forgve70x7

Felicia, I had my surgery a week ago, and last night was the first night I actually felt hungry. It was after I had taken a 45 min walk. I called my dietitian this morning and said that my feeling of hunger was normal for this stage in the game. He said it's a good indication that my stomach is healing and that the swelling is going down!! I hope this helps, ~Nichole

TJFANDRI, I'm originally from Omaha, born & raised. My hubby and I moved down to Northern Arizona in 2005. I'll be up there in September because our nephew is getting baptized. GO HUSKERS!!! Anyways, I was banded on the 9th and things are going well. I'll talk to you soon!! ~Nichole :ranger:

I can't believe that a week has passed since my surgery. It's been going great and the recovery is going very well. My incisions do itch, but that's a normal part of recovery. I've also lost 25 pounds since the beginning of June, so that's been the most fun to see. My clothes are already starting to get looser. But for now, they still fit me in the waist so they'll have to do. I haven't tried on jeans yet, but I'm sure that they will fit well too. A couple of my incisions are right where my jeans will sit so I'm waiting for those to heal more before I attempt those.

Thanks Jeanie!! It's been awesome so far, but I also know that the weight loss will level off here soon as I start eating again. I think I'm going to make my hubby hide the scale too because I keep weighing myself every morning.

I can't believe that a week has passed since my surgery. It's been going great and the recovery is going very well. My incisions do itch, but that's a normal part of recovery. I've also lost 25 pounds since the beginning of June, so that's been the most fun to see. My clothes are already starting to get looser. But for now, they still fit me in the waist so they'll have to do. I haven't tried on jeans yet, but I'm sure that they will fit well too. A couple of my incisions are right where my jeans will sit so I'm waiting for those to heal more before I attempt those. I'm glad to hear that most of you have had good experiences and for those of you who had a few complications, I hope your recovery continues to go well. Hopefully I'll be on more this week. I can't believe all the posts I had to catch up on from the weekend. I just didn't feel like being on the computer, which is so not like me. Have a great day everyone and for those of you getting banded this week, you're in my thoughts and prayers!! ~Nichole

Ash, you're not the only one who's thought that. I've often thought that if I bought one of those shirts people would talk about me even more than they do already!!

Jackie, I got a cold a couple weeks before my surgery and I was so scared to take something that I just got some chewable Vitamin C's from GNC. I took 2 a day at 500mg each and it seemed to do the trick in a few days. Plus they tasted like SweetTarts which was awesome!! I hope this helps. ~Nichole

Mango - I stayed at a resort in Phoenix after my surgery and we were on the second floor. I was able to go up the stairs the night of my surgery. I just went really slow and my hubby went up behind me to give me support if I needed it. Really it wasn't too bad though!! Hope this helps!! ~Nichole

Marcy, I had to laugh when I read this because I was trying to explain that to my hubby on our drive home from Phoenix. i still haven't gotten rid of it completely, but it's starting to come out!! ~Nichole

Hi all. My name is Nichole and I'm 28. My husband Rodney is currently and ICU nurse for Indian Health Services, but can't wait to get back to Oncology and more specifically the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit. We currently live in Fort Defiance, AZ which is on the Navajo Indian Reservation. We moved down here from Omaha, NE in 2005. I'm currently in school getting my degree in Elementary Ed and am set to graduate in December of 2008. We really love the SW region of the US and are probably looking to settle here once Rodney is done with his Masters Degree. We do however want to live somewhere where there are 4 seasons, so most likely we won't end up here in Phoenix. Anyway, I'm day 4 post op and feeling much better today. The only pain I have is where the port is and from what I understand, that's pretty normal. I can't believe I've had liquids all week, and I haven't had the feeling of being hungry. That part has been nice. I can't wait to start eating mushy foods next week, and the refried beans are on my list of approved foods!! I just can't imagine pureed food and the thought of it makes me a little sick to my stomach. :sick We are finally getting ready to head home and I'm very excited for that. I have about a 5 hour drive, but it will take longer since we've been told that I need to stop every hour and walk. Oh well, it's all worth it. I have to go finish packing so I'll sign out for now. TTYL, ~Nichole

Wow, it's amazing to see what a 24 hour difference makes. I'm feeling much better today and have a little more energy than I did yesterday. I've already taken Bart (our dog) out twice this morning. I also feel more like a human again since I was finally able to shower. It's been interesting healing from this surgery and I'm sure if any of you could see it, you would think it was funny the way I get out of bed. When I was explaining it to one of my friends, she said we needed to get it on video and send it in to America's Funniest Home Videos. So for any of you who like the Harry Potter movies or books, the 5th movie is great. I am excited to re-read the 5th book to find out more information that I forgot. Good luck for those of you having surgery today and those of you on deck for tomorrow. I'm praying that everything goes well for you. ~Nichole

Hey everyone. I wasn't able to be on the computer that long yesterday. Yesterday was rough for me as I was really feeling sick when I would sit up for an extended period of time. I was just thankful that I never puked, it hurts enough even when I'm trying to clear my throat. Today was better though and I even walked our dog 3 times for about 10 minutes each. It's a little hard to be outside for long periods when it's over 100 degrees outside. I also went to see the new Harry Potter with my hubby and did ok. I took my pillow with me to hold against my stomach and I'm sure that I was getting weird looks from people. Oh well though, it is for me not for them. Anyways, I'm going to get settled in for the night. It amazes me how little energy I have right now. BTW, keep me posted on the cruise for next year. I think it would be fun. Are we talking about it just being us or bringing our significant others?? Talk to you all tomorrow, Nichole

Hi everyone. Sorry that I didn't post yesterday, it was a long day and we couldn't get the Wi-Fi to work at the hospital. I can't believe that I had 10+ pages to catch up on from yesterday and this morning. I had surgery at 8 and I think I got back to the PACU around 9:30. I'm still waiting to talk to the surgeon to figure out what band he used and how much saline is already in it. The new bands that he's using are filled during surgery. I finally got up to my room around 1:30, because of staffing issues with the nurses they were waiting for a bed to become available. One of the best things was that the rooms were all private! We had been told that the Dr. would come up during rounds, but he never came so finally at 7 my husband asked the nurse if she could call the Dr to see if he was coming up because we wanted to get out of there. They can't make me stay if there wasn't a reason too. I had been up walking and was using the restroom so everything was working how it should have been I almost wish they would have just let me go from the recovery room. Funny story for you though when I was getting up a 4:30 yesterday morning, I used the bathroom and everything was fine. I also used it at the hospital before they got me hooked up to the IV and Aunt Flo had decided to come and visit. I was so mad...I had been telling her all last week that she needed to come before Thursday or after Tuesday. But we all know that Flo has a mind of her own. I remember being in a lot of pain yesterday when I came to after surgery, but they gave me some good pain meds. I'm still in some pain but I'm using Tylenol today to see if I can handle it. The hardest thing has been sipping the Water and other drinks because I just want to drink it all up. Well, I'll write more later. Hope you have a great day!

Thanks again to all those who posted well wishes for us tomorrow. I hope and pray that all of our surgeries go well with no complications!! For those of you who are traveling to get your band done this week, good luck and have a safe flight (or drive). If I have anything to be thankful for, it's my very supportive husband. We've had a rough couple of years, but we have gotten through it and are still together. Anyways, I'm going to get settled down as I have a very early morning tomorrow, so if all goes well, I'll post something tomorrow afternoon. ~Nichole :clap2::clap2::clap2:

Laurend, my update for this week is 253 pounds. I'm moving in the right directions!! Welcome to the new comers and congrats on getting dates set for your surgeries. I would really love to sit here and write more but I'm packing to go to Phoenix for the week. We leave tomorrow morning and won't be back until Friday so I'm trying to make sure I remember everything. I even made a packing list so that hopefully I don't forget anything. I found out yesterday that the hospital has wi-fi :ranger: so I'm hoping I'll at least be able to post something short sometime Monday afternoon. My surgery is at 8 am (Pacific Time) so we'll see! :clap2::clap2::clap2: I hope you all have a great weekend. ~Nichole

I think Chimboree originally posted the info on the med alert bracelet. I was talking to my hubby and he thought it seemed like a good idea. Can you let me know what you had put on it? It will take way to long to go through all the pages on this post!! Thanks!! ~Nichole

I'm sure my doctor would love me drinking one of those "clear liquids" a few days after surgery!! I'm not sure if I'll be able to recline because we may be bringing some new bedroom furniture home for the exchange student that's going to be with us this year. Anyways thanks for the input! It's much appreciated. ~Nichole

Lynette, Question for you (or anyone who has already been banded). I was wondering how long you are able to actually sit up for at one time. I live 5 hours away from where I'm getting banded and I'll be in Phoenix from next Monday to Friday, but I'm concerned about the drive home. I know that everyone heals differently, but I just thought I'd ask you all. Thanks in advance for any input!! ~Nichole

I've also got high blood pressure so it would be nasty!! My docs are all hoping I'll be off that med within 1-2 months after surgery.

:hungry::hungry: My weight has always been here. I think I've been over 200 lbs since my freshman year in high school. I just never thought I was that big until I saw a picture of myself last year. I didn't like what I saw and needed to do something about it. Something I've learned about myself through this process though is that I eat when I'm bored, which is a lot here at home. :hungry: It also explained why I always ate so much when I was at work with my deskjob. I always had the top productivity on my team, usually averaging 150% or higher and I still had time to surf the web for 3 hours a day. That's part of what has gotten me to my current weight, but now it's time to do something about it. I haven't had kids yet and am 28, but when I do I don't want them to be high risk which they would be if my weight didn't change. I truly love reading your stories too and it really makes me think about my own situations!!

Jeanie, I can't believe we are 6 days away. Tomorrow we'll be able to count on 1 hand!! :eek: That to me is unreal. I'm really hoping that ours will go as smoothly. Of course, my husband is looking forward to that day because the surgeon told him that he was in charge that day. And told me I have to listen to what he says.

Lynette, Glad to hear you are home and that everything is going well for you. That is the kind of hospital stay that I am hoping for!! I hope your recovery continues to go well. ~Nichole

Yeah it is another board on here. Here is the link... http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f24/ Somewhere in there is a message about getting fills with someone in Mesa. Apparently she only charges around $100 or so. :eek: I hope your consultation goes well. ~Nichole

I'm excited and getting nervous again, but oh well. I feel horrible too because I cheated on my pre-op diet on Saturday. But, I got back on the band wagon and am doing ok now. :eek:

Jennifer, Being another Arizonian I just had to send a quick hello!! :eek: Welcome to the group. There is a group for those of us from AZ too if you would be interested in that. Good luck with your trip to Colorado, I have to travel about 4 1/2 hours to get down to Phoenix for my surgery! ~Nichole