cyndilou29

I was just banded yesterday and I can't even get the 1/2 cup down!

I was banded yesterday as well. Doing well, a little pain but not too bad. My shoulder is definitely bothering me and my port incision is too. Still in the hospital. I'm struggling with getting all my Water in. Had about 1/2 a cup of water and couldn't do any more. (not all at once, 1/2 cup since 10am). My ddoc said the band was really loose and that I probably wouldn't get restriction but I definitely feel it. Is it just wishful thinking on my part or could that be real?

Hey! I didn't get any foot massages! Gees for $20K that's the LEAST they could do! 12 lbs in a week? Wow I hope we are a lot alike!

Hi everyone! I had my surgery today and I'm in the recovery room waiting for a room to become available. Definitely sore but tolerable. I just wanted to say thanks to all of who talked me off the ledge last night. This board and all of you have really been a lifeline for me. I am eternally grateful. I'm so glad I did this! My journey begins....

Actually you are incorrect, they have to retract your liver in order to do this. The pre op die t is to shrink it to reduce the risk of accidentallly injuring it. That is major. I think most of us go through the Last Supper syndrome to some extent. But it is important to try your best. Your doc could cancel the surgery if he thinks you are not losing enough. Try to be strong and do the best you can. I was like that too buut as iit got closer I got more serious. I bet you will too!

Hi everyone, Okay, I just got my surgical time (6am tomorrow morning) and now I'm totally freaking out. It just got real to me, I guess. Now I have all these questions and I'm obsessing. Will the surgery go okay? Will I be in a lot of pain? Will I get any restriction before my fill? Will my first fill hurt? What if this stupid thing doesn't work and I'm out $20,000? What if I can't follow the diet after the band and my life is a huge froth-fest from now on? Is it normal to be this nervous? I'm just obsessing about all these things like a maniac! Did any of you go through this before the surgery? :help:

You guys are all so great, thank you. I feel so much better knowing I'm not mental for going through this. I think sometimes I'm being selfish, spending all this money and then putting myself at risk with surgery. I'm struggling with that I guess more than anything now. But I'm excited. I'm less than 9 hours away from my new life. I can't wait!

Thank you so much BeachGirl. I feel better now that I'm less than 9 hours away (yikes!). I know this is the right thing to do. I'm really excited. Just looking forward to waking up with that band in!

Hi everyone, Okay, I just got my surgical time (6am tomorrow morning) and now I'm totally freaking out. It just got real to me, I guess. Now I have all these questions and I'm obsessing. Will the surgery go okay? Will I be in a lot of pain? Will I get any restriction before my fill? Will my first fill hurt? What if this stupid thing doesn't work and I'm out $20,000? What if I can't follow the diet after the band and my life is a huge froth-fest from now on? Is it normal to be this nervous? I'm just obsessing about all these things like a maniac! Did any of you go through this before the surgery? :help:

I saw your other post, I was so sad for you! Thank you for your post. I'll be thinking of you next week too!

Thanks Mark. Good idea about searching for 2nd thoughts. I'm going to do that now. This board is so amazing. I'm so very thankful that I found it. Everyone here is wonderful

Yep, I'm paying $20K out of pocket, that's probably why I'm flipping out too! My stupid insurance has all WLS excluded from coverage so I'm on my own. I just didn't feel comfortable going to Mexico even though I know many of the folks here did great there. OMG if I had to fly to Mexico I'd be even worse right now! Thanks for the post. I've been on here a little bit but I guess I gravitate toward posts about what goes on post-op. I need to start reading some pre-op ones I guess!

I too was 100 lbs overweight (my BMI was 40.2) with no co-morbidities other than slightly elevated cholesterol and GERD. My insurance has it as an exclusion so they deny everyone, but I was told that if they DID cover it, I would be fine. I would check with your insurance company before you start this journey so you know immediately what to expect and what the requirements are. Many have a stipulation that you stay on a doctor supervised diet for 6 months or more first. Just call and get the info so you know what's coming. I am self pay and my program is about $18,000 but that price really varies by where you live and which program you choose. Don't be afraid to ask your hospital. Good luck!

LOL, you're welcome! I knew who you meant the first time! Good luck. I'll be thinking of you as we start our journey on Thursday!

OMG Deb it's so funny, I feel the exact same way! My surgery is the 24th too and I was fine until this weekend. Now I'm really nervous. I'm not backing out either I'm just apprehensive I guess. My program, which is the Lahey in Burlington and they are INCREDIBLE, laid out every minute of my post op until my first fill. I have a list of foods but I'm sure every doc is different in their opinion. For one week I am on sugar free popsicles, broth, sugar free jello and Protein shakes (they recommended Isopure but said I could get any one that I liked). Next week I get to add creamed low fat Soups and yogurt. The following 2 weeks I can add thin mashed potatoes, cream of wheat or blended oatmeal and applesauce. Yummy, huh? I was told to buy Gas X as they said the gas pains are sometimes worse than the incision pain. They also said to get chewable Multivitamins and chewable Calcium. I also have plenty of bottled Water with the little crystal light packets. That was pretty much it from my doctor's office. However, here is a list I compiled from many posts on this site. Hope it helps.... heating pad flexible ice pack liquid tylenol (they make adult strength) chewable or liquid gas-x a few books or movies comfy clothes (loose waisted shorts or jumpers) squishy pillow for car ride (guard against seatbelt) a sports bra (doc said no underwire for a few days) protien shakes flavored water make sure you have a good blender I bought a drink mixer for the protien mix (cost $10 at walmart) broth or stuff to make broth sugarfree popsicles and jello sugar free breathmints (ask your doctor) Popsicles (SF as needed) • Crystal Light • Jello (Sugar Free as needed) • Bouillon • Bottled water – some like Propel, Fruit 2-0, or plain • Cream of Wheat • creamy soups • applesauce • yogurt - Dannon Lite N' Fit • chicken/beef/veggie broths (low sodium as needed) • soups & broths • liquid Tylenol • liquid Gas-X or Phazyme • heating pad • "Imagine" Soups - in cartons. (Potato Leek, Butternut, Squash, Corn, Creamy Tomato....and more. They are considerably lower in sodium than Campbell’s soups.) • Check if your medications are “crushable” (able to be crushed without causing problem with effectiveness) - Nancy • Soup-at-Hand - soups - for creamy stage - great "comfort food" • Small pudding cups (SF/FF) or yogurt - I would take a spoonful to get my meds to slide down easier - Nancy • Pill cutter • Chewable Vitamins • Tylenol or Motrin on hand. Sometimes all I needed was something just to take the edge off instead of Vicodin. Also, one of my incisions was irritated from my bra. Bandaids or gauze and tape were a must for me. Have plenty of Soup on hand. Something warm always makes you feel better - Cindy • chicken – cook before surgery, and save the broth, and freeze it in very small containers. Less sodium than store brands, if you have a salt problem - Toni • Post-operatively I wished I had liquid Tylenol or Motrin on hand. Sometimes all I needed was something just to take the edge off instead of Vicodin. Also, one of my incisions was irritated from my bra. Bandaids or gauze and tape were a must for me. Have plenty of soup on hand. Something warm always makes you feel better. Hope these suggestions are helpful - Del • I would have wanted my meds right away. I had a terrible time finding the meds in a liquid form. Either check with the pharmacy beforehand to see if they stock them or if possible have the Dr. order them one-day pre-op so that you will have them ready when you return home. – Cindy • get rid of all the foods in the house you are not to eat, before you go to the hospital • make sure you have lots of fluids to drink afterwards - and for when you go back to work • buy all the groceries you will need for at least 2 weeks after surgery Keep in touch. Since we're "surgery sisters" it would be nice to have someone to talk to that is feeling the same way I am.

I'm 39 and scheduled for the end of May. I have had a million surgeries (okay so actually it was 6) and I'm still really nervous. I think it is really, really normal for us to go through this. We'd be nuts if we went into it casually, this is serious. I have had a major panic problem in the past but you'd be surprised what meds can do to help. Tell the anesthesiologist that you are scared, you'll be asleep long before they even wheel you in the room. The surgery will go great and you'll be fine - we both will be. The worst part about any surgery is the worrying you do the weeks prior. The surgery itself isn't that bad at all. Good luck. I'll say a prayer for you!

Hi there. May 24 is my day too. I wish you good luck. I hope we both have a very smooth procedure! 243/236/145

Hi Kacee, I'm scheduled for the 24th and I'm planning to go back to work on Tuesday too. Probably a little overly ambitious but I really need to as I am self pay too. I'm nervous!

:think Hi everyone, Okay, so I went for my first appointment with the surgical center and everyone was terrific. The nurse, psychiatrist and nutritionist all thought I'd be a great candidate for the band. I have a goal of 8 lbs to lose in the next 6 weeks (piece of cake - well actually no more cake!) and if I do, they'll schedule the surgery. Problem is, my stupid insurance won't cover it. It's an exclusion so I'm completely out of luck. I'm going to appeal but my chances aren't good. I am thinking about taking a loan from my 401K but I feel so selfish. It will be $18000 for everything (pre-op, op, post-op and 2 fills) to get started and I don't feel right spending so much money. Part of me says "stop being weak and just try (again) to lose the weight yourself" and the other part of me says "if you want to live a long life, and see your kids grow up you HAVE to do this." I really don't know what to do. I'm so sad right now.....

And I LOVE your screen name.....

Julie, thanks. You're my new best friend! I feel so much better on all fronts right now. It is worth the money and I won't have to live in an onion ring free world! Gosh, I hope it's normal to have all these doubts. I hope I'm not just a huge whiner!

Thanks for the support. I did consider going to Mexico or Colorado but I'm scared. I also have Multiple Sclerosis and I want to make sure I'm close to home in case something happens. I know you're right, I should do it. I'm really not just doing it for me - you're right. It's as much for my husband and kids as it is for me. I still feel selfish though. Sort of like I've failed and now I'm making them pay. You are totally right though, I need to do this. I want to get healthy.

OMG I had the exact same conversation with my nutritionist yesterday and it scared the poop out of me! She said I have to live with the fact that I can never eat some of the foods I love ever again. I said, what about small quantities eaten rarely and she said no. She specifically said fried food - specifically seafood. I told her that once a year we go out as a family and get fried oysters and onion rings and would I be able to tolerate something so fatty in small quantities. I told her I would get steamers and just have an onion ring or two and she said "steamers are fine with no butter but no, you can never have even one onion ring again". I'm freaking out. I know I have to eat better and I'm just having a difficult time giving everything up forever. Truthfully, I'm afraid I'm going "cheat" because I feel like something is forbidden. I was on Atkins for 3 years and never felt deprived because I allowed myself to eat carbs on special occasions. I just was extra careful for the following few days. I only regained the weight because I got sick, went on medicine that made me gain weight, got depressed and quit. When I did WW (in the old days), I didn't let myself cheat and I ended up eating anything that wasn't nailed down. Tell me how you guys do it. Help me! I am really afraid and am having second thoughts. I am going to probably be self pay and I don't want to pay almost $20000 and then fail.

I am in the same situation and freaking a little as it gets closer. I am taking a loan from my 401K to cover the surgery but I'm having second thoughts. Has anyone here NOT had the pre-op stuff covered with a WLS exclusion? I have Horizon and I hear they are pretty bad about this. Also, my company is self-insured - does anyone know if that increases my odds at all? When you appeal, does the appeal go to the insurance company or my employer? I would have assumed it would go to the employer as they would have to pay for it but I haven't been able to get a clear answer on that. Any thoughts?

I am going to have to do this self pay and I've seen quite a few of you had the surgery there. I have to tell you - I'm terrified of doing that. It scares me to death but I would like to have some information from you and your experiences if you don't mind sharing.