eclipse386

They gave me a prescription pill to take a few hours before my surgery (they recommend while you are changing into your gown). I believe it was called Emend or something like that. It took 2 days for my pharmacy to get it, and it cost me $20 for one pill ($45 without insurance). I didn't have any nausea, so I guess it worked. Good luck with your banding!!!

Hey everyone!! My name is Cheryl and I'm 21 years old. I was banded on Nov 19th at Westchester Medical Center in New York. I am set to be married in June 08 and I couldn't be more excited to see how awesome I will look in my dress that I haven't gotten yet, lol. I have to wait till the time gets closer so I can pick something out that will compliment my new found body!! I live with my fiancé, and adorable kitten, Cammy. He is a mechanic who I met at automotive school where I learned to be a mechanic too. I also have my Manicuring license to do nails, so go figure that, lol. I work full time plus some for my family's transportation company. I decided to get banded after I saw my aunt get banded almost 2 years ago and have amazing results. I hit a point in my life where I was so unhappy with who I had become physically that I knew I had to change. I want to get married, have babies, and be able to enjoy the rest of my life healthfully. This is really a great opportunity, and I will not let myself pass this by. It was nice to meet everyone, and the best of luck to all of you!!! "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels"

I was on Clear liquids (Water, crystal light & broth) until today. I wasnt hungry until last night thou. I was fine seeing all the turkey on tv and everything all day, but it wasnt until I was watching something at like, 11:30 last night, and the girls on the Real Housewives (i love that show, lol) had a salad, and I almost broke down!! It looked so good! But I got over it just thinking about the quote I have on my fridge... "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels!" But back to the topic....I had my first Protein shake today, only 3 oz thou, at 3:00 this afternoon. But by like 6:00, I was starving again, so I made myself busy around my house, and now at 7:15 I am going to have 4 oz as I do stuff around my house. I am afraid to drink too much and stretch my pouch. My suggestion would be to make sure that you are drink enough water, cause that will help with the hunger, and to get into a new hobby to occupy your time. I have taken up selling stuff on ebay, and scrapbooking.

I also had my surgery on Monday, and from what it sounds like, it is probably some more gas pains. I keep feeling that gas shift around, although today it has been the least i have felt it in the past few days. Hopefully a more experienced bander will answer, so we both know. Congrats on your new band!!

Yay!! I am alive also!!! I am feeling ok, alittle nausea last night, but mostly caused by the amount of pills they have me on, and all the Water it takes to get them down. I am also sore at my port site, which I am assuming is the largest of the 5 incisions. They other ones I hardly feel at all. I do have a huge bruise on my upper arm from all the shots they where giving my post-op. That swelling has already gone down, along with some of the pain. All the gas has passed as far as I can tell. We are on our way there!! Good luck to everyone!!

Hey all!! I got banded on Monday, the 19th, and came home late Tuesday afternoon. I haven't vomited at all, I think because I am so afraid to. I was doing great until last night when I was tired, and in slight discomfort, and really confused about some after care things. My Dr's office prescribed me Lortab pills, Actigall pills, and Pepcid. Plus they told me to start my Vitamins, which are chewable except for one, and to continue taking my Anafranil for anxiety. I feel so overdosed with meds that I am afraid to take them. I have been cutting everything into little pieces before I take it because I don't want anything to get stuck and irritate my band. But last night I drank too much Water with my pills I think, and it was the first time I have felt kinda sick. Today was the first time I tried Protein shakes cause I actually felt hungry, instead of just mentally hungry. I had my 3 oz that they told me to have, and after about 2 hours, I started to feel hungry again. I think the just of my confusion is because of my pre-op delema.... in short, I had being seeing one dr for all of my pre-op, and the dr at that office that took my insurance left the practice, and my insurance would not continue to cover me there, so about 2 weeks pre-op I had to switch drs. So my surgery date got switched to a month later with my new dr at a different office. My new dr, Dr Kaul is great, but the two offices gave me different post op advise. For example, the first dr said that all meds should be liquid for awhile, where the second dr prescribed me all pills. And the first dr said that I should be on Clear Liquids for 5 days, where the second dr told me to drink Protein Shakes right away. I have been kind of combining their advise, and hoping to get the best results. We'll see what happens I guess. I just want to do whats right for me, and take full advantage of this great opportunity that I have been given. Thanks for letting me ramble!! Good luck to everyone!!

I started read the book I bought, Before & After, and I realized that journaling could be an important part of my new journey in life. I feel that I will help me later on recall what I went through in the early stages and help me conquer problems I may face in the future. Maybe it could even help someone else in the future as they start their journey. So lets see....I am 3 days post op today, which happens to be Thanksgiving. I sent Rick to my parents house to enjoy the day and to finally get some real food since he has been kinda deprived lately living with me. Honestly, i am not really bummed about the not eating part of today, but I am kinda bummed that i am not spending the day with my family like i do every year. I could have went and sat there, but the temptation would have been too great from mental hunger, and i didn't want to be in a bad mood and ruin everyone else's day. There will be many other times I will be able to enjoy with my family, so this one day isn't going to kill me. Rick has been there for a while, so hopefully he is enjoying himself. Rick and my family, mainly my mom and aunt Pattie have been a huge amount of help. Aunt Pattie answers any questions i have, and calls to make sure that i am OK. Mom has been spending alot of time with me and helping my do everything that i need help with, as well as doing my share at work. Rick has been there to respond to my every need, and trying to make me as comfy as possible. He has also been great with making food in the house. He has been using the grill outside to make the house smell less like food, and will not talk to me about what he eats. I still ask him anyway because i am interested in what he is eating, and it isn't making my jealous like i thought it would be. Today is the first day that i am starting to fell alittle physically hungery. I had the wierdest craving for a sandwich on my way home from the hospital, and i usually hate sandwiches. That mental hunger is wierd. lol. I have a protien boulian that i was gonna have today, but my mom is making me some homemade turkey broth, so i think i will have that when rick gets home. After reading what alot of people have said on here, they all wanted to cheat and eat real food right away. I am terrified that i am drinking too much water, none the less wanting to eat real food!! I have been giving the oppertunity of a lifetime here, and i certainly dont want to do anything to fuck that up! I am even staying on clear liquids longer then Dr Kaul recommends. The hardest part that i have encountered so far is who too listen too as far as what i should be doing at this stage. With the whole Dr Kwon / Dr Kaul changing thing, ive gotten two sets of instructions. Dr Kwon seems to be more in tune with what lap banders need and what gives them the best results. Dr Kauls office seems to try to make a plan that is productive for banders and for rny patients. So what i think i am going to do is kinda combine the two diets and see what works best for me. Dr Kwon says clear liquids for 5 days, which would be tomorrow, where Dr Kaul says to drink solid liquids as soon as you get home. I know i wasnt ready for the yesterday. I will have my broth later, which will be the second thing i have had besides crystal light and water. I had a sugar free italian ice last night to try to get down my broken up anafranil capsule, but that was horrible. I think i might try a protien shake tomorrow, the 3 oz that dr kaul recommends. That brings me to my next concern, which is probably my biggest issue so far: pills! I have been breaking down my pain killers into 6 small pieces because i am so afriad to get it stuck in the stoma, or in the small pouch and irriate my stomach or cause band erosion. I cut my pepcid pill in half also. Tonight i think i will take my anafranil whole because it is a cap and it will break down and shouldnt ** cause a problem. I also took my chewable centrum today for the first time. I dont want to over do all these pills and viatamins without having any protien in my system. They gave me come gaul-stone prevention caps, but they are huge. I am kinda fearful of taking them, so i am going to call Becky tomorrow and see what she recomends. Slowly I hope to be back on all of my viatamins by the end of the weekend. My body still aches alittle, and i am still having gas pains. I have been burping and passing gas, so hopefullly this will all pass soon. My back and legs hurt from the lack of movement. I am used to moving around a bit, and being on my bike, so my body isnt that happy with the lack of movement. Well, my broth is here, so i am going to go and see how this goes down, then attempt my first shower. I have a work meeting tomorrow, so I need to be at least presentable. lol :clap2:

I started read the book I bought, Before & After, and I realized that journaling could be an important part of my new journey in life. I feel that I will help me later on recall what I went through in the early stages and help me conquer problems I may face in the future. Maybe it could even help someone else in the future as they start their journey. So lets see....I am 3 days post op today, which happens to be Thanksgiving. I sent Rick to my parents house to enjoy the day and to finally get some real food since he has been kinda deprived lately living with me. Honestly, i am not really bummed about the not eating part of today, but I am kinda bummed that i am not spending the day with my family like i do every year. I could have went and sat there, but the temptation would have been too great from mental hunger, and i didn't want to be in a bad mood and ruin everyone else's day. There will be many other times I will be able to enjoy with my family, so this one day isn't going to kill me. Rick has been there for a while, so hopefully he is enjoying himself. Rick and my family, mainly my mom and aunt Pattie have been a huge amount of help. Aunt Pattie answers any questions i have, and calls to make sure that i am OK. Mom has been spending alot of time with me and helping my do everything that i need help with, as well as doing my share at work. Rick has been there to respond to my every need, and trying to make me as comfy as possible. He has also been great with making food in the house. He has been using the grill outside to make the house smell less like food, and will not talk to me about what he eats. I still ask him anyway because i am interested in what he is eating, and it isn't making my jealous like i thought it would be. Today is the first day that i am starting to fell alittle physically hungery. I had the wierdest craving for a sandwich on my way home from the hospital, and i usually hate sandwiches. That mental hunger is wierd. lol. I have a protien boulian that i was gonna have today, but my mom is making me some homemade turkey broth, so i think i will have that when rick gets home. After reading what alot of people have said on here, they all wanted to cheat and eat real food right away. I am terrified that i am drinking too much water, none the less wanting to eat real food!! I have been giving the oppertunity of a lifetime here, and i certainly dont want to do anything to fuck that up! I am even staying on clear liquids longer then Dr Kaul recommends. The hardest part that i have encountered so far is who too listen too as far as what i should be doing at this stage. With the whole Dr Kwon / Dr Kaul changing thing, ive gotten two sets of instructions. Dr Kwon seems to be more in tune with what lap banders need and what gives them the best results. Dr Kauls office seems to try to make a plan that is productive for banders and for rny patients. So what i think i am going to do is kinda combine the two diets and see what works best for me. Dr Kwon says clear liquids for 5 days, which would be tomorrow, where Dr Kaul says to drink solid liquids as soon as you get home. I know i wasnt ready for the yesterday. I will have my broth later, which will be the second thing i have had besides crystal light and water. I had a sugar free italian ice last night to try to get down my broken up anafranil capsule, but that was horrible. I think i might try a protien shake tomorrow, the 3 oz that dr kaul recommends. That brings me to my next concern, which is probably my biggest issue so far: pills! I have been breaking down my pain killers into 6 small pieces because i am so afriad to get it stuck in the stoma, or in the small pouch and irriate my stomach or cause band erosion. I cut my pepcid pill in half also. Tonight i think i will take my anafranil whole because it is a cap and it will break down and shouldnt ** cause a problem. I also took my chewable centrum today for the first time. I dont want to over do all these pills and viatamins without having any protien in my system. They gave me come gaul-stone prevention caps, but they are huge. I am kinda fearful of taking them, so i am going to call Becky tomorrow and see what she recomends. Slowly I hope to be back on all of my viatamins by the end of the weekend. My body still aches alittle, and i am still having gas pains. I have been burping and passing gas, so hopefullly this will all pass soon. My back and legs hurt from the lack of movement. I am used to moving around a bit, and being on my bike, so my body isnt that happy with the lack of movement. Well, my broth is here, so i am going to go and see how this goes down, then attempt my first shower. I have a work meeting tomorrow, so I need to be at least presentable. lol :clap2:

Thanks Make. These past few weeks since I got my date have flown by, and I am sure tomorrow will be no different! Only 12 hours left now!! LOL

Well, 16 hours till my surgery, and I am a nervous wreck! Everyone has really valid points thou. I could get hit by a bus on my way there, who knows. I had to laugh at some of your stories too. The first time I had anesthesia for my endoscopy, I woke up totally loopy. I was giving everyone the thumps up while they wheeled me down the hall on the stretcher to recovery and just laughing about everything. I am still a mess thou from being nervous and so anxious. I paid all my bills for the next month so god-forbid anything happens, my fiancé wouldn't have to worry about it for a little while. Sick, I know. I wish they would have given me something to take the edge off this anxiety thou! Good luck to everyone!!

I like the Isopure Dutch Chocolate with skim milk, but even with water it isn't bad. If you like coffee drinks, AchievOne makes a great Cappuccino bottled shake that I love!!! A little bit expensive, but I think its worth it. Dymatize Elite Protein Chocolate Mint is also good, it kinda tastes like those thin mint girl scout cookies!

I am going on Nov 19th also!! Good luck to you!!!