TexasBecky

Good morning all. Today is one week since my plastic surgery. At this time last Thursday I was already knocked out and beginning to be made over. I am happy to report that I feel better than I expected I would at this point. Karey, thanks for your last post. That was some really good info that I'd never considered. As always, you are so wise and helpful. Just another example of how useful sharing our experiences really is. This is a unique sisterhood that I value tremendously. Frangi, I'm thrilled that you are past yesterday's troubles. I can't believe you drove, and had such a harrowing experience no less. Sounds like one hell of a day from start to finish! Today should be a piece of cake by comparison. I am still weaning off the pain meds, primarily because I can't cope with the sluggish bowels and I want to be released to drive by Monday. My pain is pretty moderate at this point. The thigh incisions are really the main problem. By the way, I will try to post thigh pictures later today. I had DH take a couple this morning. Since they are causing the most discomfort I wanted to try and see for myself if they were really worth the extra trouble. Sometimes seeing a picture gives me a whole different perspective. Yes, sitting at the computer is fairly uncomfortable, but this website is my main source of entertainment right now, so I've got a pillow in my normally comfy office chair and I get up and down every few minutes. You'd be surprised how long it takes me sometimes to actually finish one of my lengthy post, lol. I am going to the grocery store later today. Woo Hoo! Something to look forward to. Frangi, what is your drain situation? How many, when do you expect to get rid of them, etc.? What about your binder? What kind and is it comfortable? I was given two at the hospital, which has worked out well so I can have a clean one everyday, but as soon as I get rid of my drains, I'm going to be wanting a different style and material. I'd love to hear what all of you have done regarding compression garments. Okay enough for now. I'll check in later, hopefully with some pictures!

Hi Salsa, thanks for checking in. I'm less whiney this evening. Maybe it is out of my system, at least for today, lol. You are going just two weeks from tomorrow, right? I think your strong physical condition will really make it easier. Just don't wear yourself out too much! You are going to need your strength.

You are all doing great because you are losing and not gaining. How fantastic is that? Most of us could never have said that pre-band. Just keep on trucking at whatever pace your body operates at. Gradual loss is easier to maintain too!

Kat, I'm always so encouraged by your posts. You're doing great and have such a good attitude in spite of the troubles you've had. I hope the Neosporin is just the magic you need. Don't get overheated when you are mowing. Becky

I feel better already. Reading your sweet comments Kat, Frangi, and Jody helps a lot and now knowing that Frangi legitimately feels rotten makes me want to snap out of my pity party.

Oh no Frangi. I really hate that you are suffering. You've been through so much and being away from home always makes things worse. Please rest and feel better soon. I'm glad you're seeing the doctor today. Check in when you can. Becky

Ok today Frangi you will have to be the cheerful one. I want to whine. Not that I want anyone to feel sorry for me. Life is good, I just want to whine. I didn’t sleep well last night. Weaning off the meds is a factor and also I think the meds are causing weird dreams. I was up and down about every two hours all night. At one point I was dreaming that my husband had invited hundreds of people to the house. There were people everywhere; little screaming kids, people I’d never laid eyes on, and all of them were tracking mud into my clean house! I was coming unglued in my dream, so I was glad to wake up from that. I’m sure that was all a reflection of the fact that I’m irritated at DH. No particular reason, but he is just bugging me. My dear, wonderful, attentive sister left yesterday. She was so kind and caring and anticipated my needs before I knew they were my needs. She just spoiled me and I miss her. So husband steps in to take her place. Ha! He took her to the airport and then decided to work from home so he could be available to “help” me. Yeah, right. He couldn’t anticipate a need if it bite him in the face. So today he went to the office and I’m glad of it! Am I pathetic enough for you yet? Wah, Wah, Wah. I’ve also narrowed down the greatest source of my discomfort. It is the damn thigh incisions. It shouldn’t be a surprise. Others warned me. The stomach is really pretty numb, so not much trouble coming from there. The backside is more of a problem because there are those stitches the doctor had to add Friday and more again on Monday. It also just seems that every movement pulls more against the incision along the backside - the nature of our anatomy I guess. But the thighs, oh the thighs. The incisions run right along where your panty leg fits from the front center of the thigh around past the pubic area and to about the center back of my thighs. They really are pulled with almost every movement, practically every breath it seems. I won’t even get into the details about trying to sit on the toilet. Yikes! Ok, like I said, I just want to whine today. I really don’t feel that bad. I’m moving around, threw a few towels in the washer, emptied my drains, made some coffee, flipped through a magazine, ate some breakfast, etc. I’m doing fine, but maybe getting bored, missing sis, and wishing I could drive. I know I’m pathetic. I don’t expect any sympathy, but thanks for listening. Becky

4 ounce bottles of Gerber Apple Prune juice (on the baby food aisle) are pretty easy to get down and they help. I would take the Colace too just to get things going before you get miserable.

BBK, so sorry that things have gone so wrong for you. You do deserve a lot better than this doctor is giving you. Get a second opinion for sure. Even if you have to deal with this jerk for financial reasons, you should know what can and should be done. And I must say, the four new vivid color pictures are just beautiful. I hope you have them blown up and hanging on the wall in your house. They look like Warhol silk screens!

Laurend, I'm wearing a very simple compression garment that wraps around and secures with velcro. It fits from under my bust to just above the pubic area. It does not show under my clothes. What does show is the bag that I'm carrying my drains in. It is like a fanny pack and I stuff the drains inside the bag and the bag under my shirt. It just makes a big lump. They could probably be hidden better if I was really trying to conceal them. You probably would have the drains two weeks at the most though, so maybe they'd be a non issue by the time you're back at school. Kat, I think you're absolutely right about the pain meds. I started cutting back yesterday and, voila, no need for the laxative afterall. I am still taking the Colace and added Gerber apple prune juice to the routine also. Sorry to discuss BM's, but trust me, when everything is sore and stitched and glued, straining is not something you want to do! Hi LJM, you know I always like to hear from you! Frangi! You are one tough lady. So glad you are feeling good. Sounds like everything went even better than planned. Except of course the extra tumors and cysts. Any worries about those? Was the doctor at all concerned? I assume they'll do routine pathology on them and you'll get the all clear this week. Do let us know. You lucky girl with perky new breasts! I would have loved the instant gratification of that, but mine look even more pathetic now, lol! So what does 400cc net you? Is that a large C cup? I guess it is different on everybody and until the swelling goes down it is probably hard to tell for sure. I totally relate to the tummy thing. I can tell it is going to be good, but so far the scaring is very vivid, I'm pretty bruised, and fairly swollen, so its hard to fully appreciate it. My butt is the best looking thing thus far. No bruises and it is high and tight - no sag at all. Woo Hoo! It is so great to be on the healing side of this now. I love hearing your details, so keep writing the novel. It sounds like we've had a fairly similar experience, although my surgery was only 6 hours, the doctors and nurses did all comment on how quickly I woke up too and how very alert I was. They said it is a sign of being in very good physical condition and having a very good anesthesiologist! Both good things! Sounds like we've even been on the same pain pills. Gotta love Percocet! Keep resting and relaxing. My butt does hurt from so much sitting!

I so hoped I was going to log on and see a post from Frangi, but I am glad she checked in with Jody and is doing so well. Hopefully she will post tomorrow. Today was a much better day for me. I started cutting back on the pain pills and did just fine. I saw the doctor this afternoon and he did put in a few more stitches on my hip where it had opened up a little. He said I looked great and have nothing to worry about. I had four drains and he took one of them out today. I'll see him again on Friday morning and will probably get rid of at least one more drain. My sister leaves tomorrow morning, so we just had to go out for Mexican food tonight. I'm still walking slow, but I don't think I really attracted any attention at the restaurant. I was also able to go to Walgreens for a couple of things. Unfortunately the stool softeners aren't doing the trick so looks like tomorrow I'll be taking a laxative. I am tired tonight from all the activity but I hope today was the turning point for me. I'll check in tomorrow. Becky

Hi all! I'm not surprised Frangi hasn't called today. I do think that once all the anesthesia is out of your system and you start trying to manage the pain with meds it takes a day or two to adjust. She is probably really tired and sore. I bet we will hear from her tomorrow. I am feeling better today, but I'm not going to sugar coat it. It is pretty bad pain. Moving around helps, but it is hard to get up and down and walking is very, very slow. Salsa, in answer to your question about the pain meds; on the day of surgery I had i.v. meds and oral meds all day. The second day I had pain shots and oral meds. Yesterday and today I've had oral only and I've taken them every four hours without fail. I'm also taking xanax (anti anxiety) 3 times a day and a sleeping pill at night. All of this and I really am not out of my mind or even sleeping constantly. Maybe I have a high tolerance to pain meds, but I think it is because I really am experiencing heavy duty pain and I need heavy duty meds. The doctor told me to stay on the schedule I'm on and we can start cutting back by early to mid week coming up. I did have an issue yesterday morning with an area about two inches long on my back side coming open and having to be sutured before I left the hospital. Today another area about an inch long came open also. My sister called the doctor and discussed it. He gave her instructions on how to bandage it and I will have to go in tomorrow instead of Tuesday as we'd planned. He says this is very common and one of the difficulties of being cut 360 degrees. It is just hard not to have pulling somewhere along all these cuts. All of my sutures are internal except for the ones that had to be added yesterday to my back side. DermaBond is the surgical glue that I'm sealed up with on the outside. Its suppossed to help with minimal scaring. I've been out of the binder twice now for showers and I can tell I'm more swollen today than yesterday, but all and all, I think things are looking pretty good. It looks like most of my stretch marks are gone, and so far I can't even tell where my port is or even the original port scar. Thank goodness for the tip about the elevated toilet seat ladies. I'd never have thought of it, but I say everyone should put it on their lists of post-op must haves. I've been up for a couple of hours now so I'm going to lay down for a while. Thank you all for checking on me and sending the healing vibes. Jody, when you talk to Frangi give her my love and best wishes. Becky

I'm home and not feeling quite as good today, but hanging in there. I told sis and hubby that from my knees to my toes feels just great and from my shoulders to my finger tips, no problem. Its everything else in between that maybe was run over by I truck while I was under anesthesia Thursday. Really, I have heard that the second or third day can be the worst, so I'm hoping to feel a little better tomorrow. I did shower at the hospital yesterday and in spite of the drains, swelling, scars, etc., I can tell the results are good. Frangi, hope you are still feeling great. Stay on the pain meds is my best advice. More later. Becky

Hey everybody, it is actually me; doped up but it is me. I'm sitting at the desk in my hospital room and feeling pretty good considering. So far it is not as painful as I'd expected. Mostly because I've been taking the meds on a strict schedule to keep it from getting out of control. Can't tell much yet except everything feels really tight and flat! I'm going to get out of my binder this evening long enough to take a shower, so I'm looking forward to getting a peak at things. Thanks for checking on me one and all. I'll keep you posted as I can. Right now I'm just anxious to hear about Frangi. I'm sure with the GYN work she is also having that she's going to be more miserable than she otherwise would. My best advice is stay well medicated!!!! Hope this all makes sense. I'll check back later. Becky

Hi, I am Becky's sister and wanted you to know that her surgery is over and she is doing fine. She is resting, but is alert enough to ask me to post that she will report more tomorrow when she is feeling up to it.

Well I guess this is my final pre-op post. I saw the doctor today for all the final details and to get marked up. They took my picture again after he made all his marks so that he could study them tonight. Yikes! I thought, poor guy - those pictures would ruin anybody's evening. Anyway, I'm all set to go. I have to leave home at 4:45 in the morning, which is just fine since I probably won't be sleeping too well tonight. I'm past being nervous now, just excited. I have complete confidence in my doctor and he reassured me that my thighs will turn out great with the small groin incisions. I've been obsessing about that. Thanks again to everyone for the kind words. It really does help. Frangi, sorry your travel turned out to be a hassle. Its a good thing you planned to arrive a couple of days early. Shopping for stool softeners and toilet seats isn't as much fun as shopping at Stein Mart, but I know you'll probably hit everyone in Miami before you head home. That should be good motivation to heal quickly. I'll be thinking of you just as soon as I can think. Can't wait until we are both done and comparing notes.

I did manage to squeeze in another hour of cardio today. I'll be gone for a while recovery from surgery. Good luck to all of you on making your June goals! CRAZY ATES JUNE EXERCISE CHALLENGE 8/7 CARDIO 3/3 STRENGTH TRAINING

Well Karri, we sure haven't had many participants this month have we? Everybody always starts out with good intentions and then they disappear. Unfortunately, today is probably my last day for a while. I am going to really, really miss exercising, so I hope it is not too long before the doctor lets me at least start walking and lifting upper body weights. You are, as always, having an amazing month of exercise. Keep up the good work and best of luck on the upcoming marathon. I know you'll do great. Your surgery is just around the corner now. I'm sure you are anxious to get it over with too. You are in great shape, so you should bounce right back. I know you'll be very eager to get back to running, but be sure you follow all the doctor's orders on that. I'll be checking in on my PS thread as soon as I can and I be watching for your thread with great interest. Good luck girl! You deserve all the best, Becky I did my cardio and weights today. CRAZY ATES JUNE EXERCISE CHALLENGE 7/7 CARDIO 3/3 STRENGTH TRAINING

I agree with everyone else. Stay the night, especially if it is already included in the price. You will feel lousy the first day and night so the extra attention and pain meds will be a help. Although complications are rare, it will give you and your husband peace of mind to have someone checking your vitals, etc. that first night.

The doctor's office called in my prescriptions today so that I'd have everything waiting when I get back home on Saturday. I've got pills for pain, anxiety, and sleep. It sounds like he expects me to be a wreck! I think if I take all this stuff at once I'll really be in la-la land. Maybe that will be a good thing for the first few days back home. Kat & Karey, did you need all this kind of stuff?

Kat, Brownwood, Texas? No kidding? My husband is from Brownwood. We still have a little place at the lake there. I've spent a lot of time in that God forsaken place, lol. No really, we've had lots of good times there over the years. Small world isn't it? As I said on the other thread, I'm so glad that you are doing as well as you are. I know you still have some issues and I hope they clear up soon, but you are just remarkable. You're attitude is great and you are coping so well. I'm really encouraged by your progress and am going to try to be as positive and up beat as you are. I'm anxious to hear about your upcoming doctor's visit. Good luck, Becky

Wow Salsa. As usual you are an exercise machine! I did my hour of cardio this morning. CRAZY ATES JUNE EXERCISE CHALLENGE 6/7 CARDIO 2/3 STRENGTH TRAINING

Oh my goodness! You guys are just the best. Prior to being banded I had never even been on a forum of any sort and certainly would never have imagined myself actually making friends with people online. Boy was I wrong. The people on LBT have been so wonderful to share their experiences and to support me and cheer for my success. I just can't tell you how much I appreciate everyone's kindness and sincere interest in one another. Jody, I wish you were here to help me too! I know that you must be a wonderful caregiver. It comes through in all of your posts and your dear family is obviously just as sweet as you are. You probably don't realize it, but your kind words all through my weight loss journey have really inspired me to keep working hard to be the best I can be. Karey & Kat, you both are trail blazers who have given me so much hope and confidence that I can do what you have done. Thanks again for your willingness to share and encourage the rest of us. Frangi, I'm sure you know how much you mean to me. You have been my partner for months now encouraging me to exercise, helping me sort out the plastic surgery process and just being a great friend to share the good, the bad, and the ugly with. I feel so fortunate to be going through this whole experience side by side. I am really pumped up and ready to go now. My sister and I are having a great time visiting and shopping. She's helping me round up all the stuff I think I'm going to need post-op and keeping me from being too preoccupied with the upcoming surgery. Thank goodness she's here. Kat, I am so encouraged by your progress. Just the fact that you were able to make a car trip so soon gives me a lot of hope for my own rapid recovery. I'm thrilled for you and the size 10's. What a wonderful milestone!

Becky - thank you!! Do you have a date yet?? I've seen a lot of great docs in Texas, that's for sure. Yes, my date is next week, June 12! I'm having a lower body lift and medial thigh lift. Woo Hoo!

Jody! I've been missing you. I asked Frangi about your whereabouts and she told me you'd gone to a motorcycle rally. Sounds like fun. I hope it was a nice break from your routine. I am anxiously counting down to June 12. My sister is in town from Canada and helping to keep me busy with shopping! On Wednesday the 11th I see the doctor for my final pre-op appointment. This is when he will work his magic marker magic, putting all the arrows and notes on my body for the surgery. I have to be at the hospital at 5:30 the next morning. My surgery is scheduled for 7 am and should last about 6 hours. I think I'm finally past being nervous and just anxious to get on with it and start the recovery process. I'll be reporting in as soon as I can. I'm very optimistic that things will go great. I've been working out pretty hard and I feel stronger and fitter than I have in years - maybe ever. I hope that will make the post-op period easier. Thanks for checking on us. It really is just a few days now! Becky