Search the Community

I'm 7 weeks out and I still burp constantly.

Jatoya, That is perfectly normal. It will go away! My first week after surgery, I was thinking "OMG, what have I done? Is this gonna be like this forever?" But it all went away and I feel absolutely wonderful. I walked a lot during my recovery period and I think that helped a lot. I have seen other ppl post on here that they used Gas-x strips to help relieve the gas as well. I didnt use them myself but other ppl swear by them. Good luck with your journey! Remember the first couple of weeks are the hardest; you will get through it. Keep the big picture in mind!

So, I'm about five weeks out from surgery -- May 6th. For reference, I'm a 39 y.o. male, BMI 42 (6'1, wt. 330). My cardiac scans were good, I'm going for an EGD on Thursday due to concerns about GERD and some upper right quadrant pain that could be gall bladder, but is more likely due to my enlarged liver. I have been diagnosed with fatty liver (without scarring, thankfully), but my liver enzymes are normal. My surgeon suspects that my upper right quadrant pain (it is very mild and intermittent) is the enlarged liver pushing against the "capsule" that it sits in. Hopefully with weight loss, this problem will resolve itself. I'm in generally good health otherwise -- I have sleep apnea, as you'd expect for someone who is 120 pounds overweight, but no diabetes or cardiopulminary issues. Aside from some recurrent allergies, sinus infections, I think I'm in decent health (for an obese man). So here's my question. I'm a worrier -- I worry (needlessly, most likely) about post-operative and perioperative complications. I know that my anxiety is normal and not the end of the world, but I'd like to know: 1. What is the real complication rate associated with VSG? I know that general anesthesia always carries risks, but these are generally small. What are the chances of leaks and so on? My doctor (Dr. Robert Landerholm in WA state) has performed "hundreds" of VSG's with "one" leak (due, he said, to patient noncompliance), so I'm hoping that surgeon competency isn't an issue. 2. What can I do now, in the month leading up to surgery, and after surgery, to increase my chances of a successful, complication-free operation? I suspect that with an already-diagnosed fatty liver, the pre-op diet is going to be crucial. I'm also going to start doing cardio work every single day to make sure my heart and lungs and immune system are as strong before the operation as I can make them. Is there anything else I can or should be doing?

I had a stall at almost 4 months out and it lasted 7 weeks, just be patient as you can and it will pass!

To answer your first question, I did not cheat at all on my preop diet, or postop for that matter. I was sleeved at OCC in December so I know what you are going through. So......Drink all your Protein shakes. I had at least 8 different varieties to chose from. Drink lots of Water in between. Take advantage of the unlimited green veggies part of the diet. I ate spinach, kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts, lettuce salads (with flavored vinegar dressing) and mushrooms like there was no tomorrow. I added unflavored Protein powder to chicken and beef broth, Chinese hot and sour Soup base and wonton soup broth and ate those in place of a shake on some days. Spinach/mushrooms/beef broth/Unjury protein powder was a favorite. unjury protein cheese sauce powder mixed with Swansons tortilla soup base was also very yummy. I was supposed to lose 12 pounds before surgery and ended up losing 22 pounds. This diet is not there to torture us, it is designed for us to have the safest surgery possible. And if you need more motivation, Dr Ortiz actually turned down a patient a couple weeks ago the day of her surgery because she did not lose what she was supposed to lose preop. Do you really want to travel all the way down there for nothing?

Congrats! The first couple of weeks are the worse but it gets better. It was hard for me to get comfortable also when going to bed. I bought a body pillow and tucked it under my belly when I slept on my side, it helped provide support and I slept much better. Good luck.

HOORAY for my RV sleeve sistuh!!!! Sounds like you are on the road to normal life! Wow! Coincidentally- yesterday was my four weeks too ;-P Though I am not on soft foods I pureed two ounces of costco rotisserie chicken salad yesterday and (after pulling out the celery) ate it in total rapture! I was a little worried as I know chicken can be a problem but not only did it becoe the new"best thing I ever ate " but it went down beautifully! It is 14 grams of Protein for two ounces too- and zero carbs! It felt good to add another food since I fell into a rut last week eating the same things for five days straight because I knew I would tolerate it and it added up right. I want to avoid doing that and keep trying new things. Next up? A veggie, and a fruit. I actually am wanting to have a higher calorie day for mixing it up since I seem to end up between 580-660 calories day after day and I don't want to fall into starvation mode. I did lose four pounds last week and this week has been a bit frustrating- for three days straight I have lost 0.2 pounds! Well- I wont really complain since if I lose .2 a day for ten days that will still be two pounds so I guess as long as it goes down! This also makes me thing upping the calories for a day or two might help but it is HARD to do! I wait 2-3 hours between "meals" and then with waiting after to drink...well fitting in an extra something is not that easy! I am really proud that I am exercising twice most days- 45 minutes of walking and an hour of Water aerobics. That also can have caused the slowdown again if I am making muscles. I need to remember it is a journey, not a race! Now where is Michelle? We need to hear about her one month!

My doc said if I didn't get a leak in the first 2 weeks I would never have a leak. He said one of the main things I would notice would be a racing heart rate and fever. He said following the instructions during those 2 weeks post op and not overfilling the sleeve would usually prevent a leak. He said there is rarely a leak at the beginning of the staple line but yes they do glue in addition to the stqaples.

I don't see a thread for May 2007 yet. Or I am just blind. But yesterday I received my final approval from the insurance company. I scheduled for May 21st, because my is converting over to a new software in the first week in April and I have to be here for the full month. Little by little I am getting excited. I knew that I would be approved I just didn't know how long it was going to take. And that was the longest 2 weeks ever.

2 weeks

Penni, Since I am so new here, I was waiting for someone as loving and caring as yourself to say something about eating solids a couple of days after surgery. My doctor was more strict. Clear Liquids 1st week, liquids 2nd week, 3rd and 4th week mushies and week 5 stepping up to solids. This time was a wonderful opportunity to lose weight without really trying. It is so important to follow your dr's recommendations. Humans can live on liquids for weeks and still get ample nutrition. Try taking on a new hobbie or walking if you feel very hungry. We tend to want more the things we can't have - like eating big after banding. As time passes, food becomes less important but you need to substitute another behavior for eating. I ask myself, what has food done for me? I answer - nothing but make me fat. Food is not my best friend anymore, it is a mere acquaintance. Good luck and listen to penni about the liquids or I have a feeling she will personally come and smack your head.

Thank you both Deb and RandomRan for your thoughtful replies. I will begin the journal today, i think it will help. The problem i had with the Protein shakes right from pre-op until about a couple of days ago, is that they gave me pretty bad gout. I have never had gout for more than 2-3 days at a time and this episode lasted more than 3 weeks. The 2 major changes were that i was losing weight quickly and that i was drinking Protein Shakes. Natural Proteins seem to be better. I will also take up your suggestions for adding veges. i do like veggies and have been eating them, but they can be low cal and filling. Thanks again - J

So I have found out something about myself, I am SO boring! Since I have taken away smoking, drinking coffee, drinking booze, eating and cooking I HAVE NO LIFE!!! I know it doesn't help that I have been out of work for the past 3 weeks, but I have no hobbies to fill my time. I have also been depressed since the surgery so I am in no mood to create some fun. I can't go to the gym yet because I severely hurt my muscle that they cut threw and I have stabbing pain which exercise makes so much worse. My friends aren't inviting me out because I am "recovering". I am sick of doing nothing except looking at my cats all day. Does anyone have any suggestions of hobbies or activities that a former foodie may enjoy?

I was given a prescription prior to surgery for an antinausea (can't remember the name at the moment), but it dissolves under your tongue -- they give it to chemo patients alot. I had to take one a few weeks after surgery and it stopped the nausea cold that I had for some mysterious reason. The main thing is to not panic. Use hand sanitizer, don't kiss your kids or even hug them for a few days. You should be fine!

You are inspiring to me! I got stuck after losing 140 lbs and I got so 'satisfied' in my head with how I was looking and kept wanting and wanting to get below the 200 lb mark and I keep bouncing up and down and then slipped back over the holidays with gaining from some sloppy eating habits. I decided to recommit to my old 2008 self when losing weight was foremost in my mind every hour of every day as I got ready to have my lapband surgery in March and for those exciting months after when I was losing weight so fast. I joined a WW class at work that starts January 13 and it goes for a 10 week session and I'm going to fight like heck to get my 199 or less lbs mark. Keep me in prayers for this all important life milestone.

Okay…..so I am officially 3 weeks post op today, May 20, 2008 and am seriously ready to eat a cow . I have been this way since last week and the doc, oh I love him but hell, told me that as long as I am losing weight he is not too concerned about anything. My issues, I am not eating the 4oz that is suggested, but more like 10-12oz, and he said that is fine because I am losing weight so long as I am not eating crap. :sleep: I must confess, I did have 3 Cookies last week although totally drowned in milk, I did eat them and I told him this:thumbdown:. He asked if that was it and I honestly told him yes. I had not even eaten the recommended oatmeal, mushy Cereal, in fact no breads, rice, Pasta, etc. Right now, I want to dive my big ol but into a plate of nothing by carbohydrates or a greasy cheeseburger with some chips and queso, but I have refrained. :eek: Quitting sugar and, well hell the “good foods” (aka: fattening foods) the way I did was like telling a drug addict, alcoholic or smoker to stop cold turkey. I was told my insurance approved me on April 18 and I needed to start my liquid diets because they were scheduling my surgery for April 25, which ended up getting pushed back to April 29, 2008. Now, I am not ungrateful because I appreciate the opportunity to have this surgery, I am sure as much as any of you, but someone please tell me what I can have because right now I want to cave in and eat something that I know I do not need, should not eat and is totally against what this procedure is for. BTW……I have eaten the sugar free jellos and puddings, the sugar free popsicles and the yogurts, but I think it is the bread my body is craving as I have had ZERO of that (except those three cookies). I feel tired, worn out, not really wanting to do anything, which I am thinking is the lack of carbs as my intake is very minimal right now. Any suggestions would be most appreciated!!!!

Hello! I'm new to this.. but I've been addicted to this whole website for about a week now! I decided I better join and post a forum since I now have my appointments!! My exercise therapist appointment is July 25th! My appointment with my surgeon, Dr. McEwen from Fishers, IN, is on Monday, July 28th. Also, my psch evaluation is that day!! My dietician appointment is also scheduled! My surgery is hopefully going to be the week of August 18th, the week before I start school again. I'm at senior in college! Can't wait to graduate! :Banane03: I'm so excited about this. But.. then again.. I'm so scared!! I've never had surgery and I've never been put under! Anyone seen the movie "Awake"? haha I'm hoping that doesn't happen to me..

So true, I have increased my exercise to 1 hour a day and I keep my calories no less than 1200 but no more than 1600 and I have lost 4 pounds in one week which is more than have lost in the past three months put together! It's important to keep your calories up if you are increasing your workouts just like the other posters stated.

800 calories a day is great at 4 weeks. I was able to start getting that high once I was on solid foods. I pushed hard to get up to around 1100 calories a day when I started intense workouts and spent most of my weight loss phase at about 1400-1500 a day. Sounds like you are doing well!

Cipro (broad-spectrum antibiotic) crushed up in light applesauce is perhaps the most vile thing that I have ever tasted. On the bright side, it caused me to drink about half a gallon of Water and Propel, though the taste is still there. I'm 5 weeks out and I'm supposed to crush my meds for 6 weeks, but I'm going to call my surgeon's office and ask if I can advance sooner. Cipro pills are huge, so maybe I can even cut it in half or quarters or something. I found out that I have a UTI (which I'm not prone to at all), probably caused by the cathether at the hospital. Since I've also been having kidney issues, which may or may not be related, I really want to knock this out.

My surgeon says normally people take off two weeks, but it also depends on how physically demanding your job is.

i have not always been a big girl. and by big girl i mean that i am 5'2 and 1/2 and currently weigh 232 lbs...after 6 days on the pre-op diet. at my heaviest i was 250 lbs. the first weight i remember was 110 lbs. i was 16. i weighed 110 lbs up until i got pregnant at the age of 18. yes...i was pregnant at 18! i gained 50 lbs with that pregnancy and have struggled with my weight ever since (ironically, my goal weight is 160 lbs exactly what i weighed 18 years ago after giving birth to my first child). by age 22 i was at 175 lbs. and i know this because weight mattered as much then as it did now. when i was 23 i managed to get down to 150 something pounds to enlist in the military, where i lost another 30 lbs bringing me almost to my 16 year old weight. another pregnancy at 23 put me back at 175 lbs. i was able to lose about 15-20 of those pounds while active in the service, but civilian life afforded me the luxury to be a slacker and the pounds found me shortly after my discharge. i was consistently weighing in at between 175 and 185 for about two years after baby number two and then i met mr. right...now i'm not blaming him for the poundage that i've managed to pack on over the course of our 10 year relationship but a long courtship/engagement, family issues, work, school, financial woes, and just life in general did nothing but enlarge both of our waistlines. together we have gained over 200 since we met in 2002. in 2005 i was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and was told that i could control it with diet and exercise which would lead to weight loss. i failed. i went through the first line of medication pretty quickly and was placed on a second line which was effective but i could not adjust to the side effects. i quickly learned the trickiness of this disease and failed miserably at managing it. between general life transitions, my disease, and depression i left a lot to be neglected... by 2009 not only did i have diabetes, but i had tacked on high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, fatty liver, and morbid obesity to my list of diseases. i was prescribed over 7 medications for all of this mess and i was 34 years old... in 2010 my employer announced that our health insurance would cover wls. i was uninterested and full of hate. i was going to lose weight on my own. with diet, exercise, and determination i was going to finally put this weight thing behind me. i got bigger and my diabetes spiraled out of control. in 2011 my doctor warned that insulin was on the way and we had a conversation about wls. she was surprised that we had never spoke of this before and i found that she was banded. she suggested i attend an info session on wls to get more info and she made a referral. i had my first dr. consult in 6-2011 and was still not sure that this was my path...i felt like a failure. why can't i just lose stick to a plan and lose the weight. i tried bootcamps and any number of diets out there that you can think of. success was small and never-lasting. as my disease progressed i knew that i had to make a decision and i started the classes in preparation for my surgery in 9-2011. it is hard to believe that i am less than two weeks away from my surgery...

Thanks guys it's been a week and I'm adjusting well. The surgery went great and my surgeon was the best. He was on time, always has a good disposition, and smiles. Love him lol. I made one week today and can say I'm glad I made this choice.

In May I will have been banded for 2 years and I'm still learning about myself and this band. I got back into the dreaded scale habit. For the first year and 1/2 I was banded I didn't own a scale, I would only weigh myself at my monthly dr. check-ups, well then my surgeon basically overnight became no more and I found myself in the position that I had to find a new dr., so after 3 months without a weigh-in it was driving me crazy I knew my clothes were fitting the same - (which is the all time measurement), but I broke down and bought a scale. At first I did well, I weighed myself once a week. I had my first consultation with my new dr. and my weight was exactly the same as it was 3-months prior. The following week we went to Jamaica for vacation and I didn't allow myself to worry with calories etc., that is until I got home and then the first thing I did was jump on that scale and the numbers revealed what I had feared, I had gone up almost 4lbs. For me this was the first time since being banded that I SAW my # on the scale go up. It undoubtedly did along the way but because I didn't see it, no harm no foul. Immediately I went into panic mode because I new the next couple of weeks following was Christmas and then New Years, blah, blah, blah, so for the last month, I've been on that dang scale 1-2 times a day. Seeing those same 4lbs go up and down. Bad habits die hard. I need to go back to what has worked for me all along and only allow the scale to see the light of day once a month. Since I seem to know the answer to my own problem, why aren't I doing it? Fear is the answer. Is 4lbs a big deal? No, not at all, we all know we can flex 5lbs over night due to Water retention, stress, BM's, for ladies that TOM etc., but for anyone who's struggled with weight the real concern isn't about the 4lbs., it's about the fear of those 4lbs. becoming 10lbs., then 20lbs.,etc. Has anyone else had this same fear? I mean we've all been through these vicious cycles before. BUT wait, what have I forgotten???? Oh that's right, I forgot, that I'm not in this alone, I now have a tool that helps me navigate through these times. A tool that I'm incredibly thankful for and one that I need to rely on more than my brain during these times. The fear of never wanting to be where I was when I started is a good thing, It's that fear that keeps me in check!!! I'm still finding things out about myself along the way and will continue to learn until the day I'm no longer on this earth. If you can identify with what I'm saying I would greatly appreciate your input! Thanks!