Astrasmom

Congratulations. This will be a life changing experience for you. One that you will be amazed with. It's normal what you are feeling right now. Have you been diagnosed with sleep Apnea? Do you use a machine? I have had sleep Apnea for about 4 years now and do use a machine. My goal is to be off the machine in another few months. The Lapband procedure is really not as bad as people think. You will be sore for a few days. You might have some gas from the air that they pump into you during surgery but you will be amazed at how it changes your eating habits. Get yourself some GasX strips for the gas pains. Be sure to take your pain meds if you are prescribed them when you need them and walk as much as you can to help get that trapped gas out. If you follow the plan that your doctor gives you, then you will be a success. Your sleep Apnea should hopefully go away. Unless you have the Apnea that my husband has which is the Apnea baby's get and not from snoring. I was banded on Oct. 23, 2009 and feel wonderful. I've also had open heart surgery in 2001 for a Aortic Aneurysm. They also had to repair my valve. I will need to get this done in another few years because they used a pigs valve the first time around and they don't last for more than 10 years. The next time I will get a mechanical valve. I am very excited to go back to my cardiologist and show her my progress from the lapband surgery. I've lost 29lbs since surgery. I have more energy and I dropped 3 sizes in clothing. If I had it to do all over again I would. Please feel free to add me as a friend if you like. I would be happy to answer any questions that you might have that I am able to answer.

This is normal. It takes a good 2 weeks for all of that pain to go away. It does lessen everyday though. You should continue to take it easy for a few more days. If it continues to hurt really bad than I would call your doctor.

Every doctor is different. My port is in the left side. Some are in the belly button. The port is usually where your biggest incision was. Try not to do to much bending over and picking things up. The only thing you should be doing is resting and walking as much as possible. Try sugar free ice pops. I lived on them and still do. You have to drink every hour so that you do not dehydrate. Also my NUT said that I could take 8oz of Protein drink instead of 4oz because I was hungry in between meals. You just have to sip it really slow. Ask your NUT if you can also do that. Pain on your lower right side could be gallbladder too. If it doesn't get better call your doctor.

My recommendation is to not cheat. But I will tell you that when I was on the liquid for 2 weeks before surgery, I had a scrambled egg and 2 pieces of fat free lunch meat. It didn't stop me from having surgery. But the idea of fasting is to shrink your liver as much as possible. This way it's easier for the doctor to move around inside during surgery. Stick to the plan because once you are banded you will be successful. The faster you teach yourself not to 'cheat' the more easier it will be in the long run for you. Congratulations on your upcoming surgery. I wish you much success.

This is a lifestyle change. Not a life change. Everyone makes mistakes. We are human. The band is not a miracle that is going to get you to stop eating and follow a strict program. You will learn as you go along that if you stick to the plan that your doctor gave you, you will be more successful. You aren't going to hurt your band just because you had a green bean and an egg. If you totally pigged out, then I would say you run the risk of stretching your pouch. But I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong. From now on, even if it is hard, follow the program. You'll be fine. Nothing to worry about.

They go by the BMI at my doctors. If your BMI is 45 or over it's 2 weeks before surgery. Lower than 45 it's 1 week before surgery. Congratulations and good luck to you.

This is what they did for my first fill. I was kind of nervous also. Again all doctors are different. My first fill I had under X-ray. I was put on the x-ray table an it went into an upright position so I was standing. They put the needle into my port, without any numbing medicine. It actually felt like a little misquito bite. It wasn't that bad at all. I had to drink that horrible barium again (they said it was the last time unless I had problems) and then they took the X-ray while they were filling me. It was not as bad as I thought it would be.

You could do all the care to with your son, you would just need someone to lift him for you. Maybe he would allow that? Either way, you are a very strong person and I know that you will do awesome with the lapband surgery. Good luck to you.

Thank you so much. I will definately ask the doc next time I go.

So I was wondering if anyone has to pre-med before dental procedures? I had open heart surgery in 2001 and had my lapband surgery on Oct. 23rd, 2009. I haven't been to the dentist yet but will be soon. I have to take 4, 500mg capsules an hour before the procedure. Many people have said not to take all of your pills at the same time. To wait for an hour or so between pills. However that's not possible for me. I have to take the 500mgs an hour before surgery to prevent a blood infection from going to my heart. Can anyone enlighten me on this issue. Can I take 4 pills, one after the other? I don't really want to open them and take them that way. They taste really nasty.

Ultimately to be blunt (and pardon if this offends anyone) we are in this for ourselves. It's great to have people to support you. But even if they put a peice of double layer chocolate cake infront of you, they aren't forcing you to eat it. They aren't shoving it down your throats. You are the one that has to have the will power. For most of us this surgery was the last straw on the long list of diet hell. My attitude these days are, I am not going to let anyone or anything sabotage my health any longer. I will control food and won't allow it to control me any longer. So no matter what, you need to find that inner strength and make up your mind that this is not going to keep happening to you. Break the cycle. And yes I know it's easier said then done. But we all have that little voice deep down inside of us that we need to find. Be strong. You will over come.

The average loss for Lapband is about 2lbs a week. Some people don't lose at all before their 2nd or more fills. This is all normal. My doctor told me that I probably wouldn't lose any weight after my first check-up but I did wind up losing another 4lbs. Your friend isn't giving it a chance to work. Do you know how much she has lost? I'm not sure about in your state but in mine they have Respite care. I know it's very hard to trust others with your child. Especially when they are total care. My situation is no where near like yours. My son does have Down Syndrome but he's not total care. Is there any support groups or local schools that you might reach out to, to see if there is any help that you can get while you and your husband are mending? Is your son very heavy? I'm sorry if I lived by you I would sure help. I've worked with severly handicapped children for many years and love to do it. Lets hope that your husbands surgery is not scheduled the same time that yours is because they really don't want you lifting for at least a month. Please keep us posted. I wish you all the luck in the world.

If he's truly trying to help you and doesn't think that it's sabotage, ask him to bring you some fruit or yogurt instead. Maybe some sugar free pudding or Jello? Give him some suggestions of things that you can have instead of things that you aren't supposed to have. IF that doesn't work, then I would suggest when you get upset to go into another room of the house and tell everyone to leave you alone.

. What you are experiencing more then likely is the stitches that hold your port in place, pulling. This is a normal thing and does happen. I would suggest if you can possibly lighten up your activity for a few days to see if the pinching goes away, otherwise your stitches could break which could or could not make your port rotate. Then you would have to go through the surgery again. Sometimes it's better to take it easy even if you feel you have no choice. If the pinching gets worse I would call your doctor.

More then likely you just pulled some muscles in that area. I would suggest putting ice on it for the first 24 hours. Every hour 20 minutes on. Take it easy and try not to lift anything or use those muscles in your stomach as little as you possibly can. And definately call your doctor if the pain gets worse. But for sure call them on Monday. Good luck to you.

Congratulations and God bless you. I have to give you alot of credit for what you AND your husband are doing. First let me start by saying take things one day at a time. There were many things that many of us had to go through to get to the surgery part. I had to wait 6 months and go to see several specialists and a phsyc. visit, plus 6 nutrional visits. But you know as I look back at the long journey that I made to get here, it has all made me even stronger. I learned alot about myself in the begining stages. Especially with the nutrional visits. I also had the upper PH probe that you are having when I had my open heart surgery in 2001. I won't lie. It wasn't easy. I did gag a bit, but it doesn't take that long to do the procedure. They do numb your throat a little with a swipe. I also had the hiatal hernia which they repaired when they did my lapband. As for the weighloss I have lost 29lbs since surgery on Oct. 23, 2009. As my nutrionist told me if you stick to the plan, you will lost weight. It's not easy and it's not a quick fix. IT does take work and alot of effort on your part. The band is a tool to help you lose the weight and keep it off. I have no idea why the band didn't work for your friend. Everyone has different circumstances. Maybe her diet wasn't right. Maybe she didn't exercise. Who knows. Our saying is 'Everything in Moderation.' You don't have to give up living. This is a lifestyle change, not a life change. But you are more successful with the band then you are without the band. At least in my case I have been. I would have gained the weight I have taken off, back within no time if I didn't have the band. As for your son. Will there be someone around to help you? You won't be able to lift anything heavy for at least a month after your surgery. Remember take everything one day at a time. It seems like a long, hard journey, but the rewards are great. Best of luck to you and your husband.

First let me say Congratulations. Secondly let me tell you, although it's very normal to feel nervous about the procedure, it's not as bad as everyone thinks it is. I was banded on Oct. 23, 2009. My surgery was on a Friday and I went back to work on a Tuesday. I didn't have alot of gas pains. I did walk alot to keep the gas moving. My progress so far has been great. I have lost 2 inches off my waist and 29lbs. To ease your nervousness a little more. In 2001 I had open heart surgery for an aortic anuerysm. They also replaced my valve. I will need to have it done again because I chose to have a pigs valve the first time. And they only last for about 10 years. The next time around I will be getting a mechanical valve. Anyway my cardiologist told me that if I didn't lose the weight I would have taken the risk of dieing on the table or developing all types of infections. My point is, with my heart problems I made it through the lapband surgery just fine. The only real discomfort is where your port is. It's usually by your largest incision. And that really isn't that bad. My suggestion would be to get yourself some Gas-X strips for the gas that they pump into you. Make sure that you walk as much as possible. A small pillow for your stomach do you some good and a heating pad if you need that. I wish you much luck in your weighloss. We'll save a seat on the losers bench for you. Please keep us posted on your progress.

The saying that we go by at our support group is, "Face it. Deal with it, and move along." Meaning don't beat yourself up for slipping up once and awhile. We aren't perfect and it's going to happen once and awhile. This is a life style change not a life change. You obviously know what you did so if it happens again, try waiting 10 minutes before you eat what you did. We all deal with stress in different ways. I'm sorry about your father-in-law also.

I have lost 29lbs and have gone down 2 sizes. You can drop inches before you drop sizes. It's not necessarily weight that has to be dropped for sizes.

Yes it's normal. Try some GasX strips. That should help with the pain. Also a heating pad might help. It should go away in a day or 2.

Try using a heating pad. You can also use GasX strips to help get rid of that gas in your shoulder. It will get better even though right now it might not seem that way. If the vicodin isn't working then you probably should call your doctor and ask them if they can give you something else for the pain. Most of the pain is probably from gas though. Try the GasX strips first.

As everyone else stated. Walk around as much as possible. Use a nice fluffy pillow to hold on your tummy and use a heating pad. If your doctor sent home pain pills be sure to use them. You will feel better in a couple of days. The pain gets easier everyday. Congrats and hope you feel better soon.

You need to shock your body a little. Taking in the same amount of calories a day no matter HOW much you exercise and how much you eat, your body will get used to the calories and it won't lose the weight. You need to at least 2 days a week take in a little more calorie intake. Eat a higher caloric food. Your weight will start coming off again. Best of luck to you.

Congratulations and welcome to the losers bench. I look forward to hearing about your progress as you go along. If you have any questions along the way, please don't hesitate to ask. Best of luck to you.:thumbup:

You can eat anything the day of the fill. After the fill my Dr. said just liquids for the remainder of the day. The next day you can go back to the food you have been on. Just make sure that you do not drink fast. Take smaller sips then what you have been doing because I made the mistake of drinking too fast after the fill and I experienced the stuck feeling as which I vomited too. Most people don't feel restriction after the first fill. I did. Good luck to you.