CarlaG

Rain...congratulations!!! Angie...LOL your comment was hilarious

Zannie, I was also banded by Dr. T. He's such a cutey. When I told my husband about my weight loss, he said he would have to give me a new name. I asked him what would it be since he now calls me "Sweety". My new name is now "Sweety Petitee"! I thought that was so cute and the fact that he thought it up instantly is just amazing LOL :thumbup:

I was banded on 3/13 and I go to the dr. today. I'm excited to see what is gone. I know this sounds weird, but I can already feel a difference. I've decided that alot of my aches and pains aren't just from the weight but from all the crap I was eating. My feet, ankles and knees have not hurt at all since the surgery and it feels wonderful. I know that is not from the few pounds I've lost so I think it must be from chemicals or something in all the junk I was putting in my body. I really don't care why it feels better, I'm just happy it does!

Congratulations! You and I have about the same amount of weight to lose. I just started my journey being banded on 3/13/08 but its nice to see your progress....its an inspiration to keep on going. Have a wonderful day!

Before I was banded on the 13th, I was drinking the Protein shakes, eating yogurt, etc. I had no issues with "sweet" tasting stuff, but was not a big sweet eater. Since the band, I cannot stomach anything sweet and the majority of the stuff on the liquid phase is sweet. Ever since the banding the Protein Shakes cause me major pain. After my morning shake yesterday I stayed away from the protein shakes and/or protein waters. Today I tried a protein Water and again major pain. I think it possibly has something to do with artificial sweetners. Right now I can't even stand the smell of anything sweet :thumbup: Has anyone else had this problem? I go to the doctor on Wednesday and I'm hoping he will say I can start mushies cuz I am not finding anything to agree with me on liquids (except egg drop soup).

RealtorCarol, I am eating something I probably shouldn't be at this point. I have eaten egg drop Soup, bullion and my mainstay has been some chicken boiled in bullion with no yolk egg noodles and then I puree it so it looks like creamy soup. The noodles do have carbs but they also have Protein so I figured that would add a little protein in that I am not getting from the Protein drinks. For some reason I cannot stomach them right now. I'm only eating 1/4 to 1/3 cup of that 3 times a day and chewing/sucking on ice I bought from Sonic. Their ice is just like little balls, soft enough to chew without breaking your teeth. I like my Water really cold so the sipping isn't working because the water gets too warm. I know I'm being so picky but when I try to eat/drink something that doesn't agree with me I really suffer and it really makes me question my decision. I have to give myself the most positive thoughts I can and if what I eat makes my day go pain free, then I am happy. The dr/nutritionist might not be too happy when I see them but maybe they can give me some other suggestions or will move me to mushies where I can have some cottage cheese or ricotta cheese....anything non sweet with protein :shades_smile: By the way, I think we were banded the same day. I'm a March 13th bander (last Thursday) too!

Bozzj, If your dr. is supportive of the surgery he/she should be willing to help out. I know my dr was willing to do whatever I needed to help assist with the cost. I was also self pay but my fee included all the pre-op testing. Have you already talked to your dr. about it? No offense to anyone on here who may be a nurse, but sometimes they just don't know what the dr will do and won't do or what you have actually discussed. And besides, your dr works for you. If he knows you are self pay and you insurance doesn't cover the cost of the surgery he should be willing to order the tests your insurance will cover. He should want to keep his "employer" happy.

During surgery they do insert a cathedar and as I already have UTI problems I think between the cath and not getting enough fluids that is what is causing the blood. I did go today to Sonic and bought some of their ice (thanks HarleyNana). It is very easy to chew and a lot easier to take in then trying to sip. I like my Water very cold and the sipping thing doesn't really work because it gets warm to fast. I feel much better this evening and I'm getting in a lot more Fluid but I may still call in the morning to ask. The surgeon gave antibiotics at the hospital so I don't know that I would need anything else at this point. Thanks for everyone's concern. I can't believe the difference a day makes! Yipee!

I was banded on 3/13 (also hernia repair). I tried to drink my Protein on 3/14 and it made me feel really bad and I had a lot of shoulder pain. I didn't drink any Protein drinks yesterday thinking maybe the milk was bothering me. I also didn't take the prescription pain meds to eliminate that also. This morning I got up and had absolutely no shoulder pain. Felt pretty good actually except for soreness. I made a cup of Protein Drink with Water instead of milk and now again I am in agony. I took about 30 minutes to drink it (it was very thin). What am I doing wrong? I'm so afraid I'm going to run myself down since I have absolutely no desire to eat or drink and I'm forcing what I am taking in. Please help!:confused2:

Thanks Shortgal. This is what I've done today. I went to the store and got some boneless, skinless thighs. I boiled them with bullion and some yolk free egg noodles. I cut the chicken up and then put the broth, some chicken and noodles in my Bullit pureed it. I then strained it to make sure there weren't any big pieces of chicken. You would not believe how much better I feel. I was so sick of all the sweet stuff since I'm not a big sweet eater anyway. I also went to Sonic at the suggestion of HarleyNana and purchased some of their ice. Its very easy to chew and I have gotten in a whole 20 ounce cup today so far. I know we are not supposed to have carbs, but I figured with the small amount of noodles I put in there and they offer 8 grams of Protein, I'm not being too bad. The pain has also eased up some. We went and walked around Walmart and I could just feel air moving all over the place. I thought I was getting enough walking in around the house but apparantly not. Thanks for listening!

Shortgal, were you told no Protein for the first couple of weeks because of the hernia repair? At my pre-op appt. the doctor said to start them the next day but that was before he knew about the hernia repair. Did you have shoulder pain? I read in another post that one person was told the shoulder pain was something to do with the hernia repair.

I did have the hernia repair and I am struggling. I had my surgery 2 days ago and tried to do Protein drinks yesterday and I was in agony. Now I just went to the bathroom and I think there is some blood in my urine. I've been eating sugar free popsicles, sipping Water, ate some egg drop Soup and some bullion broth but I don't think its enough. How long does this shoulder pain last?

I'm having mine done on the 13th also. Good luck!

I went to the seminar on February 4th and I'm having surgery on March 13th. I am self pay so I didn't have the insurance constraints. I've been lurking around this forum since July/August but I had to wait for my husband to get on board. He wasn't too thrilled about me having this done but we had some pretty intense conversations and then he watched the surgery on TV and he was convinced. We are both looking forward to a thinner, healthier, happier me.

Angie, I checked into both since I am self pay and I think NSG was quite a bit more expensive. If you have insurance I guess it would matter to you what the fees will be that the insurance doesn't cover. I know years ago they were a good practice. Dr. Gould removed my gallbladder laproscopically when it was the "new thing" but I don't know how they are now. I'm going to the WLSC and my surgery is on Thursday. So far I have been very pleased. I met one on one with Dr. Terracina today and he spoke to me for almost an hour. He didn't rush me and was very thorough with his answers. He also talked to me like an equal, no talking down to me at all. Good luck on your journey regarless of who you choose!!

Is there a trick to this thing? I just tried to used mine for the first time with Protein powder, 1/2 cup milk, some ice and frozen strawberries. The thing wouldn't even mix! Everything froze in the mixer. I had to scrape it all out and pull out the big blender. Help!!!:laugh:

HarleyNana, When I went to the seminar Dr. T said no pre-op diet required, but in the literature, it lists the 14 day pre-op diet so I figured I misunderstood. I'm trying to do it but I am not a nice person right now. I'm grouchy already on nights and adding drinking Protein that tastes terrible into the mix is not a pretty picture.

HarleyNana, No I haven't changed my mind. I forgot I had to work overtime. I'm on nights right now and I'm usually a zombie. I am done with nights for the month after Friday night. It doesn't help that I'm kind of shy either :thumbup: You would think with the work I do I could call anybody but its different when you are calling as a private person and not a 911 employee. I promise, I will call. I just have to get up the nerve. I did start my liquid diet today and the Protein drink is terrible. I don't know how I will get through a month of this (before & after surgery) but I will survive. I watched my EMMI video today but didn't really learn anything new. I go for my 3 hr class on Tuesday so hopefully the nutritionist will be able to give me some hints on how to survive the drinks. I'm definitely going to need variety. Thanks for thinking about me and I WILL talk to you soon. Carla

I just read the literature (80 some pages) the surgeon's office gave me. How does everyone keep track of how much Protein they eat/drink? It's overwhelming to me that I am going to have to try to get all that in. It also seems like it is going to be a constant issue getting in all the fluids during the "fluids only" stage. Am I making too much of this? I know everybody seems like they get thru this period fine but have any of you also been overwhelmed and survived? Can you provide any strategies? Thanks, Carla :confused2:

Everybodies suggestions are helpful. I know this is something I want to do and have to do if I want to live a long and successful life. I can't keep going the way I am. Ronwifey: Who is doing your surgery? I didn't even think about adding the Protein from whatever you add the powder to. My husband is big into exercising and he doesn't feel it will be hard to get in the protein. I just feel like all I will be doing is drinking all day. Which in turn means I'll probably be in the bathroom all night Quasitova: I am not much into the fruit flavored stuff or even milk. I drink mostly Water. Do they make any supplements that are flavorless that can go in water? I know that is probably a dream but that would be the ultimate for me.

LuvMy2Dogs, I live in Gloucester so I don't think you'd want to see my PCP He was going to refer me but my insurance doesn't cover the surgery. I am about 280, has asthma and sleep apnea. I've already had foot surgery for something that was probably caused by my weight but they didn't say that at the time. I just went for my psych evaluation and she told me righ there she was sending an approval. I don't know what the religious questions have to do with it because they didn't even ask me the same type questions as were on the true/false test. I think they were just concerned about if you know what you're getting into and if you have a support system. My surgery is set for March 13th so I'm excited and scared at the same time. I just spoke with an old friend tonight who works with two girls who just had the lapband done. One has lost 85 lbs. since October. I've told my work I am taking 10 days off so that should give me plenty of time to feel ready to go back to work. My friend I spoke with tonight said one of the girls that she works with paid $35,000 for the surgery. She said she couldn't afford that. I told her to go thru the tunnel and pay $17K. Does gastric bypass cost more than lapband? Maybe she had bypass or something. $35K sounds like an awful lot.

Mike, Thanks for the encouragement. I'm scheduled for March 13th and I have decided to tell my boss so we will see how it goes. Good luck on your recovery!

Greg, I passed my psych eval today (little do they know) so my surgery has been scheduled for March 13th. I could have done it on the 28th of this month but I am on mids and the preparation would have cut into my sleeping time and I didn't want to go into the surgery already exhausted. My body doesn't like nights so I usually end up sick during the shift. We switch once a month between nights and days (12 hour shifts). I think I have decided that I am going to take 10 days off so that when it is time for me to go back to work for a full shift I should have had one day on "mushies". I did break down and tell some people at work today and so far everyone is very positive, but you are right, I'm sure they won't say anything negative (at least to my face). We also have the moving consoles. I really do like that we can move around but I wish we had the cordless headsets. I'm hoping to be promoted to our center's training officer so that we give me much more opportunity to do more than sit and I will be on a normal work schedule. I have been working shift work for 15 years and I am over it. I ready for a real life. I would still be considered "alpha" personnel in an emergency, but would have holidays and weekends off otherwise. I have to keep my thoughts positive that things are going my way. I think the decision to move forward with this surgery is the first step towards the new me and my new life. I think I have decided that I will tell my boss what is going on. He either accepts me or he doesn't and I really don't care what he thinks of my decision. This can do nothing but improve my performance and attitude at work so it can only be a good thing. Hope you have a good night. By the way, I told my coworkers about your multitasking comment. I still love it!!! Carla

OMG Lapbander00810004...your multitasking comment just cracks me up. Did you tell people at work you were having the surgery? If so, what kind of reaction did you get? I did tell my boss I was going to be having surgery but didn't indicate what. I'm applying for a promotion and my husband thinks it might help if I tell them I am doing something to get my weight under control. What do you think about that? I think it could go either way knowing my boss. He believes you should do it on your own (even though he is somewhat overweight, has high blood pressure, is your typical Type A personality). We had another girl who had bypass done and when I lost 40 lbs by dieting he kept commenting on how I was doing it the right way, but now he has seen me gain 60 back. It's really hard to decide which way to go. The Public Safety community is a tough call sometimes. You would think they would be very supportive, but they can also be very judgemental (which I'm sure they are abou the way I look now regardless). Carla

I think I am going to try it. I'm going to call the office on Monday to ask about the pre-op testing, support group meeting times and about seeing the nutritionist before surgery. Dr. T said it would be pretty quick scheduling since I am self-pay but I work shift work so I'm going to have to do all these things around my work. I would love to get as much scheduled/done ASAP.