~Calling all May 26-ers!~

[sailorChristy 1]

Hello 4weightlosssake, Christian0728, Jessicastatzer, bblazer1991, EPRESC0303, MissChloe, AlaskaGirl77, and anyone else scheduled for the 26th

Okay, kiddos. We're one week away from our b-day. How's everything feeling? Pre-op diet going okay? Any particular worrisome things on your mind that we can seek info and reassurance from those who were banded before us?

I'll go first. I am so ready! For one thing, the 2-week pre-op is making me gag. I'm supposed to have 5-6 Medifast meals per day, and I've only been able to choke down 3-maybe-4 each day. On the bright side, I've lost 18# and have gone down 1 size in jeans already.

One thing I'm worried about is quitting smoking today. My previous surgeon required 6 weeks smoke-free, and my new surgeon and his staff didn't mention it. I 'fessed up about the smoking on every form I filled out for them -- 3 forms (at least) asked about smoking. I've only been smoking 1/3-1/2 pack per day, and now I've quit completely -- cold turkey. There's no easier way to quit than the thought that your very life is literally at risk. So anyway, do we have any smokers among us?

I hope all of my 5/26 band-buddies are :laugh: feeling great and feeling ready to go for it!

Regards,

Christy

[Bizaleth 0]

Hi,

Count me in - I'll be getting banded the 26th too! I've had my surgery scheduled for a week or so now, but only got my insurance approval today so I'm really excited (but nervous too).

The pre-op diet has been difficult for me, I started out with a headache for a couple of days and am feeling so hungry, but I'm trying to make a good start, so I'm sticking with it.

Good luck to everyone!

[TR2 0]

Christy, thanks for starting this thread. I have been on the the pre-op diet since last Wednesday. My doc says I only need to lose 10 lbs. I was starving. 6 days into the diet, I started counting up the calories in the prepacked food my doctor gave me--only 550 cal a day. He said i could have a lean cuisine if I got hungry so i finally indulged. It was just what I needed to perservere. Tonight I had another one. I had my preop appointment today. I attended a WLS class, bought my full liquid foods and got my perscriptions filled. I am READY to GO!

Good luck to all of us.

Elaine

[sailorChristy 1]

Welcome to the thread, dear sisters o' mine. Do you have any fun weekend plans for the 3-day weekend? I am going out of town to attend my favorite Uncle's wedding. It's his first marriage -- at age 60! There won't be a dry eye in the house among my many cousins and me. :thumbup:

I'm prepared in every way except actuallly buying my pureed foods for the first two weeks (actually, day 2 through day 14.) I am also not at all prepared for the terrible dry mouth I'll have on Tuesday morning. I take medications that exacerbate that. I probably won't be able to speak!

Where are all the other 5/26ers? C'mon aboard, peeps!

[4weightlosssake 8]

Hey SailorChristy.....thanks you for starting this thread. My doctor doesn't require pre-op diet, so I'm not doing any. I met with the nutritionist today for my post- op diet and boy did she scared the crap out of me. she gave me this tiny bitty 45 ml cup and that's what I will use to measure all the liquid (both clear and full) after surgery.

I went to the hospital yesterday for all the blood and paper works.

I am so excited and can't wait for tuesday to get here

[jessiel2x 0]

Jessiel2x here. My surgery is May 26th too. I am on the Opti-Fast diet and starving. But they said I could have sugar free Jello and pops. I guess I will be tired of those. I am a smoker but no mention of quitting. I guess they all know I smoke they asked a couple of time. I think you must have some killer will power to be on the preOp diet and quit smoking! Anyone else having a hard time around 5 or 6pm with the pre op. So far so good. but I am not going to lie I am HUNGRY!

[meem 0]

Hey 26th-ers. Best wishes for a safe surgery tomorrow. You all will do great.

Hey Christy, congrats on quitting cold turkey. Not only is that wonderful for your lungs but it will help with recovery time, smoking hinders your body from healing.

Good luck and lets us know how you are post op!!

[hallelujah.girl 1]

2 new additions in PURPLE

May 26th - sailorChrist, 4weightlosssake, Christian0728, Jessicastatzer, bblazer1991, EPRESC0303, MissChloe, dhall111, Gonnagetbanned

Best wishes tomorrow, keep us posted!

[sarahbellzz14-4 1]

Hello 4weightlosssake, Christian0728, Jessicastatzer, bblazer1991, EPRESC0303, MissChloe, AlaskaGirl77, and anyone else scheduled for the 26th :thumbup:

Okay, kiddos. We're one week away from our b-day. How's everything feeling? Pre-op diet going okay? Any particular worrisome things on your mind that we can seek info and reassurance from those who were banded before us?

I'll go first. I am so ready! For one thing, the 2-week pre-op is making me gag. I'm supposed to have 5-6 Medifast meals per day, and I've only been able to choke down 3-maybe-4 each day. On the bright side, I've lost 18# and have gone down 1 size in jeans already.

One thing I'm worried about is quitting smoking today. My previous surgeon required 6 weeks smoke-free, and my new surgeon and his staff didn't mention it. I 'fessed up about the smoking on every form I filled out for them -- 3 forms (at least) asked about smoking. I've only been smoking 1/3-1/2 pack per day, and now I've quit completely -- cold turkey. There's no easier way to quit than the thought that your very life is literally at risk. So anyway, do we have any smokers among us?

I hope all of my 5/26 band-buddies are :sad: feeling great and feeling ready to go for it!

Regards,

Christy

I told my doc I quit months ago, First thing I did when I left the hospital was light up... HORRIBLE I know, Yes, Bad bad Sarah, But, before I eventually found a pharmacy that had Gas X Strips in stock- Believe it or not, That was the only way I was able to pass gass & go to the bathroom.... was to take a drag. I'm down to MAYBE, 1 1/2 ciggs a day, I just keep clipping them. take a few drags, put it out. But I'm getting the patch probably on friday, it's just not the same without my hugeass cup of coffee in the morning, and soo not healthy. But I guess you can't be a saint all the time.

[jessicastatzer 0]

Hi All,

The big day is tomorrow! My Dr required a 2 week low carb diet and a 2 day clear liquid diet. I was really hungry yesterday and dreading the second day of Clear liquids but surprisingly today seems to be a little easier so far. I look forward to checking in with you guys and comparing stories! Good luck!

Jessica

[sailorChristy 1]

Nighty-night. My Mom is snoring in the other bed, and my dog is snoozing on the floor between the two beds. I, on the other hand, am sitting in bed watching the Land of the Lost marathon on Sci-Fi. We're at the LaQuinta Inn near the surgery center just north on Cincinnati. I'm eager to get tomorrow over with, ya know? I'm feeling pretty jazzed right now, but I know that I'll be a total mess tomorrow morning. :-( My surgery is scheduled for 9:30 AM. I'll post when I get home.

Best wishes to my 5/26 "homeys!"

[TR2 0]

Best of luck to all the 26er's. I reached my 10 lb. weight loss goal today. Who wouldn't after the bowel prep!! I am excited. My hubby and I have to get up at 4:15 am to be at the hospital by 6:15. I am the first case at 0800.

[sailorChristy 1]

Hi, everyone! I'm home and I have a story to share. Be warned -- I am not known for my brevity. Also, there are narcotics involved here!

After a quick shower and such, Mom and I headed over to JourneyLite this morning. It was only a 5-minute drive, and we arrived just before 8 AM for my 9:30 surgery. I was pleased with my pretty, cream-colored traction-sox. They were so much prettier than the typical 'institutional blue' color. Another bit of very good news was that the doctor's scale showed me at 245, meaning that I lost a little more than 20 pounds from my 2-week Medifast! (Also, I am not pregnant. Implying that someone would be willing to have sex with me? As if!!!!)

Anyway, Chris, the nurse who prepared me, was brisk and efficient. She was not mean or rude, but not as warm and fuzzy as my new BFF, Lynn. While I was waiting for Chris in the combo preop/recovery room, the first patient of the day was wheeled in to recovery. The staff kept asking her to take a nice, deep breath. It was a little worrisome to overhear. I was afraid they were going to tube her again or something, and I was very much afraid I would have a similar problem with my pulse-ox number. And all the while, my bp/pulse-ox machine kept beeping, and I started crying because I thought it was because my vitals were not good. (Mind you, this is all before surgery - sigh.) Chris explained that the beeps were to remind the nurses to give near-constant attention to the vitals, and she reassured me that my vitals were perfect. In pre-op, I received a dose of Pepcid in my iv after pleading my case for the 100th time that I'm desperately afraid of vomiting when I wake up because I was (a little) nauseous after my thyroidectomy. I also received what my adorable nurse anesthetist, Jeff, called "A dose of sunshine." Chris said that after I got that one, I would feel like there is nothing I'd rather do today than have lap-band surgery! She was right. My surgeon, Dr. C., stopped by and I reminded him that I was signed up for (and paid for!) the single-incision surgery. He said that once he got in there, he would be able to tell if he would be able to manuever his instruments and access everything through a single incision. (To rush to the end of this particular aspect of the story, I didn't have the single-incision procedure. Bummer. It's not that it was a vanity thing. I just didn't want to have more than one incision to worry about healing properly.) [Y'all are probably picking up on the fact that I worry too much, especially about health things.] Right before they wheeled me back to the OR, my Mom was able to come in to see me. I knew that our time was short, so I asked if she would pray with me. We held hands and I prayed for peace for both of us, the mad skillz of the surgeon and staff, and blessings all around. (Thank God for answered prayers. :-)))

Okay, so they wheeled me into the OR. I was a little woozy, and fortunately I was too woozy to object to the mask and the arms out to the sides thing, which I was desperately afraid of because I am seriously claustrophobic. [omg, what a sissy I am about just about everything!] After the second deep breath, Jeff started to describe a beautiful beach, the sound of the ocean, and me there in a size-6 bikini. One of the nurses chimed in, "Size 6? Why limit her? She might be there in a size 2!" With breath 4, Jeff asked if I could picture myself there, and I responded, just before conking out that, "Yes, and I can also see my ex-boyfriend there, admiring the view... if you know... what I mean." The last thing I remembered is everyone laughing.... and then two nurses (Lynn and another) were telling me that the surgery was over and I had done so great! (They told my Mom that I was the fastest they had seen someone go under and one of the fastest to go from asleep to 'ready to sit up and be release,' too.)

I woke up feeling pretty darn good! No nausea (Lynn said they have very few patients who wake up nauseous or have later problems with vomiting!), and NO GAS PAIN. I had discomfort at level 3 where the port was placed. They immediately had me move to the chair, and I took some deep breaths and did some coughing. Everything I did was met with kudos and compliments, along with the assertion that I might end up being "their best patient of the entire week." I responded that I bet they say that to all their patients. :mad5:

The 2-hour drive home was uneventful. I was having no problem at all sipping Water, so I sipped a lot because my mouth was (and still is) so uncomfortably dry. I took a 15 ml dose of Loritab elixir on the way home, as my main incision had bumped up to a 4-5 and I had some occassional twinges (gas, maybe?) below my right shoulder blade and between my left ovary and left hip. I wasn't able to sleep -- and still haven't -- because I am anxious and on some level I am too afraid to sleep. [Again, a 'me' issue.] I've been making sure I walk 15 minutes every 60-75 minutes. Before I took my latest dose of Loritab, my port site pain had edged up to a 7 - yowch! - so I preceded the Loritab with a single ibuprofen (per discharge instructions.) I was relieved that it went down very easily.

I don't want to mischaracterize my pain of 7 as being misery-inducing. I've actually dealt with it objectively, thinking 'Whoa, there's that discomfort I was surprised I didn't have earlier. Gotta keep sipping, deep breathing, coughing, andf walking... even if it hurts. It'll feel better every day.' So while it's hurting, it's quite manageable. And the pain meds have brought it down to a 3-4 again. YMMV, of course.

So that's my story. I'm on Clear liquids today, and I've had raspberry aquafina, plenty of ice Water, chamomile tea, a SF popsicle, and I'll probably have some chicken broth with fresh dill later this evening.

I am SO happy!! I feel so blessed!!!!! Thank you all so much for being here. :wub:

Looking forward to continuing the adventure with you,

Christy

[georgiapeach33 0]

Hi All, I had me surgery today All in all everything went well. However, this gas is killing me and my left shoulder has begun to hurt. I've taken some Gas-X and the Gas is still there. I've also being trying to walking around the house. Do anyone have any suggestion for the Gas pain?

[4weightlosssake 8]

Wow Christy....glad your surgery went well. Mine did too and I'm back from the hospital.

My story is even longer in that I slept till 5.20 am when I was supposed to be at the hospital by 6.00 am and with two little kids to get ready for school. Let's just say God changed my plans today and what matters most is that I still had my surgery. I had popsicle, chicken broth and some apple juice at the hospital before I was discharged.

I am so grateful to God for today and to my friend that came to my rescue. without her, I don't think this surgery would have been a reality, at least not today.