picking up kids

[globetrotter 0]

I have twin 9 month old babies and a 5 year old. getting banded end of sept. how long will it be before I should (can) lift the kids?

[Alexandra 55]

This is a question for your doctor. In general, you should not pick up anything more than about 20 lbs for at least a couple of weeks.

[brandottie01 0]

my doc says nothing over 5 lbs for 4 weeks and nothing over 20 for six weeks. I have a two and a half year old and just got banded yesterday. He is alreayd having to adjust to if he wants me he can sit by me and he has to walk everywhere.

[wanabthin 0]

I hope you get a better respone than I did to this one. My doctor told me I was fine to life my 11 month old and that no damage would be done. (He weighs around 20lbs) However, the nurse who read my discharge instructions told me not to life him for two weeks. Well, when my doc. called to check on me two days after surgery I asked again and he said lifting was fine. I was very confused. So, I did not lift him for the the three days after surgery while DH was off work but once he went back on Monday I really didn't have much choice. The only time it is rough is if I lift him off the ground and it is better if I bend my knees. Other than that it is okay if he is in his crib, high chair, car seat whatever. Good luck, but yes you should go by your personal doctors advice.

[globetrotter 0]

thanks - my wife does most of the taking care of the kids, but we are planning on a flight 2 or 3 weeks after the surgury. the way it happened before, I carried the twins into the plane, maybe for a minute each. they weigh about 20 pounds. I am sort of concerned about my ability to do this.

[AnnaMC 0]

My Doctor told me not to lift for 6 weeks. I have a 4yr old(35lbs), who got sick and I had carry him to the Doctors. I hurt myself I was afraid that I caused some damage to the band. but it was only pulling the muscle. and it went away in a couple of days.

I would be careful.

[Alexandra 55]

For what it's worth, the reason to avoid lifting is NOT because you could damage your band. The band is on your stomach, not part of your musculature. But your stomach muscles are healing from the trauma of surgery, and there are internal stitches and such. THOSE are what you might disturb if you use your stomach muscles too soon.

[globetrotter 0]

there was a post recently where a woman said she shifted her band because she lifted "something heavy" "too early" and had complications. if it is a matter of a little pain for a day or two, that I can live with.

[Alexandra 55]

there was a post recently where a woman said she shifted her band because she lifted "something heavy" "too early" and had complications. if it is a matter of a little pain for a day or two, that I can live with.

Well, I'd want to get a doctor's opinion on that. But the bottom line is that not lifting is about HEALING, and why on earth would you want to take any chances on compromising that? The better you heal, the better your entire banding experience will be. There are plenty of other ways to get your kids from Point A to Point B for a few weeks.

[globetrotter 0]

well, yeah, but I guess it goes down to planning - I am scheduled to have a company meeting with family invited on a certain date. I can't change that. I wanted to use that week to take my family to disney, as we will be in florida on the company dime. if I travel with twin babies, I can't think of any alternative to get them on and off the plane than to carry them, at least for that small stretch. so, it sort of comes down to

1. postphoning the surgury for a month

2. not taking my family with me, and then probrably not getting to disneyland this year

3. carrying the babies onto the plane

so I am weighing the options.

[Alexandra 55]

You could EASILY ask a flight attendant to help you, or some other adult. Will your spouse be with you?

[Breezyrn70 0]

My surgeon gave me a 25 pound lifting restriction and I have an 8 month old that weighs about 20 pounds. I didn't lift her for the first week and then started to lift her for short intervals. It's tender to lift her-on the incisions-but I haven't caused any damage(and she's very wiggly!) I just make sure I place most of her weight on my arms, not my belly. Have fun at Disney!

[globetrotter 0]

thank you all

[blahblahblah 4]

Hello,

I have 18 month old twins and a 3 year old. I will be honest with you...The dr. told me that I could lift them after a day...that the incisions were so small, the chances of them ripping out stiches was minimal. He did say to lift them (the twins specifically, the 3 year old weighs 37lbs...and doesn't need to be lifted) carefully.

So, I still had help and tried not to lift them...but they are still nursing and I needed to get them situated etc...

Best of luck. My husband had the surgery done in April and lifted them minimally and was fine...

Oh, and you could totally ask a flight attendant if you didn't feel comfortable...but, for what it's worth, I think it would be okay...

Best of luck!

RAin

[Jachut 487]

Its more the act of lifting than actually carrying that could do damage, you tense and increase intra-abdominal pressure when you lift.

I had a 2 year old when I was banded, we had plenty of cuddles and lap time, I just allowed her to crawl up onto me rather than lift her. If she was screaming or throwing a tantrum, which happened a lot, lol, I would have to get down on the floor to comfort her rather than lift her up to me. Nappy changing was done on the floor, I could get up and down allright and it was quite easy to avoid lifting to a large degree. Getting babies in and out of the car though, that might take a bit of planning.

Its no doubt going to be quite hard, a 2 year old isnt the same as a 9 month old, so you will need to ask for help when you can. I didnt feel awful or anythign, I recovered very quickly, but the logistics of not lifting for several weeks when you have not just one but two babies is a bit mind boggling. Still, if your wife is the one doing most of the caring, you will manage.