JoiaRox

Although I was still a little sleepy, I felt "regular" about a week post-op. On Day 8 I drove 3+ hours to a retirement party for my former boss (drank water the whole time) after looking at houses in a neighboring state that morning. I went back to work on Day 10 and now, Day 14, I'm finishing up my first work week feeling fine!

Dumb question (maybe) - have you tried GasX strips? They work WONDERS for a lot of people!

I became really good at the "sleep, sip, walk, sip, sleep, sip, walk, sip, sleep..." routine post-op!

Two words: do it. I had my "Revision" done in two steps (band removal in March, sleeved 2 weeks ago) because my doctor prefers that a patient's stomach heals before dissecting it - then again, I had a crap load of trauma done to my stomach after 2+ years of a horribly slipped band.

Piece of cake for me! Nausea was my enemy in the hospital, but I stayed - as scheduled - overnight and the nausea was whipped into submission by the awesome staff. My only "recovery" problem was lack of energy...but, then again, not consuming much in the way of calories (energy) justifies it! I'm 2 weeks post-op tomorrow and have been back at work all week (3+ hours of commuting each day). This surgery was definitely a piece of cake!

Comments from the ignorant never sting

Being on the Vertical Sleeve Talk forums, I'm sure you're aware that you're going to hear primarily from "pro-sleevers." Personally, I had a LapBand put in January 2010 and it began to slip a year out. While I lost 130 pounds with the band, the slip continued further and further until it was at the bottom of my stomach (my new doctor has no idea how it got that far). Long story short, I moved states/careers after getting the surgery and found a terrific doctor (my current doc) - but my insurance wouldn't cover removal no matter what. My slip was life threatening (one stuck episode could cause a trip to the ER for emergency removal - insurance made it clear they wouldn't cover that either). I lived with a severely and irreparably slipped band for 2+ years and slowly ate/threw up/drank (high sugar drinks) nearly 100 of the pounds I had lost - we call that pity/depression and "soft food syndrome" - eating/drinking anything that has a chance of going down...FYI? Frapuccinos are not good for weight loss . Cut to December 2012 - I was laid off from the job I had moved cross country for and, luckily, was re-employed in a new state in late January 2013. This job's insurance COVERS WLS - I got the band removed in March 2013 (had to wait for my new insurance to kick in) and, after my stomach had a chance to heal, was sleeved 2 weeks ago. Initially, I had a lot of the same thoughts posted above - I chose the band because I didn't want to permanently alter myself, was worried about complications, etc. The statistics today, though, are what they are - much more in favor of the sleeve for long term and permanent weight loss, much safer, etc. The band, on the other hand, has decreased in both effectiveness and safety since I had it done in 2010. Knowing what I know now? Even without having experienced the hell I endured? I'd choose the sleeve over the band. And? I'm stoked to be a new sleever . Do the research and come to your own, informed conclusion - it's the only way you'll be at peace with your decision! Horror stories are what they are - some live through them, some don't. The way I see it? Obesity isn't a disease I want to live with for the rest of my life, and I certainly don't want the complications that are bound to come my way as an aging obese person (I'm 32 now, but co-morbidities run rampant in my obese family). WLS is my forced behavior modification - my tool - to help me conquer this lifelong battle.

I mix my chocolate protein powder with 2T of PB2 - low fat and YUMMMMY!

Have you tried Greek yogurt? Fascinating amount of protein in such a lil' container - I've found it to be helpful in my "full liquids" stage (ONE MORE DAY THANK GOD!). Luckily, yogurt is on my list of approved foods at the moment. I'm not a fan of the plain yogurt, but the flavored ones are divine!

I just giggle at the MFP recommendations . I use it to track my protein, more than anything, and watching calories is just an interesting, daily observation!

I resumed a normal sleeping pattern 9 days post op - primarily because I forced myself not to take a nap that day because I was returning to work the next day.

Yayayayayay!

I went back to work today and worked longer than I had planned (8.5 hours) because I was so slammed with catchup work - and that's on top of a 3+ hour total commute. Surprisingly, being back in "the game" and drinking water all day kept me less exhausted than I had anticipated being. I was sleepy on my drive home tonight, but I feel good about making it through the day. I drank a double scoop protein shake with milk on my drive in this morning - perhaps the early surge of 50g of protein helped as well? Good luck!

I'll hope for the best for you as well! As a general rule, my doctor won't do a conversion surgery. I had my irreparable band out in March and had to wait 11 weeks for my sleeve. Gained weight in the meantime (ahhh - the freedom of being able to keep down solid food again!!), but my stomach had morphed into something huge and swollen because of the 2+ years I dealt with the slip (the insurance I had then wouldn't cover removal). They said that my stomach was the largest, and most awkwardly shaped, they'd ever removed from a sleeve patient

I'm on "full liquids" on the other side - for three more days! The difference on the post-op side is that your hunger has dissipated, making it easier to avoid those fast food commercials and your boyfriend chowing down on chicken nuggets next to you (oh...that was me tonight). There is a greater purpose for all of this, and we chose to do it! Stay strong, woman - YOU ARE WORTH IT! P.S. Post-op? Protein shakes are still no fun to get down. But, you do it. Cuz your NUT said so.

I'd definitely ask for more clarification from your surgeon - I had a pre-op diet and very strict instructions post-op (I'm on "full liquids" right now). As a former LapBand patient (mine had slipped to the bottom of my stomach - ugh!), I'm also very careful to follow every direction to a "tee" this time around - definitely a worse outcome if you try to go faster than your sleeve needs you to go! My NUT gave me a full binder of material to read with their recommendations and protocols. I've since made my own tabs in the thing to help me as I move through recovery

And then there are those of us reading this and hating you (kidding!) because we have the opposite problem...lol. Just took some Miralax tonight to see if that will help!

6dpo was the first one I had post-op. If you feel like you have to go and can't, that's when you should intervene - although my doctor did suggest Miralax to help things smooth themselves over . Listen to your body - remember, you aren't necessarily eating enough to "create" a BM, so you're not necessarily going to go every day. Some people get the runs - I haven't.

Brought up my Day 6po on MyFitnessPal...I had a cup of coffee with creamer, Cream of Chicken soup with a scoop of Chicken Soup Flavor protein, SF pudding with a scoop of Chocolate protein powder and a protein blended ice smoothie with almond milk, vanilla protein powder and unsweetened cocoa powder. Oh - and vitamins and lots of water!

Ditto - my doc would say no to the noodles and yes to the broth. I'm on "full liquids" from Day 4 post-op to Day 13. If it can't pass easily through a straw, or requires any kind of chewing to break down, the answer's no.

I don't know about "most" people, but the rate of removal and/or conversion to sleeve is rapidly growing. It was the "it" surgery a few years ago, but now that data has caught up to it's usefulness, it's proving not to be "all that." Again, I'm slightly biased because of my own, horrible experience with it - although I will say that my doctor is preferential to the sleeve now because of current research. He'll perform either surgery at the request of the patient, but recognizes the higher efficacy and lower complication rate of the sleeve.

I'm a failed LapBander. Go sleeve! My personal opinions (not to be taken for medical fact or for normal comparisons - I have many LapBand friends through blogging that have been quite successful): BAND Requires active maintenance to get to and stay at "green zone" for optimal weight loss Body fights foreign object in your body Complication rate relatively high (much higher than when I got it in January 2010) High incidence of acid reflux Stretching of pouch Intolerance of many foods (for me - lettuce & bread were the big ones...but nachos went down easy?!) SLEEVE Virtually maintenance free Permanent alteration Lower incidence of complications than LapBand Forced behavior modification from the word "go" - no fill/unfill drama of LapBand Currently the top, and best rated, WLS on the market - being used in higher percentages now vs. LapBand because of complications Long story short, my LapBand slipped in early 2011 because of the fill/unfill game my horrible doctor played without ever doing a barium swallow to see what was going on. I lost 120 pounds initially, but when I developed a solid food intolerance (had to force myself to throw up daily) because of the severe slippage (now being treated by a phenomenal doctor), I regained all but 30 pounds I had lost because I developed "soft food syndrome" - in essence, I drank high calorie liquids to soothe my pain. Finally had the LapBand removed in March 2013 and was sleeved 9 days ago. I learned great lessons through my LapBand ordeal and have gone into the Sleeve surgery with my eyes wide open and my brain in a better space. I'm eager for my new life!

Time to find a new PCP? I'm not overly attached to mine, but, thankfully, she had nothing to do with my sleeve approval - heck, she doesn't even know I had one! Guess she'll find out eventually!

Any thoughts as to why? Did you have complications? Do you get all your fluids/protein on a daily basis? Taking vitamins? Have you talked to your doctor about your lethargy? It's not a fun way to live, so I can imagine you're frustrated!

I'm in Northern VA at the moment (and had my surgery there), but work in Rockville, MD. Moving up to Montgomery County, MD later this summer to get hours of my life back from commuting!