AFmom

Ms. Cortez... I know this is kind of off topic, but I was setting up my tickers today and did my weigh one just fine, but twice I tried to set up the surgery countdown one, and both times it kept giving me some sort of error about goal values...I don't have a goal for when my surgery was done and the values that were there were preset. Any advice on setting one up?

PirateGirl... I was sleeved just a few days after you on Jan 5th and am glad to hear from someone else that they are not having any problems getting fluids down. Since day 3 or so post-op, I am assuming once the swelling in my stomach went down, I have felt no restriction with fluids. I keep reading post after post about people not even coming close to getting their Protein Shakes or water down that I was concerned that something was wrong with my sleeve. I am hopeful that I will feel that restriction once I move on to pureed and soft foods.

BusyHoosierMom Hopefully you will be feeling better very quickly. My 1st day post-op was not great. I got the dry heaves more than once and nausea was pretty much constant even with the meds. Keep us posted on how you are doing.

I had my lap band removed and VSG done on Monday, January 8th, and went home on Wednesday, January 10th. Everything went well, the gas pain was bad at first, but I had pretty much walked it all out before leaving the hospital. I can't sleep in my bed yet, but my recliner is working out great. Having some pain, not really from the incisions, but from the muscle layer below (lots of pulling and burning when I am standing and walking). I am on the full liquid diet and the last two days I have been able to hit my Protein and Fluid goals. Been feeling sluggish since surgery, but finally had a BM today, so hopefully that will help me get back to feeling more like normal. Trying not to take the narcotic pain meds today and just sticking with liquid Tylenol. Good luck to everyone out there!

I am 4 days post-op and I agree that it is different for everyone. I have a HIGH pain threshold, so I was expecting this surgery to be no problem for me. I do have a problem with anesthesia making me very nauseated, so I talked with the anesthesiologist at pre-op and they started me patch the night before surgery and gave me extra meds before and after surgery to help combat the nausea. That being said, I woke up feeling nauseated. They gave me meds right away. I had some pain, but recognized the pain mostly as gas pain. I was on a morphine pump and didn't use it often because it was giving me a headache and didn't really help with the gas pain and the incisions were not really that painful. I had one drain, nasal oxygen (only for the first few hours), bp cuff on, pulse ox monitor on finger, IV, and catheter (not taken out until the next morning). I was up and sitting in a chair and then walking with an hour of getting to my room. As soon as I started walking I started burping, the more I walked the more I burped. I have a bad back, and so for me it felt better to be up moving than to be laying in bed or even sitting in a chair. I was allowed nothing by mouth the first day and so the dry-mouth was horrible. The next morning I felt much better once the catheter was out. That made moving around much easier. I felt ready to go home that day, but my surgeon makes everyone stay 2 nights. I continued to walk, had my IV discontinued, and looked forward to going home.

I am having my band out, and hopefully the sleeve at the same time, on Monday (Jan 5). For those of you who have had the band out what was the worst pain? I am really concerned about the pain from having the port removed. My port flipped early on and I had a second surgery to fix it and so it was stitched into place and it has been causing lots of pain lately. Looking forward to having it out, but not looking forward to pain. So, I guess what I am asking is, was the pain much worse from the port when it put in vs when it was taken out? Also, anything you wish you had known before band to sleeve revision surgery? I would love to hear your experience. Thanks

I am going to make the swiss oatmeal tonight...can't wait to try it in the morning! Since you say you only eat about 1/3 I am assuming that is is okay to refrigerate it for a few days? Thanks again, Michelle

Dr. Smith did my surgery May 6, 2010 in Albuquerque and I could not be happier with the care I have received. I have lost over 100 pounds and I am just about 10 pounds away from the goal weight he set for me before surgery and about 30 pounds away from what I consider my ultimate goal weight. Doctors and staff in Albuquerque are all great Michelle

I have never even heard to Swiss Oatmeal, but it sounds wonderful and filling! I am going to try it out. Thanks for sharing the recipe @Melissannde - do you just mix according to the regular directions and then put the bowl in the crock-pot? That sounds like a great idea too because I am the only oatmeal eater in my family and I don't like having to clean the pot I cook it in and the bowl I eat it out of. Michelle

I burp much more frequently since having lap band. I also hiccup when I drink too fast and when I am getting to the point where I need to stop eating! Like you, my burps just seem to come out, without any warning! I think that it is pretty common Michelle

Thanks for the great responses! It is encouraging to hear from those who have been successful and are continuing to be successful. I know that Lap Band is different than bypass, but I read something from a bypass patient that said keeping the weight off is much harder than losing it. She warned that the people who were in the first 6 month post-op stage, that even though they were easily losing while not eating by the rules, that if they would be in for a surprise down the road when they had a hard time keeping it off. I guess that is one of the downsides of bypass, is that it is not adjustable. Hopefully if we were having those problems a fill would get us back on track. Thanks, Michelle

I am 7 months out from surgery and already knocking on the 100 pound weight loss mark. I am thrilled that things have gone so well, but I wonder, is it harder to keep the weight off than it was to lose it? I have tried to stick pretty close to the rules my doctor set forth, but I have not been perfect, and yet I have lost weight really easily. I am still 24 pounds away from my goal, so there is still work to be done, but I wonder for those bandsters out there who have been successful long term (2 plus years) what is the key? Thanks for your input Michelle

Salads work well for me, and always have. I am 7 months post-op and I was worried that I would not be able to eat salads after the band because I head about so many people having problems. I start with spinach, make sure I add protein, and a little dressing helps it slide right down