CSinTX

rkwilliams1013, Run Girl Run, pooky032281, ahlmanfamily, Loyalfriend, spitfireleo, Lanah, kydman-- hope your surgery went just fine today. Freshstart2010, gracerev, ILUVFOOD, Esin - Good Luck Tomorrow and Hope to hear from you guys soon. LisaA --Hi Lisa - when I was doing my research on vitamins I did not want to overdose on the daily recommended amounts, I guess they are there for a reason. My doctor wants me to take 500mg of calcium 3 times a day. I get my first dosage in my shake, the second in my multivitamin and my third in a plan chewable just calcium tablet with nothing else added. The problems that I kept running into were the Vit D, E and magnesium. Most calcium pills have 100% of the daily recommended dosage of Vit D in each pill. I did not want to take 300% of Vit D. After doing a lot of research and breaking down the components, I was able to get my recommended daily dosage of vitamins without much overdosing. I don't know the ramifications of extra calcium in the body for a long period of time but can't imagine it's good. Plus we have very hard water, so I took that into consideration too. Lanah -- I remember that feeling. Your might even be out of surgery by now. Hope you are doing well and look forward to hearing from you soon. bandalley -- Congratulations on your surgery date. We are here to help you make it through this journey. lemonchick -- Congratulations on your surgery date and welcome to our family. donnalys -- I was given a blood thinner shot right before surgery. The nurse said that was a normal procedure now-a-days. I just made the comment that I thought it was weird that you are giving me a blood thinner right before you are going to cut me in 4 places and you want the blood to stop bleeding. Seemed like a conflict of interest but all went well. mytrice -- Congratulations on your surgery date. pooky032281 -- It's so exciting to see everyone posting while waiting for surgery. Look forward to hearing from you from BandLand. RN.Violet -- Congratulations and glad to have you a part of our family. Mandyrae -- Congratulations on getting the "all clear" from the cardiologist. Did they say why your heart was enlarged? phershey -- I have not heard of unjury? Thanks for the recommendation - I'll try it. Do you know off hand if I can buy it locally or would I have to order it online? cicigirl -- I have found myself weighting everyday. You might be surprised that you want to continue to lose so you can update your ticker. wishful-thinking - Hello and welcome to the family and congratulations on getting your approval and your surgery date. I think most of us having to go through the insurance hoops have absolutely NO patience by the end. I know I did not. crecia1975 -- I called Cigna on a daily until I got the approval. I wrote down the name of everyone that I spoke too and what they said, just in case I needed it later. I was lucky that everything went through fine for me. Hope you hear something soon. Brian-LA -- Hi Brian, you are in the fast lane for this. I started planning in Jan, and then started seeing doctors in Feb and banded last week. So that was only 8 months. I know I put my husband through hell especially the last 2 months before surgery. danide - I did not experience anything weird like that during my pre-op diet. On day 2 of my only liquids I had a killer headache all day long but that was it. Hope your dreams get better between now and Monday. _______________________________ Good to hear from so many new folks. Cathy

Hi Pooky - how are you doing? What time is your surgery scheduled for ?

Thanks for asking. I have been doing great. I would say today was my first day of feeling almost 100%. Yesterday I got dressed (with blue jeans and bra) and went into town. I was kinda expecting the trip into town to be horrible because we live out in the country on those bumpy country roads but the ride actually were not bad. I'm getting real tired of my protein shakes, they just don't taste good anymore to me but I love the soup. All in all, it's going great. In fact, my husband will be leaving tomorrow for a week to visit his mother who is not doing well at all. So must be doing good in his eyes as well to leave me alone, in the house, with my computer for 7 days. Cathy

Hi Rebecca - Good luck tomorrow. You'll be in our thoughts.

I cheated too, the day before my surgery with a Chick'fil'a waffle fry. On the way home from my pre-op appointment, had not eaten (drank) anything for almost 3 hours, was starving as well as my husband. He wanted Chick'fil'a if I could handle it. I agreed if I could suck on a fry. Well took 60 miles to suck that entire fry right down to my stomach and this was the night before surgery. We all have weak moments.

I was stranded last week longer than I wanted without anything to drink, so while I was waiting for a prescription to be filled at the grocery store I grabbed a special K protein drink. HIGHLY recommended when not at home. Yummy

Hi Sarah, Welcome back. It's been a long time since we heard from you. Hope you hear good news by Friday. And don't be a stranger.

Have not heard from you in a few days. Everything ok? Cathy

BandedNellie, karmaandkismet and cece1967 -- hope your surgery went just fine today. rkwilliams1013, Run Girl Run, pooky032281, ahlmanfamily, Loyalfriend, spitfireleo, Lanah, kydman - Good Luck Tomorrow and Hope to hear from you guys soon. kydman -- Great Goal. 1reign -- Gosh, I sure hope so. Poor thing you have been put through the ringer that's for sure. Your determination is wonderful. You will do great with your band. LisaA -- thanks for your recommendation on the books. When are you leaving for Mexico? msmith73 -- Congratulations on your surgery date and welcome to our family. Don't be quite. sourmissg -- I sure hope you get approved within days. You have been so patient with them. cicigirl -- How are you doing on your liquid diet, losing any? I was told that the higher the protein in your drink the longer you would stay full. I think most have or will lose around 10 lbs during their 2 week pre-op diet and since you started earlier you should not have any trouble losing the 13 lbs. You can do it. We are pulling for you. When you get the urge to eat get on your computer and type your little fingers off to us. wendyhart -- Hi Wendy - I bet if your approval the first time around went smoothly it will the second time around. Are they submitting today?

Don't forget to take pictures of yourself (especially a close up) and write down your measurements.

jshort -- hope your surgery went just fine today. BandedNellie -- Good luck tomorrow. karmaandkismet -- Good luck tomorrow. cece1967 - Good luck tomorrow. NYsLegend78 -- Hang in there it does get easier as time goes by. playermimi -- Jello is about the only thing that I can have that I chew. sourmissg -- Any word on when you get to submit for approval? matzobeans -- Congratulations on getting your surgery date and welcome to our family. leeblewb -- Happy for you. Congratulations on getting your surgery date. sunny day -- I bet you'll be able to go to the tailgate party without any problems. I am 4 days out from surgery and feel good, though I think I would kill someone if they hit my belly but other than that I'm good. I can't say about the food but I'm not tempted by food yet. So plan on going and having fun but guard your belly. kydman -- Have a save drive to Nashville tomorrow and a great surgery date. Let us know how you are doing when you get a chance. pooky032281 -- Just a little excited?? I was just like you, could not wait. Keep up the positive attitude. krieck --Congratulations on your surgery date. lillyegg -- I'm so glad you finally got good news, especially after your bomb shell you had a few weeks ago. Congratulations and what a relief.:biggrin: Mandyrae -- Any word yet on your new surgery date? How did your EKG come out? MrsFitand42 -- So sorry to hear your date has changed. If your date changed because of your doctor, then I would think you would NOT be expected to pay again for your pre-surgical testing. We're here when you need to vet.

Bet you have a BM tomorrow. :cursing: I was so fortunate not to be required to drink the poo poo juice. Just think the next time you have a BM, you'll be banded.

Hi pooky - I found the same thing out. As time goes by it does get easier to stick to the drinks. It's a great jump start to begin the process. It's been 3 days since my surgery and I continue to have the pounds drop off. It's a great feeling but right now I'm not even trying. Well I am trying to get my 3 protein shakes and 64 ozs of water down. I think in reality I am getting probably 2 shakes split over 4 sessions, plus I have my yogurt and popsicles. It's good right now.

Hi Jennifer, Welcome and good luck tomorrow. I was suppose to be Sept 10 but has the option to get banded early which was this past Friday, so I too had an August surgery. Glad to have you. Let us know how you are doing when you get a chance. Cathy

I am actually feeling great today. Still a little sore and slow to get out of bed but other than that its all good. I did not really have much gas pains that everyone talks about. I did feel them the worst when on Friday when I would sit up, so basically I was flat on my back most of the day. Saturday the pains were very minimal and really only felt pressure when I went to cough, hiccup, etc. I took my pain medication all day Friday and Saturday and Saturday night. It's been 24 hours now without pain medication and it's going well. I still don't want to get into the car and go anywhere nor do I want to go back to bed. So I guess this phase this the couch potato phase. Still not thinking much about food but my husband thinks I must still drink my protein shakes to keep my blood sugars normal. So when ever I am awake my husband is asking me to drink, tea, water and protein shakes. I like the Popsicle and it was suggested to try Greek Yogurt, which is actually pretty good. Does not taste like our plain slippery yogurt, more like sour cream. BRINA913 -- I have Cigna and was approved within 3 days. If you have all the paperwork and met the requirements you should hear something quickly. Good luck and let us know when you hear. bayareanan -- Good luck and keep up informed on your progress. I am west of San Antonio, just south of you. kydman -- How exciting to have your surgery this week. Congratulations. I'm sure you have nothing to worry about if you followed your doctors pre-op diet. Esin -- Hi Esin - Congratulations on your surgery date. My sister lives in Marlow and they are leaving the states today to fly home. Will you be traveling back to London shortly after your surgery or staying in Belgium for a few days?

That's cool. I'll go do that today. I like freebies.

I was banded this past Friday and got the Realize band. When I was leaving the hospital, they gave me the packaging with the serial number so I could go online and register with Realize for the extended warranty. Just kidding, I have not looked into the reason for the serial number but vaguely remembering something about the company wanting to track our weight loss with their product.

It worked, I'm in. Thanks for your patience with me. I can usually figure these things out so it must be the pain killers that the doc has me taking. All I want to do is sleep. Cathy

It will go by fast. Wish you well and let us know how you are doing afterwards.

This is such a great thing. I just signed up, using the same name and picture as I do here, so others will recognize me in case I am lost. But I can't figure out how to find the Clothes Exchange Community. When you get a chance can you help me locate your community. Thanks, Cathy

rkwilliams1013 -- can't wait to try these. Thanks so much for posting them.

LisaA -- I read somewhere in all my paperwork that actually 1 in 4 bariatric patients will have a hernia. They are super simple to fix and just think you would be getting 2 corrections in 1 surgery. Can't bet that. I think maybe I ate fast because I did not want to be the last one still eating. I feel so much more in control of my eating (it's mentally right now) but I certainly don't like puking and that will be a lesson that only takes 1 or 2 times then it too will be learned. Butterfly2010 -- "will you be starting a post op September thread?" I had not thought of it. At the end of September when everyone has had their surgery, we'll see what everyone wants to do. I live in a little same town so everything I bought was online. I have to say everything came in very quickly and perfect. I would not hesitate ordering again on line. I did the Vitamin Shoppe for Vitamins of course and did BodyBuilder.com for the Protein shakes. They where the only ones that I found that offered Isopure Mint chocolate Chip. Also got the banana Cream, Cookies and Cream, Strawberries and Cream and another Dutch Chocolate. Brian-LA -- Welcome and glad to add another guy to our family. Its great you have the means to pay yourself for such a life changing event that is for you. Since you are getting the fast track version, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Lizstar319 -- Congratulations for your surgery date and glad to have you aboard. Hope you hear positive news from your insurance company quickly. We are very glad to you chosen to be a part of our family and look forward to your input. playermimi -- thank you for your kind words. wendyhart -- glad to hear from you again. If you need any support, we are here for you. Mandyrae -- Sorry to hear that your surgery was bumped but we are glad to have you. My surgery was bumped from Sept to yesterday but I could not leave this fantastic group of folks here. Did the doc's say why your heart is enlarged? swissnis -- I was told the higher the protein level is the more full you will be. I don't know if that is just another line of bull but I went to Isopure for the 50 gms of protein per drink. I have to admit they do keep me satisfied. Here is my update. I slept like a baby last night in my bed. Actually I slept in the guest bedroom because my husband snores and I am a light sleeper but had no problems or discomfort. When I slept on my sides, I had a pillow supporting my belly. I sure those of us who had babies, know that I'm talking about. But basically you just have a pillow crammed up under the belly for support. The trick to sitting up in bed is the lay on your side next to the edge, then using your arm, push yourself up. You barely use your stomach muscles for lifting. Every time I woke up I would sip some Water. So last night was get up pee, sip water and back to sleep. I found one of those sports bottles that has the pop up lids so that you can squeeze the liquid out but instead of squeezing I would suck the water out. But at least when I tilted it in bed to drink it did not pour out on me, plus because I had to suck it out, I did not have any air in my mouth. Swallowing air hurts. Feel fine no pain but of course the meds are working on that one. Glad to see so many new folks and this week will be exciting to see several more having their surgery. Cathy

I'm back. The surgery went fine this morning with no complications. Started at 8am, woke up at 10:10am and was leaving by 11:00. The hospital gave me morphine to get me home without getting sick, so I am just now getting out of bed. The first thing that I learned when I woke up was that my throat was super dry and extrememly sore. So I sucked on a couple of sugar free popsicles which did the magic. The coolness worked perfect and the fruit flavoring coated my throat. So add Sugar Free popsicles to your shopping list. Butterfly2010 -- If you find you like most of the flavors, I found that MyBatriatricPantry sells the 10pk samples for $13. They limit the order to 5. But that will give you a big stash of variety. Let us know what flavors you like or dislike.

All hooked up just waiting now

Hello everybody and thank you for the support for tomorrow. I can't believe my day is actually here. I am so looking forward to this. Just got home from San Antonio's pre-op appointment. Confirmed with the doc as too which hospital he was going to in the morning and seems that everything has been straightened out. We are a GO for tomorrow. I'll be leaving the house at 3am to get their for 5am and surgery is scheduled at 8am. I will definitely let you guys know how things work out. The doc mentioned that I could stay overnight or go home the same day, it's up to me on how I feel and if I can make the 1.5 hr drive without getting sick, plus I'll have to work around rush hour traffic on a Friday. Yuck. One neat thing that happened today was that the doctor gave me my pain prescription so that I could fill it tonight instead of tomorrow on the way home. I thought that was real sweet of him. lillyegg -- I am so glad that you were not required to have a 5 year weight history. What a relief. You must let us know the minute you hear something, ok maybe the second minute you hear something. mariedel -- Congratulations on your surgery date. It's a huge relief and just think it's only 2 weeks away. I did the pre-op diet, did not mind the 3 shakes and a regular meal but these past 2 days suck being on just liquid. I have to pee too much. LisaA - The ticker is super easy. I went to tickerfactory.com typed in my info, selected a 4 digit pin and then hit the next button. On the second page in the first box labeled bbCode - copy the entire stuff and then go under the Quick Links tabe and select edit signature and paste. Wala it's there. The picture under my name in the left column is an avatar. To add that go under Quick Links again, Edit Avatar. You can use on of theirs or you can use the browse and add your own. Mine is my lazy but happy cat. jlr58 -- Congratulations on your surgery date. I loved my 2 weeks getting ready for my surgery date. I broke it down and did just one thing and then moved on too the next. For example I did vitamins one day then Protein drinks and protein bars another day, then the grocery shopping (for soups, sugar free stuff, etc) on another day. If you have any questions, please post and we'll give you lots of help. hserra -- So sorry to hear that your husband won't be there for you right before your big day. At least you'll have your mother and US in his absence. Wow, that is awesome that you are working on this for us. I think whatever the link is that you have is prefect. I love it and I'll be glad to sign up for anything, just let me know where, when and how. I'll be there. I really appreciate what you are doing for us. In another month you'll be everyone's hero because we won't be like that girl on the bluefly.com commercial that has nothing to wear. perfect. Thanks Lisa.