RestlessMonkey

I couldn't eat mushies until week 3 and by then I was pretty healed and it didn't hurt. If it still hurts on Monday call your surgeon and ask.

I've lost the majority of my weight since 5/7 when I FINALLY hit my sweet spot. I will be dead honest with you. I can eat any single thing. I know, because I've tried. I can eat pizza. I can eat white bread. I can eat steak. I can eat chinese. I can eat macaroni and cheese. I can eat about 1 cup of "whatever" and then am done. If I PB it is because I didn 't chew well. I do not cut my food into tiny bites. I eat bites about 1/2 to 2/3 of what I used to. I chew each bite about 40 times. (I don't count each time...just occasionally because I'm curious by nature!) By then if it isn't mushy I spit it out (don't mean to be gross, just honest. Sometimes steak has gristle that won't chew up, or sometimes chicken skin is too gooey) I feel great. I eat out, I eat what my husband eats. Tonight I had baked fish and squash with parmesan cheese. It was really good. I find that if I choose more dense foods like steak, I stay full up to 6 hours. If I have something like a bean burrito (and I can eat about 1/2 of one) I get hungry sooner. SO...I usually choose things like the fish, or steak or chicken. BUT I can and do splurge sometimes. Some foods are "slider" foods (for me Cookies, nuts, chips) so I try to avoid them usually because they dont' keep me full long enough and cost too many calories. I can have them if I want, though. I think you may need to review the mechanics. Are you getting 64 oz of Water each day? Are you chewing well and taking small bites? If the answer to those questions is yes, then you are too tight. Get a SLIGHT unfill. try again. It took me a good deal of tinkering to get where I am. For some, 1 cup is still too much, but I'm happy where I am right now. I can eat anything, I get full quickly, I feel great. I can always tighten up when my loss stops. But the life you describe isn't one, IMHO. The band isn't supposed to force you to exist on yogurt soup and cheese. My doc said his goal was for us to be able to eat ANYTHING but eat less of it, and lose. He said some patients have trouble with white bread or stringy red meat or dry chicken, but most can eat anything. I'm the poster child for that. Your life would depress me. I don't think it's what you signed on for; get your surgeon and the nutritionist to help you. You've suffered long enough, I'd think!

It totally depends. My time from seminar to surgery was just 1 month, and I have insurance. Some are fast, some take longer. :tongue2:

Diets without the band and losing with the band are two very different animals. What's hard, following your 3 month diet? Is that an insurance requirement? Many of us have "preop" diets to shrink our liver, lasting anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, and I've heard of 3- and 6-month diet requirements for insurance before they'll approve surgery, but never heard of a 3-month preop diet. Is this just a confusion of semantics?

I've never heard of that as being an insurance requirement...usually if you have a BMI of 35 and 2 comorbs (or 40 and 1, or are 200% overweight...) you get the surgery. Did YOU ask tricare why you were denied? I know my doc is adamant about no pregnancy for at least a year post op or he won't do the band. Is it your doc who is worried?

YES it can cause potential problems, like a slip. If you ate anything (especially so close to your surgery) ahead of your post op diet, you may have caused your band to slip. food makes our stomach churn. We don't feel it but it does. There's a reason for the strict post op diets; they aren't to torture us nor are they to jumpstart weight loss. They are to allow the band to heal into place around your stomach. Most of us are starved during the early post op phase. Even the lucky ones who start out not hungry develop a ravenous appetite before its done, usually. So you won't be the first, but you need to call your surgeon, tell him your symptoms, and how much you ate. I don't mean it as an act of confession...he's your doc, not your mama. BUT he needs to know so he can decide if you need to get checked or just should be monitored. Ok? Good luck.

I have great restriction. I am full on about 2-3 oz of steak or chicken and stay full 6 hours. And I DO NOT take 30 min to eat. I wasn't told to stretch my meal for 30 minutes. I was told if I was still eating at 30 minutes, to STOP. I agree, if it takes you 30 min to get 2 chicken nuggets down, quit eating nuggets and get an unfill! That's not the point of the band, and you are running the risk of problems down the road, being that tight! UNLESS--you can eat other foods easily and chicken is the only problem? I would reconfirm that you are supposed to make a meal last 30....I know we're all different but I do know I wasn't taught that, don't do that, and am losing well.

I got past the "surgery is weak" thing WAY before I got to the point you're at. Firstly, diet and exercise work for about 5% of the obese population. I don't know about you but those are dismal odds; I wouldn't place money on a bet like that. Further, do you think pacemaker patients think "wait, wait, my heart should beat on it's own. This is CHEATING I am WEAK" uh, no. Medicine has failed the obese. Right now, surgical intervention is the best treatment (check the stats). I got tired of doing the same thing (dieting) and expecting a different result. So take a deep breath and calm your inner voice. This isn't the "weak" way out. This way takes courage.

I just edited my post (you are FAST, woman! LOL) but good luck, ok? I think you'll figure it out and get things back on track in no time.

Then...therapy. A behavioral therapist helped me immensely. We overeat for MANY reasons. We aren't one supersize fits all....but a therapist can help you recognize what's causing your behavior and help you figure out how to stop it. Good luck! :tongue2: If your doc can't recommend one, or you don't like the one your doc recommends, try one who specializes in "eating disorders". We always think of anorexia/bulimia when we hear that, but overeating to the point where we need surgery to correct it is also an eating disorder. I think you're smart to realize it and I hope you get help quick!

This is problematic because...it may just be normal post op problems or it may be a clot. When you really TRY can you breathe deep, even if it hurts? Or do you expand your lungs and it feels like it just isn't doing anything? If it hurts to breathe, that's normal. Your diaphragm is in there and sometimes gets ticked off. Plus you're swollen...your lungs will be discommoded a little. So pain/soreness, hurts to breathe deep, all that's ok. AND I'm a nurse, but a new one, so these observations are just opinion...not meant to replace the advice of your doc or a more skilled nurse, ok? You may also have some Fluid in your lungs (can easily happen post op) Were you given an incentive spirometer (the breathing thingie?)

You are very young and oddly, it seems, younger people generally have more pain post op. (I hate to generalize and don't want to offend a soul, but it's just something I have observed) It WILL get better. I am almost 1 year post op and have no pain. Honestly, though, I came to in recovery hungry and feeling fine and have pretty much felt that way ever since. You may be suffering 2 kinds of gas....the kind they pumped in to you won't be helped by any drugs but will abate over time. The kind we "make" can be alleviated by something like Gas-X so if you don't have any, get some. Use a pillow to brace your surgical sites. It will help. I slept in my bed from the first night because I didn't want to get stiff. I slept on my tummy from night 2 because that's my normal MO. Try sleeping in bed and using a pillow to kind of cushion and protect your abdomen. You may be a little stiff when you wake up but that's expected. Do you have someone to help you sit up? Remember to put a pillow over your abdomen and hold it. It helps your sore muscles. So...there is light at the end of the tunnel. I don't have a slip, I don't have erosion, I can eat white bread, I have good restriction, I don't choke on my pills or own spit, life is good. It will be good for you, too. Just hang in there.

Tramadol is a powerful NSAID. So it would be offlimits for the OP.

There are no guarantees in life and you know this. I LOVE my band. I've had it just under a year, can eat any single food I want, and am losing well. I had very little pain post op and was back in school on Tues after my friday before banding. Will your experience be mine? No. Please realize it is the nature of a board like this to attract problems. People who are happy don't usually post "Day 298 and I'm feeling groovy". If you have specific questions/fears and would like to post them we can try to address. Another good source of info is your surgeon. I also bought several books before my surgery and read both the success stories AND the complications. Diet and exercise doesn't work; at least not for 90%+ of us. The band has way better odds and I play the odds. But that doesn't mean things can't go wrong; they do. Odds are, though, they won't

My doc said I can take NSAIDS but have to be careful; that's why I asked. In that case, I'd talk to the physician who is treating your fibromyalgia. S/He'd know best what might work for you and if necessary can discuss with your banding surgeon. Good luck!

It's different and so I'm sure a little upsetting. BUT you did right to ask and it was checked so it's not an infection etc. Just keep an eye on it; don't you have a 1 or 2 week follow up? If it hasn't started to go down by the end of next week, maybe call him back. OR of course if it gets hot or red streaked and hurts! But your body is still swollen right now. It can take some of us a while for it to all settle down.

I was told no carbonation and frankly it hurts when I drink beer. What did your surgeon say? OR...do you have any paperwork he gave you that might address it? Many many say "no carbonation" but we're all different. I LOVE beer but just can't drink it fast enough to make it worth the calories. I don't get a buzz, I don't "stay the same", I get a headache. If it were me, I'd pass and drink something else. You are only a few months post op so I'd definitely pass on the carbonation until/unless you can find where your doc approved it.

Have you asked your doc? I'm much larger than you were so maybe that hid it but I never had a huge lump like that. It's probably nothing just as jlray assured you but to be safe, run it by your surgeon! :thumbup:

Let me reiterate...IF you have percocet formulated with acetaminophen (the active ingredient in tylenol) DO NOT take them both together. Don't take one when you still have the other one circulating in your system. Please call your pharmacist or doc if you doubt this is dangerous, because it is. You'll crash your liver. Taking one and then the other when the first "wears off" is ok, or you may have percocet formulated with something else. But...if your percocet has acetaminophen, then you don't want to take it with tylenol or advil.

I didn't feel restriction until fill # 5 which happened in March (banded last Aug). It freaked me out and I had him unfill me a LITTLE while I concentrated on graduating from nursing school. Then I went back in May and had him put it back plus a little more. Since then I've lost a TON of weight. Before that, I had gained back some. So ... restriction matters and it can take a while. Hang in there! :biggrin:

Might you be too restricted? Per the chart in my doc's office that's a sign of "too tight"...unable to eat healthy so you turn to sliders and gain weight. Is that you? If not, then it's head hunger and the band can't help...maybe a session or two with your doc's recommended therapist would help.

I don't honestly know what you are talking about. Inject yourself with WHAT? LOL Some few people who are at increased risk (I assume) do lovenox or heparin injections for a period post op to ensure they don't get clots. I have no idea if their insurance covers but I'd assume so. If you are self pay then I'd assume that would be included. Many many bandsters (me included) did not need to do this. Is that what you mean? If not, I have no clue....need data! :biggrin:

I can eat all those foods too. We're all different.

I don't think you should be taking percocet and liquid tylenol together...percocet HAS acetaminophen in it. You get to much you ruin your liver. Please call your pharmacist, ok?

I agree, call your doc. And if you have it, the next time you're up for a pain med, take some liquid tylenol INSTEAD of your prescription. (don't take them both together. Your 'scrip may have acetaminophen and you don't want too much of it) Trust me nutrition isn't a major concern right now; you've got enough fat stores to keep your body functioning. Hydration (water) is, though, so get Water in first...then popsicles. If you have a question about what's going on internally please ask and if I can help you I will. Undertand too that your surgeon MAY have put a fill in your band during surgery. That isn't uncommon and personally I think it's kind of cruel...many people who can't drink post op find they had a surgical fill. My band thank god was wide open except for what my doc described as "a small primer" and I could drink anything. SO...you may have a fill and need some removed. Be sure to ask your surgeon. You had major abdominal surgery even though lap surgery is less invasive than the "old" style and your innards are upset and discommoded. They are swollen and out of sorts (to put it in a non-medical way!) They will chill out over the next few days. Think of how you feel when you overexert..sore muscles for a couple days? This is kind of similar. Things have been done in there that your stomach and esophagus aren't used to; but they will get over it. The bubble is probably gas. If you have Gas X (they have strips that dissolve easily) take it. If you don't, have someone go get you some. Please PM or post if there's anything else you can ask that we can help you with. AND yes call your doc now or on monday or any time you think you're getting worse. The waking up short of breath/in pain isn't uncommon....do you have sleep apnea? The pain med may be over-sedating you (I don't even know what you've been prescribed) but make sure you aren't taking it too often. Positioning, walking, using a pillow to brace your surgical sites (hold the pillow over your stomach when you stand or sit, for example) will all help you.