lizzie_07

My midband holds 10cc. Unless 9cc is also an option? I have no fills so can't help you out there.

Have you lost a lot of weight? I read somewhere that as you lose weight you may need another fill to compensate. Just a thought.

I agree. November Nymphs is an awesome name!

I get REALLY hungry. I was craving bad food the day of surgery lol. However, it goes away really easily with a drink of something thank god.

Congrats on your amazing weight loss by the way!!!

I had my surgery on Nov 2 at TLBC and just flew back to Halifax from Toronto so I thought I'd share my story. My surgery was at 8am. Dr. Yau talked with my mom and I for a good 20-25 minutes before the surgery which surprised me. The surgery started late becasue we were chatting for so long. I thought he was fantastic, personally. He even talked to me about where I would like the port to be and how low my pants normally go. I wasn't nervous going into the surgery. Even when they had the IV hooked up and the oxygen mask on I wasn't nervous. I thought I would be. When I woke up I was shivering like crazy and felt tight in my chest but it wasn't horrible, just a weird sensation. I asked for some pain meds and walked to the recovery room with one of the nurses. She kept telling me to go to sleep but I was wide awake for some reason. I sipped some Water, got myself dressed, and eventually she came back to get me and I walked to see my mom and then went back to my brother's place (he lives in downtown Toronto). I was at his place by 11am (the surgery ended up starting at 8:30am). I had a bit of shoulder pain from gas but a heating pad took it away instantly. I tried to walk for 10 mins every hour and I think that helped me have very little gas pain. I bought gas-x but I never needed them. The Demerol Dr. Yau prescribed really helped with the incision pain. All weekend I felt really good. I walked to the mall and went shopping for a while on Sunday. I have an incision in my belly button which pulls sometimes when I walk so that seems to be the main pain I experience. Plus the port incision (VERY low on my stomach). But I've found the pain completely managable and not nearly as bad as I was expecting. I've found drinking enough fluids and getting enough nutrients in the most challenging part and I have to work on that a lot. Anyways, I feel great, and I'm ready to get this weight OFF! =) hmm....I wrote a lot... lol

Diane - Thanks! Yes, trying to get past my parents ended up being MUCH more difficult than the surgery itself. It was an emotional road and I felt really alone not having my family's support but in the end once they knew they couldn't talk me out of it they were much better. They just want me to be happy.

hmmm..my mushies stage recommends 1/2 cup Soup, cream of wheat, etc. AND 1/2 cup of something else such as blended canned peaches. Sounds like a lot more than you were told....Hope it's ok. With liquids is it ok to have like 1cup at a time (sipping)? I've been using this idea of 1 cup is the amount you can have in one sitting since I got the band.....

Well, for those of you who have a pre-op diet like myself (2 weeks), I thought I'd start a new thread in advance to post your struggles, questions, advice, etc. Good luck everyone! =) Elizabeth

I don't feel completely satisfied on the liquid diet but I'm sticking to it because I have to. Band slippage is a scary thing and if you move on to mushies or solids too soon, you will not allow the stitches to heal properly. From what I've heard, this can cause your band to slip DOWN THE ROAD. You may think it's ok now, but it's not. So I'd say go back to the liquids and give your stomach time to heal. As for your pain, I had the same thing. The nurse said it was becasue of my stomach still being swollen and healing. It has basically gone away at this point so hang in there.

Dibaby - I was being nosy and looking at your pof profile. Just wanted to tell you you are STUNNING!!! Congrats on the weight loss!

I just had the lapband surgery on Nov 2 and I am very happy with my decision so far. My family was also completely against it so I had to take things into my own hands and accept the fact that I didn't have their support (they came around, I might add). I did LOTS of research, mostly on this board. I wanted to see the best and worst case scenarios and the complications and how they came about. Once I felt I had a great understanding of the lapband and how it affects peoples lives, I knew without a doubt that it was the right tool for me. I'm young and healthy, but it won't always be this way. My weight WILL take it's tole on my health if I don't change my ways for good. Yes, everyone says why don't you just exercise or join a weight loss program. But it seems that most people who choose to have this surgery do it because they HAVE tried all those things, and perhaps they have lost weight doing them, but it's maintaining that seems to be the big issue. Most of us have such deep issues with food that we fall off the wagon badly and manage to gain back some or even more of the weight we lost. I knew if I didn't do something drastic now, I was going to be a yo-yo dieter the rest of my life and my health and happiness would pay the price in the end. Long msg lol, but my point is do your research. Look around on this board so that you read the amazing success stories and the complication stories. Know what you're getting into and then decide if it's the right tool for YOU. Good luck and I'm sure you'll make the right decision.

Thanks for posting that. I was banded Nov 2 and I was a little unsure if food can get stuck before I have my first fill. It seems like people are always talking about how they can eat the way they did prior to the band before their first fill so I wasn't completely sure. So, before you reach restriction you can still have trouble eating the same foods as people who have reached restriction? Should I avoid foods like chicken, bread, etc. too or just chew well and hope for the best?

Wow! Congrats, Donna. Thanks for giving this newbie some great tips. You should post your before and after pics on that general questions section. I'd love to see the difference.

Nov 07 banster are under monthly support groups. Here's the link: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f99/ (hope I did that right) When did they schedule you for your first fill? When I got out of surgery they had my dates all selected (even though I have to fly to TO for them, but I guess they didn't consider that). Anyway, Dec 17th is my first fill and then I have the nutrition seminar. Did they schedule you for the same day? You're right! Our starting weight and goals are very similar. Good to know. Everyone loses differently but I'll still watch your progress. You look like you're doing great do far =)

I still have steri strips on all but 3 of my scars so I'm not sure how big they are. I hope they're small though.... I'm feeling great other than this tight pain when I lie down that makes me feel like I can't breathe. It's so hard to get comfortable at night. Have you been experiencing this? I was also very impressed with Dr. Yau. I feel confident that he knows what he's doing. I wonder if you saw my mom in the waiting room. She has short dark hair, was wearing pink I think, about 5'6. Good luck with your progress! Keep me updated. It's nice to have someone else who had the surgery at TLBC on the same day. Have you joined the November 07 group?

Thanks again everyone! Lindyloo - My mom said she saw 3 "friends" in the waiting room who were all having the surgery done that day...I'm wondering if that was you guys?? I left around 10:45 so it may have been someone else...would be interesting though.

Good luck Diva! This msg board is a good place to be. We're all going through a similar process at the same time so we can relate to how you are feeling.

I've been craving bad food ALL the time since my surgery. But I find since I am at the beginning stage of recovery I get full quickly. Once I have a protein shake or something healthy that I'm supposed to eat the hunger quickly goes away and I no longer crave the bad foods.

Thanks for the best wishes everyone! doodie - I'm pretty sure I am in contact with that lady already. Or at least one of the ladies in the group. They have invited me to a few meetings but I couldn't go becasue of school. Thank you for the information though!

I love to walk my dog. Jogging or running on the other hand, they have been out of the question becasue I get out of breath after 1-2 minutes. So I'd like to be able to run for my entire workout someday.

Lindata - Another Canadian! =) What brought you to the states? How did your mother-in-law (I think that's who you said...) do with her surgery? Is that why you decided to get it done? I bought laxatives before my surgery but my surgeon specifically said NO LAXATIVES (during the clear liquid phase - 5 days) in the post-op package he gave me so I didn't take any. I guess that's why. Eeek...sorry you had to go through that.

I'm bad for weighing myself daily so I really have to try to control myself. I did weigh myself after I flew home but I know that I probably still have extra fluid on me from the IV and swelling. I'm going to TRY to weigh myself once a week from now on. Whenever I've dieted in the past I would weight myself easily 5 times a day. It becomes like an addiction for me.

Nessa - Thanks! I hope so too. It takes me forever to find the perfect position that doesn't hurt my back or cause that tightness in my chest. Sumz30 - Congrats on your banding!

My doctor recommended Propel water (vitamin and calcium enhanced supplement) which is made by gatorade. It tastes really good. I've been drinking that in between meals instead of crystal light or plain water becasue at least I'm getting extra nutrients.