LAP BAND SURGERY DONE 02-26-08 ANY TIPS

Hi good folks, Glad to find you.  Just post-op with lap band done by Dr DeMaria at Durham Regional Hospital.  Home after a couple of days.  Still on full liquids as instructed.  Any one have any good advice?  I am 55 yrs., have several health problems, etc, etc, but hope a lot of them will begin to improve soon.  Linda N. Oxford, NC

Hi Linda -  Congratulations on your surgery! I'm also recently Banded. Advice, hmmm......not at that point yet. Do you have any advice for me? I'm starving and ready to eat the wallpaper, again! LOL It is going to get better right?

I certainly hope so!  I have not been too hungry yet.  But I think 2 more weeks on this liquid diet will probably get old quick.  My family are being very supportive and eating their meals without me.  My hubbie is cooking.  Thank the Lord, don't think I could.  I still get a little weak.   Hope you are having a better day today! Linda

Hey there, Linda!  Welcome!  I hear Dr. DeMaria is wonderful.  There are several others here who've had surgery with him, and I've met others of his patients at another support group. I see MyOMy is seducing you with her wily Bandit ways.  Just give her a little wallpaper and step slooooowly out of the room.   She'll settle down eventually!  I'm six weeks out from Lap Band surgery, as of tomorrow. The best advice I got from Bandits here is to ask for advice from other Bandits!  Just about everything that I ran into my first few weeks, someone else had already figured out how to handle it with more glory and panache than I could ever have mustered.  So I let them do aaaaaall the work and I just feasted on the fruits of their labor. Feel free to browse the archives and see what others have to say about those first couple of weeks and whether any of those relate to how you're feeling, what you're doing, etc.   Post any questions!  Write stuff on others' threads!  Make new threads about how you're doing! We are here for you because someone was here for us at some point along the way.   I hope you're feeling good and enjoying this sunny weather today.  Did you go out and walk a little?  (Nudge, nudge.) EDITED:  Oh, I forgot other good advice I got from people here: 1.  Take lots of "before" photos because you'll want 'em for the "after" times! 2.  Eat/drink plenty of protein.  Eat/drink it first, and eat other stuff after that. 3.  Crystal Lite is your friend, Crystal Lite is your friend, Crystal Lite is your friend. 4.  The first couple weeks to a month after Banding is healing time.  After your body's healed up from surgery, you might feel really hungry sometimes because your Band hasn't been filled yet.  The weeks between are called "Bandit Hell," and they can make you doubt yourself.  But don't doubt the process -- it works for most, but we all have to make it work.

Thanks for the tips and encouragement.  It was just what I needed.  I will be here with all my questions I am sure.  So far I am still on liquids.  I have not felt really hungry.  I would like a plain cracker, maybe because I associate it with that slightly queasy recovery feeling?  Anyway, I have tolerated the protein drinks, broths, V8 juice, milk, cool decaf coffee, etc so far with no problems.  The harderst part at first was taking my meds with the small amounts of water allowed at one time.  Had to take just one or two pills a time.  I am up and around.  More than I should be actually, my  Mom was just released from the hospital into a nursing facility this morning and my adult daughter was going to drive me there to admit her as my hubbie had a doctor's appointment.  However, my 15 yr old son woke up with a flu like bug and so my daughter had to sit with him and I drove myself to town.  Anyway, all is good now.  Are you back to regular foods or just soft foods? Linda   (how do you set up a signature on here?)

Wow, Linda -- your family sure decided to have everything happen at once, huh?  How on earth are you coping with all that?   I hope your mom is doing well in her new environs and that your son's feeling better. One trick with the pills: crush them and mix them with a couple tablespoons of sugar-free pudding.  It's a lot easier!  Pudding got me through my full-liquids stage and "mushies" (soft food) stage really well.  I made sugar-free pudding with soymilk or a protein shake (such as Micellar Milk) and then added half a scoop of flavored protein powder and maybe a little Sugar-Free Cool Whip or Cool Whip Free.  Pureed strawberries on top ... food for a queen!  And it helped me sneak in a little extra protein here and there. Different docs have different guidelines for the evolution of eating.  I was on clear liquids for two weeks and then full liquids for a week, then another week of mushies (scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, etc.).   It wasn't as hard as I'd worried it would be, because 1) I was still healing and just wasn't so hungry, and 2) my brain was constantly engaged trying to figure out interesting ways to get enough protein in.   It was sort of like planning a prison break.  Ha. Setting up a signature: over on the lefthand side of the screen, underneath the heading ObesityHelp North Carolina Weight Loss Forum, is a bulleted list.  Click on User Settings (the last bullet) and it will take you to your avatar and signature page. If you'd like to set up a weight-loss ticker, go to www.tickerfactory.com, set up your ticker, then right-click on it, hit Copy, then get back to your signature page and just paste the ticker into your signature box in User Settings.