veal

Hey, Pharmagirl Sorry I haven't replied to much this week - I've been gearing up to start a new temping job. 8 months unemployed and NOW I find something. When i could use some more healing time :smile2: (I'm not really complaining, I'm just excited) Mushies yes, they taste good. Have eaten a few semi solid things - now I want my first fill - even though I can feel the band and it has an effect, I can still eat more than I wish too. That wound that has been trouble? Is the one above my port and is a little infected - went to the clinic and saw a very nice gp there who is stuffing me full of antibiotics - just in case. Pharmagirl - I can imagine your headaches - maybe try drinking more water? That always helped me? I also found that if I could get through 3 days of (any diet really) optifast, I started feeling much better on the fourth. Good luck with getting your approval Spideymom! Soon you will be banded and we can rule the world :w00t:

Hi guys :frown: Yep - the juice thing - I've been told to avoid high calorie liquids after the liquids phase is done. I might very occasionally have some pomegranite juice though, just not very often? Food-wise, all is ok, everything still tastes a bit chemically, but I've progressed to eating very very very watery mashed potatos. Still can't drink protien drinks though - it has a... laxative effect. I'm having a few internal twinges, but I dont really need painkillers for it. On saturday night I suddenly (really suddenly) had an allergic reaction to one of the clear dressings over one (only one) of mywounds - it also came off and was gaping. Had to get a locum to come stick it back together. Called the clinic today and they got me to remove all of my dressings - it's all healing pretty well, although it looks yuck. Well, it's all healing well apart from a perfect rectangle of rash and that particular incision. blech. I might join you and Lise back on optifast - I'm hungrier (I think) now than I was on it. But yeah, I'm better time heals most things. -sare

Hey Pharma girl Yeah, am drinking a bit more. It is much easier to drink Clear Liquids now, and am about to attempt fruit juice (given that once I have healed I cannot have it anymore). I tried a Protein drink last night but it was too much so am trying a different brand today. Everything tastes really... chemical - will be glad when I can just mush/puree veggies and eat them. Much much less pain though, am waiting much longer between bouts of painkillers, and i can bend over without pain so I reckon it's going ok:) I really should make myself a ticker thingy.

Hey, glad to hear the pain is improving - I probably need to move about more, although a couple of kilometres? At the moment I would probably fall over 500m down the road. I hear you on the bending pain - I keep forgetting that it will hurt and doing it. I think the plan I had (which I have managed to temporarily lose) had a week of liquids then a really slow transition to pureed foods as you felt able - But I think it will take me longer, it took me an hour to drink 100 mls of water with disolvable panadol in it today - so I'm not getting too ambitious. Can your husband help you with your toddler? I'm having enough problems with just having cats right now - I don't think I could actually pick one up, let alone a child? I have to say that I also was not tempted by other people eating during optifast - I found that my problem was more when I was by myself and bored - other people distracted me. TamTam, do you have any suggestions for liquids? I Havent really moved past water and tea - I tried some bullion but could not get it down, and the only thing I can actually think of to drink are protein drinks. Which does not give me much variety. optifast liquids (which was my plan for this phase) just seem too heavy?

Thank you for thinking of me Yup, home and banded, and I feel, okish. I think I was pretty lucky - the most pain I had was when I woke up and had a panic attack until I distracted myself by remembering my gallbladder pain a couple of years ago. I'm still a bit doped up (anaesthesia seems to last for days for me) so forgive me if I ramble, but it all went really well. The nursing staff there are awesome - friendly, patient, and encouraging. I was done first (there were at least four other people done monday morning), and by midday I was watching tv and wandering around the ward, which is apparently a good sign. I have some pain - more where the port is and some deffered pain in my shoulder, which oddly, is relieved by burping. I think my real problem, now that I'm home, is that I am drinking really small amounts, but I'm still not getting enough liquid in, which could be a problem. But I don;t feel hungry or thirsty, have very little desire for food. I havent taken photos - I'm photophobic. I wish i'd known about the Optifast pumpkin soup - i never saw it, but I imagine it's pretty good. I think if you are comfortable telling family and friends it's great. For myself, I'm just really private in some ways - it's not about being ashamed or afriad of reactions so much as I'm just... not interested in involving people. Like, when I checked into the hospital there were people with three or four family members there, and they visited throughout - me, I was really happy occasionally seeing a nurse and being left alone. I don't think people would be unsupportive, I guess right now I don't really need them to be? I would hope that NO ONE would bitch about this sort of thing. I noticed though when mum got it done, that I expected her to progress much faster than she has and, while I try not to judge, i think I kind of had this expectation of how she would progress, which, while I support her all the way was still a bit hard on her? See, I totally ramble. We might have already crossed paths at the surgery - I've been there five times this year, sorting out some blood tests and stuff. I really like Linda Schacter (sp?) - I'm actually thinking of asking her if she will be my gp. If you have any questions I can try to answer them/update you on my progress, and would love to hear about yours. TamTam - Nearly a week and still pain? what kind of pain? Have you moved off liquids? Also, I found that when i got home today, despite having not eaten since sunday, i'd GAINED half a kilo. I'm thinking it's gas - given that I burp and burp and burp. It's a little terrifying though.

6 weeks seemed like ages six weeks ago- I am leaving for the hospital in an hour and tomorrow seems both too soon and forever away I confess that I had a couple of slip ups during the four weeks - not huge ones, but still they were not pretty. I think I've lost about 10 kilos - 7 by the clinic's count but I went up a bit before I started. My mother who was banded about two years ago (also at the Avenue) lost about 6, before she ate a couple of final meals the weekend before the surgery. If you cant find the full range of optislim products at chemists etc, try the website - I also reccomend the chicken Soup - closest thing to salt you can get. Would love to share experiences - only three people in my life actually know I'm doing this, so sharing is not something I get to do much It's great that you and your parnter can do this together and support each other. Are you by any chance a patient of the centre for bariatric surgery, a couplle of doors down from the hospital? Ok, I must go and finish packing and stuff. Take care

Hey :thumbup: I have no advice, but I figured i'd say hi anyway. I'm being banded tomorrow... at the Avenue also. I'm so nervous I have been doing the optifast vcld for the last four weeks - I actually like the shakes and pudding, and after a couple of days I stopped being hungry and it was only (haha only) the psychological cravings that were a problem, so if you think you can handle those you could maybe try it to be supportive? Good luck :w00t:

Hullo. I'm scheduled for March 15th :cursing: -S