zobee

Thanks! It helps to know what to expect -- I appreciate it!

Thanks, that makes me feel better! Heather, how did they determine that your port had flipped?

Yesterday, while napping, I rolled onto my left side and woke up with this burning/pulling pain and then a weird sensation, like something slipped/squished/slid. Today, my port area hurts. My question: has anyone ever actually felt their band slip? And if so, does that describe it? Also: I have an appointment on March 1 to see my surgeon. If my band has slipped, do I need to get in sooner, or will it be okay to wait (I do not have a fill, if that's important to know). I'm going to call my doctor's office tomorrow, for sure, but am curious to know if this is some sort of emergency that I need to be worried about, lol. Thanks!

I think the confusion begins in that I am not a military wife, ha ha -- so no, I used BC/BS to pay for my surgery. My husband was in the Marine Corp and served overseas during all of Regan's administration, and then some. I started the group to support current military spouses, but anyone is welcome to join, military or no. A lot of civilians appreciate the opportunity to help our armed forces in some way. Hope that clears that up, ha ha!

Very cool -- thanks! It seems like the majority with iphones use loseit over any other app. I'll check it out - thanks again!

Mine required 12 weeks. If I were you, I would be up front about it with your doctor. Tell him the exact date that you quit -- but also tell him exactly how much you smoke. The reason being that as a matter of standard practice, many doctors will include an order to test for smoking during your preop bloodwork. You'll be told that nicotine leaves your bloodstream in 48 hours, and that's true - but they don't test for nicotine. They test for the metabolite, Cotinine. You'll find various numbers on the internet about how long cotinine stays in your bloodstream (most of these manipulated by people trying to sell detox miracles that don't work), but the general consensus is that it may stay in your bloodstream for up to 12 weeks. Most doctors are very up front and will tell you in your preop visit that if they find you've been smoking within the 8 or 12 weeks that they've instructed you to be smoke free, they will cancel your surgery. And some will refuse to reschedule. I even heard one story about a doctor who was wheeling a patient into the OR when he found out, and he ordered her out of the hospital. Rather than chance it, I was honest and told my doctor that I would only be nicotine free for 6 weeks at the time of the surgery -- but that I had actually quit smoking two weeks prior. I let them know that my blood work would show the cotinine because I was using an electronic cigarette, with a 6 mg nicotine level, but that even when I was smoking regular cigarettes, they were lights and I only smoked about a half pack a day. They appreciated my honesty, weighed all that information and cleared me for surgery. If you would like to quit smoking all together, I would recommend getting an ecig. It worked for me! On an aside, I could send you a link to a humor article that I wrote about it in my blog, but I'm afraid the language isn't very good. I was in the throes of a full on nicotine withdrawal attack at the time, and feeling fairly grumpy (as in, I wanted to kill people, ha ha). If you're interested, PM me and I'll send you the link. Best of luck to you!

Hi Stevie! I sent you a PM with a personal invitation to join us at Walking With Warriors -- a group designed to help support, encourage, and motivate military spouses. Hope to see you there!

Have they checked to see if maybe it doesn't have anything to do with the band? Maybe some kind of bacteria in your stomach? My daughter doesn't have a band, but -- she was very ill a few months ago -- couldn't keep anything down. Did all sorts of tests including an endoscopy and it was found that she had h. pylori bacteria in her stomach. They did a triple treatment and she's right as rain. Hope you feel better soon - I can't imagine what you must be going through :rolleyes2:

Don't take this the wrong way, but it's so nice to hear that you are also having this problem -- or more to the point, it's good to know that I'm not alone. I couldn't get in touch with my doctor today, but I'm going to keep trying until I get a call back. If you learn something before I do, please let me know!