mymacksy

My awesome surgeon and his dietition recommend clear liquids for 3 days post op, then full liquids for 10 more days, then advancing the diet slowly on a specific schedule. I was too uncomfortable to move to a full liquid diet after 3 days, so I stayed on clear liquids for over a week post-op. You will not starve, I promise!! Yes, this is hard on your body, but you will not suffer long term effects from the liquid diet. To increase your calories and protein, you can try sipping "protein bullets", which are clear liquid and found at GNC and even Wal Mart. Take it slow, because increasing your protein too quickly can be very painful to the bowels. With full liquids you can drink protein shakes, 52 gms protein and over 250+ cal per shake, plus the nutrition from the milk you mix it with. You can make one shake and it'll last several hours if you're taking 2 oz at a time. Protein powder can be found almost anywhere in the nutritional supplement aisle. Good luck, you can do it! Make sure you're not a band orphan, find follow up and support ASAP.

I called my doctor that night, after all, and he mentioned that when you're taking tiny sips from small containers, you can swallow more air. He also suggested going back to just water for a day or so. I started drinking out of a larger cup, not sipping, being careful not to swallow so much air. It's so much better! So here I am, day 5 post op, still on clear liquids. I can't wait til things normalize a little! Strangely, I still have energy for walking and doing all my normal activities, as long as I can get a nap in.

I was banded Aug 20th, and was wondering the same thing! These sensations are not at all what I was expecting. Sore, yes, like someone punched me in the stomach, yes.....but I also feel extremely bloated and am not able to tolerate the 1-2 oz fluid every 15 mins that my dr. advises. It's a little worrisome because I don't want to become dehydrated. I tried upping my liquid protein to keep from feeling poorly, but that gave me GI distress big time. So, back to clear liquids, slowly. I'm very uncomfortable, but will contact the dr. office tomorrow for reassurance.

I guess I'm just really jaded from working in the medical profession. I went into nursing with some lofty ideals. After experiencing years of abuse in various jobs (and no, I'm not exaggerating....for example, being humiliated in front of patients and/or coworkers, being yelled at, talked down to, and being sexually harassed are some of the things I've had to deal with) and witnessing unbelievable cases of what I consider neglect or abuse of patients (yes, I advocated and I reported, of course with no result). My 3 yr old son now has a physical deformity caused by the ignorance of a nurse that worked with him as an infant; it will have to be fixed surgically within the next few years and I am heartbroken that I couldn't protect him from the staff's mistake. As a result, I have exceptionally high standards for not only the primary physician or surgeon, but also peripheral office and medical staff. Funny thing is, I received a few private emails from people on the LapBand board who had similar experiences with Dr. K's office and had similar opinions. I don't know why they didn't post publicly....but that's why I did, so my experience would be out there. I was pretty angry about the wasted time because of the miscommunication re insurance; I mean, that's a pretty easy thing to cover in advance. Now I think it was just not meant to be, and I need to accept that not every medical practitioner is going to be right for every person. I'm now working with Dr. Johnell's staff in Greeley, and they have met and exceeded every one of my expectations. It is a fantastically professional program, with a ton of support staff, tons of pre-op education, well educated office staff that have guided me inch by inch through the process (and I haven't even had my consultation yet!). I'm quite aware that the Lap Band is a "tool". I'm not expecting fast weight loss (nor do I desire it, I want a healthy, sustainable, slow loss) and I would be thrilled to be rid of 50% of my extra weight. The fact is, gastric bypass has exactly the same results - an average of 50% extra weight lost. Anyway, I wouldn't touch gastric bypass with a 10 ft pole; it's not even an option for me at this point. Re my question to Dr. K, I guess I was wondering what makes the difference between the patient who loses 50% and the one who loses 80% or more. Is it a physiological difference? If motivation were the only issue, wouldn't most of us already be at our perfect weight? Aren't we all motivated by the desire to look better, feel better, be healthier? I just can't understand why a patient could NOT lose all the extra weight when you have a stoma opening the size of a dime (Lap Band) or if your stomach is the size of a golf ball (gastric bypass). Are people sabotaging their own efforts by eating tons of high calorie liquids, or too many frequent meals, or is the surgery simply ineffective on some folks? Is it simply that the same things that made them fat before surgery are still making them fat after surgery (emotional eating, etc)? Is it that 50% extra weight loss is "good enough" to most patients? Since I haven't had WLS yet, I can't really understand what it's like to use the Lap Band as a tool, and will never understand what eating after gastric bypass feels like. I was disappointed that Dr. K wasn't able to give me any insight - he seemed to know what I was asking but he skirted around the issue a bit.....like I said, maybe the answer isn't that simple, and maybe he really doesn't know. If any of you have any insight, I'd love to hear it. Again, take my opinions with a grain of salt. Different people have different priorities and everyone comes into the process with their own emotional baggage :-)

Sigh.... I had my initial consultation with Dr. K yesterday. It was a disappointment. The good thing is, I've gained another few pounds and that puts me squarely in the >40 BMI (yay....sort of?) and therefore I'm eligible for the surgery. For the benefit of others looking for info on Dr. Kirshenbaum, I'm going to post the highlights of my appointment. I know the rest of you gals love him, so take this with a grain of salt. - The office is TINY and worn looking. I understand that Dr. K doesn't charge a whole lot, and I'm sure as an older male he doesn't even think about the initial impression his waiting room gives new patients. BUT, he should! The furniture looks like it came out of the resale shop, the baseboards were thick with dust, and the very visible receptionist/assistant work area with patient charts was cluttered and messy. The wallpaper is from at least 10 years ago. Again, cosmetic issues.....I'm sure he is a great surgeon, but I think he should make a bit more effort. If his staff works in disarray, what does that say about their attention to other details? - Marilyn was on the phone behind the desk when I arrived, in a very loud conversation with hospital staff regarding an issue not related to patient care (meaning, not confidential). Still, I don't want to hear it. She did not look at me, hand me paperwork, or anything. After a few moments, and a few passes in the hall, Mary finally came over and said hello to me. I waited only 10 minutes or so after filling out paperwork before being called back in. That was a plus. - Robin, the billing lady, was very pleasant, even though I was put off by her cluttered office. I liked her alot. - Mary was very pleasant to me in the exam room. She made conversation, made me feel comfortable, etc. But then she mentioned that the other 2 patients in the waiting room were also there for initial Lapband consultations, a huge no-no regarding patient confidentiality. Not that I personally cared, but I don't want office staff discussing me behind my back to some other patient either. - Dr. K came in about 15 minutes later and ruined whatever good feelings I had left at that point. It didn't bother me too much since surgeons are notorious for poor bedside manners; usually that's why they like to work with unconscious people :-). He never introduced himself, he came in and started his sales pitch without even asking me what I already knew about Lapband or anything. He also had a student, or an intern, or who knows who she was, because he never even introduced her or asked me if it was okay if she was present. She stood quietly in the background the entire appointment, then she said, "Thank you" to me before I left. It was weird. - After 15 minutes of telling me things I already knew, Dr. K finally shut up so I could ask questions. He answered them all, and the answers were perfect. He has done over 5000 lap procedures (not Lapband), 150+ Lapband placements, has virtually no complications such as erosions or slippage because of special techniques he employs, no incidence of post-op infections. He answered my questions specifically and completely, and with respect. I got the impression that he is a very good practitioner in the operating room. He assured me that as his patient, he would take care of me "forever" and discussed the specific costs of fills, etc. He was only vague about my concerns re the typical "50%" weight loss of most patients (meaning that patients lose only about half their extra weight, on average) and wasn't able to give me an opinion as to why some patients lose all the weight they want and others aren't. What the hey, maybe he has no idea. - Here's the kicker: at the end of the appointment, when I asked about the next step towards surgery, specifically regarding insurance approval, he said, "Oh, I don't accept insurance". Really? Wouldn't that have been something useful to know 4 weeks ago when I made the appointment? Wouldn't that have been nice to know before I paid my $20 copay for a consultation that was to be for no d*mn reason at all? I would like to have those 4 weeks of waiting back, in addition to the 2 hours in his office, and my $20. It's not too surprising to note that the person who is responsible for NOT TELLING ME this important information was Mary, the woman with whom I made the appointment in early June. I told her over the phone, "I have insurance, and Dr. K is on my PPO provider list". She said, "Well, I can't guarantee they will pay for the initial consult" (WTF?) and then she said, "If you decide to go through with the surgery, insurance normally won't pay." She said NOTHING about the fact that Dr. Kirshenbaum doesn't even accept insurance for the surgery. I would never have made the appointment had I known that, as I do not happen to have $10,000 burning a hole in my pocket. Do I sound pissed? Because I am. It's a dang lot of time wasted, and now I have to wait another 3 weeks for an appointment with Dr. Johnell in Greeley. Final analysis: Physical appearance of office: crap. Office staff, namely Mary: crap. Dr. K: nice guy, busy, typical surgeon manners, probably a great doctor. I'd trust him with my stomach, but I don't trust his office staff at all with my money or my time. Even if he did accept insurance, I'd take my business elsewhere if I found an equally competent surgeon with a more professional office.

Jennifer - I don't do surgical nursing or even med-surg (I work with new moms and babies), but I would venture to guess that the reason you can't wear acrylics, or even nail polish, for surgery is because the nurses will put a small piece of equipment over your fingernail during surgery and post-op until you are up and around. It's a little clamp with a red light and it measures your oxygen saturation and heartbeat; it doesn't work if the nailbed is covered. The hosp staff will call it a "pulse/ox". I'm not sure about the toenail polish - I guess the pulse/ox can be placed on the toe instead, or perhaps it's as simple as looking for capillary refill (smushing the nail and looking to see how quickly it pinks back up). Drew - My only contact so far with Dr. K's office has been with Mary, who frankly seemed like she had no idea what she was doing. She irritated the heck out of me....the only reason I made the appt after talking to her was because everyone here says such good things about Dr. K. So I'm glad to hear someone else had a weird experience with her.

Hi girls, I'm still lurking......but enjoying all your posts. I spent waaay too long looking up Roller Derby Girl stuff after seeing your myspace page, Drew :-) That looks so fun! My initial consult with Dr. K is next week and I am very, very nervous. As I mentioned before, I have a really hard time with doctors (since I have been chronically abused by them as a nurse). I keep looking up more info on Lap Band and the negative stuff is freaking me out a bit.....such as long term weight loss rates, incidence of complications post-op, etc. I can't tell which info is reliable and up to date and which is sponsored by a competing industry and therefore likely a bunch of crap. But there is no way I'm going to even consider a gastric bypass, so it's either Lap Band or no surgery at all. BTW, do any of you Lap Band veterans remember anything about the immediate post-op period....coming out of anesthesia or anything? Marcy, the Atkins diets sucks something awful, in my experience - my sympathies. Does Dr. K want the Atkins diet followed pre-op only? Does he give a reason why he prefers Atkins? Is it because it's a fast loss? Is it supposed to jump start the weight loss and give you motivation or is there some other reason? Michelle, I enjoyed your description of NY and the wedding events. I've been to NYC a few times and am always astounded at how different it is than any other place in the U.S. Truly, like a foreign country. Isn't it funny that so many foreigners think that NYC represents the whole USA? I'm so glad to be in Colorado, the most beautiful state in the country :-) Dh and I took the kids up to Silverthorne/Dillon for a mountain hike last weekend, and ended up at Mt. Evans (we can still do the tourist things since we've only been here a year, right?) and it was breathtaking. Nothing like a hike at high altitude to remind you of those extra pounds, though :-( Wish me luck next week.

Hi gals! I've been lurking and reading your posts but it feels a little creepy to do so without introducing myself. I'm in Thornton and have my initial consult with Dr. Kirshenbaum in July (after his trip to Africa, apparently). It's a bummer to wait even 3 weeks after I've finally made the emotional leap to seek out surgery. I'm an RN, a lactation consultant, and a mom (kids are 3 and 6). WLS is covered by my insurance company, hopefully there won't be too many hoops to jump through. I can't get the insurance company to give me any info about what to expect re difficulty with precert. Par for the course, I guess. I chose to make an appt with Dr. K after reading how many people on this forum have used him and haven't seen any complaints yet. I'm still dreading it, because as a nurse, I really hate doctors. And his office staff didn't give a great first impression over the phone - I didn't know office underlings still called a doctor "Doctor", as if it's his first name. As in, "Doctor will be out of the office until July". Besides that, the receptionist didn't seem terribly knowledgeable. But this is all probably me putting my anxiety onto the Dr.'s office instead of facing the fact that I'm terrified. Terrified that I won't be eligible (not heavy enough - my BMI is 39.9999), that the insurance company will deny it, that I'll have to do 12 months of medically supervised dieting and I won't be able to afford it, or whatever. Aside from that, I'm looking forward to the journey!