BostonPA

Yes. The areas where the incisions are will be shaved.

Clearly, I am in the minority. Personally, as a brand new bandster, reading the good, the bad AND the ugly is how I made a truly informed decision. If I wanted only rosy reviews, then I could just watch band commercials. I wanted to read of real people with real experiences, both positive and negative. And in return, I want to post total raw honesty about my journey. Yes, I was starving on pre-op. Yes, some ofthat was my own fault, and when I realized my mistake, I corrected it AND posted about it. Yes, I ate food too soon post-op and it hurt badly. And yes, that was also my mistake and I also chose to share it. If someone can read my posts and go through with this journey, then maybe it will help them not feel alone or like a freak when they get hungry or they get stuck. If all someone saw were threads blowing sunshine up their bums, their expectations might not be realistic and it might actually make their process more lonely and more difficult. Obviously, if it was so darn easy to eat just broccoli and steamed fish forever, none of us would be fat to begin with! So, in my opinion, post what you want, good or bad, and read what you want. We are all adults here. I personally appreciate those who keep it real.

Whew! This is good to know! I am 5 days post-op and had some mashed potatoes today, which got stuck horribly, and I was beginning to worry I'd already messed up my pouch! Back to liquids for me. I learned my lesson!

Mine was 10/5 and today is the first day I could get up without moaning. Having read so many accounts of minimal post-op pain, I was beginning to worry something was wrong, because I was hurting so much. Yesterday I decided to start taking some ibuprofen between the doses of pain meds because I was just not making it the 4 hours between meds. It actually really helped! You can run it by your Dr. They have liquid ibuprofen, but I'm actually ok with small tablets. Hang in there!!

Congrats!!! We are band twins! Oct. 5, right? Unfortunately, I am feeling pretty sore today, worse than yesterday, actually. Had half a Protein shake and a few sips of apple juice. I'm still very happy and excited, though, because what's a few days of pain when you're gaining a lifetime of health?

Good luck, everyone! And congrats to all you newly banded! It's post-op day 2 for me, and I'm still quite sore. I have not felt like having anything more than sips of apple juice, and my surgeon is okay with that. My best friends right now are Gas X and liquid percocet. Being in bed is kind of uncomfortable, but walking around makes me tired. Overall, though, I'm happy! I figure that a week or two of discomfort is well worth the long term benefits!

Well, I am officially banded! Surgery was yesterday morning, and I spent last night in the hospital. I'm home now, and am pretty sore in the surgical area, as well as swollen. I get a sharp pain when I try to breathe deeply, but most likely, it is gas. I was allowed clear liquids and yogurt today, and also Carnation Instant Breakfast, as much as I wanted. However, I have not been hungry at ALL yesterday or today. What a change from the pre-op diet! Today I had c up of apple juice and a Carnation just for the protein, but I felt like I had to force it down. I've been taking liquid Precocet for pain, and using heat and ice, and resting a lot. Here's hoping each day is a little better than the last. Good luck again on all your upcoming surgeries!

Hi all, I am 6 days into my 10-day pre-op diet, and I am starving! Actually, the hunger is more like a constant, gnawing stomach pain. Surgery is next Tuesday, and I've already lost 17 pounds. I'm a low BMI bandster, so that is a lot for me! (went from 211 to 194, on a 5'6" frame.) The worst part is that I feel weak and dizzy all the time. At first I thought I was dehydrated, so I upped the Water drinking. I hate water (tastes like pond scum!), but I'm chugging about 10 glasses a day. I'm also doing the Protein shakes, yogurt, and cottage cheese, plus Vitamins. So I know nutritionally I should be okay. But this feeling is awful! I wake up every day and feel completely depressed and deprived. I love food! Please, someone tell me it gets better after surgery? At the very least, I hopefully won't feel such a desire for food, hopefully? Looking for some hope here...

Well, I made it through. Really groggy from anesthesia Will post tomorrow Thank jjjj

Okay, I'm off to the hospital! Eek!!!! Will update later.

Thanks so much, everyone, for the words of wisdom...and for not telling me I'm a freak!!! I will update as soon as I'm coherent, just to let y'all know I survived. I'll be thinking of you all as your dates fast approach. And Bill, GOOD LUCK tomorrow! We will do great, and set a good example to our patients!

My surgery is TOMORROW!!! I'm excited, but today's been a bit hard because I'm getting nervous. Problem is, I know too much!! I have performed surgery (although not banding), and what happens in the body is quite traumatic, despite there being only small incisions. Then, I also got freaked out over, "What if I die on the table? Should I even be risking leaving my sons motherless just so I can be thin?" I know I won't die from a LapBand, and I'm not trying to scare anyone. I'm just really nervous today...

I'm 5'6" and weighed about 200. My BMI was about 34-ish. In my area, a BMI of 35 PLUS a health condition related to obesity gets your band covered by insurance. Since I have mild sleep apnea and pre-hypertension, I decided to gain the 10 pounds needed to reach a BMI of 35. This was a difficult decision, as of course, I've spent my whole life trying to lose weight! But the band is very important to me and I needed to make it happen. I just cannot afford to self-pay. Honestly, yes, there is the health aspect (Dad developed diabetes, etc.), but I am just really tired of gaining 10 pounds every year, or of killing myself dieting and take 10 off, and put 15 back on. I can't keep doing that. And I can't keep feeling miserable, embarrassed to leave the house, feeling held back in life because I'm self-conscious about my weight, hiding from cameras and realizing my kids are growing up without any pictures of their Mom. If I had to gain more than 10 pounds, I don't think I'd do it. But my decision has so far worked great for me. I'm getting banded in 2 days, and have lost over 20 pounds on the evil pre-op diet. I'm really committed to this lifestyle change! Nobody can tell you what is best for your life. Think hard, be honest with yourself, and follow your own path!

I'm in Boston, and am a Physician Assistant. :smile2: Hence my very creative screen name!

What if you have caffeinated tea with splenda? That wouldn't detract from weight loss but would help with the caffeine withdrawal. On my diet, I am allowed to have any kind of sugar-free beverages, including coffee and tea with full caffeine. You can add caffeine back into the diet and then slowly wean yourself off it. I went off Diet Coke cold turkey when I was pregnant, and got a headache so bad I honestly thought I had a brain tumor! My OB told me to pound back a Diet Coke and two Excedrin Migraine (which has caffeine), and sure enough, that took it away. I then slowly began to wean off it, and had no trouble. Good luck, hope you feel better soon!

Well, here I am 6 days into preop diet, and I lost almost 20 pounds. But I am starving! Tonight, I was no longer able to hold it together and I ate a steak the size of Rhode Island. I'm so ashamed and disappointed in myself!!! And a little nauseous. However, I vow to not let this derail me completely. In the past, if I fell off the diet wagon, I'd just throw in the towel and give up on the whole thing. But today, I will put my failure aside and get back on the saddle.

I do feel guilty! But I'm back on the wagon today. I'm using Carnation Instant Breakfast and I add a scoop of whey Protein powder. It's actually delicious! I think I had not been drinking enough of them, though, so I was so hungry! Two days will be no problem! It is hard, but you can totally do it! Just be really mindful, and get out of the house as much as you can to distract yourself! That is exactly what I am looking forward to! I can have fat-free yogurt and fat-free cottage cheese. I add a teaspoon of sugar-free fruit preserve to the cottage cheese to make it a bit more palatable.

Thank you so much, everyone. I can't get over what a wonderful, supportive community this is! I'm back on the wagon today and honestly, I feel heavy and a bit nauseous. I guess my body is in shock, going from shakes to beef like that! I think part of the problem is I'm not having enough Protein. I had misunderstood my diet, and thought it said to have the Protein Shakes, OR yogurt, OR cottage cheese, when it fact, it said AND! So, no wonder I was starving! So today I am making sure I consume enough to stay healthy and not be so hungry. Three more days until surgery!

Thanks so much for the support, guys. I'm ashamed to admit that I cheated tonight. :-( But I'm getting right back on the wagon. Four days until surgery!!! I've already lost almost 20 pounds, although the giant steak I ate tonight will ensure a bad scale day tomorrow.

Um, skin does not randomly become necrotic. It does so from a lack of circulation. Losing weight does not negatively affect circulation. Necrosis can also occur due to an infection, which is actually more likely in people with diabetes, which is much more likely in obese people. So really, losing weight and skin necrosis have no relation.

I'm a physician assistant. I agree with your brother that surgery has its risks. However, being morbidly obese is incredibly risky for your health, too! In this day and age, many more people die of obesity than of surgery. This is why, being in the medical field and seeing patients EVERY DAY who struggle with their weight and have the deeply damaging effects from it, I've decided to have the surgery. Having a reputable surgeon in a reputable hospital, and using someone who's done this procedure hundreds of times is absolutely KEY. Good luck with your decisions!

Yes, my BMI was barely 35, and I have mild sleep apnea and high blood pressure, so I qualified for insurance-covered surgery. Around here, you need 100 lbs to lose, OR a BMI of 40, OR a BMI of 35 and a weight-related comorbidity (like sleep apnea, hypertension, diabetes, etc.) Anyway, thanks for the encouragement. I hate this part!

They say that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step... So here I am, beginning with my first steps. First, I had to get my surgery approved. That took some maneuvering, but I finally got my insurance paperwork! Now, the pre-op diet. Surgery date is October 5th. Liquid diet begins September 25th. I'm scared!

Liquid Diet, Day 1 Well, it's Day 1 of my pre-op diet, and I've had a grand total of 1 cup of coffee with Splenda and a splash of skim milk, and a low-fat yogurt. Drinking Diet Coke, of course. To be honest, I'm not terribly hungry. I do feel a bit of a gnawing pain in my stomach, so I think I need to toss back a protein shake. The noticeable effect is in my mood. I'm wicked cranky. Add to that the fact that I'm still having no luck on the job search, and I'm a bit of a bear, I'm afraid. Also, for the past 2-3 days I've been nursing the beginnings of what seems like a big fibro flare. So yeah, that doesn't help things at all either. All in all, the food thing is doable, but I'm in a black mood. We'll see how things progress tomorrow... Liquid Diet, Day 1 - Addendum Um, yeah, this sucks Having consumed the sum total of 2 yogurts, a protein shake, a coffee and a glass of juice all day, I gave in to the desire to actually chew something and ate a cucumber. Since a cuke is, like, 90% water (and not sugar water, like watermelon), I decided it still counts as a liquid diet. Meanwhile, I still had to cook for the fam, and today's menu included homemade mac and cheese with veggies in the sauce. As luck would have it, today's batch was the creamiest one yet. According to Josh and the kids, my best version ever. Awesome. I guess I'll just smell it. This being skinny business is no fun so far. Liquid Diet, Day 2 - A Hard Day Today has been a really hard day. First of all, I'm really hungry and feeling weak. I don't do well on drastically low calories, and I feel shaky, dizzy, and just weak. It's 7:30 pm and I've had a coffee, a protein shake, a cup of chicken broth, and half a cup of apple juice. My big treat in a little while will be a fat-free yogurt. This is sheer torture, and my body is feeling run down. Second, I argued with my husband, and went on a cleaning rampage, frustration-induced (normally, this would have been an eating rampage.) I seriously cleaned the CRAP out of my house, which sorely needed it. DH was being a complete a-hole, so he didn't lift a finger while I was busting my balls on all fours cleaning baseboards with a toothbrush. At one point, our brilliantly-designed (not!) WHITE kitchen floor was giving me so much trouble that I said, "Screw it!" and ran off to Target and bought a steam mop. Amazing! Why had I never bought one before? It effortlessly cleaned my disgusting, grimy floors, and did the hardwood, too! And all that in a very Earth-friendly way, with just water! Anyway. My house is resplendent now, but I'm feeling like ass. Certainly, a full-blown cleaning jag is not the thing to do when you're half-starved and on the verge of a fibromyalgia flare! Dumb me. Now, I'm gonna pop a pill, eat a yogurt, and hit the sack. Josh can damn well make dinner for him and Avi, and take care of his shower and bedtime. I'm freaking done. Eight more days of this no-eating torture. I don't know how I'll survive... Pre-op liquid diet - day 3 Today has been better than yesterday, mood-wise. Mostly, I attribute it to not fighting with my husband, because the diet situation is still dire. Today, I have consumed a protein shake, a cup of coffee, a yogurt, and a small bowl of sugar-free jello. I might have 1/2 cup of fat free cottage cheese for dinner, along with a sugar-free Popsicle. Meanwhile, the guys are eating kielbasa, pepper and onion sandwiches - and they smell delicious! On the plus side, I've lost 2.5 pounds already. However, if weight loss was parallel to hunger, I would have lost 100 pounds by now! One more week... Liquid Diet - Day 4 Much better today, so far. I have decided to allow myself a half a cucumber a day (nothing on it), just to let my mouth chew on something. I'm going to get a haircut today. I'm chopping off quite a bit of it. I need a change! And, although the scale is moving in the right direction, I need some instant-gratification change. The happy news of today is that I am now under 200lbs! The scale read 199 this morning. Woo hoo!

Hi everyone! I'm new to the boards. I'm on the final countdown for surgery, and can hardly believe it! I worked so hard to get all my ducks in a row, and now a series of wonderful thing shave happened to ensure I can get my band. You see, I'm a low-BMI bandster (33), so the first step I had to do is hope (weird!) I had some co-morbidity that would allow me to get banded at a BMI of 35. Lo and behold, my sleep study showed mild sleep apnea. So, no CPAP needed, but still qualifying! Then, I had to gain about 8 pounds to weigh in at a BMI of 35. Well, 2 days ago was my official insurance weigh-in, and there I was, 1 pound above what I needed! Now I have to admit, this gaining weight part was the most fun! Then came the insurance approval. I waited on baited breath and just got my letter 2 days ago, I'm approved! So now comes the next hurdle: the actual operation. My surgery date is October 5th 2010! I'm nervous but very happy. I am determined to make this my success story! So, hello to everyone and thank you in advance for the sense of support and community on these boards!