RestlessMonkey

Each doc has varying rules about drinking and eating. Mine says no drinking during a meal (that should last no longer than 30 min) and then 15 min afterward. It's not the problem I thought it was because now that I have restriction drinking while eating is uncomfortable at best, or painful at worst. However I suggest enjoying the cocktails BEFORE your meal. Not during and after. You may or may not have excess skin. People THINK bypassers are more prone because they lose faster. However take a bypasser 1 year after she achieves goal, and she will have the same loose skin that she would've had if she'd gone the bypass route. In other words, we lose generally more slowly so the sag has time to tighten up, but like an overstretched balloon or rubber band, many of us will have SOME loose skin regardless. Personally I prefer plastic surgery to open heart surgery, or surgery to amputate a limb lost due to diabetes. Whether you tell, or not, is your business. I'm a teller but I prefer that; it fits my personality more than trying to keep it private. Some aren't as "up front" about stuff. It's your news. Share it or not. And as to complications; you can read the lap band complications section but for scientific data, ask your surgeon for some references, or buy a few books that cover all types of WLS and read over them. All forms of WLS work to a point and all carry risks; you'll need to pick the one (if any) that is right for you. Although you didn't specifically ask, I can tell you that at almost 1 year out I LOVE my band. I can eat anything and have no problem foods. I am not tighter in the morning nor am I too loose at night. I have great restriction. I don't have any side effects, no GERD, no port pain, nada. I feel better, at almost 75 pounds down than I have in years. I have a ways to go but have firm belief that the band will help ME get there. I have an awesome amount of control, for the first time in my life, over what I eat and what I even WANT to eat, and it is thrilling to me. I wouldn't trade my band for a million dollars. Not everyone is so happy or trouble free, though. You'll have to weigh it out for you. I took a LONG time, and a LOT of changing my mind, before I settled on the band. (it was NOT a whirlwind romance LOL) But once I committed I went full bore and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Good luck!

No pleats, no zipper, no bell bottoms (ok I AM 54)

I've been called worse.

Safest to call your doc. Odds are it's just soreness, but at 8 days post op a "new" pain is nothing to disregard, so give him a buzz.

AND one more thing I just thought of. While our bodies will produce a good deal of gas, and it can be painful, GAS X or something like it (clear it with your surgeon first) will work wonders. HOWEVER the surgeon pumps gas into your abdominal cavity and that stuff isn't even touched by gas x. ASK your surgeon if he will remove as much as he can before he closes you up. They CAN remove it. But some don't, or don't think to. Your body will eventually absorb it and dump it but in the interim it can be MISERABLE. So ask your surgeon to remove it and you'll already be ahead of the game! :thumbup:

The recliner sounds wonderful, no wonder you were asking! But you can bask there during the day (remember to walk some each hour...prevent those clots and move the gas!) I am sure there's a percentage of post op patients who really can't stretch out but I think more would feel "normal" if they just got over the fear and went to "bed" the first night or so. The pillow to brace is key. And knowing you will have help to get up if you need it is also important. Since we are banded laparoscopically, our muscles aren't cut and while our innards (medical term, that) may be upset with us, they all still function just fine. So it's kind of like how you're sore after exercise (of course I have to remember FAR back for that) It hurts, but using the muscles some to warm them up feels better? This is not the same, but similar. The more you move, the more normally you act, the better you are going to feel. By all means, pamper yourself in that fine recliner. Take it easy. Dont' decide day 3 is the day to clean out that closet that's been bugging you LOL but do "putter" around. And as has been posted, take your pain meds IF you need them. I did feel some pain. My goal wasn't total eradication of pain. For some, that's the aim. But I wanted to balance the pain with being alert and aware. I HATE feeling groggy and "out of it". For me, distraction and tylenol worked just fine. I had some movies I wanted to watch, a couple good books, some magazines, and even a couple crossword puzzle books. That type of thing worked for me but won't for everyone, so do what you need to, so that you will feel good.

Unforgettable is right. We WISH all medical personnel were kind and compassionate and interested first in our health and well being, but that isn't true. There is a predominance of kind compassionate people but you still have to use your brain and make your own choices. That's why, if you think the doc has a hidden agenda, he very well may. Find out WHY he's pushing one thing over another (and this is true for any medical procedure, not just this surgery). If you find his reasoning is dicey, get another opinion. By doc 2 or 3 if they ALL agree with doc 1, then maybe you are the problem! LOL But knowledge is a GOOD thing. Finding out all you can and making your own best choice is optimum.

I'm not Kiaa but maybe I can give you a helpful tip. IF you lie flat from the first night, it's going to be easier. This is because 1. you'll still have good drugs on board and it won't hurt and 2. stretching out early on will keep things from getting stiff, used to being compressed, etc. I think probably most people are "afraid it WILL hurt" and don't just go for it, then by day 2 or 3 when they try to stretch out it DOES hurt, like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Night 1 (I was at home but you can do this in the hospital too) I slept on my side (the port side actually) with a pillow to kind of help brace me. Actually the pressure is GOOD for you; it can help slow and stop any bleeding etc (like you hold pressure over a cut on your arm, say, to stop the blood flow) I was a LITTLE stiff getting up but used my 4-poster bed to help me pull up (in the hospital you'll have side rails etc). Night 2 I slept on my stomach (which is my norm) I was fine the next morning. I was a LITTLE sore but it was like too many sit ups sore, not like major surgery sore. Use a pillow to help brace your abdomen when you sleep, when you sit up, etc. The counter pressure is VERY helpful and keeps the muscles from hurting too much. If given a choice between a pillow and prescription paid meds, I'd say the pillow helped me WAY more. I did take tylenol every 6 hours when awake. I didn't take the prescription med because I didn't want or need it, but by all means take it if you need it; and timing it to have a dose about 30-45 minutes before bed time will help. So yes you can sleep in a recliner if you have one and want to. But I didn't WANT to sleep in the recliner; I wanted to rest well and don't do that in a chair. I can't help but think that getting "good" sleep early on helped me recover more quickly too. Recliner? not a must have unless you just want it.

Apparently some people's tastes change. What happens is you get used to things. Say you drink tea sweetened. If you go a month drinking only unsweetened, then sweetened will taste funny because it isn't your "normal" any more. So there isn't really a physical alteration, just a change in habit and perception. That means, too, you have to be careful or the sweet stuff will start tasting good again. You can train your body to like it. Same is true of foods high in fat. You aren't used to them now, so they upset your stomach. Keep at it and you can get used to them. This isn't uncommon. Adding anything into your diet (like a lot of Fiber when you were eating low fiber, for example) can cause a gastric upset. That's also one reason travelers can get sour stomachs. Although there are "bugs" that can get you, of course, but A big change in our diets upsets our digestive systems. If you normally eat low fat low carb, say, and then go on a vacation and graze on foods higher in fat and carbs, you'll feel it in more than just tighter clothes.

I aint ignerent.

I like the EAS Carb control AdvantEDGE ones too. They are the only shake I'll "eat". They're only $4.99 a 4-pack here in San Antonio, thank goodness!

I had my very first surgery in 2003...gallbladder had to come out. I was PETRIFIED. I told my husband People DIE in hospitals. I had my will ready and everything. No kidding. BUT...one way I combat things I'm scared of is to try to learn as much as I can about them. (not saying everyone should do that; and trust me I still run screaming from spiders and scorpions. No "learning" is gonna fix that LOL) I tried to interest myself in the waiting room, the OR, what the nurses, techs, docs, staff were doing, etc. When they rolled me in to surgery I actually sat up to look around (it was NOTHING like I expected) and they had to cajole me into lying back down. It was interesting. And I lived, and I did all the tricks my husband told me to get through and recover fast, and I did. Then a year later I went back to college to start the process to get my BSN! So facing that fear literally changed my life! Just wanted to say I really was terrified to my toes but got through it. I don't suppose everyone will decide on a 2nd career in medicine after the experience, but it's not so bad once you get through it (the surgery, that is, not the career LOL)

I agree it is totally personal and there's no "right" or "wrong" except as we each individually experience it. I couldn't care less if people look at me and wonder if I can eat something or not, for example, (and that's probably part of the reason I got up to 405, to be honest!) but I truly thank GOD everyone isn't like me. How dull this old earth would be! Variety...that's the spice of life.

I thought men would ALWAYS want to show their johnsons, given the chance. Or maybe that's just in porno flicks....

it'll probably be fine; run it by your surgeon to be sure!

Don't "over buy" the protein shakes. Find out what your doc wants you to do pre and post op. I wasn't even allowed any protein drinks week 1 post op; and that's not that uncommon. So check, maybe save yourself some bucks!

They use whichever fits best! Just like you choose a pair of pants or a shirt...they choose which will go around your stomach most easily; which is the "best" for you.

There isn't a "regular" lap band. There is AP Standard (holds 10) and AP Large (holds 14) and the one before the AP called "VG" that held 10, and the "first" one used in the US called 9.75/10.0 and it holds 4ccs.

Welcome and good luck! You have a great attitude!

Sorry but I disagree...don't take the pain medication if you don't need it. It will just make you groggy for no reason! You MAY need it and if you do, TAKE it! If you don't need it, of course it's safe to pass on it. I didn't take it and slept fine from the first night. I used tylenol. Opioid meds just constipate me (as they do many people) and make me feel odd and "out of it". I would've felt WORSE if I'd drugged, not better. So of course do what you need to do! Take if if necessary, pass if you aren't inpain!

Agreed! And if, instead of getting defensive, knrpick had asked me if I went to therapy, the answer would be yes. Sometimes every pound is a battle, sometimes it isn't. My therapist has helped me immensely with the "head hunger" part.

krnpick, if you think I was harsh then you may certainly disregard it. and so may she. I don't quite see how telling her some therapy may be in order is "ragging"...since I usually think offering an option and HELP is supportive. She didn't say "please tell me I'm ok" she wanted support. But whatever!

OTC stuff doesn't help. If it did, most of us wouldn't be here because we wouldn't have the band because we'd just take "whatever" and be slim. I think you need to chill out. Some of your gain may have been Water, but you'll get it all under control on the 19th. And if you KNOW it's head hunger and aren't stopping it, then therapy would be more help to you than a diet aid (they don't take care of head hunger either) Most of us got the band for a reason...we needed it. But you were too tight so you weren't really working it right, and I know you know this. I think a therapist appt is in order, and until then, just do the best you can. That's all anyone CAN do.

delora, no one here can answer that for you. for one thing, the lap band has only been approved for use in the USA since 2003 so no local 10-year data is available. You have to pick; it's your life, you know how you want to live it.

Call your surgeon for direction with this. Many would prefer you don't do ANY OTC medicating (even fiber!) unless and until they tell you it's ok. They may have a brand they prefer etc. And realize men need somewhere around 35g of fiber a day for health. That is a LOT of benefiber at 3g a "dose". So check with your surgeon, what and how much.