sistasassy

Ok. My fault totally. Not the band. I love my band. :cool2: I got in a hurry eating and got stuck . I did not panic as I have read that it does not good. I simply went to the bathroom and carefully concentrated on not throwing up. HOWEVER, the whole sliming process and working a bit of what was stuck up was nasty :tongue:. Took a long time to be able to get a drink in and it stay down (about 4-5 hours). I was just patient and calm and grossed out and got through it. I am not eating slowly and paying attention. All of this on mushies! Dear Lord, help me when I move to solids :sad_smile:. Anyway, the band definately has my respect and full attention now and I am being very careful about eating slowly and even chewing the dickens out of my mushies.

I go for my first fill tomorrow and, boy, do I need it. I am four weeks post-op and have been able to eat more each day. I have monitored what I eat so I am not gaining. I have actually lost weight since starting mushies but not much. Just a few pounds. I am nervous and interested to see how it will go tomorrow.

Mine is about two inches above and to the left of my belly button. I am having no port pain now at all. Figuring on having a bit tomorrow, though. Get my first fill at 2:30 in the afternoon! Woohoo! All of my incisions are now fading and barely noticable but my scars tend to always heal quickly and fade fast.

Current weight: 223. Thanks, Froggi!

Give it some time. The first thing I had get stuck was a bite of Jello cake and whipped cream. I thought I would die. I just continued to breathe (as long as you are breathing, you are in good shape) and tried to relax. I also sort of rubbed the center of my chest and sort of worked on trying to burp. That helped me. BUT, if you are still stuck in a few hours, I would call the doctor.

Itching is a normal part of healing. I put some moisturizing balm on mine and that seemed to help. I had a freaky thing today. I felt this piece of weird white stuff, what I thought was dead skin on one of my little incisions. I pulled on it to get it off and a piece of string came out about half an inch long. I am guessing it was some sort of internal stitch or something. Very very weird. I have noticed my port is settling in a bit more and seems more at ease under my skin as well. I am three weeks post-op.

Well, I have finally come to this conclusion/opinion: If you feel like telling them, then tell them and be done with it. Stand you ground and don't let anyone change you mind. I tell everyone and I don't care what they opinion is about it. If they want to watch me eat, let them. If they watch for too long, I may just decide to recommend that THEY have the surgery too. OR If you don't want work to know, just say "I had a little outpatient procedure done but I'm fine. Nothing to worry about." Then leave it at that. Since you did not offer exactly what you had done, most people will not push the issue. If they do push the issue, just tell them it's not really something you want to discuss at work. That should put a final end to it. They may go on to speculate that you had everything done from a splinter removed to a sex change but only you will know the truth. Anyway, it is your choice and which direction you go. Just stand your ground whichever way you do go.

How about some recipes for the mushie phase?

You should probably call your doctor and ask. Each doctor seems to be different. Mine says anything is ok. Some other doctors won't let their patients take much at all.

I am only three weeks post-op and I am already being treated like I have the plague by my heavy friends. Most of them won't even look at me for fear of....I don't know what. I even have a friend who lost a whole bunch of weight and has kept most of it off who is now treating me the same way. She began to diet again when I had my surgery and, everytime I see her now, flaunts the fact that she has lost ten more pounds. Great for her but why not great for me too? There are a few who are wanting info on the band and a few who just want to know what is going on and are being supportive. I am not friendless by any means. I just wish that my heavy friends would not feel threatened, or whatever it is, by my success so far. These are the people who also, when actually speaking to me, feel the need to tell me about all the bad things they have heard about the band and how they would never get it or have WLS because of it. One good thing out of all of this is that my husband, who is only minimally overweight, has hit the pavement jogging again. He still looks good at his current weight but he is a total HOTTIE when he drops about thirty pounds!:thumbup:

Do you know how many calories you are eating each day? You many be eating too few calories and may need to bump it up a bit OR you may be eating too many calories and may need to decrease a bit. I would sort of test both ways and see if that makes a difference.

I took my own jammies as well and I was in them less than an hour after surgery. I also took a robe and slippers for walking in the halls. I spent most of my time either sleeping or walking (walking to knock down that gas pain in my back and shoulder).

I get them too when I eat or drink to fast. Part of the learning process, I guess. We have to learn to slow down. Sigh....so hard after all the years of eating the other way. Hickaburping and hurlchucking. Well, at least we have increased our vocabulary! :thumbup: I think both words are quite fitting!

I was on a liquid diet for one week before surgery. I thought I would die the first few days. It got better. You have not had enough time for it to "get better". Don't be too hard on yourself. Just buckle down, do the best you can, and talk with your doctor about it to let him know what is going on. Depending on the size of your liver, you may still be okay. They are right that after surgery, it will get worse for a time. I am there now. The thing is, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and, in relation to life, the tunnel is not that long. I have been learning to deal with head hunger and I think you may want to take a look at that too. It is a whole other monster. Head hunger sneaks up on you. I have been having to make myself think before I eat. Am I really hungry and need a meal or a snack or is it that I am bored or stressed or just eating for pleasure? It is hard to actually admit those answers other than when it is real hunger. I am also in a lifestyle where there is a lot of social eating. That one has been tricky but I am starting to get the hang of that one as well. I don't let myself get drawn into "being part of the crowd" and just eating because its there. We live in a world FULL of options. So many options that it seems ridiculous at times. We can use that to our benefit or we can let it be our downfall. You are here because you have chosen to be an overcomer. You can do this and you WILL make it. Just hang in there and hop back on that wagon.

I, too, agree that it is most likely Water retention and probably bowels. It sounds like you are doing everything right so I would continue to do so. I also agree with the walking. Even if you can only start with five or ten minutes a day. That is what I did. A little walking will get things moving. I have been a bit froze up in those areas for the past couple of days myself. Last night I started flooding in as much as I could drink. Things are finally getting back to normal and the scales are moving again. Keep after it and it will happen.

I took a book but didn't end up reading it. I was too busy getting prepped for surgery and away I went. (Literally, I have a mob of nurses on me and the Versed was barely in my IV when I was moved to surgery) I took my own pillow and blanket for once I was in my room. I was glad I did. I slept better. I was first in surgery that morning, stayed overnight, and went home around noon the next day.

I go for my first fill next Monday (Dec. 8). I am nervous but ready. I have been on mushies for a week and they are already getting old. I am seeing Dr. Albert Gilman in Decatur. He has been excellent. I have no complaints about him at all. He spoke with my husband after surgery and then he came to see me the next day before releasing me to go home.

I am starting to worry about Froggi. She was supposed to have her surgery on Monday and I have not seen her post since. Does anyone know how her surgery went and if she is okay. Praying for her here and wishing her the best.

I am little over two and a half weeks post-op and still have pretty good restriction. I have also found since I moved to mushies that I must be careful how fast I eat or I get that sort of "stuck" feeling. I had it once yesterday and once today. Guess I am learning to ropes early. I get my first fill in little over a week.

Really, the constipation will pass on its own if you let it go. I went three to four days at a time without a need to "go". I finally had a few days of very loose stools and am back on track now. I still do not go everyday though. I have been on mushies since Monday and have only gone twice. I think it is just a part of it. I wouldn't worry too much unless you begin to really FEEL bound up.

So glad to hear from you! I was getting worried. I am so glad all is well. You worry about healing and worry about the spreadsheet later. It can wait.

Current weight: 224 Thanks, Froggi. Hope all went well with your surgery.

Okay, I am simply astounded at how many grams of Protein are in cottage cheese. Un-freakin'-believable! Why wasn't I eating this earlier??? My hubby picked up some FF cottage cheese for me on my pre-op diet and I was just poking my nose in the frig for a snack. Looked at the nutritional info and about dropped to the floor. I have been really working on ways to beef up my protein and just completely missed this one. It has 12 grams of protein per serving. Just crazy good news for me!

Have you tried a heating pad on that shoulder? It did wonders for me. I am just over two weeks post-op and feeling pretty awesome. I am still losing about a pound every other day and have been on mushies since Monday. I get my first fill on Dec. 8 which will be 4 weeks post-op but have to stay on mushies for two more weeks after that (if I understood my doc correctly) at which point I will go so soft solids and get my second fill. I seem to be losing inches like crazy and already have a huge mountain of clothes (on the floor in the corner of my bedroom) that are no longer fitting right. One negative side effect - a number of my heavy friends are already starting to avoid me. I could understand if I was talking about it and carrying on but I make a special point to not bring it up to them. One of my friends is practically hostile when I try to say hello. I knew it may happen but did not realize it would happen so soon. Sigh.....

Really, ten pounds is not bad for the beginning. You are healing during this time and your body is going to do weird things. I was banded on Nov. 11 and have lost approximately ten pounds since surgery. I am only walking on the treadmill every other day at this point and only for about fifteen minutes. I am eating healthy and small portions as well. I think it is that our bodies don't really know what is going on. One day we are eating "bad", the next we are on liquids, in the middle of liquids we go to surgery and have this new thing added to us, then we go to Clear Liquids, then back to liquids, then to mushies. I think our bodies are just still freakin' out a bit and have to have time to heal, adjust, and then catch up with the program. Perhaps you need a few more calories as well. I know I had sort of stalled on liquids and the day after I started mushies (and I REALLY started mushies) I had lost another 1 1/2 pounds. A calorie bump may help. Don't be bummed. You will get there. Call you doc and see if he will fill you sooner. He may be willing. I go for my first fill on December 8. That will be four weeks post-op.