Orbera Balloon Scheduled for 5/19 and I'm Freaking Out!

Wayward Traveler · May 17, 2016

@Sailor Doom - After day two, things really started to improve for me ... hopefully they will for you too. And after a week I was almost back to normal. Just remember - popsicles are your friend. ;-) Well, at least they were mine, and they are open to new friendships. :-) Best wishes and thanks for the kind words ... my hope is to provide people with a little more help, information and support than I had, so hopefully I've been able to do just that. Cheers!!

Edited May 17, 2016 by Wayward Traveler

Wayward Traveler · May 17, 2016

@Sailor Doom - After day two, things really started to improve for me ... hopefully they will for you too. And after a week I was almost back to normal. Just remember - popsicles are your friend. Well, at least they were mine, and they are open to new friendships. :-) Best wishes and thanks for the kind words ... my hope is to provide people with a little more help, information and support than I had, so hopefully I've been able to do just that. Cheers!!

@@Sailor Doom - P.S. I hope you've been able to keep pills down at this point, If not, try to at least get the anti-nausea meds down ... that alone will probably make you feel a lot better. Good luck!!

Esq123 · May 18, 2016

Thank you guys so much for the responses! I'm T minus 3 days to the procedure and I'm totally trolling this website for tips. I went to fill my meds today and I was prescribed: (1) Emend (Aprepitant); (2) Hyoscyamine (Levsin); (3) Lorazepam (Ativan); and (4) Ondansetron (Zofran) as well as the Prilosec over the counter. I'm wondering if that was similar to what everyone else has gotten. I'll also be getting a patch at the surgery center for nausea. Hopefully those will cover it!

I was also given liquid Tylenol 3 for pain, but I didn't need it (is that what Emend is for? I didn't get that, but I had the others). I was given prescription Prilosec (not sure why - it's the same dose as OTC) and was told to take it twice a day. Two thumbs up for the patch!! :-) And make sure that you get plenty if IV fluids before you head home.

The emend is for nausea. It looks like he's giving me quite a few different meds for nausea. It's only one pill and I'll be taking it 3 hours before the procedure WHICH IS TOMORROW MORNING. I can't wait!

Edited May 18, 2016 by Esq123

Wayward Traveler · May 18, 2016

Thank you guys so much for the responses! I'm T minus 3 days to the procedure and I'm totally trolling this website for tips. I went to fill my meds today and I was prescribed: (1) Emend (Aprepitant); (2) Hyoscyamine (Levsin); (3) Lorazepam (Ativan); and (4) Ondansetron (Zofran) as well as the Prilosec over the counter. I'm wondering if that was similar to what everyone else has gotten. I'll also be getting a patch at the surgery center for nausea. Hopefully those will cover it!

I was also given liquid Tylenol 3 for pain, but I didn't need it (is that what Emend is for? I didn't get that, but I had the others). I was given prescription Prilosec (not sure why - it's the same dose as OTC) and was told to take it twice a day. Two thumbs up for the patch!! :-) And make sure that you get plenty if IV fluids before you head home.

The emend is for nausea. It looks like he's giving me quite a few different meds for nausea. It's only one pill and I'll be taking it 3 hours before the procedure WHICH IS TOMORROW MORNING. I can't wait!

Good luck!! We'll be thinking about you ... please let us know how it goes. :-)

Sailor Doom · May 22, 2016

Hey @@Esq123 you should have your balloon now, right? How are you doing? Hope you're well!

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Esq123 · May 22, 2016

Hey @@Esq123 you should have your balloon now, right? How are you doing? Hope you're well!

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@@Sailor Doom, I'm not doing too bad. I had a lot of nausea, but didn't really throw up at all. My main issue has been serious cramping to the point I'm yelling out loud in pain. I think I'm having a total of like 8 ozs. of Fluid a day if I'm being honest. But now I'm at day 4 and I'm contemplating some soft foods even though I'm supposed to still be on a full liquid diet. Did anyone else move on to soft food pretty early after balloon placement?

Edited May 22, 2016 by Esq123

Wayward Traveler · May 22, 2016

@@Esq123 - you might want to try Protein drinks before jumping in to soft foods. After that, it might be best to ease into it with smooth Soups, yogurt, etc.. After a week I was fine with scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, etc.. In the meantime, to ensure that you're getting more fluids, I highly recommend ice (chips) and Popsicles. I lived on both the first couple of days (the thought of anything else made me queasy).

BTW, if you feel up to soft foods you're probably ok, but better to be safe than sorry, especially if you're cramping (i.e. having to digest solid foods might make that worse?).

I fortunately have not had any cramping but I know a lot of people have. Hopefully they can give you better insight regarding how they progressed on the diet front. :-)

Best wishes and I hope you're feeling 100% soon!!

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Sailor Doom · May 22, 2016

Hey @@Esq123 you should have your balloon now, right? How are you doing? Hope you're well!

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

@@Sailor Doom, I'm not doing too bad. I had a lot of nausea, but didn't really throw up at all. My main issue has been serious cramping to the point I'm yelling out loud in pain. I think I'm having a total of like 8 ozs. of Fluid a day if I'm being honest. But now I'm at day 4 and I'm contemplating some soft foods even though I'm supposed to still be on a full liquid diet. Did anyone else move on to soft food pretty early after balloon placement?

'Not too bad' is still pretty good this soon after placement, so I'd say that's a definite win! Are you staying on top of any prescribed meds for the cramping? I take Buscopan Forte (over the counter, but on my doc's advice) as needed and if it gets bad, which it hasn't for a day or two, I lie on my left on top of a heat blanket. The warmth really helps. Warm drinks too.

My dietician sort of gives out plans as you reach the stage and I'm on liquids for two weeks. Research etc, has told me many programs differ in timings, but since I'm paying a buttload for this, I might as well follow instruction. So because of that I'm sticking to liquids, even though I feel I could manage something a little more substantial. I did decide to have a cup of coffee (flat white) and a teaspoon of Peanut Butter yesterday afternoon (wild, I know) and I was sure I'd be fine (and mostly I was okay) but I swear they stuck right up behind my ribs like cement. So much so that I could only manage maybe 1/4 of my dinner Protein shake. I wasn't ill, just kind of mildly uncomfortable? So I'd say err on the side of caution or at least introduce maybe only one portion of soft food a day and in a controlled way where you know you can take time out if your body doesn't want to play ball?

Let me know how it goes!

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