sunshine_050302

I had a lot of trouble for the first week or so after my banding with gas pains and heartburn. My doctor told me to take Pepcid AC in the morning and at night and to sleep on 2 pillows. Also for the gas, my doctor said that the Gas X will make it worse. He told me to try liquid Maalox and it helped a bunch. I'm having my first fill tomorrow and I'm taking the Pepcid AC in the morning before he does it. I will probably take it for about a week to help with the heartburn from being too tight. The gas is hell and I took the Gas X and it was worse, so you might want to try the Maalox Total Stomach Relief. I got the Stawberry Cream and it was pretty good. Good luck and I hope you get to feeling better! Darla

Congratulations and I hope it all goes well for you!!! Sorry about the liquid diet for 2 weeks before surgery, I didn't have to do that with Dr. Wellborn, but I did have to do it for 2 weeks after surgery. I didn't get to eat Thanksgiving, but hopefully the mushy stage will help me with Christmas and all those parties. Good luck and keep posting to keep us informed. Also, if your looking for some good protein shakes, I found some good ones at www.revivalsoy.com. They have a variety pack for @$15 and it has all of the flavors. They are really good. Darla

Shari, Yesterday was my 2 week anniversary and I just started mushies today. What did you eat that you thought made you sick? This morning I had 1/2 cup cream of wheat with skim milk, and for lunch I had 2 Tbs. of yogurt, 2 Tbs. of applesauce and 1 Tbs. of cottage cheese. I got stuffed, but felt really good. Tonight I had 2 Tbs. of mac and cheese (ff cheese, homemade) and a pear half. I couldn't eat it all and I threw it away. I just started to get hungry and I fixed me a revival soy shake, it is really good. I ordered it online at www.revivalsoy.com. They're shakes have lots of protein and taste really good. I got the variety pack so that I can taste them before I order I flavor. Chocolate gives me severe heartburn. My doctor told me to take Pepcid AC 2xs a day to help with the heartburn. It really works. I have gone the last 3 days without taking it though. Hang in there and keep posting!! Darla

Sugarbear, I'm sorry but I don't know the doctors in Texarkana. I used Dr. Wellborn in Little Rock and I have had a great experience with him. I was banded on Nov. 18th and I so far have lost 15lbs in less than 1 week. Now, I know that this won't continue, I'm still on liquids and haven't had much of an appetite. My band is still very tight from the swelling due to the surgery. My experience with the lapband has been up and down. Mostly up!! The problems that I have had are due to the heartburn and gas pains. On Monday I did dry heave that evening and it really scared me, all of it was due to the severe heartburn. My husband called Dr. Wellborn's medical exchange @ 8:55pm and Dr. Wellborn called back in about 3 minutes. Now that is being taken care of. He told my husband to get my head elevated and give me some Pepcid AC and 2 tablespoons of Maalox. I was immediately better. Since then I have continued to take the Pepcid 2xs daily and Maalox 2xs daily and my heartburn and gas are so much better. Dr. Wellborn will see me on Dec. 12th for a checkup but he will not fill my band until 6 weeks post op. Fills are very important and a friend of mine that was banded in Feb. has had 4 fills so far and has lost 61 pounds and feels great. The fills are not very painful and they just go into the port that is implanted inside your abdoman with a needle and put some saline to fill the ring around the band so you'll have more restriction. This is because the band will adjust to your stomach and it needs to stay restricted some. Now, with the band you should only eat 8 tablespoons of food for each meal for as long as you have the band. With any surgery there are risks and your doctor will tell you about them when you go to the seminar. Make sure you choose a good doctor and get some info on him or her. The risks involved with the band are not near as serious as gastric bypass that's why I chose it, also it is done laproscopically and usually you do not even have to spend the night in the hospital. I have 4 bandaids on my belly where mine was done and my belly never did hurt, just the gas pains was all. Good luck and if you need anything just drop a line. Sunshine

I was banded on the 18th also. I had severe chest pains afterwards and a cardiologist was called in to look at me since my family has a history of heart problems. Then I had to stay the night in the hospital hooked up on a heart monitor. Well, of course it was just gas that had settled in my chest(very scarry). The pain did not start to go away until they gave me some Toradol shots every 4 hours or so. I've not gone back to work yet due to the severe heartburn that I'm having. I have plenty of sick time so my doctor wanted me to stay home and handle the gas and heartburn. Did any of you have this problem? I'm not eating much of anything and my doctor has said clear liquids for 2 weeks, which is o.k. since I'm not really hungry. Please give me some advice. Darla

I'm not taking hardly any calories in, and I'm very tired all the time. I was banded on November 18th and I've had a severe case of heartburn ever since. I called my Dr. last night because I dry heaved 3 times and got scared. He told me to take a Pepcid AC and 2 Tablespoons of Maalox and keep my head elevated for at least 3 hours and not to eat or drink anything. I had taken some chicken noodle soup and pureed it in the blender and drank about 1/4 cup of it over a 30 minute span around 2 hours before I got sick. He said to go back on clear liquids and to stay away from the chicken noodle soup for now (it has too much salt in it and I can't tolerate it). So today, the heartburn is still there and I took the Pepcid and Maalox and now I'm taking small bites of sf jello. I weighed yesterday and I have lost 10 pounds in less than a week. Wow!!! Darla

I was just banded on Friday and had to stay in the hospital one night due to chest pains. They had a cardiologist see me and EKGs ran and stuff like that. It was just gas that had settled in my chest. I started full liquids this morning, but when I tried to drink my protein drink it gave me heartburn. Is it o.k, to take Mylanta chewables or something like that? Thanks, Darla

Wendy, Welcome!! This is where I finally made my decision to get the band, even though the thought of PB really scares me. I hate throwing up and if I would've thrown up when I was pregnant, I probably wouldn't have had another kid. Just keep reading, and remember that you have all of us here to support you. I'm scheduled to have my band done on Nov. 18th and I'm soooo excited but scared at the same time. I ask myself "After all of this money, is this gonna work?" I worry that I'll be the one that has complications, but it's a chance I have to take to be healthier and happier. Good Luck!!!!! Darla

Fellow bandsters, My surgery is on the 18th and I was wondering if any of you were put on a special diet by Dr. Wellborn before surgery? I e-mailed Cindy and she said that it wasn't necessary, but everything on this site says different. What did ya'll do? I'm planning on starting some Slim Fast shakes as meal replacements so I'll get used to the liquid diet, but I would like to eat the night before surgery. My husband and I are going up to Little Rock the night before and we planned on eating dinner somewhere nice. Would it be o.k. for me to drink a little margarita or beer the night before? I don't normally drink, but I won't be able to at all afterwards so I wondered if I could. Thanks for all of ya'lls help. Hopefully very soon I will be telling you about my weight loss goals being met. Darla

Diane, I'm getting banded on November 18th in Little Rock, AR. I've been reading about the pre-surgery diet also, and my doctor said that it wasn't necessary. I have decided to try to start on some Slim Fast shakes though to get used to the liquid diet that follows surgery. Also, I am a Diet Coke addict!!! My doctor told me that a few weeks after surgery I can drink them if my band agrees with them. I do have to put them over ice though. I'm going to try to give up the Diet Coke before surgery though. I gave them up for a long time a few years ago when I was dieting and replaced them with Water and I lost 80 pounds. Well, then I started drinking more Diet Cokes than water and the weight came back. I think that Diet Cokes cause you to crave all of the bad stuff, like sweets. I suggest that you start weening yourself off of them so that you won't have caffeine headaches. I work in a drug rehab and our patients cannot have caffeine while they are in treatment since it is a drug and they have SEVERE headaches. Well, keep in touch and let us know how your doing? Darla

Cheryl. Tell me more about the kit that you bought from Better MD. I'm having my surgery Nov. 18th and I'm curious about it. Hope the nausea gets better. Darla

Terri, Well, I got approval last week on my insurance. They went by my guessed weight from September and when I went to Dr. Wellborn I weighed 10 pounds heavier. With the old weight I didn't have a BMI of 40, but with the new weight I had exactly a 40. Now I'm scheduled to have surgery on Nov. 18th at 7:30am. I'm excited but kinda scared at the same time. Did you feel the same? Darla

Heather, Thanks so much for telling me about the first fill. I'm getting banded on Nov. 18th and I don't care much for the big needles either. Everyone has told me that it doesn't hurt, it's just a little sting, so I was hoping they were telling me the truth. You've done Great and keep up the good work. You should get a kickstart to losing more weight since you have to go back on liquids for a few days. Keep on letting us know about all of your success. Darla

Corrine, You have really inspired me by your wonderful weightloss. That's a lot of weight to lose in 7 months. I'm going to be banded on Nov. 18th and I'm hoping to lose 100 pounds in a year or a little longer. It didn't take me a year to put it all on and I know that it certainly isn't gonna just fall off of me. Just get back on the wagon and tell yourself "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength". With God's help, you will put down the french fries and mayonaise and pick up all of the healthy foods instead. Good luck and keep us updated on your success. Darla s

I'm seeing my surgeon on Monday to get my surgery scheduled. I'm excited but scared at the same time. I want to find the smaller person inside of me again, but this time for GOOD and not temporarily.

Bandsters, Well, I finally got approval from the insurance yesterday and I'm scheduled for surgery at 7:30am on Nov. 18th!!! They said I could do it at 1:00pm on the 17th, but I live 2 hours from Little Rock and I thought I'd rather do it early. Especially since I can't eat or drink after midnight. Could someone please tell me what Protein shakes are the best? I need to know what to buy for the post-op. Please keep me in your prayers. Darla

Hey Bandsters, Well, it's been a roller coaster ride with the insurance, but I think we've worked it out. No matter what I'm supposed to have my surgery on the 17th of November. Only 3 more weeks!! I'm excited, but scared. I hope that this is the answer to my prayers. I'm a little worried about the liquid diet. What did ya'll eat? Thanks Darla

Arkie Bansters, I got some really upsetting news today from Dr. Wellborn's office. They heard from my insurance and it has been denied. Not "medically necessary". I called my fellow Camdenite that has the same insurance that I have, and she told me to FIGHT, FIGHT and Fight. My husband told me that we will find a way to go self-pay if we have to, so I can be happy with myself again. He's such a sweetheart. I was just wondering if any of you were denied and what did you do? I'm calling my insurance tomorrow morning and asking them how my co-worker can be approved and me denied. Any advice?

Hey Arkies, I went for my appointment with Dr. Wellborn today. When some of ya'll went to see him did you visit with a nutritionist during your visit? I only saw him and a watched a video, no nutritionist. I also was disappointed that I didn't get scheduled during my visit. They told me that Suzan does the scheduling and they guessed she'd get back with me. I live in Camden and I can't keep running back and forth for visits, so if I was supposed to see the nutritionist then I guess we can just talk over the phone. I e-mailed Suzan tonight to ask her when I could be scheduled, also Dr. Wellborn wanted me to get my gallbladder ultrasounded and I didn't know if he would order it or if I would need my Dr. to order it. What do ya'll think? Thanks, Sunshine

I agree that we should all get together for a lapband reunion. I hope to have my lapband by Thanksgiving. I'm just really concerned about the liquid diet for 2 weeks. I guess when I go for my appointment on Monday they will answer my questions.

I live in Camden Arkansas and I'm using Dr. Clay Wellborn in Little Rock. I am wanting to lose @ 90 lbs. I want to look like I did in my Sr. Class picture in 1986. That's my goal

I found out about the lapband through a co-worker at the hospital that I work at. I noticed that she had lost a lot of weight and I asked her how and she said she had a lapband. She told me to go online and look at the info on it. I was amazed and started praying as to what I should do. Well, 2 days later there was a special on the lapband on Channel 11 news and it was the same exact doctor that my friend said had done hers. That was my answer!! My husband and I have been married 18 years and we have 2 beautiful daughters (16 and 13). I want to be able to see them grow up and have families of their own and I feel like the lapband is the tool that I need to do that. I'm so glad that my friend told me about it and I can't wait to get it done.

I have my history and physical appointment on Monday. I'm excited but scared. Were you? I saw you on T.V. and I had just found out about a co-worker of mine that had it done. I was praying for God to give me a sign and your story came on the t.v. that night. Neat huh?