ParrotheadCathy

All docs have slightly different to very different post-op eating plans. Mine advances you to mushy foods on Day 10 post-op. I had no problems and nobody else I've talked to at the doctor's office has mentioned any issues with that. BUT your doctor may have a reason for a longer period on full liquids. On day 10, I went to KFC and got a small serving of mashed potatoes (obviously, no gravy) and let me just tell you, those were the best darned instant potatoes I ever ate, LOL. If you are doing full liquids now, add purees of various things to some of your liquid meals.

I went through True Results in Atlanta, GA with Dr. Hart. I too was self-pay. I paid $15,000 for surgery and aftercare. The $15,000 includes 10 fills during the first year post-surgery. After that, they are (I believe) $125. This is across the board with True Results so far as I know. I could possibly have gotten the surgery cheaper but I would have had to travel and I wanted the security of my surgeon being a phone call and a short drive away. I paid a good portion of my surgery fees in cash but I did finance part of it through Care Credit. You can apply for Care Credit or medical financing through Capital One from the True Results website. No fluroscopy for fills? Frankly, unless they have a problem, I think that's an expensive frill. The two physicians assistants at TR in Atlanta have each done one fill for me. Both times, they hit the mark with no poking or prodding and the entire process was done in less than 2 minutes.

In addition to what Luna said, have you established an exercise routine? By that, I mean, do you have brisk exercise that you perform for at least 30 minutes five times a week? Brisk walking right on up to gym workouts? I've been walking but now the GRASS IS GROWING so I have to get out and mow my 3/4 of an acre with a walk-behind mower so I have to devote less time to other exercise as long as the grass isn't dormant, etc. Real life often provides a fair amount of exercise if you take advantage of it. Are you focusing on eating protein first? At least 60 grams a day? Veggies second? And then, only if you haven't gotten the full feeling, should you even consider any carbs at all and then only a small serving. What kind of quality do you look for in your protein? Lean beef, poultry, lean pork and fish should be at the top of your list. Don't rely on protein shakes much because liquid doesn't give you a sustained feeling of satiety....and you will be tempted to snack.

Pain....I personally never took any pain medication (not even liquid Tylenol). That's probably NOT the norm so don't expect that, even though it could be like that for you. Most people have discomfort/pain for a couple of days. I won't leave out that there are a few who do have more pain, but just like me having none bad enough to medicate not being average, neither is that. Different doctors have different schedules to return you to "normal" food. I was on Clear liquids for a couple of days and then anything liquid I wanted for 8 more. Then to mushy food. After a week of mushy food, I started adding some regular food every day. By the end of the second week of mushy food, I wasn't eating anything "mushy" except for soft scrambled eggs for Breakfast. Now, two months out, I can eat anything I want except for things that just don't go down right .... soft bread (toasted stuff is fine), a tortilla like would be around a burrito (in a quesadilla, grilled, a tortilla is usually fine). No white rice, too sticky, does not go down at all. And sometimes things you can eat early on sometimes cause stuck episodes later on. Makes every day an adventure:tt2:. I'm kind of surprised you didn't get any food information/dietary guidelines from your doctor/nutritionist. Since you didn't, I would ask for printed information about their dietary guidelines so that you can have them on hand to reference.

Reflux and nighttime coughing are two of the listed symptoms of being too tight. Call your doctor and talk to them.

I bet you don't want to hear this, but MOVE AROUND. You don't have to take a 5 mile hike. Walk to the mail box and back several times today. It's probably a really short walk but moving around will help with gas,post-op pain, etc.....and nobody can discount the value of fresh air and sunshine.

grits, yogurt, sugar free pudding, sugar free popsicles, puree vegetable beef or chicken noodle soup in your blender. You can puree pretty much anything, like spud mama says -- it may not always look good, but it tastes the same.

Repeated episodes of reflux is a sign that your band is too tight. Call yoru doc and talk them !

Ii went on an 8 day cruise 4 weeks after.....no problems!

Banded 2/10. Starting weight was 284. Now at 233. And I'm not worried about how long it will take. I just know it will happen!

There really aren't any WRONG answers. What they are looking for is to see that you have a realistic attitude about what the surgery means for your future physically and emotionally. They do want to determine that you don't have unreasonable expectations....as in someone who has a lot of personal issues who somehow thinks that if they lose the extra weight everything else will somehow instantly become perfect. So relax and answer the questions. My girlfriend lost her husband just over a year before her eval. and the shrink asked her what she was going to do when she lost the weight and the men started wanting to date her....and she replied "not a damn thing! I had the best and I'm not interested in the rest".

Well, you can always try to negotiate a good fill when he does the first one. Ask for 3ccs or even 4cc....and another fill appointment in 3 weeks. It never hurts to ask!!!!!

Sounds like you have given yourself a gift beyond weight loss -- you're discovering the joys of your hometown. So, it just happens to be NYC where there's a lot to discover. You might check on an annual membership to the Zoo. I have an annual membership to the Georgia Aquarium. Some of the benefits include an email every month about special events, I can buy discount tickets to take guests with me, and there are some members-only things. They have music stuff on Fridays during the summer, too. If the Zoo has anything similar you could have access to all that for a reasonable price.

Stacy, this is something that does come up in a marriage following dramatic weight loss of one partner. But, honestly, it sounds like HE needs the psychiatrist rather than you. He is the one feeling threatened for no reason. You sound like you're pretty solid and have a level head about this. You could say you would consider COUPLES COUNSELING/MARRIAGE COUNSELING and that would give both of you the opportunity to discuss your feelings with an unvested third party. So he could vent that he fears you will cheat on him/leave him now that you are looking pretty, etc. and you can express your concern that he is expressing such a complete lack of trust in you. I mean, did he marry YOU (the person you are no matter what) or did he marry a fat girl he thought wouldn't have the opportunity to cheat on him?

Don't know your doctor's guidelines. But you will likely be on Clear liquids for at least a few days (I was on liquids for 10 days and the first three were pretty much clear liquids). Apple juice, white grape juice, Protein shakes (the one exception to "clear"), broths. Do youself a favor on the broths. Do this. Buy a cheap cut of roast and a whole chicken. Then cook this way. Put chicken or roast in a large pot and cover with Water. Add an onion, quartered -- don't even bother to peel it. A bay leaf, some onion, some carrots, some celery and season. Then cook the chicken to death. Strain off all the solids and you end up with rich, flavorful STOCK which is like 100 times better than broth from a can. When you cook the roast, you can add potatoes to the concoction. You can't eat the potatoes, but if you're feeding a family, they will have all their veggies in the pot. I don't want to say you can have this or that because what my doctor says is okay may not agree with your doctor. I suggest you call your doctor's office and ask them to fax or email to you a food guidelines for the immediate post-op period. Also, get some Gas-X strips and if you don't have a heating pad, buy one. You will have gas that can be painful at times. The Gas-X does a great job and the heating pad can be placed over any soreness you might have OR over where the gas pains are at any given moment.

I stayed home a total of three days (that includes the day of surgery). During those days, I walked a little bit every hour or so....down to the mailbox and back. Around the back yard. Across the street to chat with a neighbor. And a little more each day. Then, on Friday, I went to work. I park under the building so no walking there, but our parking deck has access to a recreational area (like a state park) so I went out and walked a little ways and back. From that point, I just walked a little more total each day. Listen to your body....you'll know if you try to push too hard. I did dishes and stuff at home, but my adult granddaughter (20) who lives with me vaccumed and stuff. I did a little laundry here and there. And I let the other housekeeping stuff just wait!

It seems likely that if both cover the surgery, that the primary would pay whatever it covers percentage wise and then the secondary (co-insurer) would pay its precribed percentage. It could wind up covering 100% or you could still have to pay some. Time to get on the phone and make sure BOTH cover weight loss surgery, and then ask questions.

Beach House = ocean = LOTS of seafood! Fresh fish, fresh shrimp. Order it grilled or broiled dry (without butter). Salads. Avoid all the potato and hush puppy orders. YOU CAN DO IT!!! I went on a cruise 4 weeks after surgery. Ordered the grilled snapper that was offered every night on those nights that there wasn't another entre that was an acceptable choice. Salads. No bread. You'll take just as long to eat as everybody else because they'll eat fast and you won't. Focus on the people at the table, not the food on your plate.

3/4 cup is not too much. Especially when you consider that you really don't have any restriction at this point. That will come once you start getting fills.

IF it's any reassurance, I had to have a root canal last summer and the numbing agent (they actually don't use novocaine, it's Marcane) has something in it to make it work fast .... and it caused me to have a huge panic attack. And I have never, ever even come close to a panic attack. As for all the scary stuff a surgeon or anesthesiologist will tell you, they have to tell you that stuff. It's called "informed consent". The percentage of people who actually experience any of the negative stuff associated with anesthesia is very small. Having said all that, you have to decide if you want to go forward. If you do, you have the opportunity before surgery to talk to the anesthesiologist. That's when you tell them about the drug giving you the panic attack. They have something else they can use.

DEEP BREATH!!! Liquids pass right through the opening the band creates and move on to the rest of your stomach. They won't stretch out your pouch. You need to drink plenty of Water (at least 8 glasses a day) and while you're on the liquid diet, that's your nutrition source too...so drink whatever amounts satisfy you. Pain should decrease daily. I actually had almost no pain, never used any pain medications but everybody is different. Moving around will help. Do what feels comfortable and don't force yourself to do more than that. If you are having gas pains, walking will help tremendously. Bending, sitting & standing ... all up to you. If it doesn't make you too tired, do it. My only limitation that the doctor emphasized was to not pick up anything that weighed more than 5 pounds for a week or two. It's normal to worry about every little thing and having everybody here will help with those worries.

Hmmmm! Guess it's like so many things ... constantly evolving!

I was cautioned about citrus fruit. Spefically, I was told that citrus is okay to eat BUT you need to peel away not just the out feel BUT ALSO the whitish skin-like stuff from each section before you eat it. That part is very fibrous and can easily get stuck. Not so for the sections. So I just buy citrus salad in a jar...already peeled all that stuff away. If you weren't warned, how could you have known?!? You got stuck. You could have PB'd but you didn't. It will break down and you'll feel better -- thank goodness.

the 4cc band is the older style. I know nothing about it. I have the 10cc Lap Band name brand 10cc band. I don't think the band actually "expires" but the 4cc band is definitely older technology. I know some people who have the 14cc band, too.