NewGalWithABand

kjeter, I'm right there with you. Alabama girls would have to have the mustard too... I love the refried bean and salsa recipe.. I'm gonna have to give that one to my best friend. She has been craving salsa. Thanks for the awesome recipes.

My surgeon requires 2 weeks clear liquids and protein shakes, therefore tomorrow I get to start mushy foods. woohoo I made it! Of course when all you take in is liquid you can imagine what must come out. Anyway as happy as I am with my 25 lbs down, I am ready to try a few bites of mashed potatoes. My MD also suggested tuna as a good source if protein and said for most people it is easily tolerated. I went shopping today and bought anything easy to mush..lol.

JillS, I really hope your feelings about the surgery changes. I know its frustrating, I am on my 14 day of 16 on clear liquids. When I move up to mushy foods on Thurs, I may never eat jello again. LOL. I know its going to get better as I heal and am able to eat more foods. Just hang in there cuz you can do it...your already losing and that is awesome! Best of luck to you

I'm so sorry your surgery didn't go as planned. Just hang in there . You will heal and as you see those numbers on the scale going down it's all worth it. I was banded on Feb.7 and down 21 lbs. Of course my surgeon keeps his patients on clear liquids and protein shakes for the first 2 weeks plus 2 days prior to surgery and 7 days of soup,salad, & sandwiches before that. So I don't think I had choice in losing the weight...lol. I am looking forward to mushy stuff for 2 weeks starting Thurs. 2 days woohoo. I don't get soft solids until week 5. Elyssa, in no time at all you'll be thinking, " what was all the fuss about?" Just remember, when you think you are starving stop and make sure your stomach is hungry or is it just your mind wanting to eat. And don't forget...drink,drink,drink. get that water in between meals and you will stay fuller. Best of luck....you can do it.

kjeter, Thank you soo much for your quick reply. I was really thinking I had some kind of freak placement. My best friend who had surgery the same day as me thinks her's is somewhere else. I bet she's wrong. lol. My good bras aren't underwire, that would kill me regardless, but they are pretty snug for support. I will definitely be dragging out some of my old ragged ones. Thank goodness I'm a packrat! HAHAHA. Thanks for the great advice and your input on the port. Glad to know the soreness will pass. Best of luck to you too. We can do it!!!!

I walked like crazy and still had the left shoulder pain. I was banded on 02/07/08 and I had some gas pains, but I also think that the left shoulder pain was more than gas. I do think it is muscle pain and has some to do with the diaphragm, because I still hurt under my left rib and sternum with deep breathing, though it is getting better. So far I haven't met anyone who hasn't experienced this same pain. Hang in there.

DeRaco, I was lucky in that everyone I know is supportive of me having lap band. I was banded on 02/07/2008. When I first read the title to your thread I was thinking, "why not tell. you are going through the trouble of surgery to help you lose weight, who cares who knows". However after reading your post I understand why you are questionable whether to tell or not. I know what it is like to have family and parents who can be brutal about you losing weight. Mine always have been. My mother however, was very excited about my having lap band (thank Goodness). I think if you are comfortable not telling them then just don't tell them. You need people around you that are going to be supportive. You said your husband is supportive and that is awesome. If your friends are jealous or not supportive, then they just aren't good friends to begin with. My best friend and I had our surgery together and there was a time when I was afraid one of us might be able to have surgery and the other one of us wouldn't. I told her no matter what, if she was able to have the surgery I would support her 100%. You gotta do what's best for you. You sure can't let others opinions dictate your decisions. All of your parent's hounding hasn't helped you lose weight in the past, so I would just do what I felt was best for me and leave their feelings about it out of my mind. Best of luck!!! With your husband by your side, I know you will do well!

Congratulations on your surgery date. I know you are excited. I was ecstatic when I got mine. I am now 5 days post surgery and loving every minute of it. As for your hospital stay and time off of work, it is depending on your insurance. Some will allow you to stay longer and some MD's programs require you to stay longer. As for me, had my surgery had difficulties and if my surgeon would have had to open me rather than the Lap method I would have had to stay longer. My best friend and I had our surgeries together and our surgeon said he would approve us for up to 23hr stay for lap method if needed. We didn't need it. My surgery was at 6:00am and hers was at 7:00am. She went home @ 3:30pm that afternoon. I had a little more trouble waking up from anesthesia and I left that afternoon @ 5:30pm. Our surgery was 02/07/2008 and I am returning to work on 2/16 and she is on 02/19, just because she doesn't work weekends and gets Monday off for holiday. I think your time you take off all depends on you and how you feel and how demanding physically your job is. Our jobs are not too bad in that department. We are both nurses. Take your time. If your job is hard on you physically you need the time to heal. You don't want to risk a hernia. Best of luck. I am sooo happy you have your date!

My psych eval was pretty tame also. He asked me reasons why I was wanting the lap band, etc. Also because my surgeon is a Christian man, he also has a Christian psychiatrist who asked me spiritual questions as well. Being Christian myself, I didn't mind and I love the fact that my surgeon is a man of God. I did admit to being a bit of a "grazer". Meaning that I like to nibble on food throughout the day. This raised a red flag for my surgeon and the psychiatrist. My surgeon just wanted to make sure that I understood that under no circumstances would I be able to "graze" if I wanted my lap band to be successful. And of course I already knew that and was able to put his mind at rest that by making the decision to have this surgery I was ready and able to do all it took to be successful. I love my surgeon. He is awesome!!! Don't worry about the psych eval. Just answer his questions honestly and you'll be fine. Good Luck!!!

I was banded on 02/07/08 and I am on my clear liquids for the first two weeks. The only full liquid I am allowed is my protein shakes, which I can only handle about 4 oz. of until I feel full. The only problem I have had is taking my blood pressure medication. My surgeon said it was fine to take it, but it is a large capsule and when I swallow it, i feel like it is going to come back up for about an hour. I haven't had any nausea or vomiting, just pressure like when I burp I'm going to regurgitate. Anyone else have this problem? I also wondered when weight loss started with others. I have only had approximately 300-400 calories a day for 7 days and have only lost 4 lbs and those lbs were before surgery. I haven't lost anything since surgery. I think it could be swelling? Anyone have any ideas?

Be sure to check with your insurance company. With mine I made my appointments exactly one ome apart. Not 4 weeks or 28 days but exactly from one day one month to the same day the next month. My PCP made all 6 of my appointments for me on the first appointment. I did not know that since my first appoint. was on July 5 that my last appoint. could not be before Jan 5. Well it was on Jan. 4. Lucky for me my surgeon's billing/insurance clerk saw it before she submitted it and she fudged a little on the date, or else I would have had to start all over because of that one day. I think you are okay being a few days late each month. Just try to keep them as close as possible and not more than one week apart. Make sure your finishing date is as close to your starting date as possible, not before. Good Luck!

I was just banded on 02/07/08, my journey began on July 5th. That was the day I went to my conference. There at Dr.R.Bryan Freeman's office in Anniston Alabama, I found out that I had to complete a 6 month diet plan with my PCP due to regulations put in place by BCBS of AL. So I started that day and for the next 6 mths regularly I saw my Dr. and was weighed etc., then I finished on Jan. 4, 2008. I turned in my paperwork for approval and was approved a week later. I waited for my best friend to be approved on Jan. 25th and that day we scheduled our surgery for Feb. 7th. We did habe to pay a $500 program fee, but that is required for all patients. We also had to pay $100 for the psych eval. My insurance pays for the physician's assistant so that was covered. I had a $150 hospital deductible, so out of pocket I paid a total of $750 out of pocket and it was well worth it. I am three days out from surgery and still having some trouble with gas pains and hurting under my left rib and under my sternum during deep breathing. I do feel full all the time right now, but I also realize there is some swelling inside to consider. I am following my diet and I have my first follow up on March 19. Wish me luck!

Hi there! I was just banded on 2/7/08 and this website really helped me make my decision to do it. My highest weight ever which was several years ago was 402 lbs. I freaked when I saw that number and starved myself under 400. I have stayed around 380 lbs. for several years. My pre surgery weight was 369 lbs. on the morning of 2/7/08. I absolutely love the before and after pictures. They are sooo encouraging. I took my before pic on Wednesday night before surgery and will be posting it as soon as I can. My best friend and I had surgery together to be each others support. I look forward to meeting many people on here and learning about their experiences.