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Faith2009

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  1. Yes, I would have asked them to put it lower. But I don't think we have a choice, they line it up according to your anatomy and wherever they think is the best spot. I suggest you talk to the MDs and ask about that specifically. My port lines up with my bottom rib and happens to be right where I bend at the waist. I sleep on my right side a the moment cause I can't sleep on my stomach or my left side. Good luck in your research ~ Faith
  2. I am hoping others on here will be brutally honest with their thoughts. So much of what is written on here is positive and that is great, it is one of the reasons I decided to have this done, but now I am feeling completely alone with regrets. I have researched the forum and have only seen a few people who have voiced how I am feeling. I am also hoping that my entry will not be deleted. I was banded about 2 weeks ago (yes I know it wasn't long ago). I did not have the gassy feeling right after the procedure, but incredible port pain. My port and laproscopic sites seem to be higher than most people and I had lots of bruising. My port feels like it sits right on the edge of my ribs, so leaning forward can be a killer. I called several days after my surgery and Dr So said that extreme port pain is not that common but that it should get less. It has decreased somewhat, but now several times a day, I still get a heartbeat pain at the port site that makes me stop what I am doing. At 8 days post/op, I also started getting this horrible sharp shoulder pain right in my left scapula that literally takes my breath away (worse than a gallstone). It comes and goes for no apparent reason, but when it comes I immediately start sweating and have to do deep breathing to get through it. About a week after the surgery I also became extremely bloated and gassy all the time. Let me say that I am a physical therapist and very familiar with the stages of healing. I understand scar tissue and know the physiology of what is happening to me. I completely understand the CO2 in my body and the fact that it takes a while to get out . Let me also mention that I am doing everything under the sun to help this. I am walking 3 miles a day everday, using heat, putting pressure/massage and taking tons of simethicone/gas x to no avail, anti-inflammaories etc... I am also taking 10mg vicodin at night which barely helps me but takes the edge off. Because of my desperation, it was very difficult to find reputable studies on the symptoms I am having. I found the Australian article regarding shoulder pain and it says "Shoulder pain following LAGB surgery is common, usually affects the left shoulder, and can in some cases last 5 weeks or more. Avoiding injury to the crura during the procedure may prevent more prolonged pain." So I found out that some people apparently do not have the shoulder pain immediately but one or more weeks later and they may have the shoulder pain for months/years, some continue to have port sensitivity years later and many people are just bloated and gassy for the rest of their lives. My goodness, I cannot imagine 3 more weeks of this port pain and shoulder pain and the possibility that I will forever have bloating and be gassy.... and yes I do understand those of you who believe the bloating and gas for the rest of your lives isn't a bad trade off for weight loss. I am not a complainer and typically think of myself as a pretty tough cookie, but these side effects are affecting my day to day function and I am mad at myself for doing this to myself. Obviously my body is more sensitive than most, but I have yet to see someone else on the current forum implying they were going crazy with the side effects after surgery and feeling depression and regret. I know that I could not have anticipated this but the only thing that is making me feel better is the thought of removing this band in a few months when the scar tissue slows down. I swear if I could do surgery on myself, I would have done it already. I know healing and everything takes time ("this too shall pass"), I tell that to my patients all the time, but if I am so unusual to have such extreme symptoms, I cannot know for sure if and when it will pass. Anyway, I do not want to discourage anyone who is reading this. I believe the lap band has changed many peoples' lives and has been a blessing to them. My best friend also had lap band surgery 6 months ago, had little to no symptoms and is doing fantastic. Therefore, she cannot relate to my situation at all. I am just talking about my own individual case which apparently is in no way the "norm". I am scared, I am worried, I am seriously depressed and I am on the verge of tears most of the time. I just wanted to be brutally honest on this forum in the hopes that there is someone out there who can relate so I would not feel so alone and scared. Thanks for listening.
  3. Okay, I just want to vent something here. I just got back from taking my dog on a walk in the Marina (near the water). When I was walking back, these 2 very attractive women were blocking my path, so I could not walk through them; so I just lingered around waiting for them to move. They were having a HUGE fight....screaming and yelling at each other, with an audience of 50+ people. Apparently one of the women "stole" the other's boyfriend. (The boyfriend was actually there, leaning against a tree and laughing at them.) The fight progressively got worse...they were calling each other f!@king bi#@hs, skanky whores, nasty looking crack heads, drunk sluts, stupid ignorant losers and some other words I won't even mention....etc....they were flipping each other off, one turned around, pulled her skirt up and bent over saying "you can kiss my ass"....then they called each other the forbidden three letter word...."FAT"; one said "nasty disgusting fat ass" to be exact...AND THAT is when they both absolutely LOST THEIR MINDS and before you could blink, they attacked each other and were literally throwing punches and rolling around on the ground. They continued to call each other FAT, just with different adjectives in front of the word. It was really BAD; I was actually scared because they were on the cement pulling each other's hair with their heads hitting the ground and I said a prayer that neither one would have a traumatic brain injury from the sheer impact. The rage that they had for each other after being called fat was incredible. (Let me just mention here that they were TINY and neither of them weighed more than 110 pounds!!) ( I just stood there thinking, wait a minute, :-? these women were yelling and called each other the most horrible, degrading, insulting names one could ever say and the breaking point, the most horrible insulting UNFORGIVING word for them was to call each other FAT. Apparently, you can be "ugly, ignorant, a whore, a liar, a drunk, a drug addict, a theif, a home wrecker", etc; all of these names which imply you hurt other people....but the worst thing you can be is "FAT".) FYI, someone eventually called 911 and the police showed up in 5 minutes and they were both arrested....but they continued to shout how fat the other was even from the back of a police car. What kind of a world are we living in?? Calling someone an f$!king bi@#h is allowed, but calling someone FAT warrants PHYSICAL VIOLENCE. Apparently, you can be a wonderful, ethical, genuine, intelligent, compassionate person, but if you are FAT, that is the most terrible thing in the world. :lb12: I hate to admit it, I am really not too suprised, but logically I think that is soooooo screwed up. And to see that predjudice in full physical color just hurt my heart and made me actually sick to my stomach, so self-conscious and ashamed. Not to sound conceited, but I believe I am a great person, super supportive, very compassionate,and have worked hard to accomplish what I have in life; I actually LIKE myself and think I have a good soul, but the one thing that I am always aware of because it influences most of my decisions is that I am FAT. I'm so tired of being ashamed :lb12: Anyway, I have tears in my eyes right now thinking about it....THANK YOU for listening....
  4. ________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________ Judy, You are the QUEEN of the lap band forum!! You are so full of information, advice and uplifting posts. Those are HUGE accomplishments!! I am inspired by your motivational spirit !! =D>
  5. I drink TONS of water!! I can tell a difference in my skin and my overall health if I do not drink a lot of water...but I am wondering if I will be able to continue with this after I have my band. Is there anyone who was a big water drinker pre-band that was able to continue drinking lots of water?? It sounds like a lot of people cannot tolerate fluids after their band. What is everyone's experience with this? Any tips? :lb12:
  6. I know you are not supposed to drink anything during a meal but was wondering if anyone can just take tiny sips of water?? I do understand that it is not recommended because you should not "wash your food down" but has anyone tried to drink with their meals? If so, what happens?? Did it make you PB or vomit or have pain?? :-?
  7. Kelly....I hear you. Most people (including your husband) are afraid of change or "the unknown". Some people, including the ones who love us are TERRIFIED of us changing, because what would happen to them?? It is a lot easier to stay in a warm pile of poop (even if it is POOP and not good for you or healthy), then to step out of that poop in faith into the unknown and face the changes. So many people stay in the same old relationships, stay in the same old jobs (the poop), even if they are unhappy because at least they are familiar and know what to expect. They don't want to do all of that work to start over into something new. Leaving those relationships/jobs would mean uncertainty, vulnerability and effort. A long time ago I lost 50lbs and along with it, lost a boyfriend and several friends. It was devastating. I was the exact same person, but instead of being ashamed of myself and staying home in my "bubble"; I wanted to go outside and DO THINGS!! My new found confidence also helped me to stand up for myself more and I learned to say "NO, I'm sorry I can't do that". It made me analyze my relationships and see that I was the one who gave and gave and gave, the dependable, "give you the shirt of my back kind of girl". I was (and still am) the caregiver and I guess it makes me feel good to be needed, but I need support too!! However, I never got back what I gave and I was running out of gas. But with each goodbye, I learned to choose people in my life who "lift me up", who give me some strength and give to me what I give to them. I have a few less friends in my life, even now, but they are "quality friends" and I have a lot more mental energy than I used to. Your husband sounds scared and confused. Talk to him, get a counselor or therapist if you need to...like everyone said, he may just need to be educated on what you are doing. Besides, this is not about him, this is about you doing something for yourself. BUT KNOW IN YOUR HEART that you are probably doing the most loving thing you can do for yourself and there is no better example for children than for their parents to take care of themselves. Try to live in this moment and not in the future or the "what ifs??" Keep your eyes ahead and know that you will endure and deal with things as they come. In every crisis or crossroad there is an opportunity for you to grow. Kelly...You are GROWING, you are stepping out in faith to take care of yourself and choosing not to waste any more time in this precious short life we have. > p.s. Please let the forum know how the meeting went.
  8. Yes I believe it depends on your weight and your activity level. But you will hear a lot of different opinions even from the experts. I know it needs to change, but I am a carb girl (don't eat a lot of meat, eggs or cheese), so I am actually concerned about the protein and am working on getting enough daily. Even though I take them, I don't completely trust vitamins because I think we often just excrete them in our urine. Unfortunately, some people I have talked to have lost their hair several months after the lap band; my guess is that they might be protein deficient. I just tried the muscle milk light vanilla creme for the first time and it was pretty good (15g protein). This was the kind in the little juice boxes with the straw. Because it was such a small drink; I added 2 tsp of sugar free vanilla coffee mate (mixed that with some warm water to dissolve it), and put it all in the blender with some ice...it came out pretty good. Maybe you are getting enough already depending on your diet. I would just add it all up on a normal day and see if you are in a normal range and adjust it if you need it.
  9. thanks for the responses....I guess there is no predicting. I understand that it should not prevent me from having the lapband but I do want to consider it though. I do not work at a desk alone, nor do I have an opportunity to excuse myself if I feel these problems coming on. I work 12+ hrs a day and am trapped in a room with patients, usually in extremely close positions with my hands on them; so I do not have the option of just walking away. It might seem silly to some, but it worries me. I just do not understand physiologically how the lap band can affect gas build up in our large intestines. It would be different if there was some long term solution.
  10. Hi...I'm a newbie and am planning my new "birthdate" in late Feb, but am starting to freak out a little bit. Can someone explain to me what the deal is with all the gas talk?? I am reading a lot of info where people are saying they simply cannot eat these things anymore because they get lots of "gas" or the food gets painfully stuck and/or they throw it up all the time. Yikes! Are we talking both Burping and Farting??? And I cannot figure out physiologically why would the band make u fart??? Now I am a little scared about all of this. I'm a hand therapist (I work with all kinds of hand injuries) and work every single day up close and personal touching patients. Am I going to turn into the "stinky" therapist? Also, I shudder to think of how attractive I will be burping out the alphabet when I am on a dinner date with someone. Hmmm.....any HONEST insight? Thanks
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