cinward2001

Make a list of what's important, then research each doctor. Maybe have a check-list for each one that you research, call their offices, make notes, etc. When I was researching for the band 7+ yrs ago, I knew I wanted to have the surgery done in a hospital. Not saying the clinics are bad...just that, if I'm under general anesthesia and having something done to my insides, I want the full deal in health care, you know? So that was one of my first criteria. Then, obviously, I wanted an experienced surgeon. I chose Dr. Rumbaut because he'd actually done a lot of the proctoring here in the US for the band. Why not get the surgeon who teaches the other surgeons to do the surgery? From there, I did some price comparison, but not a lot. Just having it done in MX meant a lot less money...I wasn't going to shop for the bargain basement prices at that point. So for the sleeve, it just made sense to go back to Dr. R. Dr. R did a great job with the band and it made sense to me to have the same person who put it in, take it out and do the conversion. So figure out what's most important to YOU! If it's the cost first, put that on your check list first. If it's travel options/location, put that near the top. Clinic vs hospital, etc. Where you stay post-op? You get the idea...by writing them down, it becomes clearer and the research is easier.

I understand it. Especially in the earlier days, when it's harder to just drink liquids and the surgery is so "fresh." I feel like the surgery was drastic, the results should be drastic. I know better...I took a year to lose 85 lbs with the band. It's also a bit about the worry, too. Worry that this won't work, worry that I'll stay hungry even after moving to solid foods, etc. So looking at the numbers on the scales is a way to offset some of that worry and the more they move, the more comforting. I've been frustrated that the scales haven't moved since I've been home. I'm going to try to let go of that today and remember that they ARE DOWN from pre-op. I don't know what I weighed on my home scales before leaving, but they're down at least 5-10 lbs (in about 2 weeks). So I need to remind myself that I AM happy with that, I'm HAPPY that I'm wearing some blue jeans that I wouldn't wear before the surgery, etc. Being unhappy just makes me want to eat more. So I have to focus on the NSVs of recovery, those jeans, etc. So I don't think it's negativity at all...I think it's worry and frustration..just plain ol' being SCARED.

I was hoping I'd be one of those people, too (losing weight every day), but didn't really think it would happen. Sure enough...I've been home since Tuesday and the scales haven't budged a bit. Katie, for my own sanity, I'm putting the scales away for a while. Maybe you could do the same? Keep to your program, track your calories, keep trying to exercise and the weight WILL come off. I thoroughly believe that stress and frustration make it HARDER to lose and weighing is sometimes stressful. We have to trust that this WILL work, but that it can also take TIME. I know...when you're trying to do so well and want the weight off so fast, giving it time to happen is the last thing we want. But in a way, we don't have a choice. So maybe try putting them away for a month. Pay attention to your clothes instead? They're a more reliable indicator of true weight loss anyway. Scales can fluctuate too easily! Good luck!

2 bottles of Water "flavored" with apple juice. Currently working on pureed turkey chili. Can you tell I'm in that "wonderful" post op phase?

I'm 9 days post op and on full liquids, which, for my doctor, means pretty much anything I can puree. Soft foods will start the 29th. I am almost POSITIVE that if I wanted to try, I could eat just about anything. But my commitment to making this change in my life is stronger than my desire for solid food.

I don't think people are being judgmental at all. As for harshness...sometimes it TAKES harshness to get through to people. That said, I do NOT think this thread has been harsh at all. As for someone's leisure time or lifestyle being "not our business?" When you put it out on a public forum, then yes, that poster is "inviting" commentary on their lifestyle. In addition, alcohol is VERY much a lifestyle choice that often DOES impact others. So when someone says that they're like to go to a graduation party, one month post op, to do vodka shooters, I can't help but wonder how many of the other people at that party will be drunk that night? And of those, how many will choose to drive because they're not "that drunk?" And for this particular poster, it makes me sad. She's taken a HUGE step toward being healthy the rest of her life and instead of making plans to make the most of her surgery, she wants to drink enough to "feel it." There are so many other ways....and yes, in my opinion, BETTER ways, to enjoy life.

Knowing and feeling are two different things, huh? For example, I KNOW this will get easier, I KNOW I need to be patient, I KNOW I'm only 9 days post op (it feels longer) and this is normal, I (mostly) KNOW that this will work...but what I'm feeling is just worried and a bit discouraged. It's definitely harder in some ways to be home. Once I'm back in my normal routine, I also want to eat normally. Plus, being around family when they're eating is harder. Yesterday, my husband came home and asked what was wrong. I walked up to him, put my head on his chest, and said "I have so much work to do, I want to ride my horse, I'm tired and sore, and I just want to eat a CHEESEBURGER!" LOL Imagine that said in a very whiney voice. I'm just venting here! I'm hungry, I have no trouble at all drinking anything (warm, cold, Water, drinkable yogurt, pureed Soups, etc). I tend to be too much of a perfectionist and when I drink something to help with not EATING something, I feel guilty. For example, I had some chocolate milk yesterday and even though the rest of the day was things like watered down juice, a Protein shake, and pureed Soup, I beat myself up over that milk. :\ So yes, I'm feeling whiney...I KNOW it'll get easier, but well...I just need to whine for a bit.

Thanks everyone! I feel "wimpy" when I whine and I'm normally the "strong" one in the family. LOL I figured whining here would be ok since we've all gone through it or plan to got through it at some point. And the cheeseburger? LOL Thankfully, I just used that as a representation of what I was feeling. I don't really like burgers much at all. Now...sweet tea? That was my downfall pre-surgery and thankfully, knock on wood, so far, I haven't felt any strong cravings for it. I plan to stay away from it as long as I can! I just spent the last couple of hours in our garage giving it a spring cleaning. Cleaned the trailer dressing room yesterday. Next on the list is our basement. Staying busy helps with the desire to eat...plus, feeling loose blue jeans is a decided BONUS!

Amanda, I in no way made it sound like I thought you're an alcoholic. I even prefaced my post with explaining WHY I have such a strong bias against drinking. But no, not practically every person in college drinks. It's NOT a lifestyle and it shouldn't be.

LOL, that works!

I'm in TN. My dr said I could ride again 2 weeks post-op, so I'll be riding next Wednesday. Wed is our training day, so I went with my husband while he rode his horse and the trainer rode mine...so I just had to WATCH. LOL But realistically, my jeans do rub my incisions...being on horseback in the heat wouldn't have felt very good. I'm trying to tell myself that today IS a better day. LOL Think it, believe it, feel it...ummm, yeah, not so much right now. :\

This is going to sound judgmental and condescending, but let me preface it by saying that my husband is the child of alcoholics. His mom is in assisted-living because of one too many drinking episodes, his aunt (who raised him) essentially died from alcohol poisoning. I also encounter the negative affects of drinking alcohol in my job, so yes, I'm very ANTI drinking. You've just made a HUGE decision to improve the quality of your life by having sleeve surgery, and you're thinking about how much it'll take to feel drunk at a graduation party? Did it occur to you that, while drinking, you might not make the same wise food choices that you otherwise would? As in, eat something that you shouldn't and create a sleeve leak? What about the EMPTY calories in alcohol? Did you want the sleeve to limit your food while you continue to drink your calories and kill brain cells? Look, I don't have a problem with social drinking. But drinking to get drunk...yeah, I do. Because it's when you're drunk that you can make a lot of poor decisions and some of those can be life-threatening. So why not go, instead, with the thought of enjoying your weight loss, eat mindfully, and just enjoy the party?

You can wear one whenever it's comfortable! I had my drain tube almost directly below my bra band, so that was NOT comfortable. But even so, when we'd go walking, I'd put some extra gauze over and wear the bra anyway. Even though my surgery was very early in the morning, the NEXT day was day 1 POST-OP. Don't count the day of surgery...

May 14th. Had my drain removed today and will be flying home tomorrow. Can't wait! Weighed at the dr's office, down 8.5 lbs (didn't have to do a pre-op diet). Not sure I believe that. LOL Never lost 8 lbs in one week before, so I tend to think it's just Water weight or something. Health-wise, I feel fine! No issues with drinking, got cleared for pureed foods today (soft on the 29th), and feel pretty close to normal. Better, in fact, because my Lapband had me miserable leading up to the surgery.

Yes, and it's losing a LOT of it that an issue, too. Unfortunately, doctors aren't always our best advocate. I agree about getting your surgeon to call your PCP. Even if he has to get your records from her, he should be able to write the letter based upon your history with the PCP. If the PCP won't help you in any way, see if there's someone "above" the PCP you can make your case with.

Either ignore them or come back with your own...such as, I know Susie's 2nd cousin's stepson's ex-wife's brother lost a leg due to complications from diabetes due to obesity. But even better, be assertive for YOU. Simply tell them you've done the research and this is a decision you're making for YOURSELF. YOUR risk, YOUR choice, YOUR life. There's risk in EVERYTHING we do. The risks in staying obese are also known and very real.

According to my doc, IF I were 2 weeks post-op, I could try it. I start soft foods on the 29th and that's "anything you can cut with a fork." Of course, I'm still in the full liquid stage, but if I wanted to puree the watermelon, I could do that, too. But as others have said, you need to go by YOUR doctor's guidelines.

Amanda, part of your weakness might NOT be due to food. As WLS patients, we tend to attribute everything to our lack of eating and sometimes it's just not true. I don't know how much weight you need to lose but trust me....we ALL have calories in storage and going a while without a significant amount of Protein WILL be ok. Be sure stay hydrated...if you can drink Water with protein in it, great, but if not, be sure to still drink your water. But right now, your body is also "clearing" toxins and anesthesia from surgery, dealing with healing (internally and externally), etc. You should almost EXPECT to have periods of weakness...almost like getting over the flu, you know? I would NOT test what your stomach can handle at this point. I'm a week post-op tomorrow and I KNOW how you feel. I feel like I can eat anything and yes, I want something with more substance. But at this point, it's about letting the internal stitches heal and honestly, we can't FEEL those. We don't have the nerves in the stomach like we do our skin. But seriously...look at those stitches on your abdomen that are JUST NOW starting to close up...your stomach isn't any further along in the healing process!!! Weakness is OK...creating a leak is NOT.

This is my 2nd WLS with Dr. Rumbaut. He did my Lapband in 2006. The complications I had recently with the band are in NO WAY related to the work he did. He's a wonderful surgeon, terrific staff (still with him 7 yrs later), etc. That's why I chose to return to him for the sleeve. He is one of the more expensive MX surgeons, but I wasn't really looking for "bargain" prices...just a surgeon I trusted. Especially since I was doing a revision, it made sense to have the surgeon who did the band be the one to take it out. Having surgery in MX can be a bit frustrating, especially if you don't speak the language. Depending upon where you go, you'll find some English speakers, but it can be hit and miss. Even WITH that, the care is very good, cleanliness is awesome, etc. The care IS different here...for example, while I was in the hospital after surgery, I had my temp and blood pressure taken ONCE. Not like the every 4 hrs being woken up like in a US hospital. It might be different in different hospitals and dependent upon YOUR health...but I don't have bp issues, was feeling good, etc., so they tend to leave you be a bit more...which is actually something I LIKE.

It will get better! My plastic surgeon says that the tummy tuck is the worst, so she always tries to get a patient to do another procedure WITH it IF they want another one. She said the 2nd procedure is "gravy" when you're doing the tt. Keep your compression garment on...it definitely helps with swelling, back support, etc. Recovery from a tt is long....even after you feel almost normal, you'll have days where the swelling gets bad again which will cause discomfort...so keep the compression garment for later down the road, too. Any time you feel too swollen, wear it for 24 hrs or so.

ljperez, I understand what you're saying! I joke that when I first lost weight with the band, somewhere in the back of my mind, I thought I'd be 18 and perfect. Instead, I was still in my 40's, with wrinkles and sagging skin. I was NEVER going to want to wear shorts with the floppy skin, or tank tops with the bat wings. Even after plastic surgery (TT/BA), I wasn't totally happy. Now I had a flat tummy, but still too much butt...so pants didn't fit right. Not even happy with the BA because they're too big (she was balancing out my curves, but I guess I didn't make it clear enough I don't WANT curves). But in the past few years, I've learned to accept that I'm never going to reach my "ideal." It's just not possible...instead, I've had to learn to be happy with myself and my body AND all of its faults. I do still plan to have the BA re-done to a smaller size, but that's because they interfere with my activities...it's not about looks any more, but what I can DO. So that's my advice to you. Rejoice in what you can DO in your skinnier body! Try not to focus on the negatives, but be happy with the healthier, more energetic you!

37 lbs to get back to my original Lapband goal of 175. But this time around, I think I'd like to see what 150 feels like...so my goal is really more like 60 lbs. I know that doesn't sound like much for those of you wanting to lose 100 or more lbs, but because it's not as much, in some ways it might be harder to lose it. I don't know yet since I was sleeved May 14th. It'd be lovely if it just "came off", but honestly, I expect for it to take 9 months or more.

I consider myself a LapBand success (banded in 2006, reached goal 1 yr later, kept it off for 5+ yrs) and do NOT regret choosing the band at all. I think that, like any other WLS, you're going to find situations where it didn't work, either from complications or "user-error." Just as I'm sure there are plenty of people with VSG who have managed to "eat around" the sleeve...they're just not here posting about it. For me, the Lapband taught me a different way of eating. I didn't PB and/or slime very often at all. The trips to the dr for fills was a good thing because they kept me accountable and with support. I liked knowing that it was adjustable and reversible. When the weight started creeping up, those were MY mistakes. Reverting to drinking sweet tea and eating junk. Then, as I started to want to drop some weight again, I found that I'd kind of missed my "window of opportunity." Signals become muted, your body adapts, etc. Which ALSO happens with the sleeve. The band wasn't helping as much as it did in the first few years, but again, that was a lot my fault for changing back to old habits. Why did I revert to a sleeve? In the last few months, I've started dealing with reflux and coughing at night. I also think I developed a lung abscess due to aspirating in my sleep (lung dr doesn't think the band was the cause...I do). So, in a nutshell, the band had lost its effectiveness while now causing some issues. I could have had saline removed but then my weight would increase even more...so I chose to remove the band while converting to a sleeve. Would I recommend the band? Probably not. But I also don't want people thinking that the sleeve is the "miracle WLS" while the band is crap. You CAN fail with either one. You can also SUCCEED with either one. Both have their pros and cons and long-term, they BOTH ca have issues. I think what's MORE important is YOU and the work you're willing to do to make ANY WLS a success. I honestly think that, by having the band, I'll do better as a sleever. Having lost a good chunk of weight, I had time to adjust to my new size, new way of eating, etc. I also got to experience re-gaining 25 lbs so that I KNOW I don't want to mess this up. Maybe if I'd been sleeved first, I never would have re-gained and all would have been great...or maybe I would have taken it for granted and then needed a band over VSG...or conversion to bypass.

Both? LOL Yes I can feel a bit woozy at times. Other times I feel perfectly normal.

I wouldn't necessarily go back to liquids/protein shakes. You'll just feel hungrier and if you're at all like me, kick yourself even harder if you don't/can't stick to that plan. Maybe try to find one area in which you can make a positive change. For example, I know when I don't eat Breakfast, I'm setting myself up to make poorer decisions for the day. So I make a commitment to eat breakfast...but I do NOT try to change everything throughout the day. So if I "stray" or still eat junk, I still kept THAT promise to myself. Plus, I know in the long run, eating breakfast WILL help. Or maybe you commit to eating 2-3 ounces of Protein or drink a glass of Water BEFORE any junk. Once you do that, if you still want the junk, eat it. Again, small changes that you can be successful with. The other thing...don't be too hard on yourself! So you've lost/gained 3-5 lbs in the last FIVE months....that means you're really holding pretty steady! If you have to continue holding your own until events in your life settle down, it's not the worst thing to do.