LuluDemon99

That is awesome! I can't wait for the day I can wear normal rings. Right now my ring finger is size 10! Congrats

This is exactly what I needed to hear and exactly what I am going through! I also had my first fill 2 weeks ago and feel very little restriction. Lost 2lb last week and trying to hold out another whole week before I weigh again. Good luck for next week! Luluxx

same here Lulu. there's a bunch of us in and around the city working on getting together. Let me know if you're interested. Hi guys! Woah I am so sorry it's been so long, I don't know where the time went! I am here and getting used to this band thing. I spent most of my holiday break relaxing and going for walks around my neighborhood to relieve the gas pains. Everything went pretty well with my healing and Christmas Eve was my first trip out of the house. I felt kind of weak and a little dizzy after carrying some heavy gifts over to my friends house, but didn't drop anything. Woo! Christmas Eve and day were both hard and easy at the same time. I definitely wanted to eat all the delicious food that was everywhere but only out of habit as I was definitely not hungry. I had a couple of glasses of champagne and my band (who I call Oprah) let me know that she did not enjoy them, haha. I did though. I saw my surgeon again (well, his helper) and she said my wounds all checked out and the soft foods could begin. Man was I glad to hear that. So the next few days were good and I wasn't eating much at all. Around the 12th day after surgery I started to get REALLY hungry during the day, to the point where my stomach was growling loudly. This basically continues until I had my first fill on the 13th. During this time I could basically eat anything and felt no restriction at all which was SO frustrating!!! I definitely plateaued during that time, in fact I even put on about 3lbs, which made me want to tear my hair out. I had my first fill on the 13th of Jan and after 4 attempts from 2 nurses to get the needle in I finally got 4ccs in my 10cc band. Sweet relief. At the Dr's it was so tight I could barely hold down Water, but I left knowing that the swelling would go down. The swelling DID go down and now I feel like I almost have no restriction again. Sigh. I can eat anything barring tough meats and fibers that don't break down when I chew them. I have had one or two instances of being "stuck" but they have passed after a minute or so. No vomiting so far. I can even chug water! I have lost the 3lbs I gained though and another 2lbs on top of that so something is working. Sooooo definitely still looking for my green zone. I am hoping that my next fill will improve things a bit. That is scheduled for 2/4. I know that part of the problem is that I don't make good choices when I am hungry and I let hunger creep up on me when I am busy at work. I need some more high Protein Snacks at work and to find some easy and quick cook at home recipes for dinner times. Tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes! Anyway thank you guys for checking in on me. I truly appreciate it!! I'm looking forward to green zone and for now I know I should Celebrate the 28lbs I have lost since I started this. If you had told me 3 months ago that I would be 28lbs down in 8 weeks after I started the liquid diet, I would have been stoked! Hope everything is going well for you guys and yes I would love to be part of the next meet up in NYC! Let me know the details. Thanks again Luluxx

Hi CAtoTX. I had my surgery on Wednesday of last week so it's my 4th day after surgery. I had sone pain on the first few days, but I managed it with the Prilosec. The gas pains were the worst though. Lots of walking around and some gasx helped a little. I was also super tired for the first few days so listen to your body and rest when you need to. Don't plan on doing anything but recovering. I stopped pain meds on the third day and that helped a lot with gas/being blocked. I think if you take it very easy on the Monday you might be ok at work. You probably won't be 100%. Good luck!!! And let us know how it goes XxLulu

Yay band-land!!! Thanks The Icy One

Good Luck FruitLoop! Hope it went well and you are recovering nice and easy. My gas still didn't move overnight but I just got back from a 30min walk and it's doing much better. Sending good vibes and big hugs your way. xx Lulu

Thanks everyone! Yes I just got home and am in good shape! Nothing to be nervous about in the end. I arrived at 10am and checked in, then the surgery which was supposed to be at 11:30 was delayed until about 3:30 because of other emergencies that came in. So lots of waiting and watching tv in my room. Finally I got wheeled in and then hopped up onto the operating table. Last thing I remember is the oxygen mask going on , no counting or anything. Then I was waking up in recovery, and apparently asking over and over again about if my liver was ok. Haha! It was. Then I slept for an hour - no pain. And when I woke up had a few more clicks of painkiller and my friend came in and we hung out for about 2hrs. I walked around a bit and my friend filled my Rx for me. I was uncomfortable because of gas in my shoulder blades (what???) but it's slowly coming out. The incisions feel a little achy like you have done 100 sit ups but totally bearable. Fruit loop you will do great! Good luck! The worst part is the waiting. I'm off to sleep for 12hrs Thanks again everyone! XxxLulu

Thanks so much The Icy One! That makes me feel better. On my way to hospital now in a cab - stuck in crazy traffic though so I'm going to be a bit late. :/ Wish me luck!

Thank you all so much for your kind words of support! It really does help so much. One more sleep to go. My hospital bag is all packed with Water and lip balm, so I am just waiting on someone to call with the time of my surgery tomorrow. We have a holiday dinner at a fancy steakhouse tonight for work (my last day in the office for the year), so I'll be having fun drinking club soda and eating steamed green beans! I have never had an operation before so I am a bit scared of being in pain at all, but I'm sure I will battle through! It is for a worthy cause Excited that this is finally happening!!!! I need to book a car service for the ride home. Living in New York city noone has cars! And with the snow storm I don't want to rely on taxis. Ahhhh NYC, nothing is ever easy. Thanks everyone!! xx Lulu

2 data of no-band and pre-op diet to go and I'm getting nervous. Any advice for surgery day? Aahhhh! Xx lulu

Good luck kimk1999!! I'm sure you will do great. I have two more days of pre-op diet and then surgery is on Wednesday. I'm nervous and excited for it to be over at the same time. My insurance only requests that you tell them when your surgery is, a few days before you have it, but there isn't anything else they "approve". Is that the case for anyone else? I think I'm getting confused by the "approval" talk surrounding surgery day... Ps: does anyone know if you can have miso soup as part of your pre-op diet? Good luck everyone! Xxx Lulu

Oh yay some surgery buddies! Hi guys Kmb67 I asked my nutritionists about the AA shakes and they said something about it being too high in fat, but I think that depends on how many you have per day. Is anyone else on 2cups of veges? I am struggling with good recipes I have to admit. Made an ok tomato soup yesterday. But steamed green beans and balsamic are still my fave. Probably won't be saying that by the 17th! xx Lulu

Thank you all so much for your responses!! I feel very lucky to have found such a supportive community. I'm sure this is going to make it much easier for me. I have already learned a lot and will be checking in regularly. GoWalking I will definitely PM you, thanks!! And Illene, thanks for the tips, sadly I know pizza and coke are off the menu for me forever. I'll just be restocking the organic eggs! 8 days left un-banded! Off home to finish the last 2 shakes of the day. Good times. Thanks again!

Hi! I'm scheduled for surgery on December 18th and am on day 4 of my pre-op diet. I just found this site and I am so happy! I need support like 'woah'. The pre-op diet is going pretty well now that I have found a couple of shakes I like (Carnation Breakfast Essentials Sugar Free Chocolate, and Glucerna Shakes Chocolate and Strawberry), plus I am allowed 2 cups of non-carby veges per day. I am missing pizza and ice cream a lot but that is the point right?! I am excited to be finally doing this after 9 months of seeing Drs and getting approvals. I'm looking forward to following this thread while I am in No-Bands-Land and beyond! Thanks! PS: Here is a pre-pre-op pic. Ick.

Hi! I'm LuluDemon99 and I just found this website today. And I am SUPER happy I did. I have been looking for a place online to keep track of my progress and record some of the things I am going through so I can look back and reminisce (one fine day). I am having the LAP-Band surgery on December 18th at the NYU Langone Medical Center in NYC - AND I AM SO EXCITED!! Dr. George Fielding is doing my surgery - if my liver is skinny enough. I have been thinking of having some type of surgery for 8+ years and can't actually believe its happening now. I am on day 4 of my pre-op diet and it is harrrrrdddddd. I am doing 1000cals p/day of low sugar/low carb Protein shakes as well as 2 cups of vegetables. I am stlll finding a shake that I like. So far Muscle Milk Light vanilla is the worst, MML chocolate is ok, and Carnation sugar free Breakfast Essentials and Glucerna Shakes are the best. I spent today clearing my fridge of all the things I can't eat until after my surgery (Coke, pizza, Orange juice, eggs etc.) and also making some Carrot, Spinach and Mushroom Soup with Low-Sodium chicken broth. It tastes ok but it's much better with a little Glucerna Chocolate shake in it. Sounds weird I know. Anyway, more on my 'My Story' page. Excited to be on this thread!