btrieger

Home already and awake enough to be online? Congrats!! Was there a lot of wait time between arrival and surgery?

I am on day 11 of my pre-op and enjoying it. Just keep your eyes on the prize. I am averaging a pound a day.

I only fly once or twice a year and splurge on business class on Air Tran. I have no problem asking for a belt extender, it's not like I can hide the fact that I am rotund. What kills me is the fact that the tray table won't come down all the way over my fat. So, I can't set my drink down and relax. PS. I actually enjoy looking at people's faces prior to boarding and trying to figure out which ones are worried that I am seated next to them. :confused:

Sounds like you are doing great. Congrats!! What is the pain like on day 6? Is it all gone?

Do the people being banded on March 17th get a green band? Yes, that was corny. :thumbdown:

This is turning into a friggin' soap opera and I hate drama. I called my surgeons office today and spoke with the office manager and before I got a chance to whine or threaten, she told me that the girl I had been working with was gone, "she just didn't work out." I said, "good, she screwed my plans up. I should have been banded a month ago." Then she told me that I must have been the patient that complained about her and that I should have complained sooner. I would usually feel bad about getting this girl fired but I don't. I feel relieved. Needless to say, my surgery is back on for March 2 in the hospital it was supposed to take place in in the first place. March 3 will be the last time that Dr Kim does surgery in that hospital. I think I may be turning anorexic. I haven't eaten solid food in 10 days and am not hungry. I'm really not even interested in eating. I'll tell you what though, I am giving birth to some rock hard, mega-turds. I don't know how a shake can do this to me or if these have been up there for 5 years waiting for their opportunity but they hurt! Any woman that dares tell me that I don't know what it feels like to have a baby is going to get an earful.

I hate it and always will. Well, at least before I do it every day. I feel great afterward and am proud of myself for doing it. I look at at as, "just do it and get it out of the way."

The same guy is doing me on March 2nd and making me go all the way to Decatur. Good luck Reshee and everyone else having surgery tomorrow.

5 Optifast shakes a day. 160 calories each for a total of 800. They are delicious but I don't know if they are available in Korea.

Bell, I am getting banded in 2 weeks. I have been researching the band for over a year. You are asking some great questions. Different people get banded for different reasons. I have absolutely no problem losing weight. I never have. Unfortunately, I am even better at gaining it. I am getting banded for portion control. I look at the band as a tool for stopping or slowing weight gain. I think I will be successful with it because I usually eat the right things, meat and potatoes. Just too much of them. I will do my part by losing the weight when I can and the band will play its part but keeping me from gaining it back when my willpower dwindles.

Thanks all. Gonna try the miralax. I usually have some big ones but without an ounce of fiber in the last 10 days they are real hard. Jax, you can only get Optifast from distributers. My surgeon happens to be one. Go to OPTIFAST - weight loss, weight management, improved health, renewed energy and self esteem. There is a distributor locator there. It is not cheap. $20 for a box of 7 packages. The strawberry and chocolate are delicious. Vanilla is ok but a little bland.

When I was constipated, I didn't have to go. It was way up in my up in my intestines and refused to budge. See a doctor! Either convince your mom to take you to the doctor or Google for free clinics in your area. If there is a university close by, there may be one.

How much do you weigh and have you talked to other surgeons?

The diet is to shrink your liver. It is located just above your stomach and can get in the way during surgery if it is too fat. Check out a couple of surgeries on youtube if you are not queasy. I am on day 10 of a 3 week liquid diet and actually enjoying it. As Betsy alluded to, I am focused on the results and not the actual diet. I haven't felt any weakness of sluggishness. I do get a little lightheaded for a second if I stand up too fast from a laying position.

Bob, here's a wake up call. If you are morbidly obese, have hypertension, sleep apnea and a family history of heart disease; you are not fairly healthy. I thought the same way up until I had a heart attack 3 days before my 45th birthday. Yep, mom and dad dieing weren't enough of a kick in the ass for me. You may be in denial but you are moving in the right direction. Knowing and admitting the problem is a huge step to resolving it. You don't need to conquer everything all at once. I started by eating all of the same things but cutting my portions by 25%. Then I started replacing certain foods with healthier ones a couple at a time. March 3rd is 2 weeks away and surgery will change your life. Hopefully for the better. I'm getting banded the day before you and we can whine to each other about how painful it is or laugh about how good the painkillers are.

I am no doctor but I think you are too young for kidney stones. I'd had diverticulitis and been constipated. Both were very painful at about belly button level. Have you take a good dump lately? Does the pain subside when you are up and about?

I just finished my 10th day of a 3 week, 800 calorie a day, Optifast diet and have not been hungry at all. I honestly miss cooking food more than I miss eating it. I've lost a lot of weight already and am determined to keep going. I don't think a little picking is going to kill you but I would ask them not to bring sweets in the house. If they are sympathetic, they will understand. If they continue, then you just stop cooking. Hang in there and keep the picking to a minimum.

This is turning into a friggin' soap opera and I hate drama. I called my surgeons office today and spoke with the office manager and before I got a chance to whine or threaten, she told me that the girl I had been working with was gone, "she just didn't work out." I said, "good, she screwed my plans up. I should have been banded a month ago." Then she told me that I must have been the patient that complained about her and that I should have complained sooner. I would usually feel bad about getting this girl fired but I don't. I feel relieved. Needless to say, my surgery is back on for March 2 in the hospital it was supposed to take place in in the first place. March 3 will be the last time that Dr Kim does surgery in that hospital. I think I may be turning anorexic. I haven't eaten solid food in 10 days and am not hungry. I'm really not even interested in eating. I'll tell you what though, I am giving birth to some rock hard, mega-turds. I don't know how a shake can do this to me or if these have been up there for 5 years waiting for their opportunity but they hurt! Any woman that dares tell me that I don't know what it feels like to have a baby is going to get an earful.

It's day 8 of my pre-op, Optifast diet. I thought about giving up when I got the bad news on Friday but I didn't. I have been drinking nothing but these delicious Optifast shakes for 7+ days now and I have not been hungry. Yesterday, I actually had to remind myself to drink one for breakfast and every 3 or so hours afterwards. My weight is dropping at rates that would make Biggest Loser contestants jealous. I've lost 9 pounds since last Monday. That is insentive enough to keep going. I'm going to call my surgeon's office today and if they are open (US holiday), threaten to take my surgery elsewhere. Hopefully that will get some kind of reaction out of them.

Congrats!!!!! I am so happy for you and hope I can post the same for myself soon.

You are consulting with the surgeon and he probably has office staff that file reports with insurance companies every day. Either give his office a call for help with the questions or bring the forms with you incomplete and let his staff help you fill them out. They will do what they can to assist you and if they don't; do you really want to be dealing with that surgeon?

I checked out the "Patients Bill of Rights" and it says that it is for patients that are hospitalized. Does this include office visits? http://www.health.state.ny.us/professionals/patients/patient_rights/docs/english.pdf #15 is what Christie is referring to.

lbndoc, I took that approach to start but it didn't appear that the girl I was dealing cared. I took the same approach yesterday and whined instead of bitching or threatening. The office manager is supposed to call me back tomorrow. If I don't at least hear from the office manager tomorrow, there will be a new surgeon. It will kill me though. I looked really hard for the best surgeon in the DFW area and came up with my current surgeon.