kelli130

Wow. Seems your doing great. I was required to stay all night and I couldn't stay awake long enough to post. Good luck!

Mine was mainly in my shoulder. Gas X strips really helped me. It will go away. Stay away from carbonation.

My employer had the same clause added to our group coverage. Well, screw them. I went through care credit and paid for it myself. I decided I wanted it and didn't have to jump through all the insurance hoops. I had my surgery within 5 weeks of making the decision. I was banded on December 10th. I have lost about 25 pounds and feeling great. It has been worth every penny!!!!!

I have only told a couple of close friends and some family. Too many people think this is the easy way out and it is not. It is still a lot of hard work. I am 2 months out and have lost 24 lbs. It is coming off slowly enough that I am not attracting attention. I will tell people later, i just don't want all the questions right now. This is hard for me and I need to worry about me for the first time in my life.

I'm sorry for all your pain. I don't have a gallbladder either, but I'm not having any issues because of it. I agree that you need to keep a food journal and let a nutritionist look it over. Are you consuming any carbonation? A girl I work with now has food allergies. She didn't use to. But now if she eats something that she is allergic too, she gets the severe pains in her stomach. Just because you never had them doesn't mean you can't get them. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

My doc said no to carbonation also. I was a diet coke addict. I gave it up on Saturday, December 6, 2008 at 8:52 pm. It was my last one and I haven't looked back. I used to have one every morning and more throughout the day. Immediately I started sleeping better and I used to quit caffiene by 5 pm, so I didn't really think it effected me. I am not bloated anymore either. This has been one of the many things I have had to give up, but I know I am better for it. If I can give up my diet coke, I can do anything and I will be a weight loss success story!

NO REGRETS!!! Its not easy in the beginning, but it gets easier as time goes on. I would do it all over again and I also was self pay. Preop weight: 239 Current: 220 Goal: 140

Hi Beth! Congratulations on your decision. I can't help you out with doctors, but I'm sure it won't be long before you hear from someone who does. I actually have family who lives in Texarkana. I can tell you this. I used carecredit to finance my surgery. Mine was more than 10K, but it includes all my fills, appointments, and consults for the next year. Sometimes you get what you pay for. No matter what the cost.....it was worth every penny! 19 pounds down and feeling great!!!!!

I am not embarrassed at all either. I chose though to only tell those close to me. This is a real journey for me and for the first time in years I am putting myself at the top of my list. I will tell everyone when I have this thing down pat and I have lost the weight. I work with a girl that had the surgery back in April and has done great with it. She waited to tell me and others until November. One reason is because, no matter what, people will look at how you eat, what you eat and if you are losing weight. I am not ready to deal with all the questions. I need to take this time for me. Then I will gladly tell the world about my great surgeon and what this surgery has done for me. 19 lbs down! Only 80 to go!

Congratulations! I can honestly tell you the first 2 weeks (especially the first few days) are the hardest. It does get easier. Is the pain in your neck or closer to your shoulder? I get pain in the left shoulder right next to my neck. I know its gas pain from everything the doctor has told me. I got it the first few days everytime I took a sip. It really helps to get up and walk around. Make sure you aren't having anything carbonated. I heard it makes it worse. I am three weeks out. I have lost 19 pounds and I feel great! I don't have any fill. I get my first fill on the 22nd. But my pants are loose and my stomach is flat for the first time in years! Keep us updated on your progress! It does get better!

I am 3 weeks post op. I gave up the diet coke 4 days before surgery. I have read so much about people having problems with gas and burping. I have had none (knock on wood). I assume its because I don't drink carbonation anymore. My doctor has seen what the carbonation and the acid from soda can do to the esophagus and to the band. He has actually had to replace the band on 2 patients because it eats away at the band. Other's have had problems with reflux and esophagus errosion. I made a decision when I purchased this tool to do whatever it takes to make it work. It was hard to give up my diet coke. I'm not a coffee drinker but diet coke was my morning fix. I used to drink Mountain Dew. I didn't feel very good the first day and had a headache, but I don't regret the decision. I never drank diet coke after 6 pm so I didn't think it affected my sleep, but I can tell you this....I have never slept better in my life!! I also have no bloating in my stomach. My stomach is flatter than ever. Too bad I couldn't blame carbonation on my a$$ and thighs! I also don't crave the sweets anymore since giving up all the artificial sweetner. I think being self pay has made me a little more disciplined since I am making a monthly payment on this investment. I don't want to sabotage it!

Oh, by the way....Congratulations! 36 lbs. lost already! That is awesome!

First....relax. I am only 12 days out and eating almost regular food. Take it slow and move on to soft foods. I started with cottage cheese and soups. Now I have had chicken breast (very juicy and I chewed it up until it was almost liquid) and salad. Just make sure you are getting plenty of protein and take it slow. I haven't had any problems except a little gas pain in my left shoulder if I wait too long to eat something. Good luck!

I was banded on the 10th and went back to work on the 15th. I'm a Xerox sales agent but I kept my schedule light. Wish I would have taken more time off, but I didn't want things to pile up. Hope that helps.

Thanks for the update. I wasn't sure if my propel contained artificial sweetner or not. Good to know. However, I can tell you that my bottle of propel is 25 calories per bottle, not serving. So I feel comfortable drinking a few a day.

hey everybody. hang in there. this does get easier, I promise! To answer someone's question that asked my about my diet cokes/caffiene. I didn't have to give up caffiene. I did though, since its a diuretic (sp) and I didn't want to take a chance of being dehydrated. In regards to the artificial sweetner. My propel doesn't use artificial sweetner that I am aware of. It is caffiene free and it has 25 calories a bottle and 4g. sugar. So it used the real thing (sucrose syrup). Therefore, I'm not having any problems associated with the artificial stuff. I've been drinking ice tea unsweetened. I don't have any fill in my band yet, but I started eating normal food. I had a family Christmas dinner yesterday. I ate a few meatballs throughout the day and some green Beans. I chewed everything real well! I had no problems at all. I was full too. I don't crave the sweets anymore, which is great! I made 60 brownies yesterday morning with chocolate chunks and chocolate icing (for the get together and gifts.) I didn't have any desire to lick the spatula! (I had eaten my cottage cheese for Breakfast first and I was full!) I didn't eat any deserts at the get together yesterday, including any of my own brownies. I FELT POWERFUL!!! It was a great feeling. I LOVE MY BAND!!!!!:biggrin:

hey steph! yes, i have stayed off the diet cokes. my doctor told me i needed to stay away from carbonation once my band is in. he told me that the acid and carbonation can errod (sp) the band. I have read the tread about the others having terrible gas. I don't know if they are drinking carbonated beverages or not, but "knock on wood" I am not having any problems with gas. My surgeon also said it can cause esophagas (sp) problems. I didn't quit it right away. I didn't want to start a liquid diet and quit d.c. at the same time, that would be hell. I was on a two week liquid only diet. I told myself I would quit the d.c. on the monday before my wednesday surgery. we had a birthday party that saturday night at Chuckie cheese for my 8 year old daughter. That was torture! I was in tears from hunger, but I had my diet coke and that saved me from taking a bite of pizza! Sunday was the next day and we had some yucky weather so I didn't go anywhere and I had no diet coke in the house. I just laid around most of the day and did laundry. I also took a nap that day. I really didn't have a bad headache, suprisingly. I told my husband if I had known that diet coke the night before was my last, I would have enjoyed it more. I woke up Monday and went to work and didn't have much of a headache at all that day. It was hard to drive my my local Speedway and not pick up my morning fix. I can tell you this. Those Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights before my surgery were the best night sleeps I had ever had! I am still caffiene free today and no carbonation. I drink a lot of Propel black cherry and kiwi strawberry waters. It wasn't as hard as I had anticipated. If you want to wean yourself of the caffiene, switch to ice tea with caffiene. Just make sure you are drinking plenty of Water so the caffiene does not dehydrate you. You can do this. I used to be a Mountain Dew junkie and I quit that and switched to diet coke. There are two more benefits to quiting the diet coke. 1. My stomach was flatter, no more bloating. 2. Artificial sweetner can also make your body crave sweets. It has something to do with the insulin, blah, blah, blah. (my endocrinologist told me this) well, she was right. i don't crave the sweets anymore either. who knew!? good luck. quiting will be the best thing for you! i'm here if you need me!

can you give us more information? have your eating habits changed? have you had a fill? how much do you have to lose all together? maybe someone else might have some suggestions. are you journaling? have you met with your dietician?

The liquid diet is required for a number of reasons. 1. Some doctors want you to lose 2-5% of the weight before surgery. 2. You will lose fat from your liver. The liver is right where the band needs to be. They will retract the liver, but it still needs to be shrunk. Some doctors will actually postpone the surgery if they open you up and the liver is too fat. 3. This diet prepares you for the way you will eat after the surgery. Remember, your recovering from major surgery and your stomach will need time to heal. The liquid diet was definitely very difficult. You just have to keep the goal in sight! I would say the first 3 or 4 days was the hardest. I was also a diet coke addict and gave that up during this time too. My physician liason told me that warm liquids actually make you feel fuller. I rewarded myself each evening with a cup of warm beef or chicken broth at dinner time. I hated the shakes, but I downed them quickly. I drank a lot of propel Water and chewed a lot of sugarless gum. I was thankful my husband was very understanding. I bought convenience foods that he could fix for dinner and I went back to the bedroom during dinner so I didn't have to be around the food. Just remember why your doing this. Keep your eye on the prize. I didn't find this sight until a couple of days before surgery. I wish I had found it when I started the liquid diet and I would have been on here for distraction. Good luck. We've been there and we'll be here if you need us. Your life is about to change.....for the better! Good luck!

Good luck Piper!! Congratulations on making this decision. I was self pay. I was just banded on the 10th and I have already lost 17 lbs. I feel great! I can't believe what a difference 17 lbs. feels like. I have been overweight for 10 years. I suffered two miscarriages and then was diagnosed with PCOS. Before that I taught aerobics 3 days a week and was a personal trainer. I remember what healthy feels like. I still have a long way to go, but now I have hope and I know I will be there again! I wake up everyday excited! The liquid diet was definitely very difficult. You just have to keep the goal in sight! I would say the first 3 or 4 days was the hardest. I was also a diet coke addict and gave that up during this time too. My physician liason told me that warm liquids actually make you feel fuller. I rewarded myself each evening with a cup of warm beef or chicken broth at dinner time. I hated the shakes, but I downed them quickly. I drank a lot of propel Water and chewed a lot of sugarless gum. I was thankful my husband was very understanding. I bought convenience foods that he could fix for dinner and I went back to the bedroom during dinner so I didn't have to be around the food. Just remember why your doing this. Keep your eye on the prize. I didn't find this sight until a couple of days before surgery. I wish I had found it when I started the liquid diet and I would have been on here for distraction. Good luck. We've been there and we'll be here if you need us. Your life is about to change.....for the better! Good luck!

Congrats on your upcoming surgery. Promise yourself you will follow it 100% the next four days! Aren't you worth it? I know it's tough. I had to do it for 2 weeks. I was banded on the 10th of December. I have lost 17 lbs. I am still sore, expecially in the afternoon. The liquid diet before doesn't just shrink your liver, I believe it prepares you for the two weeks after. I have just started on "real food" like cottage cheese and Soup with stuff in it! If you find yourself really hungry and wanting something, try some warm broth. warm liquids make you feel fuller. fight the urge to cheat. distract yourself, get on the boards, go for a walk, just get away from the food. i would have been devastated if my surgeon opened me up and said no to banding. I am self pay too so I can't imagine where that would have put me! Good luck! Kelli self pay banded 12/10/08 start 239.5 12/19/08 222.5

Well good luck with the surgery! I was just banded on Wednesday. I'll still be on pureed foods at Christmas, but I don't care! It was a Christmas gift to myself and eventually a gift to my family. For the first time in 42 years I am putting myself first! I was self pay too and my only regret is that I didn't do this sooner!! Good luck with the preop diet and the surgery!:wink2: Kel

we have the banding date! my surgeon actually gave me a 3 ring binder with everything in it and it suggested gas-x. I don't have any problems with my stomach, its all in my left shoulder. but the gas-x disolvable strips are a must! Kelli