Wheetsin

Ayup, me too. Or rather, me three.

Oh, Ijust remembered another. I was about 17 and this was at a military hospital ('nuff said). I was going to Central America for a month and needed a physical and immunizations. And older doctor, I'd guess at least 60, staunch military man, came in, introduced himself, and told me to "strip". Lots of other inappropriateness around some things he did during the exam, but as I was leaving he asked me where I was going that I needed malaria & typoid fever immuns. I told him where I was headed, and he said, "Oh Christ, you're going to hate it there. Everyone's so damn rude. You know why they're rude? They started inbreeding with the damn <insert "n word" here>."

I asked my surgeon about travel during my consultation since I often have to go to Chicago or Tampa for work. He said I would be cleared for travel 2 weeks after surgery.

Obesityhelp.com has an extensive list of doctors by state. You could search it and fond one with lots of positie referrals. Inamed should also have a directory of peferred/approved surgeons.

It seems to refer to two things. One being when food gets stuck, but proceeds to pass on its own or with some assistance. Two being when food gets stuck and has to come back up. PB = Productive Burp (who came up with that? Calling that a burp is like calling your surgery incision a scratch!)

I'm 8 days post-op and started mushies yesterday but still have no appetite. I'll have moments, but they only last a few minues & then go away. I don't really feel full, just not hungry - more like satieted. I eat maybe 300 cals a day, max. Yesterday was the most I've eaten and it was 1 Protein drink (30g potein), a Jello cup, 3 thin pear slices, and about 2 oz cottagee cheese. It's not bothering me the way it seems to be bothering you, but I do wish I could get my protein in. Lack of hunger could be from your healing. If you do have restriction, it's from swelling, plus a tiny bit inherent to having the band in place.

When I was about 22 I had to go off the pill, blood clots & weight gain (I had gained about 20#, up to a sz. 18 from a 16, still in a "normal" weight range). My PCP referred me to the women's care clinic for a consultation on other options. They weighed me, did my height, etc. My husband (he wasn't my husband then, but we were living together) came with me. The OBGYN came in and introduced herself, then started reading my chart & history. She says, "Ooh, I notice you've gained weight lately, you looked a little poochy but most of the women here are pregnant." About 5 mins later se says, "Well, at least you're lucky that you found a good looking man who loves you for your personality."

I'm still around 200 - 300, but I'm just one week post-op and my appetite hasn't come back yet. After recovering I hope to range somewhere between 900 - 1100, depending on my current weight & activity level. You might want to find out your basal metbolic rate and base your daily intake on that. Factor in your exercise too.

Holy crap, I understand that! karenj, you might want to look at this thread.

I always, or at least usually, use my skinny pics. I consider them my constant reminder of motivation.

I bought baby spoons and eat about a half of one per bite, and chew until mush. Even with my cottage cheese, b/c I really don't want to experience a PB again... or should I say, I want to postpone it as long as possible!

Not quite a food question so I thought I'd post here. My surgeon & nutritionist's guidelines indicate: 3 small meals per day 64 oz Water (protein drinks count) No drinking 30 mins before a meal or 2 hours after Drink no faster than 2 oz per 15 min, or 8 oz per hour I don't see how this is physically possible to do. What am I missing? Let's say my day starts at 7:30 and ends at 10:30. Here's a sample schedule: 7:30 - 8:30 = 8 oz Protein drink/water. 8:30 - 9:00 = (waiting until I can eat) 9:00 - 9:30 = 30 mins to eat Breakfast 9:30 - 11:30 = (waiting until I can drink) 11:30 - 12:30 = 8 oz water/protein 12:30 - 1:00 = (waiting until I can eat) 1:00 - 1:30 = 30 mins to eat lunch 1:30 - 3:30 = (waiting until I can drink) 3:30 - 4:30 = 8 oz water/protein 4:30 - 5:30 = 8 oz water/protein 5:30 - 6:00 = (waiting until I can eat) 6:00 - 6:30 = 30 mins to eat dinner 6:30 - 8:30 = (waiting until I can drink) 8:30 - 9:30 = 8 oz water/protein 9:30 - 10:30 = 8 oz water/protein So there's my sample day, and I'm still only able to get in 48 oz water. I def. need to call my dietician and see if they can provide a sample schedule. Also, I'm seeing a few inconsistentcies -- for example, "sip water constantly throughout the day, always have a bottle of water with you" vs. "do not drink 30 mins before or 2 hours after a meal."

If the only known barrier between you & the band is a nutritionist's letter, why not just get the letter? That's a $15,000 letter...

Actually I totally forgot to mention it, so did DH (asked to come to the appt with me), and Doc didn't ask so it flew right over our heads. I did have some cottage cheese today with no problems. (what a weird thing to be happy about!)

It's sort of a complete package. The center I used has a very comprehensive program complete with advisor, coordinator, psychologist, nutritionist, nurses specially trained on bariatric after care, etc. That's part of why I chose the surgeon I did, it impressed me.

I'm guessing a difference in surgeon's technique, maybe? When my surgeon explained how he would do the procedure, he said he takes some of the stomach below the band and brings it up over and attaches it to the stomach, basically encasing the band in a little pouch, which he said keeps the band from being able to move. This maybe isn't standard? I had a hard time describing this, here's my even rougher visual. The green marks are staples/stitches/whatever used to attach the stomach to itself. The stomach would cover all the way around, not just two points like I've shown.

I agree, too - certainly. But my face has all but disappeared into a sea of cheeks and chins. Ok, 'nuff about me. Let's talk about someone else being pretty.

His plan is pretty quick - Water, Jello, popsicles days 1 - 4, then add in Protein drinks, thinned-down cream Soups, and yogurt days 4 - 6. Weeks 2 & 3 are mushies. I'm not too sure about beyond then, I only studied 2 weeks out. This water thing is killing me. There's already a 30ish pound difference in the scale, and I truly beliee at least 80% of that is dehydration. I'm accustomed to 120+ oz water a day, and I've been lucky to get about 30. I've started getting yuck mouth.

Not to hijack - but I had this question and PhotoNut brought it up, so a brief question for her... I bought lowcarb (sweetened with splenda) pears & peaches, and unsweetened applesauce last night, thinking the pears and peaches would be the easiest to get gooey. I love pineapple, but was concerned about the acid. What has your experience been with applesauce? It's already goo for the most part, so I thought it would be ok in small bites...?

It hasn't been an issue yet, you're right, since everything is liquid. But today (not sure if I'll do it today or not, scared to after my PB) I can start mushies: cottage cheese, string cheese, refried Beans, deli chicken/turkey, canned fruits, etc. and I will need to follow the Water guidelines when I start mushies (according to dietician's information). I haven't regained my appetite since surgery, so maybe I'll just sub. a meal & waiting time for water until it becomes an issue of hunger.

Thanks guys. I may have been pretty 180# ago when that pic was taken, but I'm afraid it's no longer part of my repertoire!

We made it about the same time after surgery before PBing. :clap2: Mine was an accident though. Sucks, huh? I'm allowed to start cottage cheese, refried Beans, canned fruits, etc. today but honestly - I'm now scared to go beyond Jello & Protein drinks.

When I told my PCP I wanted it she was SO supportive, and told me she has seven other patients who are banded. I had no idea! I said something to her about how it seems like a lot of doctors don't believe the band works, are simply don't know what it is. Her response, verbatim, was, "That's because they dont read their literature."

Yes, I was the one with cream of broccoli. Sorry if I scared you, I certainly wasn't trying to, but I'm definitely a "tell it like it is" kind of girl. Especially since I had to learn it the hard way, and never would have guessed, pre-banding, that it would feel like that. After it was all said and done I felt really weak. I just wanted to sit down and do nothing. So that's exactly what I did. I was shaky - probably a combination of the pain (not just the PB pain, but I was also struck with strong hiccups the second time around, which were jarring my incisions... ugh) and the bit of panic I had before I realized what was going on, as well as some anxiety b/c I had no idea how long it was going to take to really be over. Once I calmed down and realized it was over, it was back to normal - pretty much as though nothing had ever happened, except my incision areas were still a little sore from the hiccups. The pain really did stop the instant the food came up. Today I've felt fine, but even less appetite than normal (which is not good, I'm probably maxing out around 300 cal/day for over a week now). Tomorrow I can start with some "real" foods (cottage cheese, refried Beans, canned fruits...) but honestly - I'm a little afraid to now.

I've just been banded a week but I will say this -- going into this, I had no idea how much a PB would hurt. When I asked my medical staff, they said "pressure" in your chest. What I read on the internet described "golf ball stuck feeling." Nothing ever described "like nails being raked down your spine", which is pretty much what the pain with my PB felt like. Had I really known that's what "pressure" would feel like, would I have still done it? Probably. I certainly don't regret my decision. I enjoy your posts, they're a good dose of reality and are helping me get a different idea of what to expect, and what I might really be in store for.