McButterpants

Sleeved 11/14..so I'm very new I switched to Vitamin Water Zero today after telling the doctor that plain water takes icky. It's much easier to go down. Crystal Lights feels like it dries my mouth out. He said Gatorade Zero is good, too, but I haven't tried that yet. I haven't been able to get my water goal or shake goal in yet. Doc says that's normal. Add more when you can. (The doc seems a lot less strict than the NUT!) Good luck!

Weird - I was told to lay on my sides, not my stomach! LOL. It gets old rolling over from side to side because my hips and back start to hurt.

I was up and walking right after they moved me from recovery. My surgery was at 8:00 am - lasted until about 8:50. I was out of the hospital at 11:45 am that same morning (my doc does his procedure as outpatient). I walked immediately upon being moved from recovery and they moved me to a chair rather than keeping me in bed. The chair was rather uncomfortable and it was better to walk.

I was sleeved on Thursday (November 14th). They told me to lay in bed, but not on my back. I have to lie on my sides. It starts getting old after a couple of nights. I don't have access to a recliner, so I can't say if that is any better. I am using a body pillow between my legs. I sleep well if I take one of my pain meds right before bed. After the first night, I slept fairly well. I wake up every time I want to switch sides. That's annoying. Good luck!

Hi, RJ. My doc's office specifically said the titanium staples should not get you stopped at airport security. I thought that was odd, but I'm not technical enough to know how these things work. I do know that about 90% of the times I fly out of my local airport, I get pulled aside for "random extra screening". They tell me I am not being profiled, I am jus the lucky one that gets selected. I actually made a comment about it the other day, "How random can it be when you select me 9 out of 10 times I fly out of here." He didn't like that! When you were exray'd I assume they didn't find anything? Did you explain the staples?

I was sleeved on Thursday, so we're close. I haven't tried anything other than plain Water and water with Crystal Light (I did not like it - it make me more thirsty). I tried some broth, but that didn't go well. Jello about made me yack. I can get thru an 8 ounce thinned out shake in about 30-40 minutes. I get frustrated that I can't take in more. I'm allowed 2 T. of "slip and slide" food - applesauce, Greek yogurt, sugar free jello, sugar free pudding, cottage cheese, etc. I can get the applesauce down, but again, that takes about 30 minutes. I'm feeling much better today - still a few gas pains now and then.

I was sleeved on Thursday, November 14th. I'm pushing fluids, but it isn't easy - I take a sip every 5 minutes. I'm allowed three thinned out shakes, so I stop sipping 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after the shake (NUT's order). I'm also allowed 2 T. of applesauce, Greek yogurt, sugar free jello or sugar free pudding (one of those options per day). I have selected applesauce both days and it takes about 30 minutes to get that down. Again, nothing 30 minutes before or 30 minutes after. The pain really hasn't been that bad - most of it is the gas and I feel that in my chest and left shoulder. I have taken 3 pain pills since surgery, so I could sleep. I've been walking a lot - I got in 8000 steps yesterday. I'm not fast and people were getting mad at me at the grocery store last night, but I don't care. I'm vertical and that is what matters to me. I have gone thru moments of "Why did I do this?" to "I'm so glad I did this!" Much like I did prior to surgery.

Whew, then it's not just ME!?1?1? OMG - it does seem like every commercial is about food. I watched an Eggo commercial this morning and thought, "Wow, I wonder if I am every going to have an Eggo waffle again?!?!" I rarely have them ever!

Hi there. I just had surgery with Dr. Umbach on Thursday. Just wanted to let you know, he is awesome as is his whole staff. I would highly recommend him! Best of luck to you next month!

I didn't know I had a hernia prior to surgery. When I came woke up, I was told I had a hernia and the doctor fixed it. Another doctor I talked to wanted to do an ECG (I think that's what it's called) prior to surgery, to look at my stomach so there were no surprises. He said if he found one, he would take care of it while he was in there. Good luck!

Yep, I finally had the surgery Thursday morning. On Wednesday, I was having so many emotions and second thoughts, I wondered if I was really going to go thru with it. But, when I woke up on surgery day, I was ready to get the show on the road. I was the first surgery of they day for my surgeon, so I was pushed thru very quickly. In at 6:00 and out of the hospital at 11:30 (my doc does this as outpatient surgery). I could have stayed as long as I wanted, but in reality, I just wanted to sleep and that was going to be impossible in a room full of about 6 people either recovering or headed to surgery. The night before surgery, the doctor said there were no limitations on what I have for dinner with the exception of not a lot of red meat. So with that license, we went to macaroni Grill and had a wonderful dinner including Pasta, bread and dessert. I haven't had any of that in over four weeks. I savored every bite-ful. I know I won't be eating like that ever again and I'm OK with that. The surgery was fairly quick at about 45 minutes. Doc also found and repaired a hernia, though I won't know much about that until Monday when I meet with him. I remember getting wheeled into the OR, then the anesthesiologist put a mask over my mouth and told me to breath deep three times. I remember breathing once, then waking up in recovery. I asked the nurse if I was sure they did the operation and she said, "Yes, the doctor performed the surgery, do you wan to see your incisions?" LOL. My incisions are tiny - he does micro-incisions. The littlest one is about the size of pencil eraser and the biggest one is less than in inch long. I have 5 incisions. I started sipping on the way home. I was able to get down about 34 ounces of Water yesterday and I walked around the condo. (It's 30 steps from one end to the other, and I tried to do 5 complete laps or 60 steps.) I slept a lot, but woke up about every hour and did my walker. Pain hasn't been an issue except for the upper left shoulder and the gas. I did take a pain pill last night before I went to bed. That allowed me to sleep about 3 hours straight. All in all, I feel pretty good...

Was just wondering if anyone else is going to have surgery with Dr. Umbach on November 14th?

I have had ups and down - sometimes I am very patient and not reactive at all. Others, OMG, I go off at the smallest thing.

I'm not, but my husband is!!!!! LOL He has been cleaning all morning. We leave tomorrow for Las Vegas, then surgery on Thursday. I'm just trying to catch up on work, so I can take time off and not worry about it. Best of luck to you guys! See you on the the loser's bench in a few days.

I think you should wear a helmet cam to capture the look on her face when she sees you! I'm guessing some slack-jawed expression followed up with a question about how you could possibly lose so much weight. I love it! There are a couple of people that I can't wait to see in a few months - most are mom's that I know from my son's activities. They know I have struggled for years and years and give me such a sad look when I see them. One mom in particular has been treating me very poorly lately (I have no idea what evil deed I did to make her so mad at me she can't wave at me when I see her), but I can't wait to see how fast her gossipy-ass makes it's way over to me to start asking questions.

You guys look amazing! Congrats! I so enjoy reading your posts and your blog. It's inspiring! (Soon to be sleeved...Thursday of this week is my date.)

Not any more than wearing a watch. Probably less so, because it's not metal. It's more like wearing one of those rubber Livestrong bracelets. I wear a silver bracelet that bothers me more typing on my laptop.

I wish I would have waited for the Force. The Flex is not cumbersome at all . It's lightweight and I really don't feel it when I wear it. It's lighter than a watch. For biking, I take it off and manually enter the biking time - it doesn't track your activity on a bike. I take it off, so it doesn't think "bumps" I go over are steps. It will track your activity and calories burned if you manually enter your biking minutes and speed. It's accurate on the elliptical and the treadmill as well as walking outdoors. The Flex and Force don't have an altimeter which the One has - the One shows you how many flights of stairs you've climbed. That wasn't important to me. I wear mine every day - I work from home, so I am not dressing up to go into an office. I wear it all the time and only take it off to charge it. If I was going out for an evening or needing to dress up, I wouldn't wear it.

I had the One and now have the Flex (the Force is the newest one with the display on the wristband). The only thing I liked better about the One over the Flex is you can wear it on your bra or put it in a pocket, so it's not noticeable. With the Flex it's obvious you are wearing something. I love that fact that I can wear it 24 hours a day and it tracks your activity and even your sleep. You can connect with your smartphone via Bluetooth. You can also track your food and Water on your smartphone or computer. You can also synch with myfitnesspal, although I haven't done that yet. All in all I am happy with Fitbit products. I only wish they came with a shock collar to shock me when I'm not moving enough!

Hi there. I'm on Day 8 of my 2 week pre-op. It will get better, just be patient. I have felt hunger over the past 8 days that I have never felt before. (I'm allowed two shakes and one meal w/ meat and veg in the evening.) I told my husband the other day, I don't crave any particular food, I just want food. I am hungry. But the weird thing is the hunger passes fairly quickly with some green tea or some water. And, keep busy - that will make it easier, too. Hang in there - it will get better and, believe it or not, it will get easier. You will find your groove. Best of luck to you - just keep your eye on the prize.

Congrats on your success!

"Yeah, I'm picking this up for a friend."

First, love your hair in both pics! Second, you are so close to onderland!!!!! Congrats on your success. Thanks for sharing your pics - it's so inspiring for us pre-oppers!!!

How much weight will I lose with a lobotomy?!?! Great words of wisdom, per usual, from PDX and Arts.

I've had a Body Bug and I moved to the Fitbit Flex. I like both. Right now I prefer the Flex because, for me, it's less noticable than wearing an armband. The Flex will connect with your smartphone to give you real time data. The new Fitbit, the Force, looks cool and gives you a read out on the device - I kind of wish I would have waited and gotten the Force. At any rate, they will both monitor your activity - which is cool.