A thread for super-sized bandsters - starting BMI over 50?

[nanniemidder 0]

I cannot get my ticker to show up either lol. So if anyone can help me that would be great - I use tickerfactory

[synicalchick 0]

Ok. I am sitting:sick propped up in my bed at home several hours post op. Things went well, though he had to switch out all of the needles for the port site because my adominal wall was thick and the needles he had out to stitch it in place were to thin. *I* would like to think that this is because I am so MUSCULAR...:cry R I G H T.:nervous I"ll have to ask him in three weeks when I go in for my fill. ANYwho... this is how my day went.

As you may already now, Auntie Flow decided to visit yesterday:mad: VEHEEERRRRy convineant:tired . I slept pretty well last night suprisingly (thanks to the two tylenol p.m.) :notagree and woke up about 6. I got up and showered with the monkey blood soap stuff they gave me that kind of dried my skin out, got out of the shower and laid down with my heating pad until my sweetie :kiss2: got up and got ready. I put on my best/favorite pair of tie dyed socks and undies and threw my favorite denim dress over my head, grapped my little stuffed moose and away to Baptist we went.

Got there about 8:20 checked in and hung out in w. room. The called me back about 8:40 and got me changed. The anesethia guy came in and did my IV then two or three more anesthia people came in asking me the same quesitons over and over.. who are you,, what are you having done.. WHAT... is your favorite color... etc. I'm like.. hmmmm The do know what they are doing and where they are right?? :paranoid They let my hubby back about 9:30. OH>>> and those of you who might be wondering, they let me wear a tampon.. :clap2: it probably depends on the surgeon. Anywho.. 10:39 comes around and they wheel me back to the surgery room, scoot me on to a different table and put on this DREAMY warm blanket:p ... Next think I know, I'm awake and my 'port site' was hurting like a mo-fo:cry .:faint: they give me something for pain in my IV...30 minutes later some more of that then 30 minutes later the finally gave up and gave me some morphine. After that they wheeled me back to xray, had me drink some barium... which folks.. I'll tell you here and now... WAS DELICIOUS:hungry: . I was "lips sticking to my teeth" parched. And you know.. after not eating real food for awhile.. it's amazing what taste great. The table they had me scootch up on this time was a beeeeatch :omg: for me to scoot on because of the discomfort of the port site. Anywho... it was like a frigging 6 flags ride:phanvan . My feet were against a metal thing at the foot of the bed and it was the only thing between me and me sliding off in the floor:juggle:... ALL 331 lbs of me. Wasn't a real comfortable experience and lasted a little long for my taste.. but.. the things we do for beauty:rolleyes: . All that took what seemed to be about 40 minutes or so then they wheeled me into my room where I got to hang out and watch Oprah, the news, then Hank Hill. Had to wait :bored around until someone looked at my rays to make sure things could go down. I had lots of ice in the meantime.

The 1st thing I remember when I woke up was... YES IT"s over Finanly it's over. To ,me it's the worst part.. all the waiting:bored . waiting for all of the paper work to get filled in... :pout:waiting for Dr.'s appointments, :bored waiting to hear all of your paper work was faxed in. getting denied and :pout:waiting for paper work to be faxed again. finding out your approved, then:bored waiting to schedule, :pout:waiting for your preop testing, :bored waiting for you surgery date, the THE WORST waiting of all for me, is:pout: waiting in your pre op room for the procedure.. then all of the sudden.. the waiting is over... well... unless you count waiting to go home.

I 1st tried to do this 4 yrs ago with diff. insurance and was crushed when I got denied, now, Im sitting here, typing up my experience.. and it's DONE!:clap2: Now all the work begins, but that is ok... because now I have a Tool,,, finally a tool that will work for me and help me to become the healthy me that I was meant to be. I'll be healthier at 40 that I have ever been in my life. I just had my 37th bday and I can't wait to be 40! :humble:

I didn't really have trouble with nausea :speechles until the ride home and it wasn't overwhealming. Todd turned up the air and drove real slow. When I got home he got me set up in my bed with tons of pillows and stuff so i'm not laying down flat. I'm keeping my liquied antibiotic and liquid Loritab in a cooler filled with ice right here along with some sugar free popcicles.

My throat is fairly sore from the breathing tube stuff and my chest is kind of tight and breathing deep isn't the best experience. I kind of dread Thursday slighly 'cause for me, the 2nd or third day after something is usually pain wise the worst.. but maybe not this time. I'm on liquids until Friday then I start stuff like soft scrambled eggs and Soups and oatmeal. Don't know that I'll be ready for that yet but we'll see. I would be nice if I could work a 1/2 day on FRiday even though I have it off. So far.. knock on wood, no gas pains however I did buy some rolaids gas chewables just in case. When I do get up and walk around some I burp a couple of times and i feel a little better. I have had to cough a few times and I've been holding a pillow on my tummy for that and it's not so bad.

It keeps going through my head over and over.. now I have a chance..... now I have a chance. I am so excited about this new opportunity I've been given and can't wait to become more active and do the outdoor things I love. Oh.. also.. if you haven't had it done yet.. I got a reach/grabber thing from bed bath and beyound called the gopher and IT"S GREAT. I can grap stuff with out bending over.

I can't wait to take a hot bath. He did say that I chould shower tomorrow. YOu should see my insicion bandages.. they cut the gauze into heart shapes....:eek:

Well it's about time for pain med dose 2 so more later.:biggrin1: :mad: :hug:

__________________

[Teresita 0]

WOOOOHOOOOOO YEHA You Go S-Chick. It is over and now you can begin. We are all behind you....and beside you.

[vanceemilton 0]

Hello Guys,

My name is Patricia and I am in the group of people who are TOO FLUFFY. I hope to begin my journey on March 27th the day I see Dr. Lord to see if I can get a Lapband. I was 327lbs went on Slimfast lost 60lbs and gained it back. I also am glad you started this thread. I will need everyone to help me thru this journey so everyone stay around.

[synicalchick 0]

Well I made it through my 1st night. got up about every 3 hours to take more med. I'm not used to sleeping on my back and that's all I can do right now. Now I'm sipping on a 1/2 c of Kefir lowfat probiotic smoothie. It's pretty good and high in Protein.< /span>

What's bothering me the most right now is the port site. The port is the part of the band that allows the dr to insert saline soloution that controls the adjustablility of the band. WOW... not realy comfy. Gas pains are suposed to be a pretty big side effect and so far so good.. no gas.. though I do burp everytime I get up. My chest is really sore as well and I'm coughing up stuff. I guess that is from the breathing tubes.

For my outside excursion today i'll have todd take me to Target so I can pick out some cute small plates and untensils. I'll probably hit the baby ilse and get the classic pooh stuff. I bought some classic pooh dixie cups and that is waht I"m using now to drink from.

[ihomeschool4 0]

I'm a "supersize" as well...5'6" and weighed 374 at the dr. yesterday (had my initial consult). Did anyone else here have trouble with being told they were too fat for the surgery? My BMI is just over 60 and in order to qualify for the cheaper option (non-hospital facility), I have to have a BMI of less than 50. It's a considerable price difference and we're doing cash pay because our insurance has an exclusion on this procedure.

I'm also having trouble with displaying my ticker...

Thanks for posting...I have gotten alot of encouragement from reading back through these!

Determined to make it work!!

Christy

<><

[lizrbit 0]

synicalchick! CONGRATULATIONS. we started out at the same place. My stats are way similar. Ironicly it ties in with Christies post too for me because i arrived here with a bmi of 53 and my insurance required i get it down to 50, so my surgeon, who i absolutely adore and think hes BRILLIANT put me on a liquid diet and walk till you drop routine and it WORKED. id NEVER been on a liquid diet before, and now im crusing along finally on mushies but had been liquid dieting since Feb 8! WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT that you could survive on liquids! but you can...amazing.

I live in Maine, but had my surgery in Houston with Dr St Laurent. My husband is researching us possibly relocating here and its very possible. there are many other factors, one being how much warmer it is here.

anyway, i digress....

its just neat to find other people who start out at the same point and are journeying right alongside you. Congratulations on your entrance into bandland.

[Maurdan 2]

Ever since my fill (2.5cc) I really can't tell if I'm restricted.

On the one hand, if I eat too fast, don't chew enough, etc. it causes me PB problems that I didn't have before.

On the other hand, I still feel like I can eat too much. I just had a salad and ate more than I thought I could.

I'm so confused!

[bluehill 0]

Maurdal: My experience, for what it's worth, suggests that you have not yet reached optimal restriction. I have experienced many PBs caused by careless eating, but still I am easily able to overeat. Thus I continue to get additional fills, and each one has brought me closer to ideal restriction. My doctor says it takes [him] an average of six fills to achieve that. Some peope are fortunate to achieve this from surgery alone, with NO fills! But that's not me. Everyone is different. I just know that I will not be satisfied until I feel that the band is limiting the amount of food I can eat. So, yes, I will continue to get fills until I know with certainty -- and I think I WILL know -- that I have achieved optimal restriction.

[GregNE 0]

Just found this thread today. I don't see many men posting here, but that's ok, I like having women all around me anyway:)

As others have said, good to see other high BMI experiences. Seems funny to see on other threads, people talking about the 50 or 60 lbs they need to lose.

Anyway, glad to be here.

[synicalchick 0]

I think today is going to be my worst day. What is it now.. technically my 2nd day post? surgery was Tuesday. ANywho.. I woke up feeling like a pack of wild monkeys was partying in my abdomen all night. The part up by my ribcage/diaphram where the ports located is hard and swollen and all my other places I didn't feel before are starting to protest. Hopefully tomorrow will be a little better.. I'm having a few minor gas pains for the 1st time today too. It's v. uncomfy to breath deep at all and I lose my breath v. easily. Also, is it v. uncomfortable for y'all when your stomach starts growling? It almost hurts...Tracy

[kntexas 0]

last night was my worst time so far couldnt get comfortable to save my life ended up sleeping in my recliner. i didnt have any gas pains up until last night. anyways i started out at 465.5 2 weeks before surgery with a bmi of 68.7. on the day of surgery i was 436. i couldnt belived i dropped so much is such little time. i hope it continues. all i want now though is for this gas pain and cotton mouth to go away. well good luck everyone.hopefully the hard part is over and we are on are way to being normal.....

[tann 2]

I'm a "supersize" as well...5'6" and weighed 374 at the dr. yesterday (had my initial consult). Did anyone else here have trouble with being told they were too fat for the surgery? My BMI is just over 60 and in order to qualify for the cheaper option (non-hospital facility), I have to have a BMI of less than 50. It's a considerable price difference and we're doing cash pay because our insurance has an exclusion on this procedure.

I'm also having trouble with displaying my ticker...

Thanks for posting...I have gotten alot of encouragement from reading back through these!

Determined to make it work!!

Christy

<><

Hi Christy, I had a bmi of 68 and my Dr. never told me that, altho I had heard something like that before I met with him, and needless to say I was very nervous:nervous when I met with him, I was afraid he was gonna tell me that my bmi was too high. Thank the Lord he did not tell me that, he told me he could help me, and he has:biggrin1: I guess it all depends on the ins.co. and what are their requirements:phanvan Wishing you a speedy date to come.

WELCOME TO ALL THE NEW BANDSTERS:clap2:

[ReneBean 3]

Hi All.

Newbies... take heart. It all gets better. The pain goes away and the appetite gets smaller - and suddenly you find yourself horrified at the amt of food your Sister is eating for Thanksgiving Dinner... I had to laugh at myself - cause the year before, I would have matched her bite for bite.

I pretty much slept (sitting up on the couch) for the first 2 days. It got better after that. The port pain will last the longest - cause it is attached to the muscles in your belly. Lying down was problematic for the first 3-4 days - after that, I could sleep in my bed - and that made ALL the difference in how I functioned during the day.

After a year, I am finally under a BMI of 50. I am currently at 49.5

I have to say that it took at least 6 fills to get close to good restriction. I have the Vanguard band "The big one" and I have 8.8 cc right now. I am VERY close to the sweet spot.

I haven't lost very FAST - mostly because I haven't dieted at all until 2007. I did exercise (sporadically) and I tried to eat sensibly (except when I didn't) but for the first year, I pretty much let my band do all the work. I lost 36 pounds that way - which is great, considering the fact that I really did eat pretty much everything - just in smaller amounts.

Now that I am working a little more - eating low carb and exercising a bit more - I am seeing much faster results.

If you have the motivation to follow the rules - to work with your band instead of dragging along behind it, you will succeed. I managed to lose 36 pounds by without great restriction and without very much exercise. How cool is that?

Good Luck and Happy Healing to all of you!

[Blessed_gemini 0]

I'm still new to this, but I'm sure glad to see other people that have gone through the surgery:clap2: I'm happy for you guys and hope all goes well with your weight loss. Its good to have other people to talk to with the same issues as yourself. I haven't had the surgery as yet, but I hope to be finished with all my pre-ops by the end of the month. Hopefully I can be on the "other side" by May:) My Dr. want me to have all my testing done before my paper work is sent off to the insurance. They said that this will help me get a quick approval. I can't wait to here the words "YOUR APPROVED" :biggrin1:

I just hope I'm doing the right thing and that all goes well. I'm kinda nervous because I don't know how it feels to be thin and often wonder what I will look and be like. I've never been thin and its gonna be a whole new life for me. Anyway thats enough blabbering for now. Congatulations to all of you!