August Band Crew!!!!!

[msbug 0]

Libra, I agree, call your doc. Mine said if I was at all nauseous to call and he'd get me some meds to help. You only just had your band put in and even dry heaving is not good for it. Give him a call and explain what's going on.

I got a hold of my doc this morning and he's calling in a different pain med for me. The loratab is doing nothing, I was so uncomfortable all night I barely slept. I'm not doing too bad today, the liquid Tylenol is doing it's job, but I want to be able to take something stronger at night so I don't hurt so much when I sleep. Hopefully this new stuff works. Still got an annoyingly gurgly/grumbly tummy and passing gas like crazy.

Can I ask a tmi question to our early August banders though? How long before you had a bowel movement after the surgery? I'm trying to figure out if that might be part of my problem and if I should maybe take a stool softener or something to get it moving along.

[faybie 0]

Faybie,

My ticker is current as of today. I lost 7 pounds pre-op, and have lost 14 pounds since band placement on August 2nd.

Are your clothes starting to get loose or does it just seem like Water weight? 20 lbs. is really great in that time frame, good job! :clap2: I was 231 at my initial check up with my Dr. and at 200 I am usually a whole size smaller. ~ Just curious.

My closet is shaped like a horse shoe. My current clothes that are size 22's are on my left when I walk in. Going clockwise they are sorted by size counting down to size 8. Mostly, I just ignore my closet and only pay attention to the far left, but this weekend, I sat on the floor smiling looking up at all the sizes and envisioned me fitting back into each size. :biggrin1: LOL. Mind you, I might be terribly out of fashion by the time I hit size 8. ha ha ha ha.

[GE Mom 0]

When I had the surgery, they put a transderm scope patch behind my ear in the operating room (or someplace!). I discovered it the next day when I went home. It did a great job of keeping me from being nauseated, though I was sleepy and had a very dry mouth.

[mferra 0]

I am scheduled for surgery with Dr. Ortiz on August 31st (originally scheduled for 7/21). Will be starting my pre-op diet (4 Protein Shakes a day) on the 17th. I was told to try to lose between 8-10lbs. before surgery.

Good luck to all August bandsters!

Michelle:)

[Josette 2]

Bug... I had diahrea for a few days after surgery so that wasn't a problem for me. I lost 6 pounds presurgery and 11 pounds in the two weeks after. Today is my 2 week anniversary. I can't believe i've lost a total of 17 pounds though. YAY!

Libra... call your doctor girl!!!!!

[neenagh 0]

Bug... I had diahrea for a few days after surgery so that wasn't a problem for me. I lost 6 pounds presurgery and 11 pounds in the two weeks after. Today is my 2 week anniversary. I can't believe i've lost a total of 17 pounds though. YAY!

Libra... call your doctor girl!!!!!

You rock Josette! Keep up the good work! :clap2:

[Allie C 0]

I had my surgery Aug. 11. I am doing well, except for the soreness around my port and band!! I am wondering if that will ever go away!! The first couple of days I had AWFUL gas pains and thought they would never leave, but they do!! I still do not sleep on my side. It is uncomfortable, but I am hoping that I will be able to again one day!! Good Luck to everyone!!!:gluck:

[RLittman 4]

Allie,

I am 15 days out of surgery, and my port area stopped hurting around the 11th day out. It all heals slowly so give it some time. I can sleep on my stomach and bend over and touch my toes now without feeling the port site.

I had my surgery Aug. 11. I am doing well, except for the soreness around my port and band!! I am wondering if that will ever go away!! The first couple of days I had AWFUL gas pains and thought they would never leave, but they do!! I still do not sleep on my side. It is uncomfortable, but I am hoping that I will be able to again one day!! Good Luck to everyone!!!:gluck:

[RLittman 4]

Faybie,

My clothes are definitely looser because I have lost fat not just Water weight. I am down from a Womens' 16 to a Womens' 14 and from a XL shirt to a L shirt. I am also down a bra size from a 40DD to a 38DD. I was working out pre-surgery and returned to exercise about 5 days after surgery. My next size change should come around 195, about every 15 pounds for me.

Are your clothes starting to get loose or does it just seem like water weight? 20 lbs. is really great in that time frame, good job! :clap2: I was 231 at my initial check up with my Dr. and at 200 I am usually a whole size smaller. ~ Just curious.

My closet is shaped like a horse shoe. My current clothes that are size 22's are on my left when I walk in. Going clockwise they are sorted by size counting down to size 8. Mostly, I just ignore my closet and only pay attention to the far left, but this weekend, I sat on the floor smiling looking up at all the sizes and envisioned me fitting back into each size. :biggrin1: LOL. Mind you, I might be terribly out of fashion by the time I hit size 8. ha ha ha ha.

[RLittman 4]

Ny first BM came 4 days after surgery - I took some Ex-lax to help. The next one came 4 days after that with the help Ex-lax. Then it came 2 days after that, and now it is regular.

Libra, I agree, call your doc. Mine said if I was at all nauseous to call and he'd get me some meds to help. You only just had your band put in and even dry heaving is not good for it. Give him a call and explain what's going on.

I got a hold of my doc this morning and he's calling in a different pain med for me. The loratab is doing nothing, I was so uncomfortable all night I barely slept. I'm not doing too bad today, the liquid Tylenol is doing it's job, but I want to be able to take something stronger at night so I don't hurt so much when I sleep. Hopefully this new stuff works. Still got an annoyingly gurgly/grumbly tummy and passing gas like crazy.

Can I ask a tmi question to our early August banders though? How long before you had a bowel movement after the surgery? I'm trying to figure out if that might be part of my problem and if I should maybe take a stool softener or something to get it moving along.

[RLittman 4]

Go to the last pages - p. 37 or so to find the latest posts on the August band thread. To find the latest in all posts, click new posts. To ask a question, either find the subject category you are interested and put a post in there or when you are in a thread such as August band crew, you can submit a reply to someone else post in which you can ask questions.

I'm So Confused How To Use This Thread And How To Find Who's Online Now, So I Can Ask Questions?? I'm Not Much Of A Computer Guru. I'm Having My Band 8/28...does Anyone Drink Wine While On The liquids? ?

[Diva Girl 3]

Hi Everyone...

I'm back and banded and although I'm having a bit of gas pain, that's about it. I haven't had much pain from the incision or the port. My surgery experience was really really good. The woman who woke me up from anaesthesia exclaimed "My name is Jackie and I lost 145 pounds from a weight loss surgery. Hi". Isn't that cool? Like I said, it's been pretty easy for me so far. I haven't had a lot of pain...I'm one of the lucky ones, I know. I worked out a lot before surgery, had the two weeks of full liquids and one day of Clear Liquids.

BTW, I took my ipod with me to surgery and it really calmed me down before and after. I filled it with soothing sounds and it really helped me out. I felt much better in the recliner in the room as opposed to the bed and think that helped a lot with gas pain. It was also a lot easier to get up and moving from a chair than from a bed.

I have this bit of advice to those getting banded soon. I've read in many places on this forum about having an enema or something like it the day before surgery. I had heard that it really lessened the likelihood of gas pains. My doctor recommended I drink a bottle of Magnesium Citrate (aka, "The Bomb") around noontime the day before. I did so and I really emptied out. In fact, by the time I weighed in for surgery, I had lost 20 pounds!!!! At any rate, my gas pain, although kind of uncomfortable is not all that bad. So, in my opinion, even if the doctor doesn't order it, I say...it couldn't hurt. I prefer the Magnesium Citrate route. But you have to be close to home. It takes about four hours to clean you out. Ok, tmi, I know.

One more thing about gas pain. Whenever I get a shooting pain, I jump up and walk around the room. It really helps. Another thing...cold liquids and ice chips make it worse. It's much better to go for the warm or tepid liquids.

At the risk of giving Too much advice....I've got another suggestion for those of you who have to do clear liquids before and after surgery. To avoid feeling just miseably starved, go to GNC and get a few bottles of Isopure clear. It's not really clear, it's a drink in these lurid colors and flavors that has 40 grams of Protein p/bottle. So if you sip it all day, you manage to stay pretty full. It's good post-surgery too, when you don't feel much like eating. :nervous

For those of you who were chatting about the c-pap machine, I have the kind with just nasal pillows and find it easy to wear. I got used to it really quickly and it is completely silent. The first night I wore it, the room was so silent, my husband had to reach over to make sure I was still alive. lol.

Libra...I received meds for nausea when I left the hospital. You clearly need them. Vomiting is the worst....I hope you feel better soon.

Caroline...Are you the one that's losing 1.5 lbs every two days?!? Good going! That's awesome. My doc wouldn't let me get back to weight training for a month. I'm jealous that you get to do it sooner.

BTW, I gained 5 pounds today. Waaannnnhhh. I'm sure that it's just swelling, edema, gas etc from surgery. Right?

Bug...my doctor recommended Colace. I prefer Benefiber because it's so gentle. I just put a tsp in my morning drink. It's not detectable at all. But you may need "the bomb" of magnesium citrate if you're really clogged up.

Well, I'm tired but happy that it's over and now the real work starts. :clap2:

[diana2798 0]

Libra, you should definitely call your doc. I dry heaved the first two times I took my liquid pain med (hydrocodone) and I just about died. I can't imagine doing that all the time. Did your doc give you nausea medicine? I hope you feel better soon!

[msbug 0]

Diva girl, glad it went well! Sounds like you have had a really good experience. And I agree with you on the cold liquids, they really bother my tummy. My dad got me a non-fat hot chocolate while he was at Starbucks today and it was wonderful. Very soothing for my stomach and stoped the gurgling for quite a while. If you're having problems, definately try something hot!

Libra, are you feeling better now?

I have another question too, did anyone else notice their skin is really dry the days after surgery? Usually I have combo/oily skin, but noticed today that the skin on my cheeks and chin is really dry, flaking a bit and feels really rough. I remember having the same thing w/ both my c-sections but thought it was just pregnancy hormones. Not sure what would cause it, unless it's irritation from the tape they used during the actual surgery. Any ideas for getting rid of it? I've been using my regular moisturizer a lot, but it doesn't seem to be helping much.

[StephM 0]

Well guys, I made it through the surgery and feel great.

I was banded Monday and had a heck of a time coming out from under the anathesia so I spent the night in the hospital and came home Tuesday. Thank goodness I spent the night in the hospital because I had a horrible Migraine that required two rounds of anti-nausea drugs and demerol in my IV. I was able to get up and walk from the bed in recovery to a wheel chair and from the wheel chair to a chair in my room. Then I was able to walk around the floor within 30 mintues of leaving recovery. It felt great to walk, walk, walk!

I haven't had any gas pain, knock on wood, and just an uncomfortable feeling at my incision sites. I tire easily so I am sleeping about 3 hours and then walking around, sleeping 3 hours, and walking, and so on. I am on clear liquids for two weeks, and seem to manage the warm liquids easier than the cold/cool liquids. As for internal functions (bowel/bladder), the bladder is working great, can't recall ever peeing as much as I do now, and my first BM after surgery was Tuesday afternoon (35 hours after surgery). Or course it's not your typical pre-surgery BM, but at least everything is moving. For those of you consitpated, I would say, walk, drink, walk, drink, and walk some more.

If you are being banded later this month, if you don't take to heart anything I write, please remember to walk, walk, walk, walk, it will make your recovering must easier!

Hope all are feeling okay and healing quickly.

Good Luck to all!