcy

Lisa Lee, I think you will be very happy with the results once you are banded... I know I am so far! I chose the Lapband as I was just not able to imagine re-routing... stapling and forever changing the way my body absorbs nutrients as with the GBP. I don't think that I would opt for the GBP even if I were to have complications that would lead to the bands removal. This site has been a wonderful place for information and support and I hope it will be the same for you! Darcy

Hiya Leatha, I had the same problem... was muscle spasms in my case and the Dr. gave me a script for a muscle relaxant when I told him about it at my 1st post-op appointment. The pain medication really didn't help with that particular type of pain in my case, but the Flexeril worked wonders! I still have the the spasms in the rib cage area now and then but they have decreased day by day. I also slept on the couch for the first week post-op ... still do once in awhile. I hope that today is a better day for you and maybe you could ask your M.D. about trying a muscle relaxant??? I know I learned VERY quickly how to use other muscles to get up from the couch or bed! Get better soon! Darcy

Portabella!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!! I love that one!!!!!!!!!! I havne't nmaed mine yet... need to get to know it first! Darcy

OWIEEEEEEEEE... looks like you bruise like I do!!!!!! I'm glad that the surgery is behind you and wishing you a quick and trouble free recovery!!!! Welcome back Leatha! Darcy

Hiya, I love Dr. Chua... his assistant.. Dr. Rudic is also wonderful! It is unfortunate that the staff doesn't put forth the same effort to be friendly and helpful. It's almost as if they are afraid to be nice??? Fortunately my contact with his staff will be pretty minimal from this point forward. Dr. Chua's experience level and success rate really helped lower my stress level when going into surgery and I would highly recommend him to any person considering WLS. I'm hoping that if I exercise on a regular basis that I will be able to avoid the hanging skin... crossing my fingers! Take Care... Darcy

I was banded 19 days ago and have lost 17.6 lbs so far!!!! I think my post-op healing stage has been fairly trouble free and I feel better and better everyday! Although I have less restriction now, I still don't feel that constant hunger sensation that I had prior to surgery. If I keep busy, I literally forget to eat. My sister had an open GBP RNY and she was still so very sick at 19 days post-op... she really didn't feel as good as I am feeling until she was at least a month and a half out from her surgery. It is amazing to me that I was able to spend the weekend painting our cabin a little over 2 wks post-op! Already... my joints hurt less... my clothes are starting to get baggy... my face is re-emerging... (sorry ahead of time for this one) ... I can wipe more effectively... my energy level has doubled... I sleep better... I feel better and in control... and I feel so happy about my choice for WLS!!!!! Thanks again Alex for starting this post! Darcy

Penni, Soooo sorry you are facing another surgery but it sounds like you have a great M.D.! I'm very glad you found a doctor you can trust and that you have such excellent communication with! I'm crossing my fingers that there will be ZIP erosion and that you will be able to continue your weight-loss journey without further problems. Have you posted pics of the adorable Dr. Billy yet??? Lisa- Girl... If I had to go through what has happened to you in your banding journey, I'd be swigging a couple of bottles of wine on a daily basis! I'm glad to hear that you still would do it all over again even with all of these trials and I totally understand why you would opt for the GBP if you were to lose the band. I often wonder what option I would take if the same thing happened to me... think I would opt to fly solo but can't say for sure. ((((( hugs))))) Darcy

Leatha, Hope everything went well and wishing you a speedy recovery! Let us know how you are doing. Darcy

My ex-husband is single.

XOXLATANYA, I was just banded 6/30 so we are in nearly the same boat! I think a lot of people are going that are recently banded so there will be many in different stages of wieght-loss. I understand how you feel though... I want to lose at least 50 lbs before I take a trip anywhere! My Step-Dad was a pilot so we used to fly all over the place when I was growing up. I even thought that someday I would be a pilot... one little crash and VOILA... end of my flying days! I keep telling myself it is a silly fear but haven't been in an airplane since age 15. I'll have them give me drugs that will render me comatose and you and Carmen can carry my limp body onto the plane for the next get-together! Darcy

Awesome Babs!!!! WTG!!!! I can hardly "weight" for that day to come!!!!! Darcy

Welcome back! WOW... it looks like you are really working well with your band... congratulations! Darcy

Hey Lori.. good luck with everything and welcome to LBT! This is a great place to get information and to meet a lot of great people! Keep us updated.... Darcy

Donali- I'm not sure what the staples are made of... some type of metal and they are smaller than the ole office staples. There is a handy dandy staple remover that slips under the middle of the staple and when you squeeze the handle it bends the staple in the middle and it pops right out! It's AWESOME... and from what patients have told me, it's not painful at all. I hate any nursing duty that causes pain... never figured out how to separate myself emotionally so nursing was a very stressful career for me. I worried about everyone and took my worries home with me. If I could just take out staples and sutures and pack wounds all day... I'd go back to nursing in a heartbeat! Ohhhhh and I love irrigating ears to remove ear wax... what a weirdo eh???? Still Gross Darcy

Welcome Ann! This site has helped me through the entire process of being banded... everyone is extremely helpful and you will never have a question go unanswered! Good luck with everything! Darcy

Welcome Tammy... you'll find that everyone here is really helpful... good luck with your journey to bandland! Darcy

WOWZA Donali! I am pretty sure there is not a bra in the world that could make my LIL Ta Ta's look like that! It looks like your incision is still pretty irritated from the sutures... I imagine once the redness and swelling fades that the skin will appear to meet instead of overlap. It look like they really had that puppy cinched up tight... no wonder your sutures were disappearing! Oh... I LOVE taking sutures out... staples are even better!!!!!! Teresa... perhaps you should move closer to me so that I can get my fill of suture removal!!!! Did I mention that staple removal is awesome???? Gross Darcy

Hi everyone... I had an episode of pain last night that really scared me and I thought I would just check to see if perhaps it is a "normal" part of being banded before I call my surgeon today. I have not been having very much pain at all with exception of port discomfort. I had mashed potatoes for dinner... followed 2 hrs later with a large glass of Water... evening meds of 1/2 tab Zoloft and 1/2 tab Flexeril ( very small... not crushed ) and then onto an exciting night of watching T.V. Later on had a horrible headache and couldn't get comfortable d/t muscle spasms in the port region so I took some of my liquid pain med thinking that would help.... WRONG. Within minutes I had severe epigastric pain that went through me and between my shoulder blades... it felt like a tight fist. I paced in the house for 3 hours... the pain would at times subside and then return like a muscle spasm. I only stoped pacing because I was absolutely exhausted! This morning I still feel uncomfortable in the epigastric area but it is nothing compared to lastnight. I am drinking coffee as I type and it seems to be going down without a problem. I still feel a "pressure sensation between my shoulder blades???? Is it possible that my band has slipped (a fear that sits in my mind constantly) or could the build up of gas cause this type of discomfort after banding???? Yikes... I hope I get past this fragile feeling... always worried that I am going to move the wrong way or eat or drink just a little too much... what a big baby huh... Darcy

You guys are awesome... I went from totally freaked out to calm and collected just because of the information you all have shared with me! I did only liquids yesterday and took all of my medications without incident. My stomach still feels a little touchy but at least it doesn't eel like an alien is going to burst out at any moment! I'm officially able to start on the mechanical soft diet today instead of pureed but am going to take it VEEEEERY slow! I don't think that I want to learn this lesson very often but at least the next time it happens it won't be as frightening. One thing is for sure... I am feeling better and better everyday! Megan... keep on taking those pills cause you are a cutie and there will come a time that you will be glad they are on board! Tina... thanks for the advice on the Hot drinks... I love my morning coffee and maybe I'll add hot tea sometime in the afternoon or in the evening. Janie... I just hate taking crushed meds so hopefully I won't ever have to take anything bigger than a pea! Off for my morning walk! Darcy

Donali... Let me tell ya... if that's what it feels like when the ole sink gets plugged... I'll do ANYTHING to never have it happen again! I did follow the meds with a little Water but I usually never take two pills at once... perhaps that was the mistake. No worries on anything but liquids today because I am scared to death to consume anything else! Thanks for easing my mind... HUGE ((((hugs)))) and hope you are recovering well from your surgery??? Rebecca... Seeing that you had a similar incident really eases my mind as well! Maybe mine was a pill instead of a pea! Here I was counting the says until I could start a mechanical soft diet and now I'm to scared to eat applesauce! I may do the liquids again tomorrow as I too have residual discomfort. On the bright side... I probably walked a mile or two with my pacing last night! Needless to say... I am sooooooooo thankful that I can come to this site and get feedback when stuff like this happens... I can't imagine going through this alone. OODLES of gratitude being sent your way ladies... Darcy