texas mommy

judy, yes, stress is a factor in everything else in our lives, so it makes complete sense here. Gatorade is a great idea...also, the temperature thing never occurred to me before. Cold drinks are more difficult to get down, for sure. I'm going to aggressively hydrate for a few weeks and, if no improvement, will get a small unfill again.

I've been experiencing freaky tightness out of nowhere, as well. I've been banded 3 years now. Last summer, I was so tight, nothing would go down for weeks...so, I had .5 cc unfill and it was a little better. And now, again, for the past 3 months, I've been unable to get anything down until evening...and then only mushies. Scared to have any more removed...have lost 75 pounds. I guess our bodies just fluctuate on their own. I KNOW that I need to hydrate more though...I've just re-committed to that!

I just had my first fill today! No numbing assistance, she just had me do an ab crunch and hold it while she poked twice and bullseye! No pain at all, really...just discomfort/needle-anxiety. I am 8 weeks post-op. I got 4cc's into my empty band and she just had me drink some water and hang out to make sure I didn't get nausea. Feeling good but she advised liquids for 3 days just to be "Very Careful" with it...and then mushies. Don't know if I'll wait 3 days, but will be careful. Instant mashed potatoes are my fav! :-) Really though...it was so much easier than I thought. This forum can sometimes cloud your brain and heighten your anxiety with stories of worst-case-scenarios. Just take it all in perspective... And good luck! I hope yours is delightfully no-big-deal the way mine was.

4 holes, 1 incision (port)

I second Monkey's advice. I can't get much down in the morning until after a tall glass of water. It happens later in the day also if I go without water....so, stay hydrated. I also find that when I am dehydrated, whether it is the morning or otherwise, I FEEL my band....discomfort right there! So, lots of water to keep the band happy.

I was banded one month ago today. (No Fluid in band yet) Two week follow up after surgery my doc said there was still lots of swelling around the port so she wanted to wait a bit longer to do the first fill. So I will go in two more weeks. I have a little restriction...meaning, I can't go too fast or eat large amounts. But everything goes down! I am eating fairly sensibly but it is the summertime, home with my daughter and we sorta snack all day here and there. So I am not losing any weight and I am afraid I am doing something wrong and I feel like a loser! I am also terribly anxious about "breaking" this thing. I would love to hear of anyone who also had a 'delay' in success. Are we just inherently trained to want immediate satisfaction/results and freak out when it doesn't happen? Do some of us just have bigger openings without fluid? I keep reading about people who start losing weight fast, right after surgery...arghghghghhghhhhh!

Thank you all for your replies. I feel much better...now I can chill out, heal and stay balanced. I am not gaining weight; it's just not MELTING OFF AT A RAPID PACE.

No, no junk food. The worst snack in my house is low-fat triscuits and hummus. And I get a serving of those on a plate (the old me would just dig in the box!).

Same thing here, Rockstar. I was scheduled for a fill on July 30th, the day before my 8 day vacation. I moved it to right after. :-)

Fluffy, I've had teas and coffees since one week post-surgery. My doc says okey doke. No problem. I think that people who do have up/down sugars may have trouble with it. But if it doesn't seem to spike/crash your cravings or blood sugar levels then I would think you are fine. Remember, everything in moderation...so your one cup in the morning seems fine. I am four weeks post op now, having half or one cup of coffee in the morning and lots of iced tea in the afternoon because there hasn't been one day this summer (in Texas) below 100 degrees Farenheit. :-)

Restless, do you know much about these slips? I transitioned to 'soft foods' and had trouble getting something down. It went down after a bit of struggle and some Water. I haven't had any nausea or 'tossed' anything. No pain now either. If you have a slip do you know right away? I am so worried that I am going to mess this up! :-) I have my follow up on Thursday...can they check for a slip?

I know your frustration...I did the same thing: 6 months of pcp supervision and she had to submit documented notes and then I had a psych. eval and 2 other evals and ARHGGHHGHHHHHH. What a pain in the tookas! Now, even so...the surgery will cost me only 20% of what it would have self pay. Was it worth it....I don't know. Really, sanity is a precious commodity. If the thought of doing it that way was stressing you then, maybe so...Like MissBS said, insurance is one way to play it. I am hearing that you are a teacher in TX which means that you have teh same crap insurance as me...I feel for ya. On the other hand, these 'hoops' I had to jump through were beneficial. 6 months of pondering, making genuine attempts at healthy lifestyle on my own, more pondering, getting evaluated....this all took lots of work, patience and perseverance on my part. I learned much about myself and how I work. Also, I earned this F***ing BAND! By the end of this circus act my ins. company had me go through...my feelings about getting this thing were more evolved than if i had 'run out' to get it on a whim. But again, either way that cookie crumbles...you can be successful. If you want something bad enough, you'll do what needs to be done...whether that is jump through someone else's hoops or put yourself in debt. I just happen to be at a place in my life where I avoid financial debt like the plague. So, jumping through hoops for this evil insurance company was more palatable for me... You make your choice and go....listen to your BF! :-)

My understanding is that it is two fold: fullness and satiety. Fullness: Not drinking before or after (the times vary, but it comes down to don't drink/eat in combo) let's the whole system (before, during and beyond your band) deal with food and only food. This allows us to have a genuinely full feeling. The full feeling you get from liquids is much more fleeting and, unless its Water, gives an excess of calories. Now, satiety is another issue. Think of your most fantastic meal. Mine is a Beef Filet (tenderloin) cooked med rare. The first bite is fantastic...but many bites in, well they just don't measure up to the first bite. So, to renew the taste, the practice is to cleanse the palate with a liquid (water OR a fabulous Sonoma Valley Zinfandel, for instance) so that the next bite of steak is just a scrumptious as the first. Get the idea? If you take away palate cleansing between bites, then you end up with the genuine experience of just the food...you are much more likely to finish the whole filet if every single bite is dazzling. Likely to stop before it's gone if this is not so...

I definitely feel/felt that way. I got banded 10 days ago. For the past 10 years of my life I have been all about natural-wanted natural childbirth with no drugs, shop organic...hate artificial sweeteners because I like natural sugar. So, having this foreign object in my body has been, philosophically hard to swallow (pun intended). But I am starting to feel better now...eating normally and anxious to implement changes using this new thing as a tool. Naming it helps. Mine is my DLF (dear little friend) like Trumpkin in Narnia. :-)

Mink, I don't know that everyone gets one. My surgeon's office just puts a statement on the back of their business cards that says "Our patient has had an abdominal surgery and must eat very small meals. Please allow this person to order from the child's menu. Thank you." So, I keep that in my purse...not sure if I would use it though. Child's menu items stink. I don't even let my child eat that crap. :-) I might use it to get a smaller portion or lower price at a buffet though. Hasn't come up yet.

For one week after, my doc had me drink Ensure or Boost for vitamins. Other than that, I have been enjoying prepared soups...everything from broccoli cheese to tomato soup (Prefer the gourmet, boxed ones to the can). Oh, and Butternut Squash soup (boxed, prepared) is fantastic. Otherwise, sugar free jello and pudding are quick grabs for snacks. (TWO WEEKS BANDED NOW AND THIS IS WHAT I EAT...in addition to some soft solids now like instant mashed potatoes and I puree everything. I make dinner for my husband and 5 year old and just puree my part. We had zuchinni casserole and pork chops last night. I just put my serving in a blender and pureed. Like baby food.) :-)

I was banded one week ago on June 26, 2009. Surgery day was pretty smooth...outpatient and went home about 3 hours after surgery finished. Pain was horrible! I don't know if I forgot everything or if I just wasn't prepared but the pain was baffling. The gas was unbelievable and everywhere...especially shoulder. I was told at the hospital that I had to breathe more deeply or they wouldn't let me go home. So I got it in my head that this was imperative. I worked on the breathing all night and didn't sleep much...also, the barium gave me the most dramatic case of diarrhea in the history of me. :tongue2: Next day was worse...and again, it all seemed to be a surprise. I guess they don't want to emphasize the ugly parts much but my pain was pretty awful. Also, something was causing a surge in pressure about every 3-4 minutes which took my breath away. I tightness in my chest and I couldn't breathe. I talked to my doctor's office several times about it throughout the day and they became increasingly worried that I might have a blood clot. So, we were told to go to the emergency room where I spent 4 hours getting another barium swallow (nice, more diarrhea, thanks! ), a CT scan, x-rays and blood tests. They sent me home saying no-clots and I am just in recovery. Although the radiologist who completed this second Upper GI noted that he thought the band was a little "high." So, a few days later my best guess is that the thing causing the 'surge' in pain/pressure is my BAND. Each day the pressure lessens a bit....a week later now it only happens a time or two each day but I can't tell you how strange it is. Feels like, for just a moment, the band is creeping up into my chest. I am really short....with a short torso. Wondering if high band placement and 'compact' torso is cause for this occurrence. Wondering if any of you have ever heard of this before? Thanks for your support and info. I have had so many questions answered already just by reading your stories.

I worry about that too....my insurance changed to one that didn't cover surgery just when I decided to do it. So I have been doing a cha-cha for 8 months now, paying for the old and new policies and meeting all requirements. So now that i am 2 weeks post-op, I definitely don't have coverage. Fills will cost me $50 each and having it removed some day, while a possibility, is a bridge I will have to cross when I get there. Won't give that any of my energy right now. Making friends with my new DLF (dear little friend).

I think the sizes have changed...definitely. Especially big sizes. Lane Bryant, for example. I have an old Lane Bryant shirt (size 14/16, their smallest) that will not even go over my arms. I weighed 200 lbs when I wore it a few years ago. I bought a similar style (dress shirt) in a 14/16 there a few months ago and it fits perfectly. I think they have changed the sizes to accommodate our growing waistlines. Not helping! :-)

A PB is a Productive Burp. This is when something gets sorta stuck at the entrance to your stomach and a burp brings it back up...in the same condition it went down. Nice.