ebinsc

I have PCOS, too. Over the past several years I have heard opposing opinions from health care professionals about low-carb eating plans (I hesitate to use the word "diet" because of the negative connotation it brings). I do find that low-carb is effective for me for weight loss and controlling insulin resistance. I have been successful on South Beach in the past but fell off the wagon and starting eating badly again which resulted in gaining back any weight I had lost. Right now I am planning to follow South Beach which is close to what my surgeon's office recommends anyway. Count me in!

I did have a pre-op diet: 2 shakes, one sensible meal and one high-Protein snack. I lost 10 lbs doing that. Since surgery on 6/4 I have lost another 14 lbs for a total of 24. Rxdspncr, did your surgeon do a fill during surgery? I'm wondering why you feel restriction. My surgeons don't do fills until at least 6 weeks after surgery to give the stomach/sutures time to heal. For the first 5-6 days after surgery I would say I could feel some soreness or discomfort when I swallowed which I attribute to the new sutures in my stomach, but it wasn't restriction and now I feel totally normal. Great job everyone! The next weeks until we start getting our fills may be trying (bandster hell) for some of us dealing with the hunger. I just keep reminding myself that this time is not about weight loss, it's about healing. I'm trying my best to follow the guidelines my doc gave me for the post-op diet.

I was diagnosed with PCOS and insulin resistance 4 years ago and have been on Metformin and birth control pills since then. I have had regular and very light periods since that time. For the first year I was on the Met it made me lose weight, about 40 lbs. I had constant diarrhea and headaches and not much appetite. Then I suddenly stopped having all the side effects and stopped losing weight. And slowly I started gaining it back. My doc switched me to extended release and I haven't had any side effects from it, including weight loss. My gyno tells me to be very diligent about taking the birth control because the met regulates your hormones very well and makes it much easier to get pregnant.

I was banded last week. I had that neck pain, too, for several days. The only thing I can think of is that they must aggrivate those neck muscles during intubation. Your neck was probably stuck in some unusual position during surgery. Mine got better after about the third day, though. I was on Clear liquids for 1 week which was really hard! Now I'm on full liquids and really enjoying cream of wheat and avocado Soup. I thought that first week would never end! And if I never see anymore egg drop soup it will be too soon! Hang in there. Before you know you'll be eating soft foods and feeling much more normal.

I'm glad to hear someone else is struggling with this like I am! I ate 4 times yesterday, too! It's bad when you feel guilty about eating 1/2 cottage cheese or 1/2 cup of yogurt or something inherently healthy. Sometimes the liquids just don't help that hunger!

I take Yaz and my doc said there was no problem continuing to take them before or after surgery. And I was instructed to swallow my pills whole after surgery just like before. That may change after I start getting fills, but my BC pill is so small I can't even tell I'm swallowing anything anyway.

BCBS SC does not cover any type of weight loss surgery. They have an explicit exclusion in all their policies regarding it. Even if your doctor writes them a letter stating that the surgery is necessary, which they will do automatically, they will not cover it. BCBS of Texas and SC are the only two BC states that won't cover it from what I understand. So if you're planning to do it, you'll be self-pay. I have BCBS SC and I just had surgery on 6/4 which I had to pay for out of pocket. The options that my surgeons' office had weren't really options so to speak. They gave me contact names at some banks to look into private lending (home equity loan, personal loan, etc.). I ended paying out of my savings. Maybe your doc's office will offer some type of financing but that wasn't the case for me. I had to paid in full before they would schedule me for surgery. Good luck.

Even though I was only banded 8 days ago, I have had a few NSV's. 1. All the swelling in my legs & feet is GONE! All my sandals are loose now. 2. Most of my clothes are already feeling looser and/or fitting better. 3. My wedding rings are getting loose as well!

It sounds like you need to reassess your goals and possibly see a therapist. If you're a size 10/12 now and expect to lose another 25 to 30 pounds, what size will that make you? Sounds like you're being awfully hard on yourself and unrealistic in your goals. When I had my pre-op psych evaluation, the therapist recommended coming back after 3-4 months and possibly longer once the weight starts coming off because it's very common for overweight people to continue to think of and see themselves as the same size they were before they lost the weight. It takes a lot of mind adjustment to get in the right frame of mind sometimes. A professional could give you the tools you need to get in the right frame of mind and could also help you set realistic goals. Personally, I'm doing this more for the improved health than the looks factor. Sure it will be great to wear smaller sizes, but to me being around years longer for my family is the biggest reward.

I did the same thing before my surgery. I had a party with some co-workers/friends and I totally pigged out! But, I got right back on my diet for the next meal and followed it until surgery. If you have been doing well on your diet up to that point, you should be ok. I had no problems. My surgery went great despite my slip up. Like the others said, get back on track right away and do some exercise until surgery and you'll likely be just fine.

I also had surgery yesterday. Everything went great according to the surgeon. I had a lot of nausea from the anesthesia for the first 4 hours after surgery and had to have several doses of anti-nausea medication. The worst part has been the gas pains and the extreme hunger pains in my stomach. My neck muscles are very sore, too, from being manipulated for intubation. Only one incision area is sore and it's the one where the port is. Percocet has been making my day much easier today. I have found that having unflavored Protein powder added to my chicken broth and juice has made me feel much stronger and made the hunger pains subside somewhat. All in all, I'm feeling pretty good and am excited about my new life! Glad things went well for you guys, too, Leepizz and Brand1lenee.

Thanks so much!!!! I am at work today and trying to concentrate but finding it very difficult to say the least! I'm excited, anxious, and a little scared since this is my first ever surgery. Good luck to the rest of you guys for tomorrow, too!

Shannongetsslim, I am soooo glad to hear somebody else is as nervous as me. I'm being banded on June 4 and I've never had any kind of surgery either. I'm not a nurse but I am a bit of a hypochondriac and have terrible anxiety regarding any type of medical procedure even getting my blood pressure taken. I had to go have my pre-op testing done today and I was nervous the whole time thinking they would surely find something wrong with me. I'm not going to back out of surgery by any means but I know I'm going to be a big ball of nerves the day of my surgery (and probably several days prior!). Thank goodness the odds are so much in our favor and I'm sure everything will be fine. Luckily my doc requires lots of pre-op testing that would hopefully detect any unknown issues that could cause complications. Let's just keep thinking positive. And get ready to do some walking and heavy breathing as soon as we wake up from anesthesia!

My doctors' office requires a minimum 1 month pre-op diet that looks like this: * two 16-oz Protein shakes with a total of at least 40 g of protein, less than 250 calories, less than 25 g carbs, less than 5 (?) g fat - you can get products they offer or go to Vitaminn Shoppe or GNC *one sensible meal with up to 4 oz of lean protein, 2 starches (1 serving being 1 piece of whole wheat bread, 1/2 cup of Pasta, 1/3 cup rice, 1/2 cup cooked corn, 1/2 small baked potato, etc), 2 veggies (1 serving being 1/2 cup cooked or 1 cup raw and not including high starch veggies), 2 fats (1 serving would be 1 tsp olive oil, 2 TBS nuts, etc.), 1 fruit (1 small apple, 1 small banana, 1/2 cup canned fruit in its own juice, etc.) *1 high-protein snack containing less than 150 calories, no less than 15 grams protein, no more than 5 (?) grams of fat. You can use Protein Bars here or something like a few ounces of lean meat, cottage cheese, low-fat ricotta, etc. And you can have as much of any sugar-free, non-carbonated/decaff beverages/jello/popsicles as you like, including broth which really saves me when I feel like I need something salty.

So far I've only told my husband, my mother and 1 close friend from work. My mom told the preacher and a close family friend. I've decided at least for now not to tell any other co-workers. I've heard a lot of them make comments that tell me they have unsupportive attitudes towards weight loss surgery - they seem to believe people should be able to do it on their own. I don't feel like having to defend my decision to people who have never had a weight problem and are pretty close-minded in general. As for friends and family, I imagine as time goes on I will tell more people especially as I see some success. I'm going to the beach with about 10 close friends only 2 weeks after surgery, so I'm sure it will come up when they see me not eating anything but thinned down grits and cream of wheat.

Hi, I just joined the site tonight after "lurking" for a few months and this is my first post. My surgery is scheduled for June 4 in Columbia, SC. I'm very excited! I started my pre-op diet 3 days ago and have already lost about 4 lbs! Good thing since I'd gained about 12 since the first part of Feb. :smile: It hasn't been hard so far although I'm sure I'll have my moments over the next 4 weeks.