shortgal

Crystal, Remember your journey will start after the surgery, but it's not necessarily going to be a quick trip. There will be the possible post op surgery pain/gas to deal with for the first few days, plus a restricted post op diet to follow and then the fill process. Fill, get tight, become loose, get another fill and repeat, until you hit your right spot. Not trying to be a downer for you, but really want you mentally prepared. For me, being mentally prepared for the process has been very helpful. Good Luck. Check in when your surgery is complete.

TOTALLY NORMAL! Most of us have all the same fears about surgery. We know there is some risk and that's scares us, but lots of things in life and worth doing are scary. March Forward! In 24 hours it will all be behind you!

Most fears (while normal) are based on lack of real information and understanidng of the information. So become educated about the band, about what happens before you have surgery, what happens during and what happens after. Much ( not all) of the fear will go away. Fear is good, fear is normal. Fear stops us from jumping off cliffs and doing other stupid, dangerous things. But is having surgery to help fix a chronic weigh loss problem really a stupid, dangerous thing to do. No, not if it can save your life! If you are dying without the surgery, then doing the surgery makes sense!

My gas pain after surgery was from the gas used to expand the stomach for the surgeon to move around inside. It took the first four days to get rid of it. It wasn't the kind of gas that you fart out.

This is part of the whole process. Many of us feel some mild restriction the first week to possibly the third week, as we lose weight the fat pad around the stomach shrinks and our bands get looser and we get hungrier. Swelling around the band following surgery goes down and that contributes to it as well. Then we need our fill. Depending on our body in general and how much fill we get ( Dr's don;t want to over fill) we might get some restriction again until the band loosens once again and we repeat the process until we get to the right fill amount. Read the post by Wendell on the Main Lap Band page on how the band works... it describes fills so well. that post made the light bulb go off in my head! We all get so afraid, after so many failed attempts at other methods to lose weight that we are failing at this one, too. But the band is a process and for many of us, it takes time. A few lucky ones never need a fill or get great restriction from one or two fills. Others need 5 to 7 fills! We are the same impatient people who thought the microwave was taking too long to heat up our food! LOL!

I am 56 and just got banded on 11/27. Each Dr. has a different requirement for pre and post op diet. Many Dr's have local seminars where you go in a group meeting and they explain a little about the surgery and generally meet previous patients. You can then schedule a consultation with the Dr's office. You can also skip the seminar and just make an appt. They will walk you through the proceess and explain what tests might be required and info on who to contact for Pysch and nutritional consults. They can usually tell you about your particular ins. requirements. As far as working goes, I am not employed, but you would probably need about a week off of work. My fill appts are fairly quick and you should ask about late hour appts etc if you're employed. I did not tell anyone ( even my children) until the surgery was over. I wasn';t sure up to the last ninute that it would even happen. I am now beginning to tell some friends. Hopefully our bands will stay in for life. Long term use of bands ( and the bands have changed slightly from earlier ones) to really know the long term life span. But if you're like me and desparate enough, we're willing to take the risks and worry about the future later. Hopefully, we'll have a long enough life to have to worry about the longevity of the band. For me, I just did not want to reroute my entire digestive system for the gastric bypass surgery, so while my band might have problems later, I felt better with this choice for NOW! If you use the "search" option at the top of the forum page in the blue tool bar, you can look for posts about long term and complications and removing bands etc. Remember, there are many people who get their bands, post for a while, lose their weight and move on from the forum as they no longer are focused on the whole process and have just moved on with their life and no longer fell the need for support from others on the forum. People with problems are likely to post them as they search for answers etc. But there are risks and possible complications. there are risks from being overweight, diabetic etc. For me as an older bander, I feel my weight loss is a little on the slow side, but I'm older, female, not very active etc. But at one month out, I'm happy with my band. you'll have to check back with me in 6 months or one year to see how I feel later. Please become as educated as you can about the band and I highly suggest you read and understand about "fills". That can really help. There's lots of info on this on the forum. Good Luck. hope this info helps.

Did you eat some salty Protein? Have you had a BM ( bowel movement) in the past five days? Once I started thick liquids, one of my choices was tomato Soup and after having only Clear Liquids for a week previous, I found I gained just from the salt in the soup. It eventually came off. Also, I find that if I go a few days without a BM, which happens more often now, with consuming more protein and more liquids, that I don;t lose anything for about five days. Once I "go" the scale goes down and stays down. It's normal to go up and down a pound or two, but trust me, I have to convince myself of that when it happens to me, too. If you're getting protein and not overeating, it will come off.

Banded 11/27 and have lost a little over 16 pounds. I've always been a slow loser and I'm older and not very active, so I'm pleased so far. First fill did nothing. Next fill is 1/3/8. Hope ithe fill restricts me for at least a month. My goal is to get as close to 190 as possible by end of Jan. I hope I can lose 8 pounds in Jan. but will settle for six! Noticing I'm getting hungier. Up to now I haven;t been interested in eating until about 11:30 am. This a.m. I was hungry as soon as I woke up. I had my first real indulgence. One piece of Belgian chocolate. It was heaven. It was a small box of 6 and they're none left ( my husband ate the rest). My treadmill in the basement keeps yelling at me to come down and use it... I just keep shutting the basement shut, so I can't hear it! LOL Great job, November Bandsters!

My surgeon did say to plan my life around one week of needed recuperation. So maybe you should plan ahead for that and if you're better faster, it's a bonus!

Everyone is different. I did what I felt well enough to do, within reason. I felt lousy for the first four days and really just rested for the first week. I walked circles around the inside of my house for the first few days. I am not employed so I didn't have to worry about work. My kids are grown, so no kids to worry about. I still haven't gone for a real outside walk a mile kind of thing. It's been cold, raining or snowing a lot here in the NE. I was walking 3 miles 5x a week before the surgery and hope to get back on track when the weather is better. ( i know I can find a lot of excuses not to exercise, but the weather is my favorite excuse, I hate winter!) I don't remember instructions about driving, but definitely don't drive while taking pain meds. I only took making two doses of pain meds after coming home.

Only time helped me. I felt better on the fifth day after surgery. First four days were rough, felt like and elephant sitting on my chest and the pain went to my left shoulder. It's was the same as I imagine a heart attack might feel like. Good Luck to you all.

If your doctor already knows you have a fatty liver ( they can tell from elevated LFT test ( liver function test) part of the blood work usually done and sometimes confirmed with an ultrasound) then please follow the pre-op instructions. It will make the surgery easier for your DR and reduce possible complications from the enlarged liver in the way. It's kind of like later, you'll have to help your band do it's job and right now you need to help the surgeon do his/her job to get you to Bandland!

when I first went for my consult a low calorie/low fat diet ( 1000 cal.) was required two weeks before surgery. Byt the time I went for my pre-op appt. eight months later, they had changed it to liquid diet, but they told me to floolow what I was given at consult. My BMI was 42 at the time of surgery and my LFT (Liver function test) it was part of the blood work was normal. I then had to do Clear Liquids for two days before surgery. I was told my liver looked good after the surgery was done.

P.s. The Icon :whoo: is not unhappy, it is doing a dance and the label on it is "whoo".

Anytime I see a young person with a lower BMI questioning the decision it worries me. You say you're happy with yourself. I was miserable with "me". I wonder at the young age of 26, how many "real" attempts to lower your weight have your really tried? Have you EVER weighed or measured your food? Have you ever journaled your food intake for at least one month, to really see how many calories you are consuming? If you don;t have a real grasp of what a real size portion is, then you can't say you've tried. Do you always finish the whole plate of food given to you at a restaurant? Have you tried brisk walking for one hour 5 times a week for even one month to see if it has any effect? Have you asked yourself, if an abundance of calories are coming from too much beer on weekends, that's making you weigh too much? you could be "good" all week with good choices and totally blow the whole thing on weekends. I think these are all important questions and frankly, I don't think the Bariatirc surgeons, the pysch consult or the nutrition consult cover enough of this, at least mine didn't. BUT I knew I would have to make life long changes and I was ready. At 56 years old, I wasn't as worried about the long term risk etc of the band. If mine can last 20 years (fingers crossed) I'll already be 76! In my case, I knew I HAD to do something as drastic as surgery, you don't seem to sure.

The port is under the skin and mine is slightly right center midriff. At my fills, they have me lay down and they put a pillow inder the small of my back to arch the midriff and that helps them feel the port under the skin.

I was ready for ps BEFORE the band. My neck was already "creping. ( Like the fabric crepe) and I was getting the "puppet lines (slightly). I forget right now what they call those. But since I was self pay for the band, that was my ps money, so now I just don;t know what I'll do. I carry the weight all over, in my arms and legs ( which are short like the rest of me) and belly etc. so I know all parts of me will sag after. I don't think I'll ever wear sleeveless anything. But what will I do at the beach? Legs and arms are both exposed!! Well first things first, I have to lose the weight first and that's what I'm concentrating on now. Oh Fiddle dee dee (as Scarlet said) I'll worry about the rest tomorrow.

Doesn't sound like you need a fill. Consider yourself lucky. I also have a 10cc band, no fills at surgery, one fill on 12/20 of 2 cc's, did nothing. Next fill 1.5 cc's on 1/3/08. We'll see what happens!

So glad to hear all went well. I had a hiatal hernia repaired at time of band placement, but they know mine was there so they were prepared for it. I'm kind of surprised they didn't have you go for an upper GI series prior to surgery, as that would have found it. I had bad reflux for years, so I had the upper GI a while ago, to be sure there was no other damage and they told me I had the hernia. The lapband surgeoon says since the repair, I should no longer have reflux and so far I don't! If I remember right, you're a shortie, like me and we have about the same amount to lose! Important thing now is to follow the Dr's post op instructions. Welcome to lapband land!

I had no idea that it was recommended to unfill before planned surgeries. Any plastic surgery patients out there or anyone whose had any other surgery after lapband, that can enlighten us about this requirement? Does every Dr. recommend this? I would have to say, I would follow my Dr's orders. Not sure I would be happy about it, it can take so long to get to the right restriction and then to lose it? Or maybe ti would just be a little vacation from the band?

I self paid. $17800 Total. Hospital was 9000, surgeon 7800 Anesthesia 1200. Ins. covered consult visit. I met the BMI requirements for my ins com.but did not have the written proof by way of Dr's office notes showing weigh ins for five consecutive years. (United Healthcare sucks)

Unfortunately for some of us, until we get past the phase of "fill, some restriction, less restriction and another fill and repeat", we will struggle with weight loss. I think some self restraint (yes, like the diets we used to be on) is needed for this time period. I know we're not generally good at dieting and that's why we're here, but I feel some attempt might be needed. So get rid of the "bad" foods. Throw away the ice cream and don't buy anymore. Journal your daily food/ liquid/ Protein intake. Ask yourself if you are following your Dr's postop diet restrictions. Does the post op food list your Dr. gave you include ice cream and potatoes? ARe you eating/drinking the recommended amount of protein and Water fluids? Read posts and info on the forum about fills. If you get too much at one fill, you might be Overfilled and that experience, from what I've read is not pleasant. I've had one fill, 2 cc's in 10 cc band, since surgery and I was told not to expect restriction and haven't had any. My next fill is 1/3/8 and I was told it will be 1.5 cc's. We'll see how that goes. I think many Dr's are conservative not to overfill b/c there is the occasional patient that does not need 6 to 7 cc's in their band. If you read a lot of posts about fills, you'll see some people get restriction at first from a small fill and it gradually fades and then they get another. Finally, try not to be discouraged, you're only one month into this journey.

When I was going through with my pre-op testing of the EKG, chest x-ray and bloodwork ( this is typically done within 30 days before scheduled surgery) my EKG was abnormal. I never had an abnormal EKG and now I have to have this right before surgery? I was so nervous it would hold up the surgery and of course afraid I might have a heart problem. I was sent for pet scan and turns out everything was fine. My surgery went as planned. Why not ask if there is a different test they can do on your heart? Maybe they can get clear images and not fuzzy from a different test. We can't blame surgeons for being careful not to operate on someone that potentially has a serious heart condition. Please know that all the self doubts are the same ones almost everyone on this forum also experienced before their surgery. We all have failed so many times before, that we have no confidence in ourselves or the band, that it will work. But look at all the success stories here on the forum. I am one month post-op and I have finally acheived a weight that I haven't been at for over ten years and that was without a pre-op liquid diet two weeks prior to surgery. I still have a long way to go and I continue to worry if I will be able to maintain the weight loss once I lose it, but I also know those doubts are normal. At least this time, I believe I can lose the weight and I will work on keeping it off once I get it off. It always helps me to read the weight loss tickers of others. I know these are people that struggled just like I did and now they are being successful. The only "older patient" advice I can give you, is to expect that possibly the weight will come off a little slower than it might for someone younger. We (I am 56) are older, generally less active, female etc. and you might not bounce back after the surgery as fast as some of the younger people. I really felt kind of lousy for the first four days, mostly from the gas pains. I was also not hungry during that time and had a hard time getting the fluids in. By day 5 things improved and the pain started to get better and I was able to start getting my liquids in. I had no trouble over the christmas holiday sticking to my post op diet requirements. My BIL makes stuffed cabbage every year and I just took the inside of one out and ate 1/2 of that. I added a few bites of potato salad and a few bites of a jello/coolwhip type salad. I also had two shrimp cocktail. I drank special K Protein Water instead of wine and skipped dessert. I am not yet fully restricted with fills and so I still have that phase of "fills and restriction and then another fill" to go through. I highly recommend you read the thread by Wendell about fills and how the band works. It's on the main page or you can do a search on the forum. That really helped me to understand the fill process. My last bit of advice is to "follow the band rules". Follow your Dr's instructions and remember the band is just a tool. You will have to be the leader of your band. It will not magically work without your cooperation and leadership. A hammer is a tool, but it cannot do it's job unless we use it right. Happy Lapband journey to you.

Hi Mac the knife: Enjoyed your very well written intro. Welcome to the forum and the beginning of your own journey. I think you may be starting this process for your daughter ( and she will benefit) but eventually you will be happy for yourself about doing this as well. After struggling myself for so many years and even though I am only one month post op, I now have real hope that I can make it through this successfully. I can feel your despair and that feeling of hopelessness in your words and I was there not long ago. I am so glad you are willing to take the time to read as many threads in the forum, you will find lots of good information and support here.

BABYDOLL: It is not unusual to lose weight slowly after the band and many people lose more weight on the pre-op diet. Right now the band is most likely not fully restricting you yet and most people need several fills to get to the right place. Please take the time to read through as many of the threads on the forum to better understand the process ahead of you. Education about the band is the key to success. I'm sorry about losing your job. You are facing several difficult challenges right now, with learning to handle the band and losing your job, so if you feel a little down right now, that too is normal. Things will get bettter.