melmarlem

chili, oven baked chicken, chicken cooked all day in a crock-pot, cottage cheese, carbmaster yogurt, hard boiled eggs, eggbeaters, canadian bacon, and my favorite...filet mignon :biggrin:

I went 2 days ago for my first fill. The physician assistant put 5 cc's in my band. I have a 10 cc Realize band. So far I don't feel any restriction, even though I thought 5 cc's was a bit much to start off with. My question is, how long does it take to feel restriction after a fill? She said give it at least 2 weeks. Has anyone had a fill, not felt restriction initially, and then later felt restriction? I know it takes a few fills to get to the "sweet spot" but I thought surely with 5 cc's I'd feel something different. :thumbup:

Just another note, other than the initial pain doses of Dilaudid and Fentanyl that I received in the PACU, I did not receive any IV pain meds. They were all PO (by mouth). I doubt that you staying longer would get you any IV pain meds. In my case, what the nurses gave me in the hospital was exactly what they sent me home on...Lortab elixir, which relieved my pain effectively.

I stayed 24 hours for observation because I had a difficult time keeping my oxygen levels up after surgery. BUT it was because they gave me dilaudid and fentanyl for pain, and both suppress the respiratory system. As a nursing student, I say if everything goes as planned without complications, get out of there ASAP! There are some YUCKY infections floating around the hospital that you don't want to catch! MRSA, VRE, just to name a couple But overall it depends on who you have to care for you at home. I was able to come home and have my parents take care of me. If you don't have anyone, you might want to stay a day or two. I appreciated having the nurses there to manage my pain, and also the IV's are important to stay hydrated, as I wasn't able to drink much.

Love it! :thumbup:

Wow. Lots of nasty comments. I personally chose to tell EVERYONE so that I could proove them all wrong, and mostly so I could EDUCATE them. I've come to the conclusion that most naysayers are simply UNEDUCATED. It also helps me stay accountable to myself. It's hard dealing with negative comments, and I've already had my fair share, but in the end they will see. Most importantly I got banded for me, and not for anybody else. Who gives a sh*t what they think!? Those who matter don't mind, and those that mind don't matter...:thumbup:

The bulldogs are on quite a few pills each. We cover their pills with a blob of yogurt and it masks the pill taste. Works like a charm! It's funny because they eat "Carbmasters" vanilla yogurt from Kroger. When I was feeding them this yogurt it was the first time I had seen it. I read the nutrition label and saw that it had 12 grams of Protein per serving and only 3 grams of sugar and 1.5 grams of fat. After that I ran out to Kroger and got me some! It's good stuff!

I work for a veterinarian at an animal clinic. We actually have several clients who feed their dogs vegetables. Not so many fruits though. We have a set of bulldogs that come in that get fed green beans and yogurt for a snack. They love it. I think the vegetables are okay in moderation, and also SOME fruits. With fruits that have seeds, the seeds should be removed. Also, grapes are NEVER a good choice. Raisins are also off limits! Both of these will make a dog very sick, as it will put them into acute renal failure.

I agree with Byebyebonbon. Gas-X isn't effective for the type of gas pains you may be having. I was banded almost 3 weeks ago and my surgeon's physician assistant told me that Gas-X only works for gas in the intestines themselves. Hang in there and hopefully you'll be feeling better soon! :sneaky:

Oops. I meant last PRE-op appointment, not post-op! :sneaky:

I have Aetna PPO. I also did the 3 month multidisciplinary program. I was one of those who actually GAINED weight during the 3 months. I was approved with no problems. Aetna has been WONDERFUL! I agree with the above post-Make sure you have everything they ask for when submitting. The insurance coordinator at my surgeon's office took care of sending everything to Aetna. It took me 5 days to get approval. Setting up a surgery date just depends on your surgeon. My surgeon wouldn't set a date until my last post-op visit with him. Good luck!

MissK- I see that we were banded on the same day-August 18, 2009. We've lost about the same amount of weight- I've been eating fast food (good healthy choices of course)... I must not be failing yet. Ehh. I give up. I will continue to do what I think is best for me and for my success. :sneaky:

Sounds like a few of you need a WAKE UP call. Good for you if you choose not to eat fast food. My nutritionist allows me to have 1/2 cup of Wendy's chili...so what? Is that a crime? I think not...get real! As I said before, what's the difference between a scrambled egg made at home or a scrambled egg made at Mickey D's? A baked potato made at home or one from Wendy's? An egg is an egg and a potato is a potato. It's not like we're slurping down chocolate shakes and munching on french fries. I live in the REAL world!

Okay, I'm 2 weeks post-op and on a "bariatric soft" diet. I was told to stay away from carbohydrates. Then I was told that if I had bread to toast it first. Peanut butter is also listed as a snack for me for this diet phase. What do you guys think? Is a slice of peanut butter toast okay? I know it's not as high in protein as a scrambled egg, but I'm tired of scrambled eggs! :thumbup:

Thanks for the advice! I did have Peanut Butter toast and it was sooo yummy! I didn't have any problems with it, but I also have no restriction! I agree with Restlessmonkey- I think after I get my first fill it might not go down as easily. It was nice for a change but I'll try to find something else! I love my JIFF peanut butter and can't see myself eating powdered peanut butter, but it's a good idea to make it thinner and easier to go down. :biggrin:

I'm 2 weeks post-op and am allowed to have a slice of bread, toasted. I've only done it once, and it was fine. Maybe it won't be something I'll be able to have after my first fill though.

Low-fat cottage cheese. I buy it in the individual 4 oz. containers. Also what about light yogurt? If they have a Kroger store near you, Kroger has a yogurt called "Carbmaster" it has 12 grams of protein, 3 grams of sugar, and 1.5 grams of fat. And it's good! Also what about eggs? Hard-boiled eggs are easy enough to make, or scrambled. :blushing:

P.S. I also have Tricare Standard and they didn't require an approval.

Aetna PPO Ohio 5 days!

"I am glad to hear that some of us are changing the way our brains work when it comes to fast food. I'm not one to be harsh or critize and those of you who have been in our group for a while know that I am the first one to come to bat for my people, but we need to realize that part of the success of the band in behavior modification and avoiding such things as "fast food" and other junk. there are ALWAYS other alternatives to fast food. Yes it takes some thinking and preparation but didnt you do a ton of that to get your band...so why would you start the sabotage cycle after all the gruling work you did with the pre-op liquids and the surgery...YOU ARE BETTER THAN THAT !! Erase the names of taco bell, wendys, jack in the box and McD's from your vocabulary...they're definitely not rooting for your success just your wallet !!!" formerfatchick- Please don't be so unrealistic. Yes, I agree with you. Fast food is what got many of us where we are. However, part of behavior modification is making good choices. If I can go to a fast food restaurant and make a good choice, then what's wrong with that? It's totally unrealistic to say "Never again" to fast food. I can go to McDonald's and get 1 scrambled egg when my family goes there for Breakfast. What's wrong with a scrambled egg? A scrambled egg made at home or a scrambled egg made at McDonalds? Also, what's wrong with Wendy's chili, or a baked potato? Grilled chicken? These are not JUNK foods! There are ALWAYS alternatives to fast food? Do you know our schedules? What about college kids like myself living away from home? We usually don't cook for ourselves and rely on eating out MOST of the time. Keep in mind that what works for you MAY NOT work for others! I'm a full-time nursing student who spends a lot of hours on my feet at the hospital. If I have to run downstairs to get a quick bite to eat from Wendy's...then so be it! Fast food is NOT out of my vocabulary! :blushing:

Congratulations on becoming a bandster! Hope you're feeling well!

Don't beat yourself up. What's done is done. Tomorrow is a clean slate! :frown:

I think everyone is a little afraid of surgery. I had doubts about getting banded myself. The only thing that I was sure of was that if I didn't do something my weight would continue to go up. What is it that you are unsure of? Are you afraid of surgery itself? Or are you doubting which weight-loss procedure to have? Do some more research if need-be and be confident in your decision. Choose what is best for YOU! Surgery is scary, but dieing at a young age is even more scary!

I'm just 2 weeks post-op today, but so far I don't have any regrets. Sometimes I think that I miss eating "normal" foods, but then I remember that those types of food are what got me where I am to begin with. I'm down 20.9 lbs in two weeks and feeling great.

My nutritionist recommended centrum chewables. I have the orange flavored. The only disadvantage is having to supplement calcium.