Longhorn

Y'all come join us in the November 07 Bandsters forum. Just find it on the list of forums.

Crystal: I'm so sorry for the pain and frustration you've been through. In case you didn't know, there is a forum on this board for those who have had their bands removed. It's toward the bottom of the list. You might want to check in there and get information and support from others who have been through your ordeal. Good luck!

1st PattyPoo Nessa3678 brandymom1234 Mom_of_Chuy sanderro Holiwood Longhorn Forestcat Rhea Sades edeva3 2nd lizzie_07 lindata KristinaDawnB lindseyann2u sconie pam726 4th QatarPhil 5th DLW Hungryforchange wnt2lose jelbel 6th Wishes4444(Ann) Diva Inside ndmom kandiceb jetti vanessav hollyberries 7th Goldie1109 susieq125 shadst83 Cota129 Imonmyway7368 MyLady 8th anw5102 dawndannae stranger138 needto ebrow39 Bandstertobe zippykat QUEENMOTHEROF1 9th Banded4Life neen7171 maccy mariaxoxo4u Kristin1031 Carsons mommy chubbydiva 10th Selisejohnson omlagirl jen6740 anitak33 12th jrsyshoregrl684 suebob Shalee04 13th CCFRA Princessannod1 Tralynn222 sschude 14th lightenup! dream'n2bthin Life Change (Eulete) 15th steph_cn RxTracy Hopping to It- Danna sunshiny Tete2 16th Laurieu 19th Mrs Smartypants 20th Skinny_Jill blondecz (Crissy) Firebolt (Judy) 22nd luvmy4boys 26th kuchiegrl1 Tishbite2 Motocrossgirly 27th 731Shawty Cherlita Julie-Ann plump_princess 28th lukin puppy 29th Sassafras TAWHarris

This is a very old list! I'll add you to the latest list.

Hi, Cindy. Copy the code that's in the top box where you created your ticker. Then on this board, click on UserCP at the top of any page and then click on "Edit Signature." Paste the code into the signature box. You can click on Preview Signature below the box to make sure it looks okay. Good luck!

Hi, Lynda! I've been pretty selective about who I tell. No one at work knows except the one student. I may eventually tell people but I'd rather wait until I have some results. With my family, I knew my mother and in-laws would be hurt if I didn't tell them but I also didn't want them to have to keep it a secret from my siblings, plus I'm hoping my sister may decide to do this eventually. They would tell their children, of course, so there seemed no reason not to tell my aunts and uncles and cousins. So my entire family knows but that's okay. It's kind of an "all or nothing" thing with them. I don't use my real name on the board. My name is not common and might make it harder to remain anonymous. Good luck!

Thanks, Stephanie! I've always been one to tell a little too much about my business but as I've gotten older, I have realized that just because I was anxious to tell doesn't mean they were dying to find out! There are times I thought I'd be peppered with questions and I kept mum and surprise! No one asked a thing or if they did, they accepted my brief explanation. Who knew?

I agree with these suggestions. If you don't want to tell and anyone asks, you tell them that you had some minor surgery. If they ask more questions, you just repeat that you had minor surgery and if they are persistent, you just say that you'd rather not talk about it. I teach at community college and every one of my students in four classes knows that I had minor surgery because I had to cancel class. Only two asked me about it. One of them, a student closer to my age with whom I have become friends, I told and she has been very supportive. The other was just curious and accepted it when I told him I didn't wish to talk about it. Good luck!

Welcome to the board! I can't answer your questions about the drugs but I do think there area several ways of handling the holiday dinners with the family. Assuming you do not want to tell them, some suggestions: 1. Say that you're on a restricted diet. 2. Tell them you woke up feeling a little queasy and don't think you should eat anything until "later," which never comes. 3. Put some food on your plate, push it around, put an empty fork in your mouth now and then, and talk a lot. 4. If everyone is eating at different tables or in different rooms, move around and visit with a plate of food in your hand. 5. Excuse yourself and dump some food in the trash or the sink while getting a drink or "using the restroom." 5. Eat with your kids and move food from your plate to theirs. 6. Stay busy setting the table, pouring drinks, replenishing rolls, etc. 7. Tell them you ate did too much tasting while you were cooking and aren't hungry. I haven't been through this as a banded person but I lost 70 pounds on Medifast four years ago and didn't tell everyone what I was doing. But I found that people weren't that interested in whether I was eating -- they were too busy eating themselves! And even when I wasn't avoiding eating, I've found that I ate very little sometimes because I was so busy as the hostess. I'll still be on full liquids for Thanksgiving. My family knows but my daughter is having the dinner at her house and my son-in-law's family doesn't know about it. My son-in-law is going to make some pumpkin bisque and I might also have some mashed potatoes thinned with gravy. If anyone asks, I'm just going to say that my stomach is a little unsettled. I just don't feel like explaining it on a holiday!

Yes, it's pretty severe. He's convinced that his patients have fewer problems with adjusting to foods and will lose the majority of their weight during this period. I realize that there are different views on this subject and people have done fine on faster schedules but I'm going to follow his plan as best I can. I chose him partly for his conservative approach because I'm not in a hurry and would like to have as few complications as possible. I almost got scared off in the beginning reading all of the stories of being too tight, PBing, sliming, getting stuck, etc. I was beginning to think the way the band worked was through aversion therapy! But I realized that perhaps there is an over-representation of the negatives on a message board and both he and the psychologist assured me that this is true. I guess time will tell for me.

I had my one-week pre-op today. I'm doing fine except for a bit of redness around my port incision. I'm to keep an eye on it for signs of infection and if that happens, I'll take antibiotics. While I've lost weight, I'm not getting too excited about it because I know this can fluctuate over the next few weeks and even months until I get restriction. But it's encouraging because I haven't been able to lose weight the last few times I tried and certainly not 6.5 pounds in ten days.

What an inspiration! Congratulations on your hard work! It has truly paid off!

Yes, but not until after the surgery. I was a little sore but not what I would call pain. I've had a couple of pains since then but nothing that lasted for very long and I could always get comfortable and relief from the pain meds.

I think some of that stuff is to have when you get home but it isn't always made clear on the list. I would not take a heating pad to the hospital, for example, unless I was spending the night. But wouldn't they have heating pads there? I took the clothes I wore and a pillow.

If you can easily call in sick if you don't feel up to it, I wouldn't worry about it. But if you have the kind of job where it is better to make arrangements in advance, then I think you will need at least one more day, if not two. It's hard to predict and it doesn't seem to depend on age. I know I could not have gone back any sooner than I did (surgery Thursday, went back Tuesday) but I'm a teacher. It was tiring just to get dressed and drive there!

1st PattyPoo Nessa3678 brandymom1234 Mom_of_Chuy sanderro Holiwood Longhorn Forestcat Rhea Sades edeva3 2nd lizzie_07 lindata KristinaDawnB lindseyann2u sconie pam726 4th QatarPhil 5th DLW Hungryforchange wnt2lose jelbel 6th Wishes4444(Ann) Diva Inside ndmom kandiceb jetti vanessav 7th Goldie1109 susieq125 shadst83 Cota129 Imonmyway7368 MyLady 8th anw5102 dawndannae stranger138 needto ebrow39 Bandstertobe zippykat QUEENMOTHEROF1 9th Banded4Life neen7171 maccy mariaxoxo4u Kristin1031 Carsons mommy chubbydiva 10th Selisejohnson omlagirl jen6740 12th jrsyshoregrl684 suebob Shalee04 13th CCFRA Princessannod1 Tralynn222 sschude 14th lightenup! dream'n2bthin Life Change (Eulete) 15th steph_cn RxTracy Hopping to It- Danna sunshiny Tete2 16th Laurieu 19th Mrs Smartypants 20th Skinny_Jill blondecz (Crissy) Firebolt (Judy) 22nd luvmy4boys 26th kuchiegrl1 Tishbite2 Motocrossgirly 27th 731Shawty Cherlita Julie-Ann plump_princess 28th lukin puppy 29th Sassafras TAWHarris

That's great! Once you have the date, everything else seems to fall into place. I was kept busy with all of the other appointments leading up to surgery so the time seemed to pass quickly. Glad to hear you're not a "hard" case. I just got back from my one-week post-op appointment. I have a little redness around my port incision that my doctor wants me to keep an eye on to make sure it's not infected. He told me to watch for a widening of the band of redness and to call him if that happens -- he'll prescribe antibiotics and drain it, if he has to, which he said is no big deal. One more week of Clear Liquids and I get to expand to full liquids! I had some chicken broth with unjury when I got home and it tasted so good! I had been avoiding the Unjury for awhile in case it caused the bloating I had after surgery but I think that was just due to the surgery. It's good to get off the sweet stuff now and then! Thanks for asking and good luck getting all your ducks in a row! :clap2:

LAP BAND SURGERY SHOPPING LIST NON-food ITEMS: BBQ or Toilet tongs, for a good reach in the r.r. 4.98 Heating pad(12inx24in) 16.88 Flexible ice pack (hot/cold 12inx16in) 14.44 A few books or movies(your choice, I spent about 70.00us) xx.xx Squishy pillow for car ride for seatbelt (shoulder pad) 16.88 Make sure you have a good blender 19.97 Kitchen timer (first few days, sip every 15 mins)(analog) 2.88 Kitchen timer (digital – better for travelling) 3.47 Pedo-meter(depending on the one you get – don’t forget to adjust to your stride) 4.88 PHARMACEUTICALS: Liquid Tylenol/Motrin (Check early in case pharmacy needs to order in advance) 4.98 Chewable or liquid gas-x(I got strips, you will pay more than shown here) 3.60 Gauze Pads 4x4 6.57 Paper/bandage tape 2.57 Wet Wipes 2.64 Pill crusher 3.89 Chewable Vitamins 8.97 Hospital Medicine cups (I got 3oz/88ml cups – 100ct) 1.48 Cough Drops(Halls big box) 6.88 Stool Softener (Dr. asked me not to get this, if needed talk to him) xx.xx Moist and nice tasting Lip Balm(got chapstick – cherry – 2for deal) 0.88 FOOD ITEMS: Protein shakes(these vary from 22 – 55 dollars depending on quality and quantity) xx.xx Plenty of water(bottled Water for me 3cases 16oz. bottles 10.00) 10.00 broth or stuff to make broth(several flavors but all about the same cost) 2.98 Sugar free popsicles 2.66 Sugar free Jello 0.50 Sugar free breath mints (chewable) 1.33 Crystal Light "On the GO" assorted flavors(I don’t like CL so I got store brand/price per box) 2.50 Bouillon(several flavors but all about the same cost) 2.07 Cream of Wheat 2.92 Creamy Soups 0.66 Applesauce 1.82 FAT FREE yogurt 1.76 Soup-at-Hand - soups - for creamy stage(on sale) 1.25 pudding cups (SF/FF) - helps w/ taking meds(got instant, more flavors, price per box) 0.50 Sugar free hot cocoa 1.87 Decaf tea(got regular, decaf is a little more in cost) 2.12 CLOTHES POST-OP: Loose fitting, easily removable(one size larger than I wear, sweats, top and bottom) 15.88 Buttons downs or pullover(sale rack found $5.00 per, one size larger) 5.00 Thong shoes/slip-on so no bending and tying(make sure they are a good pair) 12.88 Sports Bra! Sutures will be hurt by under wires(I have a daughter and wife that helped here) 6.88 All these prices are from Wal-mart and I used my receipt for 4Oct07 to get most of the prices. I did try to give explanations where I could and those are in braces, i.e. - (). Good luck and remember, your positive attitude and positive resolve got you this far. You can get through this, be positive.

Do I detect a pattern here? During my drive home from class tonight, I had the most excruciating pain I've had since surgery! I had the pain in my shoulder, my port area was sore, and I got the "stinger" that I often get in the back of my shoulder, the same shoulder as the other pain! I couldn't get in bed fast enough! But I'm feeling better now and I see the doctor tomorrow for my one week post-op. I have plenty of work to do at home this weekend but it can be done from the comfort of my La-Z-Boy!

I hope everything goes like clockwork, Kristin! Let us know how you're doing as soon as you can!

You might also try looking at this forum: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f85/ It's the support forum for UK bandsters. Good luck!

Thanks, sumz! How are you doing? Feeling better every day, I hope? Kendra

Sitting isn't too bad, actually, though reclining would be a little better and we all know those airline seats don't recline much! Be sure to bring a fluffy pillow to hold over your belly and then you can rest your arms on top. At least for me, that was the most comfortable position in the car and at home. Have a safe trip and let us know how you're doing when you get back!

It's on the FAQ forum, a sticky at the top. (They're all stickies on that forum.)

Just a bit more information: some clinics do everything "in-house" so that you could possibly take a day pre-op and get in all of your consultations and lab work. That could speed things up. In my case, I had the initial consultation and then lucked into seeing the nutritionist the same day, on Friday the 19th. Then I saw the psychologist on Tuesday, the 23rd, and my GP on Friday, the 26th for the lab work. I went to the hospital for preregistration on Monday, the 29th and saw my doctor for pre-op appointment on Tuesday, the 30th. I have a tight schedule so I was amazed that I was able to get all of these appointments in and only missed about two hours of work until the day of surgery.