4 Days Post Op-Lap Band Reality

cyndiloowho · May 19, 2008

Hi! I am 4 days post-op, which you may have figured out from the thread title. I just wanted to tell some of you who are considering WLS what it feels like at 4 days out.

The surgery went great, which was a relief. I had never had surgery of any kind before, so I was nervous. I had a morphine PCA which I didn't use nearly as much as I thought I would. My surgery was Thursday May 15 and I stopped taking the Lortab Elixer and Phenergan on Saturday. (I hated the way they made me so tired and loopy!)

I cheated during the pre-op diet. It is something I am not proud of and I will tell you that, thus far, it is my only regret. I read everything I could find on pre-op diet cheating, trying to justify it to myself. If I would have just followed the diet I could have avoided so much grief and stress!

I am now on a full liquid diet for two weeks, until my follow-up appt with my surgeon. This morning I thought about cheating until I read the thread, "Would it kill me?" or something similar. I knew why cheating post-op was bad, but was trying to justify it. That thread works. Read it.

I keep beating myself up about, "why couldn't I just do this on my own?" but the truth is I have tried. I'm sure you have, too. Sorry if this is very stream-of-consiousness and rambling.

I started seeing a therapist about two months ago. My brother died in January and it has all been just too much! Again, I'm sure many of you can relate. Whether it is a death in the family or abuse in our past or other things we turned to food for comfort. It was so handy! (and socially acceptable!)

I guess what I wanted to tell you is that no, the lap band is not a miracle, it is just a tool that we actually have to USE to make it work. Please remind me of that in a month or so when I have no restriction and I am in bandster hell, okay?

I'm glad I did it, but I still second-guess this decision multiple times a day. I just don't think that NOW is a good time to figure out if the choice was right or not. I think that in the end, I will be glad I did it.

Oh, and here is my blog. I'm off to add it to my sig:

Cyndiloowhobanded’s Weblog

Edited May 19, 2008 by cyndiloowho

sshaw9126 · May 19, 2008

I am glad to know what I am feeling is normal. I am scheduled to be banded on Thursday and I keep thinking that I am not doing the right thing.

Lillie52 · May 19, 2008

"I read everything I could find on pre-op diet cheating, trying to justify it to myself. If I would have just followed the diet I could have avoided so much grief and stress!"

Did you have problems surgically due to not following the pre-op diet? Or are you referring to the grief and stress that is typically experienced when our eating is out of control?

Just curious. I have not been perfect on my 14 day liquid diet () but will have a loss.

cyndiloowho · May 20, 2008

No, I didn't have any problems surgically due to the cheating. I cheated by eating boiled eggs, tuna, grilled fish and chicken, not junk food.

I created so much stress and grief for myself by obsessively searching for anything I could find to justify the cheating. It just made me miserable. I could have felt peace during that time, but instead I was frantically searching for justification.

mstrina27 · May 20, 2008

Hi! I am 4 days post-op, which you may have figured out from the thread title. I just wanted to tell some of you who are considering WLS what it feels like at 4 days out.
The surgery went great, which was a relief. I had never had surgery of any kind before, so I was nervous. I had a morphine PCA which I didn't use nearly as much as I thought I would. My surgery was Thursday May 15 and I stopped taking the Lortab Elixer and Phenergan on Saturday. (I hated the way they made me so tired and loopy!)

I cheated during the pre-op diet. It is something I am not proud of and I will tell you that, thus far, it is my only regret. I read everything I could find on pre-op diet cheating, trying to justify it to myself. If I would have just followed the diet I could have avoided so much grief and stress!

I am now on a full liquid diet for two weeks, until my follow-up appt with my surgeon. This morning I thought about cheating until I read the thread, "Would it kill me?" or something similar. I knew why cheating post-op was bad, but was trying to justify it. That thread works. Read it.

I keep beating myself up about, "why couldn't I just do this on my own?" but the truth is I have tried. I'm sure you have, too. Sorry if this is very stream-of-consiousness and rambling.

I started seeing a therapist about two months ago. My brother died in January and it has all been just too much! Again, I'm sure many of you can relate. Whether it is a death in the family or abuse in our past or other things we turned to food for comfort. It was so handy! (and socially acceptable!)

I guess what I wanted to tell you is that no, the lap band is not a miracle, it is just a tool that we actually have to USE to make it work. Please remind me of that in a month or so when I have no restriction and I am in bandster hell, okay?

I'm glad I did it, but I still second-guess this decision multiple times a day. I just don't think that NOW is a good time to figure out if the choice was right or not. I think that in the end, I will be glad I did it.

Oh, and here is my blog. I'm off to add it to my sig:

Cyndiloowhobanded’s Weblog

Cyndi I am so right there with u.... I can actually realate i lost my only brother in 2001 (november 27) and i lost my mom 2006 (november 24) so I totally understand where u are coming from. Where do u live @ and u can e-mail me anytime. I also had to stop taking the pain meds because they were making me feel worse.... See with my pre-op diet i could eat 1-meal a day but the majority had to be liquids... so what u ate dosen't seem bad at all....and by the way when we write things down they become theraputic if im spelling it correct... sometimes we just need to get it out....

cyndiloowho · May 20, 2008

mstrina27,

It is really unbelievable, isn't it? My brother was 47 years old and left behind a two-year-old son. (who looks just like him!) He died of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a prion disease that destroys the brain. It is the human form of Mad Cow disease. It was horrible. I watched him die, I was there when he took his last breath.

When I woke up from the anesthesia after the lap band I was sobbing uncontrollably. The nurses kept asking me if I was hurting and I was feeling no physical pain because of all the drugs, but the emotional pain was intense. It was like it all hit me that day.

I'm so sorry about your brother and mother. Life becomes so different without them! Here is my blog about my brother:

letterstoabrotherdying.blogspot.com

You may be able to understand those feelings of denial...

mstrina27 · May 21, 2008

Wow... I read it and there is alot of emotion in those words i had to stop reading a few times.... Wow............................................................................................

What I can tell u is that I went thru so much. It was my brother, and myself and he had just made 30-yrs old. I just realized after the passing of my mother that if I want to be able to see them again acording to my own belief. I gotta get myself right, and keep it that way. U know what i mean... My mother was an evangelist so trust me her life was right.. Bad things happen to good people its not for their sake its for those that are around them. To catch their attention and to keep them from going the wrong way...Your life is a testimony for someone else. What u are going thru and have went thru trust me when i say it will help someone else. Im not sure what u believe in or what your belief is, but I know that I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God. U will behold his face again. Trust me that is the only thing that has got me this far is that If i live right I will be able to see my loved ones again. With my bothers passing that is what actually started my crazy workouts where I was going to the gym like 2x a day working out like 2hours each time... trying to keep my mind from going here and there.... it worked because i lost over 100lbs but then i got prego and gained back 89lbs and to this date have lost 51 of those pounds thus far. U are going thru a normal phase right now in no spicific order it's sadness, anger, denial, dissapointment, and coping.... U will never get over it u just learn to deal with it... Live with it because it is apart of you, but u can't allow it to consume u, because it will over take u if u do. U have to be healthy for your nephew so u all can go and enjoy yourselves... My brother left 3-boys at the time they were 10, 8, & 6 and they are soon to be 16, soon to be 14, and soon to be 12. and my oldest nephew looks like my brothers twin i kid u not.. he is a jr also... im talking about i have to catch myself sometimes because i think im talking to my brother... but like i said everything will be ok in time..... the blog and the poetry really does help.... I do the same exact thing....

coltorismom · May 21, 2008

sweetheart, don't fret you have been through a lot. if i listened to the opinions of others, I wouldn't be banded today & would probably still weigh 314. However, I must admit that I, too, cheated on the pre-op diet, but my liver WAS in great shape, thankfully.

As for regrets, the first 24 hours post op when I was still in the hospital--Oh boy! I was beating myself up because I ALLOWED myself to gain so much weight & that I didn't do weight watchers or south beach sooner. I was very sore & groggy from anesthesia & wasn't thinking clearly.

Now i am almost 1 month post op & I (thus far) do not regret my decision. I feel restriction with no FILLS yet. Keep up the good work. god bless.