acidic

Hi everyone, i posted this in the general introductions but Majj pointed the Aussie thread out to me so i figured i would post here too... I have been floating around the site for a while and thought it was about time to introduce myself. I am Carissa... 22 from Perth, Australia. I had my LAP-BAND® op on Monday 1st Feb 2010 so am currently 6 days post op. I managed to lose 11kgs in the pre-op Optifast diet for 3 weeks and to admit, it was the easiest 11kg i have ever lost. I was hungry, tired and grumpy yes, but knowing i was doing it for the operation made it so much easier. I started at 150kg, and at the time of the op 6 days ago I was 139kg. I'm not sure what i would be today but i see my doctor on the 9th for the first checkup so hopefully i can weigh in then. I have really just been sleeping since I came home on Tuesday. moving about a little bit but mostly sleeping! A friend of mine suggested to place a pillow on my side and try sleeping like that - and im glad she did, soo much easier to rest. My incisions seems to be ok, although there is a yellow-ish bruise-like colouring on the larger incision, but reading around i see this is normal (??) I go back to work on Monday - have found out some of my superiors opened their mouth so not very happy about that, i told only certain people for a reason! Well I continue to enjoy weaving my way through this site, plenty of info and general chit chat, nice to know we are not alone

It seems a lot of he said she said business going on here... I would probably get the facts straight first but of course, there are always shady characters in any business!

I know what your talking about! I was walking through the city and stupidly ate too fast without thinking, it got stuck real bad... all I could do was find a dark alley way behind some bins and basicially make that draw back noise like im about to spit and then work the slime from the back of my mouth and then spit it out... gawd i got some looks hehe

Hello everyone, hope you are all getting on ok! Jacki - my hair is not falling out any more than usual... I have PCOS so I suffer from a male hair grown pattern (losing hair on my head but gaining it in unpleasant places like chest and face) due to the off balanced hormones. I do take Swisse Multivitamin for Women. It's a giant capsule but i snap it in half, and its fine - and i cant remember the exact price but i do remember thinking it was good value when I purchased it. It sucks that you have had 3 fills and still arent really feeling the effects of the band... but CONGRATS on the 18.5kg! I had my first fill last thursday and no difference, but i kind of expected that from what i have read. How do you find Dr Couch? does not say alot does he... do you know how much ml's in your band? he mentioned after the first few fills he would transfer me to another doc? has this happened to you as yet? Take care everyone x

hello... I am also from Australia and on my Europe trip discovered a UK shop called "Evans" who do very stylish shoes aswell as clothes and jewellery. www.evans.co.uk they are awesome :biggrin:

thats really good to hear! i hope so too... the fill was ok - nothing like a lot of american lap band patients seem to go through! it was quick and easy, a slight bit painful trying to find the port... i felt like i was doing pilates because he asked me to lay on my back, lift both legs and head off the bed! like a situp hehe anyway he found it, jabbed me and put in 2mls... i feel fine so far except for i got really hungrywhen i got home!! i cant explain it, but hopefully i be back to normal tomorrow

Heya Majj, hope everything is going good! I am going to my first fill tonight fingers crossed he has better luck at finding the port than I can!

Hello Majj, good to see you are recovering well :wink2: Yes, i know all about end of month issues, i also work in accounts hehe... take care!

I use Rosehip oil after a shower... i dont heal very quickly with cuts or bruises in general but im surprised how quickly these ones have faded. not only that but its taken away any irritation such as dry-ish skin around the scars... and feels nice when massaged in :wink2: cant hrut if you ask me, just use decent quality and make sure the scars arent still open

Yes, I slept A LOT! I went from my bed, to the couch, to the toilet, to the couch, to the bed… did a lot of nothing for a week! And it took a good 5 or 6 days before I got any hunger back, at first I didn’t know if I was hungry or full! Sounds like you got out relatively unscathed! I tried not to weigh myself too much, once a week seems to be a good frequency… especially this close to being banded. I was so worried about gaining weight in the “bandster hell” period, so far I have managed to maintain the 15kg but still have until the 4th before my first fill. I hope everything goes good for recovery, let me know if you have any questions I may be able to help J Take care!

ps. hanging to see your new PS progress pics

Eeep... sorry to hear you are so frustrated... yes i can tell :thumbup: I cant really help at the moment because i havnt even had my first fill so wouldnt have a clue how my Dr is going to be in the long run.. All i know is he is a man of very few words, but knows what he is doing and gets to the point, no small talk! So far no probs but my first fill in a week then maybe i can ask him how long normally to wait for a fill... please smile

hehe yum easter eggs haha GOOD LUCK MAJJ!! Thinking of you today

I hope you can figure something out because i know how much it sucks to rely on them! And also the fear of changing meds when you know your on a 'good thing' with your current medication. good luck :thumbup:

Mimilou - I also take EffexorXR and have no problem however I have not had my first fill yet so I dont know if that will change. While I was in hospital and for a few days after surgery I broke up the capsule and just poured it in my mouth with water, because its not powdery (more like tiny granules) it doesnt have much taste at all. If you dont mind me asking, do you take 2x 75mg because they are smaller or 1x 150mg and 1x 75mg for a higher dosage? I am just curious because I am meant to take the 150 and 75 for the higher dosage but I dont because of the cost...

I'm not very far into my lapband journey but I found making a healthy dinner, and always leaving enough for lunch the next day, putting it in a container as you serve yourself dinner, and popping it straight in the fridge... that way you know you have lunch sorted. Also, making a quick salad, and bringing a tin of tuna or mixed beans to add at lunch time. The Laughing Cow light cheese is handy to have if you want to add it to crackers with tomato and cucumber or gherkin. If you like tomato - chopped baby roma tomotos, light feta cheese, red onion, spring onion, garlic, S&P, fresh herbs (I use mint, parsley,basil and corriander) all mixed up make a great base to add things like beans, chickpeas, tuna or even as a sandwich filling on some rye bread. hope this helps... Oh also forogt to say yummy Avocado and Egg salad... avo's, eggs hard boiled, add in onions and herbs to taste. for the dressing i mix light cottage cheese with a good dollop of mustard and pepper (paprika if you like) and mix all together. Very filling and delish!

I am 22 days out and cannot feel my port either which had me worried for a while (and still a bit concerned) because i tried all different ways to find it. Laying down, sucking in, pushing my tummy out... etc I still dont know where it is. I know its near the larger scar but yeah... i decided just to wait until my first fill on the 4th March before I start to worry too much! Do you know when your first fill is?

Its always nice when someone backs up your decision to do something major! I found the Optifast - although annoying at times and also hungry at times, the easiest of diets to do, because I KNOW why im doing it... and that there is light at the end of the tunnell... good luck :sad: only a few days now!!

thanks everyone but no luck :confused: ive poked around and cant feel a thing... guess ill just have to wait til the 4th march on my first fill :confused:

Please help, I can’t find my port - banded on 1st Feb so I have not had my first fill (appt booked for 4th March) im sure the doc will be able to find it but I’d like to know where it is before then. Is there any particular way to make it easier to find? So many people say they can feel theirs… I cannot L

I agree with Tweety, I am 19 days out. I can do most things but i do feel a pulling pain if i sneeze or cough. slowly the bruising is pretty much faded... scars still feel 'hard' but all in all it took about the second week to feel a bit more normal... during the next week you should start to improve :confused:

Thanks everyone, I will give it a go tonight. I do feel my tummy is somewhat swollen still, but i wasnt sure if it could be this long after surgery? I am 18 days post.