BetsyB

I don't get it. Has your husband been at home, thinking you're out walking every evening---while you've been stopping for a salad with your friend en route each night? I may be reading it wrong (I hope so!), but I'm envisioning your husband, at home, thinking his wife is out walking, working hard to establish new habits---while in reality, you're sneak eating and deviating from doctor's orders. Yes, break the date with your friend. It's time to change your pattern. (And if your friend is aware of your preop restrictions and is enabling your cheating, it might be time to change friends, too.) The point isn't whether a salad is terrible choice. The question is whether you are going to second-guess every professional recommendation you're given. There will be a lot of restrictions down the road---how are you going to handle them? You're right. One of the purposes of the preop diet is to stimulate the liver to give up its glycogen stores. Another is to promote a bit more weight loss before surgery. But another--important--purpose of the diet is to get you in the right mindset for the restrictions you will have postoperatively. You will not die as a result of eating salad. But you're doing yourself a huge disservice. And you're also doing your doctor a disservice. When you stop to think about it, every time a surgeon operates on a patient, s/he places his/her license on the line. A responsible patient does everything in her power to reduce the risk not only to herself, but also to the physician who is going out on a limb for her.

It's not a choice I'd make this soon out, but if you do go ahead, steer WAY clear of anything with carbonation.

I think your response is natural. Anger (frustration) is one of the stages of grief, and many do grieve the loss of what has been a source of pleasure and comfort for many years. It will pass with time. You will work through it, and come to a happier place where food does not have the importance to you that it does now. That does NOT mean you won't eat enjoyable foods again, or derive pleasure from eating. It just means that it will not meet the same needs as it did before. A really good book for dealing with the emotional aspects of overeating is Shrink Yourself by Roger Gould. Another good one is The Food and Feelings Workbook by Karen Koenig. Both help you figure out ways to deal with the frustration.

Learn something new every day! I never had this test. I did, however, just have the complete metabolic panel done via blood test--after fasting. It's so interesting to me how differently doctors approach the surgery and aftercare.

I don't think that the alcohol will be an issue at all. As long as you stick to real moderation, you don't have to worry about it affecting your weight or impacting your liver in any lasting way. The smoking is a bigger issue. It really is strongly, strongly recommended that you not smoke for at least four weeks before surgery. While even a couple of days of not smoking produces some benefits (reduced carbon monoxide levels, for example), quitting for less than 4 weeks before surgery may actually increase respiratory risk from anesthesia. I know this sounds insane, but it makes sense if you consider that when you stop smoking, your lungs increase their production of mucus as they heal. These extra secretions help you hack out the crud from smoking----and in the long term are beneficial. But they're not beneficial if you are combining them with anesthesia, abdominal pain that prevents coughing to clear the secretions, and so on. Smoking 2 weeks before surgery really ups your risks. Quitting for 2 weeks before just isn't enough. I'm a former smoker, and know that drinking and smoking often go hand in hand; when I quit smoking, I had to give up drinking for quite a while. If you can't separate the two, that'd probably be the safest route for you to take.

It really depends on your doctor's restrictions. At two weeks, I was on soft Proteins only. I would not likely have had any difficulty with "regular" foods, in terms of getting stuck---but they were completely contrary to my doctor's plan. There are as many postop eating plans, it seems, as there are doctors/nutritionists. I'd give your doctor a call to see what his/her postop "rules" are. It's great that you're planning ahead--and that the venue seems very receptive to meeting your needs! (It might be a good idea to pack a pouch of Inspire Protein powder or something similar; I suggest Inspire not only because it tastes better than anything I've tried, but also because (a) it packs easily, and (:thumbup: it dissolves easily in just 4 oz. water---you won't need a blender or shaker cup, or anything special at all.)

It is illegal to deny emergency care to those presenting in an emergency department. I would write a letter to the hospital's quality control manager. But I would also report the hospital, and the bariatric surgeon you spoke with to your state licensing agency. The emergency room doctor did the right thing in calling in the surgeon; he likely was not able to do it himself, and called the person who could. THAT is the person who failed you. And he should be reported to the licensing agency.

I really liked having sugar-free popsicles on hand.

It really does get better---before too long, you'll be amazed how food really does start taking a back seat in life.

Well, aren't we all jolly?

No. It doesn't mean that. Grooming/hygiene are assessed as part of an overall physical assessment; they can give clues to a patient's overall well-being. (Grooming/hygiene can deteriorate as a result of certain physical disabilities as well as due to things such as depression.) The wording just shows that her doctor isn't a very good writer---like many doctors (and nurses). Physician's and nurse's notes tend to include a lot of rote phrases that do the job of recording an assessment quickly, but not particularly articulately. "Alert and oriented x3; PERLLA; heart rate 80, rhythm regular; lungs clear bilaterally; bowel sounds active; ROM intact to all extremities; skin warm, dry intact; normal grooming; obese." It's not pretty to read, that's for sure---but all of our charts would contain, I am sure, similar eye-openers.

My doctor has a similar regimen, and the expectation that it will be adhered to during bandster hell. My PCP is 100% supportive of it, and I've been just about 100% compliant. At 3.5 months out, I'm not at 50 pounds down (my doctor never voiced an expectation of that sort), but I've lost 42. So, I'm going to go out on a limb and say, "Give it your best shot." I really don't think it's nuts. I don't believe maintaining or gaining during bandster hell are a given. I certainly understand accepting our bodies' needs for TLC and healing. But I don't believe that the fact that we can eat dictates that we must. This is the LAST time you are going to have to suffer hunger in the name of weight loss. You now have a tool that will remove that aspect of the struggle. But during the time you wait for the tool to become effective, you can adhere to your doctor's plan and lose weight, if you choose to do so. It's difficult, but it sure feels good to see the weight come off.

I understand your frustration--truly, I do. But the above leapt out at me. Why haven't you had a "decent meal" in two or three months? Are you continuing to define "decent" by the yardstick you used preoperatively? If so, it's time to reframe. Find ways to make the foods that are on your plan into lovely meals. You are going to be dissatisfied forever if you cannot get past this hurdle. Eating is different, now and forever. This does not mean you cannot have indulgences. It means that most of the time, you will need to eat within certain parameters. You can choose to view it as punishment (as "never having a decent meal"), or you can find ways to make it pleasant and fulfilling. It's entirely in your hands. Coloradobanding--great post.

Cast another vote for the Y--I love that it is so family-oriented.

Greetings from your slacker BB&B member---I am sorry to have been absent; I've had a (bad) emotional couple of weeks, and have been steering clear of people because I've been a GROUCH. Not the best approach, but I hate to inflict myself on y'all when I don't have anything positive to offer. I have screwed my head back on straight, though, so here I am... LeeAnne, congratulations on your band! I hope it's all smooth sailing for you!

At five weeks, I was cleared for all exercise with no restrictions. Check with your doctor, but I bet you will be given a green light.

Do you have flexibility in your mealtimes? If so, I'd shift your dinnertime up a bit--dinner at 5:30 requires that you go an awfully long time without eating, even if you add in a Protein shake later in the evening. Dinner at 6:30 and a Protein Shake around 9 would make a huge difference, I bet.

Acetaminophen is fine. Aspirin is not; aspirin is an NSAID, and can contribute to ulcer formation.

My insurance company gave conditional approval; I knew that if I completed my doctor's supervision, approval was forthcoming. (I, too, had documented WW attendance, as well as documented supervision by my PCP; the "official" supervision did not begin until I stepped on the bariatric surgeon's scale.) The three months went by FAST---there is lots of other stuff crammed in there, so you'll be busy as you "wait." (It's a really great time to focus on behaviors you'll need postop, too :thumbup:)

I don't think I would self-initiate a Liquid Protein diet simply because other doctors require it. On the other hand, I would start practicing the eating behaviors that are required postop. Small bites, chewing, no drinking while eating, etc. These are the things that the brain has to wrap around---being uber-hungry and consuming only liquids? Not so much. (That's the part we endure because it's a means to an end.) Your doctor makes his/her recommendations for a reason, based on his/her experiences. If s/he felt that you required a Protein diet to reduce the size of your liver preoperatively, s/he'd prescribe that for you.

Because of the connection with ulcer formation, many doctors strongly recommend against reintroducing caffeine---ever. Some are okay with caffeine, but recommend against coffee (caffeinated or decaf), because it's acidic--and the particular acids may be more related to ulcers than caffeine. And still others don't think it's a huge concern, and are okay with reintroducing caffeine, whether in coffee form or not.

What are you eating? In what amounts? What kinds of exercise are you doing?

Well, compared to all the times I really struggled to lose, only to regain what I lost (plus some), the band really does represent an easier way out. Or, at least a way out! I couldn't really find that way out before---so I'm fine with people calling it whatever they want. When others say stuff like this, it's usually to justify their own decisions. Let it roll off your back---it's not worth your angst. Your day is almost here! Good luck! It won't be easy. But it will make things possible for you that haven't been possible so far.

I use fitday, too :smile:

Pharmacists need to know about how drugs work, how they interact with one another, and whether they might induce an allergic response in patients who've identified drug allergies. They cannot possibly be expected to know the restrictions associated with every disease process and surgery that walks through the drugstore door. Determining whether the size of your stoma requires a liquid med or a pill splitter is the prescribing physician's purview (and if not a bariatric surgeon, that physician might require education from you). The pharmacist's role is to dispense prescriptions safely using different benchmarks. If you want the people who provide care to you to know about your band and your restrictions, it's your responsibility to tell them. Most are very receptive. Sometimes, patients are the best teachers. No one says you need to become the Ambassador of All Things Band-Related. But extend a little grace to the vast population of people for whom banding has really not even registered on the radar. They make up most of the world.