I am miserable, hungry, hurting, itching! Please help!

[dontgoggilme 0]

ok. i'm five days post op and i dunno if this is what folks call "bandster hell" but i am definitely IN HELL! i am miserable. i'm starving! starving. i'm so freaking hungry i dunno what to do. i cry i am so hungry. i'm hurting. i feel wierd pains like i need to burp but i can't. walking doesn't help. gas x doesn't help. well, maybe a little. i try to burp but i can't. my stomach - both around the incisions and the incisions themselves - are itching so bad i want to just scratch my skin off! i'm not supposed to have mushies for another week or so but i caved and had some banana babyfood. i thought it was safest and i made it real watery with my mouth before letting it go down. it satisfied me for a while but i'm starving again and i'm about to die. i'm calling my doc tomorrow to ask if i can please eat something! something semi real! semi satisfying. is any of this normal? am i the only one in this hell???? i feel like i'm going insane. like wondering if i made the wrong decision. will it always be this way??? i'm snapping at everyone like a mad hungry demon. i dunno what to do!!!!! :cursing:

[LuvinLife 0]

I'm your TWIN!!!!!!!!! Girl I am DYING! I had surgery on 3/11 and today I made velveeta mac n cheese chewed it and spit it out just so I could taste something real!!!

Is this what others refer to as bandster hell? I didnt think it was.

I am STARVVVVVVVING! Tonight I had hubby pick up some cool whip so I could add it to my Jello and pudding. If I have to drink another Protein shake it might make me vomit!

I drew a calendar and I cross off VERY DRAMATICALLY every day off and the day I can move over to mushies is HUGELY CIRCLED!! Childish I know but I mean COME ON!

Husband and I have argued ALOT and I know its because I'm so irritated. I too have cried because I'm hungry, no mattter how I sit/lay I am not comfortable so I am right there with you!!

We have to know it will get better! We should stick together! Are you getting all your Water in daily? I'm def not! Nor am I getting in my daily Protein which makes me nervous!

So glad to read your message! Your not alone! Everything you said I have felt or currently feel! This totally sucks.

We both know it will pay off in the end but that doesn't make what we are going through any easier!

[lakegirl88 13]

Ok guys right with you. I am feeling the same I really did breakdown and cry tonight had big fight with husband Kidda feel like an old lady waisting away in pain. I suppose I am bitching to much this was my choice. I guess it has to get better . I do know that if I had not done this I never could have had this kind of will power. I would be right back were I was . Any way lets try to hang I to am starving I itch every inch of my torso aches. Hopefully tommarow will be better. I think we are OK because we are feeling the same things with diffrent Dr. Sooo it must be Ok Right?

[LuvinLife 0]

I'm not itching!! Wonder if that is yet to come... UGH

My legs are achy though...

[dontgoggilme 0]

ok ya'll. i must say i am so glad to log back on here and see that i am not alone. we are not alone! lol i thought it was just me and i'm sure each of ya'll thought it was just you. but it's not and i know it's going to be ok.

as soon as i made my post i went and called (and woke up, mind you) a good friend who is almost two years out with her band. i cried my eyes out and told her everything i was feeling. she consoled me and told me that her first week was hell, too. she reminded me how hard it was for her and how many times she almost went to the ER thinking she might be dying.

she asked me if i'm getting in all my Protein and my Water and i told her no (because i'm not). she said that it's imperative that we get in all the Protein we need and all the Water we need. she said if i don't, i'll feel like crap (like i do) and i'll be starving and etc. she reminded me that my body is adjusting to all this and withdrawing from food. it's basically like i'm starving myself and my body if i don't get the protein, nutrients, and water that i need.

she told me to get the 1oz medicine dose cups they sent me home from the hospital with and drink my two ounces of Protein shake every 15 minutes for a full hour (making a full 8oz protein shake).that i gotta do that at least three times a day. and then use my cups to sip 2oz of water every fifteen minutes all the rest of the time when i'm not doing the shakes. she said it's easier doing it with the mini cups although i thought it was harder. it's the only sure way to make sure we get the protein and water we need.

she also told me that one flintstones Vitamin is not enough for what i need. i need to chew two. so i'm gonna start doing that,too.

she consoled me some more and reminded me to walk walk walk and that it will get better.i will make it through like she did. and that doing my protein and water right is what makes it easier.

then we got off the phone and i started drinking another shake and some cream of chicken Soup. then i got a call back from her. she asked me what kind of lid my water bottles i had been sipping from had. she asked if it was the sport lid that you suck from. i said yeah. she said that's a big NO NO.she said sipping/sucking from a sport lid is like drinking from a straw which we banders are NOT supposed to do. she said that that puts so much more air in our bellies which makes more gas.

that's when i realized that i was feeling great the other day. day before yesterday. the gas was actually subsiding and i was doing good. then we went and bought more water (with the sports lids). that's when i slowly started going downhill again. when we got the sports lids bottles since htey didn't have the regular there at Walmart. i will never again drink from a sports lid bottle. are any of ya'll doing this?

right now i'm sipping my Protein Shake in medicine cups and i'm halfway through my 8oz serving. i feel so accomplished and like maybe i will finally make it through this.

and to make things a little bit better.... i bought a new scale tonight and it says i've lost 6 pounds. yay!!!!

i hope all of you get something positive outta my hell and that you hopefully come outta your own hells ya'll are in. this is hard but just think how great it'll feel to be thin!!!! i'm trying to stay positive and come outta my dark moment.

[dontgoggilme 0]

oh and my friend also said the itching means our incisions are healing and of course, that's a good thing. so even though it's driving me nuts at least it means i'm healing. getting closer and closer to feeling somewhat normal again.

[pmommy 0]

I just wanted to relate as well! I am 5 days post op as well and starving for food.

I had my first follow up today thinking I might get the green light for soft/mushies....uh, not! 2 full weeks of liquids and then 1 week of mushies and finally, reallll food. It helped re-motivate me.

I just keep drinking my shakes, which btw, I drink the whole thing in 15 minutes! It doesn't cause me any pain or discomfort and I'm just hungry so I slurp them down (with a straw usually ---oops!). But I have no shoulder pain anymore and no gas. I will have to ask about the straw thing. I went back to work today and that was OK. Sitting all day started to irritate my belly button towards the end of the day. But no one knows so I had to suck it up.

You're posts helped me feel better. Thanks for sharing.

[LapBandBobbi 8]

I did the same as all of you.... just hang in there. It is worth a little "hell" right now for long term results. Just talk yourself through each day. It does get better!

[BetsyB 9]

Yup, it's hard. It's especially hard when you still feel cruddy from the surgery. It does get easier!

Call your doctor to see if you can advance your diet. Even if the answer is no, they may have useful guidance for you.

The one thing I would suggest is NOT to choose fruit as your first mushies. It causes a blood sugar spike, followed by a plummet--which serves to increase hunger.

I'd aim for Protein or, at least, a good balance between Protein, carb, and fat.

But first, get the green light from your doctor.

Do you have good Protein shakes on hand?

[FyrEMT 0]

I was a horrible person the first 2 weeks of my surgery. I wish I could fast forward time for you all! The feeling of having to burp is swelling and there is nothing you can do for that right now but it will go away soon, I promise! When you get to mushies it will be the best thing in the world for about 3 days then you are going to want real food. Also remember that feeling hungry can mean you are actually thirsty too. It is VERY important to get your fluids in and don't forget them when you progress to mushies too. I'm almost 2 months out and still happy with my decision. It will get better. Best wishes for you all and a speedy recovery!

[Drasan 23]

I'm sorry to hear that you're so miserable! You know we were banded about the same time, 3/10 for me.

I've been afraid to post to your thread because I have not been experiencing all the same things. I guess that's why we're told it's a little different experience for everybody. Pain yes but everyday is better than the day before. Itching, oh yes, but I know that is my body healing, bring it on! But I have not been hungry.

I've been so scared of doing anything wrong and causing problems that I've tried to follow instructions to a "T". Here's what I did and it seemed to work .. First and foremost, I got all my Protein in, then I sipped on Water or sf flavored water constantly (not 30 mins before or after the Protein though). Still I didn't get in all the Fluid I was supposed to get in. But everyday I tried to improve the intake of fluids.

By doing this, I found I wasn't hungry .. just occasionally head hungry with cravings. I have basil growing in my kitchen window. It's crazy, but smelling it would help me through those cravings.

I'm one of the lucky ones who got put on mushies a week after surgery. Before surgery I was told I would be on mushies for 1 week then move to the next phase. To my shock and disappointment, at my follow up appointment with the nutritionist, I was told I would be on mushies for 30 days. I'm not the kind of person that just rolls over. Discussions ensued and now I'm on mushies for 2 weeks.

I'm a firm believer that you are an equal partner in this process. It's your body, your sensations, your needs. Everybody is different. You know those one size fits all clothes that we've laughed at for years? Well, I'm not so sure there is a diet that is a one size fits all either.

Get your protein in, get your Water in, then if you're still as miserable, CALL your doctor and/or nutritionist and have a serious discussion. They want you to succeed. When you succeed, they succeed.

Good luck everybody. This is just a moment in the big picture, right?

Edited March 18, 2010 by Drasan

[Grandma26 1]

Hang in there it does get better. Warm liquids helped me when I was feeling out of it and couldn't stand one more minute.

[dontgoggilme 0]

last night was pretty hard. i could hardly sleep from all the pains in my stomach. it sucked! i felt a little better this morning though especially after i used the bathroom. i called my doc's office and they told me to try mylicon infant drops. that there's something about it that works better than gas x strips and they aslo told me to try a laxative suppository because i might be "backed up". sigh! we will see!!!!

[coilygirl 0]

I am so sorry you guys are so miserable. I can relate, but I was miserable from the PAIN. At my post op they told me to start advancing my diet, so see if it is ok to advance. If I had to drink another Protein shake I would have died. I also chewed and spit it out just to have the texture and taste...I know, gross.

I thought I made a mistake with WLS and still have those thoughts but not as often...only time will tell if it was worth it.

As annoying and disgusting as the Protein shakes are see if you can get your Protein in somehow else. The protein really made me feel better mentally and physically.

Not pain free yet, but getting there.

[jre1974 0]

I'm thinking I'm the black sheep here...I'm 10 days post op and I haven't felt hungry since the day before my surgery... even now that my stomach is healing up a bit, i am very satisfied after i eat. I've even let myself get "Full" a few times just out of habit; but I'm working on that... What is it that you are eating/drinking? Try the Protein shakes... they always fill me up quite nicely...even during the pre-surgery diet...