Cindy_D

Best advice - leave the stitch alone! Wish I had listened to that advice. I played with it steady to the point that the incision is slightly reddened and had some superficial infection - Yesterday morning the stitch has gone. It has dissolved and the external part has fallen off sometime during thenight. Generally at the 2 week post-op check, the stitch will be removed if it is still there. Trust me to have it gone before it's time - luckily I am not concerned with the state of the incision - I have a strong medical background and am comfortable with where it is in the process.

Hi all - I was banded August 24th and my journey seems to be very different from many of you. The SWLC is a clinic - I was in and out and on my way home in 5 hours. (home is a 2 hour drive). The aneasthetics used were very short acting, and resulted in very little residual drowsiness/grogginess. Up and about very quickly post-op. The drive home was bumpy - damn roads - but minimal pain medications required. Post op diet has been changed following a recent seminar attended by the staff - 24 hours clear fluids, followed by full fluids for the rest of that 1st week and then purees for week 2. I am almost finished week 2 and have a follow-up appointment with the clinic this coming Friday. At that time as long as I am tolerating what I am currently eating, I will get the go ahead to increase to a soft diet - I am doing well so far. Last night I made shephards pie for dinner and it was tolerated well - the ground beef was lean and crumbled well, I always add a few veggies and chewed the heck out of them - the mashed potatoes on top were wonderful! I had a total of about 1 cup of this and it held me over until about 11 am this morning. The clinic dietician called to check in on me this morning (this clinic has a fantastic follow-up program - the surgeon called me day after and I spoke to him on the chat line 2 days later) and after I told her what I was doing was given the go ahead to continue carefully. We are already talking first fill at the 4 week mark. I am currently on vacation and enjoying the time off immensley. I go back to work next Monday and at that point expect to be starting to lose on a more regular basis - this week with all the thick soups, and salted V-8/tomato juices, I have been retaining Fluid again - that has to be changed and quickly. Good luck everyone - we're on a great journey!

Andrea - a couple things that you have to do on your own right now are to complete your research, and make your decision based on what is right for you. You have indicated you want to lose weight - your surgeon is recommending by-pass vs. lapband. Have you made your decision as to what would be best for you? Have you asked him point-blank why he is so sure that you will only lose 50lbs? That makes no sense - unless you are indicating that you plan to continue your present life-style without modifications. Unless you choose appropriate food to eat, you will only have a limited amount of success, whatever procedure you choose. Therein lies the rationale for by-pass - whatever you do eat, moves through the shortened digestive system so quickly that you only absorb some of the calories, and nutrients - a more dramatic result initially. I have a significant amount of weight to lose - this is going to take 2 years - big deal - it took me 50 years to put it on. Initially I will lose quickly - but it will slow and I am going to have work every step of the way. I now have a small pouch that will only hold a small amount of food - like everyone else on these boards I like food. Now the trick is to ensure that whatever I eat, meets the three criteria I have set for myself: top taste and quality, top Protein, lower carb value, and nutrient rich foods. I have to exercise (a real toughie right now, but I'll keep at it). This decision was right for me, because no one is going to mess around with my insides to the point that there is no reversal. Go back to your surgeon armed with your research and request his rationale for not supporting your lapband request. DO NOT BE AFRAID OF YOUR MEDICAL TEAM - their job is to provide you with the pros/cons and then support you in the decision you make. Get your husband back on board - you are going to need his support - he may be frustrated right now with your confusion - be firm and settled in your decision and then make it happen. We all have to take control of our lives - the lapband is a tool and it is only a tool - we have to make it work for us and you are the only one who can do that. Good luck - it is not an easy road, but the rewards are phenomenal and your child should be your greatest inspiration for succeeding. Cindy

Hi Lori - doing well thanks - week 1 complete and think this was harder than the Optifast phase. On to purees. Haven't heard from Debbie yet - hopefully all is well. Cindy

Lizster my experience was similar to Andrew's with the difference being that I am only two hours away from the clinic and have the ability to get there much more easily. I'll add my experieces in your post. There are subtle differences in the clinics, but really they all belong to the same profession, and have the same evidence based approach to helping us gain control over our lives with this tool. I think it is a matter of everyone doing their homework and figuring out what it is that they need to succeed. As Canadians we don't always take this approach, thinking we shouldn't make waves or something. Cindy

Actually Andrew your "Nurse Ratchet" was likely not a nurse, but a phlebotomist and trained in venipuncture and lab work rather than nursing. :phanvan would not be too happy if this was the behaviour of a professional nurse - and no matter who it was, it was inappropriate and unprofessional. Cindy

Liana the walk-in clinic is just fine -the pre-op form is very basic and any provider can fill it in - even an NP would be able to complete the physical as it is not greatly detailed. I have read of others having their forms completed through walk-in clinics - just be prepared for the cost as it will likely not be covered. Cindy

Chris has something changed your mind about the Mexico experience? You seemed so positive before - I have some collegues who are struggling with making decisions on whether they should go away or stay at home. I personally am very partial to the SWLC in Toronto with 5 years of follow-ups and a culture of caring that is very evident in all they do. Everyone does have to make their own decisions though, and having all the facts is helpful. Cindy

Gosh Andrew for some reason the photos in your first post did not work - I'd love to see them - can you repost? Thanks Cindy

I have been using the free software as well - what are the benefits to buying the whole product? As I am only on full fluids, I am averaging about 680 calories - the scale had better be moving down - but I'm staying off it until Friday. Cindy

How are you feeling now Sweet? You must be doing well if you are ready for a fill next week. I am tolerating full fluids well, and seem to be healing well. C.

Well it is taking some getting used to Lori, but I'm glad I have it - just mixed it with milk and pudding so far - the soup was too hot. It's coming... C/

I think the big problem with noodles at this stage and for that matter at any stage is that they belong to "the whites". These are the processed carbohydrates from white flour that really don't have a great deal of good nutrition to their credit, but are rapidly broken down and turned into glucose - adds to the hunger feeling without adding effective nutrients. Just some of those things they tell us to avoid. Not sure what you mean by the "mushie" stage - my clinic has me on full fluids for this week, then 1 week of puree, followed by 1 week of soft, then to regular. Perhaps your "mushie" is the same as puree - if so, then you could follow the regular diet guideline for lapbanders of 3 oz pureed Protein, followed by 2-3 oz soft veggies (overcook the broccoli, cauliflower, Beans, etc - remove the strings from the beans), add some mashed bananas, pureed fruit and spread it out over the day. Does this make sense? Cindy

Interesting - each clinic seems to be a bit different - TWLS says at about 4 weeks, if able to eat everything and not feeling full. As there is only the "prime" in the band, there is really very little restriction - this doesn't mean that everyone will be ready for a fill at that point, but I am certainly going to be examining where I am at with getting this tool to work properly. C.

Doddie thanks for the link to fitday - I know I'm only a few days away from being banded, but I've had some trouble getting enough Protein in at this stage - not much protein in broth - and I think this is partly why I am so tired and still having some discomfort. I know I won't heal without enough protein, so I've been consciously adding Protein powder to my yogurt and 1% milk - not my favorite drink, but it will do. Also I'm noticing foods seem much saltier than they used to (this from a "saltaholic" - I had some Knorr Cream of Broccoli Soup and couldn't believe how salty it was. Does anyone know how much protein we should be aiming for in the healing stage? Cindy

When were you two banded? Seems like a long time to have to wait for a fill, (unless you don't need one at all). Just wondering. Cindy

Lorie how are you doing? Did the change in work schedule help? Hopefully things start to settle down soon. Cindy

Phillips MOM - I have been taking it regularily as I have a real issue with constipation. It is gentle and our clinic recommended it. I didn't find the Benefibre too helpful. Cindy

Wasabb - thanks for that - you're right and I should have known better. I am not suggesting anyone play fast and loose with physician orders and keeping the stomach quiet is essential to a good setting of the band. It does no one any good to knowingly eat things that are not allowed and then go through the "what if and what Have I done's". Some of hte confusion may be related to the differences in physician diets - they all have their little differences. However, if something does go wrong and you have not followed your physician's instructions, I doubt you will have any recourse in having them fix it without significant cost. So listen to the experienced folks and your docs and "FOLLOW YOUR OWN POST-OP INSTRUCTIONS" It isn't helpful to you to compare diets - physicians also use different types of bands and they may also perform differently. Take care and stay away from the Ramen noodles - they are called a chemical death for a reason. C.

I am planning to be there Cindy

Banded today and all went well. Debbie was leaving as I was going up so we missed each other, but saw her girls - she's in good hands. Slept like a log when I got home and am now up wandering around. Head is finally clear, minimal discomfort - just a bloated feeling in my abdomen, and an ache in the shoulder that occassionally moves and I know that's the CO2. Tomorrow there are clear fluids, including chicken both to look forward to. Now I'm just tired and letting everything heal. Cindy

I would expect you would know it by now - if you are not experiencing reflux (bad gas pains) or you are not vomitting you should be fine. The people who seem to get into trouble are the ones who ignore pain, and vomitting to their detriment. Hang in there - we are likely going to give ourselves some real scares over the next few weeks. C.

Did you eat the whole package? I love those things even though they are so very bad for us. Not sure I would have tried the package today - I'm just in the full fluids stage and am really only tolerating a few things - so far still apple sauce, and a pudding. Have a pain in my left side and can't figure out if it is from gas or too full. (think it must be from the gas). Cindy

<p>I think you need to have this looked at properly. Wounds that have infection in them and then close over are not going to heal - generally they need to be open, packed with sterile saline soaked guaze and let heal from bottom up. I would suggest a proper physician have a look at this before you end up with a serious infection that will require the port to have to be removed. Good luck</p> <p> </p> <p>Cindy</p>

Hi Jane - thanks for asking - I did not stay in hospital - my surgery was done in a clinic and I was discharged about 4 hours post-op. We had a 2 hour drive home, not too too bad although I really felt the potholes. I came home and went straight to bed for about 4 hours and got up for a few hours after that - clear fluids only (water) and more codeine and back to bed. I had a great night and my surgeon phoned to check on me on Saturday - we spent a few minutes on the phone and he answered more of my questions. Stayed up too long Saturday, just lounging, but had trouble getting to sleep from being a bit tender. Today I've been on more fluids gradually increasing to full fluids - I had an applesauce, and a pudding after some chicken broth - can't take any more now and have a bit of a pain in my left side - not sure if it is from gas or too full. I'm just going to wait to have anything more to eat, in case I'm too full. I think I will have a cup of Gardennay Soup for dinner later and add some Protein powder to it - I was a bit dizzy walking up from the waterfront this afternoon. I'm just so glad it is all over and will now start to see some real changes as I heal - my biggest complaint is the itchiness of the steri-strips - I've peeled most of them off, from the stab wounds anyway - I'll try to put up with the ones over the larger port incision, but no guarantees. Take care and keep in touch. Cindy