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I am almost 5 weeks out and I am on soft foods. I am so happy with what my sleeve is doing for me. It's just that I feel some kind of, for lack of a better word, weirdness in my stomach all day. Whether it's heartburn, hunger, gas, nausea or like food is not going down, I never feel comfortable. It's very distracting. Any feed back on this? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I guess mine was a little more intensive! In addition to weigh-in, checking incisions, vitals, we had a 2 hour post op seminar with a nutritionist on eating for the next few weeks of healing and how to eat after healing. They talked more about fills and how often we should be coming in to get them. This is in addition to the pre-op seminar that we had about what to expect, because your mind isn't as focused on what to eat after, as it is on the actual surgery. I hope it's more than a quick in and out, especially if you are paying for a visit!

I was so excited about starting my journey some time this month but today I received a call from the place where I will be having and they finally explain the process that the doctor first has to look through all my lab work to see if I am a candidate, once that's complete she will send it to be approve for surgery. Here I am thinking I was finally getting closer to my surgery and it's going to take any where from 2-6 weeks. :-( just wanted to vent my frustrations!

I am to be sleeved on October 9th. I attend support groups weekly. This topic was actually just mentioned on Thursday. Some people who have had the surgery already that were there said everything taste the same, others reported mild changes, and some gave examples of when they first got it done that for a week or two everything, for some even water tasted odd. Some said like sand, some said copper, and yes someone said soap. I wouldn't worry, but if u want that extra relief just call your doc to confirm. Best of luck and please send updates. Will be sleeved by doctor Singe at Albany Medical Center in Albany, NY on October 9th.

I hate to say it but I think I am regretting my decision on having this procedure done! I was never felt sick after eating before I had this done. I am about 3 1/2 weeks out, it feels like it has been months. My surgery and recovery were uneventful so not sure what is up. I have 3 small children and I am always on the go with them I guess I just need to take a few extra minutes and prepare my meals or plan my meals out for the day.

Ti's always good to read that things are are getting better. The first week is pretty hard, then it does go easier...

I got sick at about the same time because I was introducing new foods..I backed off to liquids for two days then started introducing foods slowly. It does get better. I'm six weeks out tomorrow and I feel totally different.I'm sorry you're not feeling well...but hang in there!

So... First of all I should conitnue blogging I think it makes a person feel better! Since no one else around me understands. Second I have made this change to my life.... and I have no damn clue how to live it! I know I am supposed to have certain portion sizes and so on, however they don't tell you what calories to stay at in order to keep losing and how many carbs to take in and how many grams of sugar. I have decided to hire a personal trainer to help aid in my weight loss journey. I meet with her today at 11:30. I hope that goes well and she provides me with some good information. I have been trying to get through to my dr. His secretary is an idiot! Why are Dr's secretaries so dumb?! I want to know what size band I had put on, well I finally find out its a standard size? Ok WTF? So here I am searching on the world wide web to find out about a standard band. GRRRRRRRR :huytsao I called the nutrionist this am to find out where I am to be with calories since I was unsucessful with the SECRETARY :rolleyes. I guess I am to be taking in 1100 calories and I am not even exercising yet. Gah I am soooooooooo scared to put any of this weight back on. I have been stayin right around 872 and bumping myself up to 1100 wow. But she says I will see faster results cause at that level I am not in starvation mode! :whoo:Thanks to her I got a little bit of helpful information. I still have strong hunger pains which is weird. I cannot wait for my first fill! I have 3 more weeks though until I get it. If any of you have any information please let me know or you can add me on yahoo: militarywif3y is my id. Missyd has been a huge help to me! And I thank her alot! This will get easier? I will learn good foods and how to continue the good lifestyle change I am hoping?

There's no pain in the surgury, you wont even know it happened. You go to sleep then wake up and thats it. After they hook you to pain meds, no prob. Just be prepared to sleep alot the first 24-36 hours. After surgery I have not had any pain..just discomfort. There are a few times I strained or moved funny and it hurt but there is nothing throbbing. I take a partial dose of the pain med each night. I'm functioning really well. Been shopping, supervised yard work with my family and even helped a little. Walking fine, sleeping fine. Was banded Tues (4 days ago). Everyone is different but if you are having Anxiety take some Zanex the week leading up...thats what I did (for other reasons). :thumbup:

The swelling does make it hard to get the fluids down at first...that will gradually get better. But that's the most important thing the first few weeks...fluids. Don't worry about protein and other stuff...just don't get dehydrated! That can cause lots of problems that you don't want. Sip Burp, Sip, Burp....walk walk walk, nap in between. You'll do fine! Right now your sleeve is in control...it's going to do some great work for you!

I used to own an Herbalife Nutrition club and I made protein shakes and smoothies of all flavors. I use Herbalife shake mix but any shake mix will do. If you are allowed fruit yet this will be great. Use a cup of skim milk, the protein shake mix powder (vanilla), about 3 frozen strawberries, a teaspoon of strawberry extract, and a few ice cubes. Blend in the blender until frozen and smooth. I can only eat a half one now. theworldaccordingtoeggface.com has great shake recipes too.

just kidding i 'endulged'!!! this saturday a friend of mine called me up and invited me to come make cake weenies with her. being the good friend i am i happily obliged. we made little chocolate cake weenies with chocolate frosting and pink ones with white frosting. :cool: :lick they were yummy...well actually i had a weird experience...on the chocolate one i could only eat about 2-3 bites before it became WAY to sweet. i even let it sit for 2 hours while we watched a movie thinking i could finish it later. STILL to sweet. :speechles weird in a good way!! have you had your cake weenies today?:smoke

So I'm 11 days post op and yesterday I a different feeling. I went to work and boy I can admit I should probably still be out. I know some other have gone back to work after 4 days, but we are all different. In my case, my job requires alot of engagement. Talking, meetings, etc. Although I spend some time sitting, the rest is meetings, where I am presenting information. Long story short, I was not physically or mentally ready to go back to work this week. And to top if all off, yesterday I had the worse burning sensation in my stomach all day. I even had sugar free Popsicles to offset the discomfort. Should I be worried? I was taking Nexium for reflux prior to my surgery but was told not to take it anymore. Besides I am still on full liquids and doubt its anything I have "eaten" that has caused the discomfort. Silly as it may seem, I have never really experienced hunger pangs. So my husband thinks this is what it is! lol I seriously don't know. Are hunger pangs this burning sensation in your belly?Has anyone else experienced this?

Well, I just told my husband about my decision to get the lap band surgery. I had not told anybody but my best friend a few weeks ago when I was going to the seminar because I knew she would just listen and not judge or try to convince me one way or the other. Hubby can tend to be a bit negative and always points out the bad, so I chose not to tell him until I had chosen because, frankly, this is about and for me. All he knew was that I was going to all these doctor appointments and knew I had something going on but didn't want to talk to him about it just yet. Until tonight. He was amazingly supportive and happy that out of all the WLS out there, I had chosen this one because it was not as drastic as so many others out there. I was so surprised that I started crying. He asked if I was sad about this, and I said no... just emotional. There's a part of me that is SO excited to begin this new journey, yet another little voice in my head said I failed or wasn't strong enough to do this myself. He shushed me and said that's not true at all... this is just a tool, and I will still have the work to do. I just need some help, and that's okay. He even asked, if it was okay with me, if he could go with me to meet with the nutritionist when that time comes because he does a lot of the cooking and wants to know what will be best for me. How fantastic is that? Wow. :sad_smile:

Hi Laura, I took an 8 week western riding class 2 weeks after I was banded. The only problem I had was picking their feet. Oh, well the other problem I had was when I was dismounting once and ended up getting the front of my bra hung up on the saddle horn, but since you ride English, this shouldn't be a problem. My surgeon was very amused when I asked if there was going to be any problmes with me riding.

I would talk to a nutritionist, on how to maintain your goal weight, I would think it has something to do with your calorie intake. My nutritionist is very good and ontop of all her patients, I am required to see her 3 months post op, and I am looking forward to it, she also is always an email away.

So not sure where to post this so posting in a couple of places, sorry if you see it more than once :seeya: Well, I have had my band over a year and am down a total of.......6 lbs. I fluctuate a bit, but have noticed that my fills are all over the place since the first one, one day there is no restriction and I could shove a house down there, the next I am fine, the day after that I can hardly swallow my own spit, and back and forth and back and forth and I have grown to despise the band as it hasnt functioned at all as the tool it should....most times I take one or 2 bites of any type of meat and my pouch fills up with goo quicker than you can say 'goo' :ihih: and I am spitting for the next hour. I get so hungry and weak from not eating that I have to move to soups and veggies only and am starving. I have not been able to eat all that healthy at all really since having the surger because it has been so horribly inconsistent as a tool. I feel complete regret and physically sick over spending 18,000 cash on this and wish I hadnt cheaped out and spent the extra 4 grand for the Gastric BP I also now will have to pay for each fill and tweak to try to get it right someday and dont really have the money to do so in this economic downturn we are in..but.....so anyway.... I have been having some chronic upper and lower left abdominal pain for many months, more severe upper ,and went for a CT scan. The radiologist noted hiatal hernia extending 5 mm into the thorax. I had the hiatal hernia pre-surgery. I am unsure really what this means to the band, but could this be the cause of why it has been so finicky and the pain? A few times now the pain in the upper left is so severe it feels like someone is twisting me inside for aoubt 30 seconds...worst pain I have felt aside from when I had a large ovarian cyst burst and leak fluid into my tissue (if anyone has had this they will know what I mean about the excruciating pain of this!) I couldnt get in to see my surgical team until next week. Strangely though, last week I had to break down and get unfilled completely because I couldnt get any liquids in at all for an entire day (this happened to me back around the first of the year as well). My last fill was in March this year by the way. Has anyone else has this experience with their band and/or know what the implications of the results of the CT scan? I dont really know what this means in relation to having a band vs an untouched anatomy. PS - They also found an adrenal cyst and another recent test discovered 7 thryoid nodules. I also have recurrent ovarian cysts...my poor hormones must all hate eachother

My surgery was 2/13, and today I have my first appointment with the Dietician and Nurse Practionier. I have already seen the surgeon 10 days after surgery, but that was nothing exciting. I am supposed to get my first fill today, but I have had so many breathing issues that started since the day after surgery. Removing the band is still on the table, so I am thinking they probably won't fill me. I am kinda bummed about that, since the point of having the surgery was to get fills and help me loose weight. However, I can't complain because since surgery I have lost 29lbs in 6 weeks, all while on Prendisone and other multiple steriods! Has anyone not been filled the first time?

I love your list! You see I went on a trip back in August with my kids and hubby and was unable to do so much. I tried but I held them back and they would not go withou me. I think I cried every night. at the time we knew I was about a month out from surgery and my granddaughter kept saying how this would be the last time i would not be able to walk very far or would not be able to go zip lining. Well, two weeks ago I went to Las Vegas with my husband. First, I had to go buy clothes that were 4 sizes smaller! Then when I got on the plane and into my seat, my seatbelt not only fit, I probably had an extra 6 inches! I walked all over Las Vegas and was not in pain, in fact my hubby and son got pooped out before I did! And I did not have to use a necklace extender. In February, I am taking my other son and Granddaughter to Hawaii, we have not been there since 1999. I have excursions planned on every island and I cannot wait to mark things off my list! You are going to have a blast when it happens for you. I am less than halfway to my goal and only 10 weeks post op and I feel so blessed to be where I am already!

It's easy to fall into old habits, even once you're a vet. It's a learning process. No worries, I'm sure you're fine. It's just a matter of needing to go slow and steady. For me, at least, measuring was critical for a very long time. Even now it's all to easy to think I've eaten very little or a lot in a day but it isn't until I track everything that I see I was on target. We forget how many bites we've taken, our memory of what we've eaten is easy blurred if we're distracted. Next time, set aside a nice little portion for yourself and see how it settles before attempting anything more! And if it's any consolation, I was making huge batches of hummus for an event a few weeks ago and did the same darn thing. I didn't feel sick but I ate to the point of being full and uncomfortable because I was snacking on chickpeas as I was making salads and hummus. A handful here, a handful there and it adds up! My problem lies more in getting distracted by what I'm doing and forgetting to eat regular meals and Snacks. We all have our bad habits to overcome, and some of these challenges are with us for the long haul. ~Cheri

I attended 3 seminars before my band surgery, and YES, I think they are beneficial. It gave me a good grasp on the surgeon, his ideas, thoughts, general experience. I'm a "first impression" kind of girl. One surgeon rubbed me the wrong way, and his insurance coordinator really rubbed me wrong especially when I found out they were charging military dependents a $500 administration fee which totally ILLEGAL as part of Tricare's agreement(and they refused to file it with Tricare or allow us to file it with Tricare privately by not offering a claim code, or a real reason as to why they were charging it other than, this covers admin fees, not covering nut or psych visits) with civilian surgeons. This particular surgeon is prior military, about 80% of the attendees were retired military or retired military dependents. I felt as if he used his prior service to prey on military dependents, plus he had a "god like" attitude, and well, that just doesn't sit well with me. The other 2 were with the same surgeon who performed my band. He didn't have the best bedside manner, and wasn't warm and fuzzy, but that has never been a selling point for me. I wanted experience, and to have surgery with a man/team who I felt would meet my needs. Least to say, he put on a good show, and I fired him after only 5 months post-banding due to his refusal to help me when I started having major issues with my band.

Hey everyone. I am having a lot of worries about my plication and I am wondering if anybody can ease my mind. I went to the doctor and she said I could start doing soft foods. I can only have Refried Beans, pudding, Jello and Cottage cheese. She absolutely freaked out because I told her I ate some guacamole. I'm talking maybe a spoon full. She said that because of the fat content it would make my stomach work too hard and it could pop my stitches. Ever since she talked about popping my stitches I have been absolutely paranoid about it happening! So here are my questions: 1.) Would you know if one of your stitches did come out? 2.) Is it really as easy as she made it sound to pop one of them? 3.) Why when I eat all the mushy food I get hungry again in 30 minutes? I thought with my smaller stomach I would be full faster. 4.) I was told that my stomach size is only 2 - 4 ounces but I swear I can eat at least twice that. Thanks!!!!

Hey, I had my surgery on December 7th and have lost 43 pounds. I lost 21 pounds that first month, but I did have a stall by the third week. I was annoyed. I am still losing and sometimes I go a week without losing weight. I know it is frustrating, but you are going to lose the weight. You seem to have done well so far. You just need to keep doing what you are doing. Maybe lay off the crackers. My surgeon has me on 400-600 calories until I lose 75% of my weight. I guess some doctors are different with what they want others to do.

I am new to the forum, but I have seen many of your posts. I look forward to seeing more hopfully in the future. My surgery is next week on the 16th. Congrats on the cross-over! praying for your speey recovery and an eased journey! Happy for you and all the April surgeries!

So yesterday April 5th at 5:30 a.m. I got the lap band put in. by 9:30 a.m. I left the surgical center with my husband (the poor guy had to wait in the lobby for 4 hours alone. I told him he could go to the hotel since it was only about 4 min. away, but he refused.) we picked up our kids from the hotel and was headed home by 10. I slept most of the way home and my kids sat still and quiet for 3 of the 4 hours of the ride home when I woke up I told them they didn't have to be quiet and assured them they weren't bothering me, they have all been over the top considerate I think it was just a big deal to them, no one in our family has ever had surgery before. The gas discomfort was the most uncomfortable yesterday and thanks everyone that posted to use a heating a pad it has helped so much. my chair in our vehicle has heated seats so that helped some during the drive, others said to have a hot bottle of water but i used the hand feet warmers they stay hot for 6 hours plus there thin little packets so you can lay back on them comfortably. I slept good last night only waking up when the meds were wearing off. I was very nauseated when I first woke up but they stuffed me full of anti-nausea meds and haven't been sick since. today the gas pain is getting better but my stomach muscles are very sore and my inscisions are a little painful but the meds help and I think by tomorrow I will be feeling much better. I can't believe how thirsty I've been i'm sipping water and constantly, I have no hunger whats so ever, i'm sure that will pass soon and then I will be in the much discussed bandster hell. well its done so funny how you wait so long prepare for this big life change and after it's finally here it almost seems crazy! I am so happy that I took this step, I want to be healthy and I want to be proud of myself, this is the beginning how exciting. Thank goodness for this site it really helped me to prepare and good luck to anyone getting the band and to everyone who already has one!