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I also have issues with constipation and even before surgery. After getting over almost a 2 week congestion virus I just wasn't feeling up to par so I knew I had to clean myself out! I felt like a huge toxin ball. I take lactlose liquid and it helped but I still felt constipated so I went and bought an enema! Not a good choice if you suffer from hemorrhoids! Sorry tmi but I feel your pain. I can handle ground beef but a steak is very heavy for my pouch! Good luck

I was banded on 5/22/12. I did Clear Liquids for 3 days & now I am on day 4. So I can move on to Full Liquids. I lived off of Liquid Isopure Blue Rasberry. Now I am enjoying Trader Joe's Butter Nut Squash, Vita Coco, & my Isopure powder - Double Dutch chocolate & low fat milk. I am not hungry, but feel a bit light headed. Going to the RR regularly so I know I am staying hydrated. And finally had a BM this morning. (Sorry for the TMI). How is everyone else doing?

I was banded on 2/22..it was 7 days before I pooped...I tried MOM but it was nasty...so I started diluting prune juice in equal parts & Benefiber is AWESOME...you can mix it in soups or shakes... Anyway, dont worry it comes with the territory..now I have 1 big BM a day...WOW that is TMI. LOL

is it mainly around TMI when you have cravings? That's my problem point. Try: Gum - minty works best Pickles - dill takes away sweet cravings Never, ever eat a sweet on an empty stomach. It will set you up for cravings later. Eat protein when your stomach is empty. Then if you still want the treat do it. Carbsmart ice cream bars. That's my indulgence. They are heavenly and only 9 grams carbs (net 5) and 170 calories. If ice cream is your thing these will do it for ya. OK, here's where I might get hollered at but: coffee. Caffeine takes away appetite and gives you a boost. It's my drug of choice.

That's.scares me because I have had 2 periods this month....its not tmi....we have to help eachother ans share stories lol

With MGB doctors usually bypass 5"-9" of the intestines. And I was just wondering what will happen if the doctor fixes a much shorter loop like 0.5"-1"??? The reason I'm asking is because I had a MGB at a BMI of only 33.. I had it done only after my doctor convinced me that it's a better option for me than VSG and I trusted him. Now I'm losing weight so fast that at 8 weeks out I'm only 5kgs away from my goal weight. I've consulted another doctor who surprisingly advised a revision to normal RNY!!!! I know a reversal of MGB (getting my stomach back) is an option but I had major bleeding complications following my MGB surgery and I'm thinking maybe just a revision to a shorter loop could be a better option! I'm currently having no problems in eating nor in getting 70 grams of Protein per day. I average around 1000-1200 calories and drink around 50-64 ounces of Water. I take in my Vitamins everyday. Yet I'm still losing so much weight and sorry for tmi but my stools are very greasy! So I assume I'm not absorbing any fat! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Pb'ing usually involves a lot of salivating too (to the point of foaming at the mouth) ~ gross and tmi, but "it is what it is".

I told my doctor at my 3 month visit that I was feeling like something was getting stuck and I'd sometimes have food come back up,,not vomit (sorry tmi). I also had trouble with swallowing,,which I have myasthenia gravis which causes muscle weakness and swallowing is a big issue for myasthenics so we thought it was due to that. I saw my neurologist and they changed up my meds. But I just kept feeling the same feelings so I told them (bariatric doc) that I was still having the swallowing issues,,feeling like something was stuck and sometimes food coming up..I even thought it was just normal that maybe I was overeating or eating too fast which I do sometimes,,not on purpose. So they ordered an upper gi,,I just heard the results today and they said there was a stricture,,a slight tightening at the opening of the stomach and doc wanted to do an EGD. I'm sure he wants to see everything up close and personal and decide if I need the balloon treatment,,which is the next step. This is not related to me leak..I've had a swallowing problem for several years due to mg but this seperate issue just over the past few months. Sorry,,I'm so not good at explaining things.lol

Hmm.. I'm not exactly sure how I am feeling... I took a little break from my workouts this past weekend... bad idea.. had to really push myself to start up again.. but happy to report workouts are back on... of course the scale? Yep.. back up... waah.. I am hoping its the whole "woman" thing.. darn I hate this time of month.. its just so discouraging.. wish there was a magic scale that could take in to consideration how much I actually weigh without all the bloating.. Yeah yeah.. TMI right? In meantime - I'm at a crossroads.. I've began to realize that some of my 'triggers' are a direct result of the anxiety I feel when it comes to my family. I love them.. however I have a feeling my love, my concern for them prevents me from becoming the best that I could be... mentally, emotionally and physically. Granted I can't put the blame all on them.. afterall I am one of those people that take the whole world's problems and make them mine... what am I doing? I've begun to realize that I put my life on hold for the people that I love... so now? I have been thinking seriously for the first time in my life - to be selfish.. I have decided to do what I want for me.. for my life, for my future.. and well whether I fail or succeed - (success is what I am aiming for) I am readying myself for a major move.... To pack up and move to California... Every vacation I take, I never want to come home... is that strange? I feel as if I need a change - not just a physical change - but a LIFE change - a change that the band can't give me... So tomorrow I do what I've been wanting to do for quite sometime I put in my notice at work.. I'm giving myself until the end of July to get my affairs in order and make my move to California... Where in Cali? Not exactly sure.. I'm thinking I spend sometime close to some long lost family out in Fresno... just far enough away from the craziness that is my family.. but just close enough that if I'm 'missing' having family around it'll be a short drive to see them... Will my Arizona family be happy about it? Doubt it.. will THIS make me happy? I don't know... I just know that change can be good... good for the soul.. I have lots of plans - things I want to do - that perhaps 200lbs ago I would've scoffed at.. exploring the trails at Yosemite, King's Canyon, and Sequoia National Parks.. or having a 3 to 3 1/2 hour drive to San Francisco and experiencing and appreciating the eclectic sights and scenes that the city has to offer.. not being afraid this time around to jump on the city's famous trolleys...Or to have to opportunity to mark off my bucket list of doing a Napa Valley Wine Tour... its those "little" things that I want to enjoy.. the little things that right now I find myself too busy to enjoy.... Can I enjoy those types of little things here in Arizona? Sure I can! (minus the Napa Valley trip..) But my heart tells me that I want to experience more... and I believe I shall start with California.. Wish me luck!

I had my surgery on april 18th. Thw first week i had a xouple episodrs of diarreah so i took some imodium. Then i couldnt go for awhile so i stopped. Had maybe a week of normal stool and now bam! horrible gas pains and diarreah for two days! I had the chills and i thought i was gonna throw up at the same time (thankfully i didnt) ..anyone else go thru this? is it normal?

Well I did my first Zumba class and what fun! Small problem at the start of theclass, some tmi, I've been really constipated lately and last night I had some fresh cherries. In the back of my mind I knew they can give me cramps and bm's but I figured no problem with nothing moving anyway. WRONG. Had to run to the bathroom twice and I was loving the class! Success!!! So will not eat cherries again but the instructor lets you watch her first and then do it for the neebies. Also some weights for upper body that kicks butt or should I say arms. Reminds me of jazzercise with latin music and moves. Definitely worth a try.

Hey shannybp, how are your gas pains? I can still really feel mine. Sorry if this is TMI, but if I could only have one large full body fart I think I would feel so much better! I actually switched to the gas-x gel tabs as they have twice the active ingredient in them than the strips do. I had my post-op appointment today with my surgeon and I confessed to him that I have been cheating on my 1 week post-op diet (not sticking to Clear liquids only this week). He said if I am handling the Soups and Protein shakes okay that he is not worried about it and I can start introducing mushies next week as long as I am up to it. My incisions are healing very nicely so I think he is confident that I am bouncing back quickly from this. I am not going to try anything chunky yet but it sure is nice to be able to eat soup...6 weeks ago I would have called that crazy talk! I really do seem to have some natural restriction...after 5 bites or so my chest tightens up and it feels like a swallowed a tennis ball or something...amazing. My surgeon confirmed that this is my "new full". I don't think I am anywhere close to needing a fill at this point. It's not a full feeling like I remember it being but it's certainly uncomfortable enough that I want to stop eating...hey, whatever it takes, right! I haven't lost any more weight since surgery day but I am honestly not worried about it right now. I got a McD milkshake today and only drank about an 1/8 of it. It made me sick at my stomach so I through the rest away. I have trimmed my calorie consumption considerably so I can't imagine I won't start losing weight at some point. For the record I only drink milkshakes a few times a year..this was just a simple treat for me...my downfall is southern cooking! The only other side effects I am having 5 days post-op is occasional heart/chest burn and nausea. Other than that I am doing great and glad to be back at work so I can start thinking about other things. Later. :lunch:

So I had the sleeve April 13th, and things went pretty well, but I was in quite a bit of pain. It was only in the past couple weeks that I was able to start back working out (even though that still makes my ouchie spots pretty sore). I even was able to roll around in the sack with my dear fiance, and only to no avail. It was really painful and we couldn't even finish. Haven't tried since. Went to see my OB and they found a 2 inch cyst on my left ovary. I am having another ultrasound in a month, and if it hasn't gotten any smaller I am going to have another surgery to take it out. They say it's really unlikely that it will get smaller, just will keep getting bigger. I know this type of surgery isn't that big of a deal and probably less painful than what I already had, but still sucks, it will keep me out of exercising and Water aerobics for a while over. Almost feel like i'm starting over. Anybody else had this type of surgery?

I am a week pos-op and I am doing great. I have been taking care of myself since I got home. I am 63, by the way, I did a lot of prep work though. I filled the kitchen with the fluids and pureed food that i need post-op. It made the first couple of days home much easier. Other than the diarrhea (sorry if that is TMI) I have had no issues. My surgery was done laparoscopic so I have 5 small incisions, and the one that they used to remove the portion of my stomach that was removed through was sore for about 4/5 days, but I didn't need anything but tylenol for the pain. If you don't feel that your doctor is giving you enough information, keep on pressing for answers. You are paying him/her for their services and you have the right to know everything! If you aren't comfortable with this doctor, maybe you need to find one that you are more comfortable with. You will need to have a long term relationship with your doctor and their team. Good luck!

I'm officially part of Band camp as of this past Wednesday!! The surgery went well and everyone was extremely nice and helpful at Franklin Regional Medical Center in NC. (have to give them props) As for the recovery I am in a lot of pain. I hurts so much to sit down, stand up, and walk where my port area is. As well as the gas pains... my back and stomach ache and are tight! I take gas x strips and taking hydrocodone for the pain. Question for the post bandsters: How long did you have intense pain sitting down and standing? how about the gas pains? Any tips for post up recovery? Also, I haven't had a "bowl movement " (sorry I know TMI) since before the surgery.. is this ok? Thank you all for your support and answering my previous post!!

Thanks everyone for feedback! I have been open with everyone in my life about my surgery and knew it would change things but it has been such drastic weight loss. I want myself, and my husband and I as team to be successful long term. Maybe two much tmi but I want us to connect again like we did before we gained the weight, and became ashamed by our weight which affected our relationship.

I am probably an exception but I can no longer eat spicey foods. I can't even tolerate very much black pepper. I can take a couple of bites and it goes to burning my stomach and then my stomach starts all of it's foaming and everything comes up...TMI!! Then my stomach is irritated for several days and I cannot eat anything. I was always a big spicey eater before the surgery.....I cannot even tolerate barbeque sauce with the least amount of punch to it.

I have to say, I am simply amazed by this journey thus far! I wanted to post my story (in a condensed version) for those of you who are thinking about getting this procedure or have just begun your journey. I have been overweight for as long as I can remember. I just ate what I wanted, and enjoyed it very much. I had little to no concern about my health. I remember in middle school, I would sit in my bedroom closet just eating a can of icing. How disturbing is that?! I finally started thinking about WLS about a year ago. My highest weight was 259 LBS. Although I didn't have any health issues, I had began to miss my monthly visitor (sorry for the TMI). This really concerned me because I desperately want children in my future and I knew that the direction I was going in would make that difficult. I went to meet with a surgeon, and got the ball rolling! My insurance required that I meet with a nutrionist for 6 months before surgery. Those 6 months just FLEW by! However, I had not originally planned on getting the Lapband. My heart was set on getting the Vertical Sleeve. A week before surgery, my Insurance Cordinator gave me a call saying that my insurance will not cover that surgery as I needed to have a BMI of 50. I was really far off. However, I COULD get the Lapband. So after crying my eyes out all day, I decided that this is how it was supposed to be and I agreed to get the Lapband. It was the best decision of my life! I stayed one night in the hospital. It was my first surgery ever, and was relatively easy. The only difficult part was that I felt more comfortable resting in a chair than I did in the bed. I did not sleep much that night. Also, the first time they got me up to walk, I thought I was going to throw up and/or pass out. It got better. Today, it is exactly 4 months since my surgery, which I got on November 21st 2011. Today, I am exactly 60 pounds lighter. Today, I am FINALLY in Onderland (199 pounds)!! It has been simply amazing! I have had 2 fills. My doctor decided to hold off on another one due to the amount of weight I have lost. My weight loss has slowed down a bit, but I am still losing about 2 pounds a week. I will probably ask for another fill when I see him next month. I know everyone says this, but the band really is a tool that YOU have to use. I believe you have to want to put some effort into this before even getting the surgery or it won't work for you. Your mind has to be in the right spot. You have to WANT to change. You have to be willing to give up some of the foods you love or at least only have them on a very rare occasion. You have to be willing to work out. I guess its possible to lose weight without working out, but you will lose more slowly and you may end up looking disproportionate. Thanks to the band, better choices, and the gym, I have lost 60 pounds. I never thought I would be here. I still have 54 more pounds to lose, but I am soooo happy. I love to work out as it makes me feel so much better and I have so much more energy. I also do the Couch to 5K Program. I strongly suggest this program to anyone and everyone! Although I am only in the 4th week (9 weeks total) I am seeing an improvement. My thighs are smaller, I have lost inches, and I am more fit! Since my surgery, I have also lost 2 inches on my neck, 7 inches on my waist, and 6 inches on my hips. Oh, I also use myfitnesspal like a fantatic! Feel free to add me on there. My username is legnarevocrednu. Also, feel free to message me on here if you have any questions. Good luck to all of you on your journey! I still have about 54 pounds to lose, but I'm glad that I could finally post my story as a success!!

I'm about 4 weeks post-op now and badly constipated. I was having the opposite issue the first 2 weeks. What do/did you take for this? I called my nurse and she suggested Miralax, but I hate the bottle says it takes a few days to work. I don't want to wind up in the ER over this. TMI: It's been like a week and a half since I had a normal bathroom trip. The other day I went a little and it was hard and a little painful.

Ok so. I'm 291 lbs. I have spinal injury with lots of surgeries. I'm recently having a really hard time..... wiping....... My butt. Any suggestions? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I actually had several experiences of what I would call dumping. The first time was after drinking my first cup of milk and the second time was recently after eating some extremely spicy chicken. I got flushed, hot/sweaty, and extremely nauseous with cramping and the meals went straight through me and came back out almost undigested. (*tmi).

OK so this may sound like a super dumb question and I apologize. How many minutes do you usually space between sips of plain water during an hour? I was told that it didn't matter as long as I tolerated water without pain, but I've been drinking so much water per hour I'm afraid I'm going to expand my pouch. My mouth has been so dry and my urine (sorry for TMI) hasn't been clear and the surgeon says it's because instead of 64 oz I should be aiming for 100 oz. Ugh. This is so frustrating. I'm so paranoid I'm going to wreck my pouch but at the same time dehydration is no fun.

Well today is day two of my pre-op diet and wow... I thought I'd love having so many sweet things to eat and drink, but honestly I just want some regular real food to bite into. So far I've had an EAS, 1/2 of an Isopure, cream of chicken, yogurt and a SF popsicle. Yesterday was my first day and I thought this diet was going to be so easy. I ate about the same, however I was super busy. My husband and I took the boat out early and just enjoyed each other for most of the afternoon until the kids got out of school. Dinner time came and I was like, I got this and didn't have any cravings. Today I had only housework to keep myself busy, as hubby went to work and I was left feeling hungry all day. Tonight at dinner time I didn't have anything, but jealousy of what everyone else was eating. I'm already about to break in as little as 48 hours. Will this go away after surgery? Obviously I decided to start a blog in hopes that through this I may help someone along their journey like so many posts have helped me in making the decision in pursuing the sleeve. And also to get some encouragement on days that I want to give up. So let me tell you a little bit about me. I am 32, I have two kids, one of each. I'm fat. I'm married to an amazing soldier that isn't excited about me getting this surgery and becoming not so fat. He's a health nut and LIVES at the gym. He's scared of me leaving him which will never happen, because I am so IN LOVE and he has supported me through so much, so why not share the healthier and sexier me! My family and friends have no idea that I'm getting this, for one they ALL are over a thousand miles away and two I kind of feel embaressed like I didn't try hard enough to better my health as well as my appearance. Is this normal? My whole life I've been overweight, but I still was very confident in my appearance and my health was great. Well all of that changed when my husband got stationed in Oklahoma. We received our household goods and I over did it and hurt my back resulting in back surgery last June. Well my weight sky rocketed and even though I'm active again and pretty much back to normal, my weight will not go away or my health problems. I'm 5'5 241lbs. and now my health isn't so great and I'm bigger now than I was at nine months pregnant. My self esteem is hiding somewhere in all this goo that has attached itself to me, to the point where I refuse to get naked in front of my husband. I know TMI, but this never was an issue until now. So with a scattered topic blog, here I am ready for a new healthier and happier me that will look and FEEL sexy again soon. Surgery is scheduled for October 3rd.

I eat a salad at least once a week. I chop up a boiled egg in it with lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, cheese and bacon bits. I use a little blue cheese sparingly. It is so yummy. I have such probs with constipation but I have a lettuce intolerance so it clears everything out (sorry tmi). I love my salads!!

After surgery I am always cold too... Dr says my iron is low and suggests I take an iron supplement but of course I don't. I'd rather be cold than constipated I know TMI but true lol.