Hope09

Hi Clifford, I would guess that you are still swollen. I had to drink Clear liquids for the first few days and even now, a week on I am still on liquids. I don't have anything in my band at the moment though so the only restriction is the band itself and any swelling. Cindie, it will get better. I crushed paracetamol tablets and put them in Water as I could only get children's liquid Tylenol here which wasn't strong enough. I did go back to my doc who gave me a stronger painkiller but which also makes me drowsy so I only take it at night and it helps me to sleep. I am 1 week in and I feel a lot better today. I had liquid Maalox for the gas which really helped. It took about 5 days for it to start coming out though! Walking also helped. Hang on in there, you'll wake up one morning and feel like a different person!:thumbup:

Well done OneHotMama! I have never bitten my nails but I can imagine that you would be worried about a nail going down and getting stuck:eek: It is another thing that will help you look great!:thumbup: Now go and treat yourself to that manicure, you deserve it!:thumbup:

Sorry Craig, I forgot that you guys don't use stones! It's a sort of target for losing weight, you know, half a stone, a stone etc. In the UAE they use kilos to weigh and on here it's pounds so I am lost in both places and it makes me use the little grey cells LOL! I have never heard of a tod though, that must be really old! Anyway congrats on your 16 pounds, you're doing really well!:thumbup: Christy I have a picture of you in my mind all taped up like a mummy!:thumbup: I do feel sorry for you though as the gas pain is horrible, stick with it, it will go soon. Can you get any Gas x strips (but don't stick them to your body:)!) And well done on going out to eat! You are very brave, I am avoiding anything like that at the moment but I am sure the time will come when I have to face it. Was the film good? I have seen trailers for it. Has anyone driven yet? I was told not to drive for a week as the insurance wouldn't cover me and my week is up now but I am still not sure. The drivers are mad here in Dubai, total loonies on the road and I don't know how fast I would be at an emergency stop. What do you guys think? Jacquie

Welcome Nancy! I was born in 1964 too so almost 45 :thumbup:. I was banded on 25th January so I am well on my way to recovery now. Congratulations on your date, it will soon come round and the start of your new life will begin. We will all be skinnies and the Lord will walk with us if we ask Him. Blessings

Hi! I tried lying on my right side a little when I woke up this morning as my back was aching so much from being on my back in the same position all night. I put a pillow between my knees which took the pressure off slightly. I was able to lie there for around 10 minutes and then had to go back on my back but it was long enough to relieve my lower back for a while. Then I gave up and got up!:thumbup: I can't wait to be able to sleep on both sides again!

Hi Tiare! Welcome to our little group! I was done on the 25th but I joined this group as it was a Sunday which is the first day of the week in the UAE and I didn't think anyone else would be done on that day! I have felt so much better this weekend, the pain in my stomach when standing up or getting out of bed has almost gone and the gas is coming out lovely! (Sorry!:eek:) I am able to walk round without holding myself in too. I feel better every day:) Christy, can't help you with the Gas x strips as we don't have them here, or at least I have never seen them. I was prescribed Maalox plus which has been pretty good. Yellow, I know what you mean about the sound effects, mine keep my DH awake!:thumbup: I've had some Soup today which was delicious. It was Baxters game soup which has tiny bits of venison in and I mean tiny. I chewed them to a pulp and have been fine with them! I only had a little at a time just to make sure, I was scared of getting anything stuck although the bits were so tiny I don't see how they could have got stuck but I still took my time. I am on liquids for another week yet so I am so jealous that you can have mashed potato this week:w00t: I am on 3 cartons of Ensure and Boost but I don't like the Boost much. I am looking forward to going on mushies in a week's time:tt2: Well done on your weight loss Craig, that's over a stone, fantastic! Jacquie

Hi Joann and everyone, Thanks for your prayers, I am feeling a lot better today, praise the Lord! I went back to the doctor yesterday and he gave me some stronger painkillers as I was only on children's Tylenol. Anyway there was nothing wrong and I am feeling a lot less pain today even without the new painkillers. Thanks again!

Hey Christie, you are a real encouragement to all of us, thanks for being there! I remember the bad breath from ketosis bit from a previous diet I did called Lighterlife which was just soup and shake meal replacements. I think I still have some urine strips that test if you are in ketosis so I will dig them out and see what they say! I guess we can also use breath freshner spray which is easy to carry around in a bag or purse. I am on full liquids so I think I will try some cream soup with no bits in tomorrow. At almost 7pm here now and I still have a shake to have yet. It's a good point you made about the sodium content, I will watch out for that as I am not getting enough water down. You sound like you are doing well too, well done and keep it up. And once again, thanks for being there!:eek:

Hi Minnah, Just wondered how are you doing now? Has it got any better? Would love to know how you are. Hope you are feeling better.

Me too! I'm a side sleeper and can't sleep on my side at the moment. I was sleeping on my back with loads of pillows so that I was really propped up until last night when I went down to 3 pillows. I ended up back at the doctors yesterday as I was in pain and he prescribed me another stronger painkiller which is also a sedative so I took one last night and it made me really sleepy. I had a reasonable night's sleep only waking once or twice but I still had to sleep on my back. I have previously had 3 C sections and it took a while to get back to sleeping on my side after those and even then I think I used pillows to support my tummy/legs. We'll get there eventually!

Hi everyone, Glad you are all doing well, hope you manage to sort that rash out Christy. I ended up back at the hospital yesterday as the pain next to my naval was so bad. They gave me some stronger painkillers but since then it's not been too bad so the crushed paracetamol is doing the job fine. How do you feel Christy, still holding your tummy? I am, but not as much as before. Did you find anything on bad breath? My kids keep telling me to clean my teeth LOL! My teeth are clean but my breath still smells! I'm feeling a bit hungry today which I suppose is a good thing that my appetite is coming back although I still feel bloated and my stomach is still hard to the touch. Does anyone else feel like this? I'm having my 3 cartons of milkshake each day which I think are around 250 cals each and some SF Jello. I also had an Actimel drinking yogurt today as I thought the good bacteria in there might help my stomach get back to normal. I am supposed to be on these liquids for another week yet before going on to mushies but I think I will need something else to eat before then! Craig, do you make your own broth or are you buying it? Do you think we could strain some canned soup like minestrone and drink the liquid from that? Not got weighed yet as I feel really fat and bloated so I don't want to be disappointed! I'll wait until all this gas has gone!

Hi everyone, I was banded on Sunday 25th January and stayed in hospital overnight. My incision and gas pains I can cope with and they are decreasing daily but I have another pain that is getting worse daily. It is a sharp knife like pain slightly above and to the left of my naval below all my incisions. It is also hot to the touch. The pain increases to a stabbing pain when I get in or out of bed, sit up or sit down, go to the toilet, bend over etc. I'm in agony. Is this normal? What is it, does anybody know? I am taking liquid Tylenol (childrens) 15ml 4 times a day and it is not touching it. Please help!

Thanks for the super post:biggrin: I had my op 5 days ago and I am in some discomfort so your post is just what I need to reassure me that I made the right decision! Well done on your weight loss, I'm so pleased for you:thumbup:

Hi everyone, I called my doctor but he was on a conference today so they told me to go to the hospital where I had the op done and I saw the GP there. He called my doctor after he examined me and all is OK. The pain is coming from the band itself and will go in time. I can carry on taking the crushed panadol but if that does not work I have been prescribed Tramal as a painkiller. I am due to see my doctor on Monday but if I cannot wait that long then I can see him on Saturday when he will be in the hospital. I feel a lot better now knowing that it is not abnormal. Thanks for all your help and replies everyone:thumbup:

Yes Minnah that's exactly it. It's agony and feels like someone has stuck a knife in there. It comes when I get up, sit down, in fact do anything that uses the muscles. I am waiting for the doc to call me back. Thanks Susan re the paracetamol. I did wiki it and found out that Tylenol is paracetamol so I have ditched the children's liquid Tylenol which was not strong enough and I am now taking Panadol which is 1000mg of paracetamol 4 times a day which is the max I can take and no ibuprofen as we can't take that. Thanks for your help and I'll keep you posted.

Thanks everyone for your replies. It's 7 am in the UAE now so I will call my doctor later this morning and keep you posted. The hot to touch bit has gone now and I took some crushed paracetamol last night that helped and I had a good night but the pain is back again this morning. Thanks for the warning about ibuprofen, I will stay clear of it. I really appreciate your replies.

Hi everyone and welcome home Christymarie! So glad that everyone is doing well and the pounds are starting to drop off! I am still having some pain issues slightly above and to the left of my naval. It is like a stabbing pain and I get it when I move! It's tempting to stay in bed all the time to avoid it but I know I have to get up and move round. It's 7am in the UAE now and I got up to go to the toilet. The pain was terrible so I had to come downstairs and take my meds. The doctor prescribed children's Tylenol but it is not strong enough so now I am crushing Panadol which is 1000mg of paracetamol and pouring a little warm Water over it it get it down. I can't get any other liquid Tylenol here. Does anyone take brufen or ibuprofen? I know it's safe to take paracetamol and ibuprofen together but I am not sure if its OK to take ibuprofen with the band, not sure if it will damage it or not!!?:bored: Christymarie, I am glad I am not the only one carrying my stomach around with me! I will think of you on the other side of the world as I hobble around holding it and know that I am not alone!:w00t: I was prescribed Maalox Plus for the gas and it has worked quite well, at least it's coming out! I can't believe how much was in there, I even asked the surgeon to get as much out as possible and he said he would. Goodness knows how much I would have had in if he hadn't tried to get any out!:wink: Hang on in there everyone, this is the start of our new lives and we can do it!:eek:

Hi Joann Thanks so much for your prayers. I was banded on the 25th and came home on the 26th. I have got the normal aches and pains but I've also got this stabbing pain like a knife just above and to the left of my navel. It's awful and I'm going to call the doc tomorrow. I also feel like I have to hold my stomach as I get this pulling feeling if I don't. I'd really appreciate your prayers for healing. I know it's still early days. The good thing is that I've felt so bad that i haven't even thought about food!:cursing: Jacquie

Thanks Debbie, Think I'll call him in the morning. Not looking forward to going to bed tonight. I've had my 4x 15ml of Tylenol for today. Does anyone know if I can take paracetamol or ibuprofen after taking the tylenol? Don't want to OD! I know that you can take paracetamol and ibuprofen together but we don't have Tylenol in the UK so I am not familiar with it.

Thanks Craig, I thought it was what us Brits call jelly but wanted to make sure before! It seems strange being on a liquid diet yet being allowed jelly! I am also allowed low fat natural yogurt or low fat skimmed milk in place of one of the shakes but as the shakes are quite nice I think I'll stick to them. I can have clear broth too but haven't fancied any yet. What's Italian Ice? It sounds good! Do you have any Vitamin supplements? I still feel pretty groggy and can't move very fast! Lots of gurgling still going on inside too! I'm looking forward to this first week being over. I am still having the gas pains which are under my ribs and in my left shoulder, they come and go and I find it hard to get in and out of bed and sit up and down. Take care! We'll get there!:thumbup:

Hi Craig, So glad that it all went well and you are feeling good. I was done on Sunday 25th and had one night in hospital so came home yesterday afternoon (26th). It all went well although I do have some gas pain which is getting better as it is released! I also feel like I have to 'carry' my stomach around when I walk. If I let go and leave it unsupported then I get some pain as it pulls everything down. Has anyone else had this feeling? I am on a liquid diet of these drinks called 'Ensure plus' which are like milkshakes. They come in vanilla, strawberry, banana and peach flavours. I also have to drink 2-3 litres of Water a day and can have other clear fluids including sugar free Jello. We don't have Jello in the UK where I am from although I have bought some here in the UAE where I live now. Pardon my British ignorance but what is it? Is it what we Brits call 'jelly'?:thumbup: And if so do I drink it before it sets or let it set and eat slowly? If you can enlighten me on 'Jello' I'd be really grateful! LOL! I wonder how everyone else has got on? It will be good to keep in touch.

Hi everyone! Just wanted to wish you all good luck for Monday! I am being done at 10am tomorrow morning (Sunday 25th) and I think I am possibly 9 hours ahead of you in time so it will be just after midnight your time! Getting nervous but looking forward to being a thin hottie!:thumbdown: Keep in touch everyone and let us all know how you do:thumbup:

I agree, you'll probably be OK but it will be up to your doctor. Just stick to it from now and you'll be fine! Sometimes it's hard and I'm sure we'll all have good days and bad days but we just have to keep focussed on the outcome and we will get there!:thumbup: I'm being banded on Sunday so I'm getting nervous now!:laugh:

Hi, I'm being banded on the 25th and I haven't told anyone, only my DH & kids. I would tell my mum but she will only worry so I will tell her afterwards. Out of past expereince (I lost 84 lbs on Lighterlife, Soups and shakes diet) people are far too happy to give their negative opinion which I haven't asked for so I am not telling anyone as I don't want to hear it! I may tell a selected few post op but otherwise plan to keep it to myself in order to save my ears and my sanity!:thumbup:

Hi Cindie, Don't feel bad, we are all human and the whole point of us being this much overweight is that we find it really hard to stick to diets. If we could stick to them we wouldn't be having surgery would we? Don't beat yourself up over it. Put it behind you and start again. You don't want to blow it all now, focus on why you are doing this...because it is the start of a new life and a new beginning, the life you have always wanted, so you can do it. Avoid putting yourself in difficult situations if possible. Get back on track and keep think of the reasons why you are doing this and what life in the future will be like.:thumbup: Good luck, remember next Wednesday is not too far off so keep up the good work that you have achieved so far!:laugh: