southerntoon

Peppermint tea, and sucking on mints (i didn't dare tho in case i swallowed one!) r all meant to help. But heat was best remedy really, mine disappeared after 6/7 days but it can lurk around for weeks.

Dear Mark just wanted to say you musn't feel ashamed of ur parenting - we just do the best we can, it's heartbreaking when it's not enough but we are all imperfect. I'm inclined to agree with Megan in that moving out may not be the help he needs, he is a young adult now and only he can decide if surgery is for him, give him all the info he needs, he may come back to it when he's sick and tired of being sick and tired. Hope it works out for him/you all. Good luck

Veronica, i defeinetely find myself more thursty and craving water...am still only a baby bandster (12 days) but i think relinquishing carbonated drinks is a small price to pay for my new life. One of my buds kept on at me recently - "what, no beer??!!" and i had to keep saying "Yes, but no diabtetes, aching joints, low self-esteem etc etc" - not sure she graps it yet lol.

Thanks Margie - it's 10 days now and i do feel much much better, i had 5 small dressings too and they are healing really well, just the bruising, not pretty but on tyhe scale of things - pretty darned good!! Congrats on ur weight loss!

If it's any help - 6 days post op and no sign of the gas!! woo hoo! No dog to blame but we do have a horizontally challenged cat....

married just over a year, together 5, my son sam, 12 from previous marriage - they get on great. Paul and i...wait for it...met on the internet..chatting in a footy room of all places lol, never looked back really.

actually im allowed mushys in varying degrees now, hence the jellies and mashed melon then gradually introduce solids after 1st week. I'm just taking it real easy but so far, so good :-)

Clever ol' me, lol - wish i could say it was all my own work, but my brilliant surgeon (felt like he was my Dad!) and my wonderful husband (who hates hospitals and cried a river apparently when i went to theatre :ermm ) must take oodles of credit too - bless them. Must admit i feel quite emotional today - watchining too much daytime tv but thinking how incredibly lucky i am to have found such a wonderful man to share my love and life with - i wish everyone could experience this intense love, just once in their lifetime.

Hi Guys i dunno - a gal pops off to be banded and u revamp the website - is that like parents moving home when kids go off to summer camp lol? Well, am 5 days post op now, still bit tired, had excrutiating shoulder pain which is slowly easing off now from our diaphragm gas friend. Got the itchy dressings off today - needlework not bad if i say so myself Even had my 1st poo today (high 5's to me!) lol - i can even sneeze confidenently without thinking my band will break :lick Not much i know, but i am still bit weak and taking it easy. Bye for now

Can highly recommend the book Teresa mentioned too - e version is very cheap on amazon at the moment £5 (uksterling) - v comprehensive and good for familes too.

I may have bottled out here, bjut i didn't want to just go sick and leave my boss in the lurch as she relies on me quite heavily and i didn't think it fair, so i emailed her (lol) when i got my date and told her i was having abdominal surgery, didn;t feel comfortabble talking about it at the moment and that no-one else in my team knew about it, may be off for up to 2 weeks but would definitely come back before if i felt up to it which is the truth. Also apologised for the timing but couldn't be helped and i would perform much better post op. She was fine about i, she's lovely anyway, just seemed concerned i was ok, may confide later on, dont want her thinking i've got something serious like cancer, so we'll see. Have yet, however to tell my oppo - who's also a registered nurse, and keeps the school absence records (sending sicknotes onto HR etc lol) dont want to lie to her, but if i make up some other ailment, will have to be bloomin sure of the symptoms lol, plus i dont want her to worry either. tricky.

Gail, u just reminded me to change my signature - i have a date now!!!!!! 14 October!! Thanks, reading and soaking in all the good stuff whilst being aware of the downs too.

That's what i meant to say! Seriously though, excellent advice from Zoe there, couldn't have put it better myself (and didn't lol)