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Dolittle

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Blog Entries posted by Dolittle

  1. Dolittle

    Dolittle's Vacation

    By Dolittle,

    Do you newbies and wannabe lap-banders and sleeve patients wonder what it's like to eat at buffets in restaurants at an All-Inclusive resort? Here's how I handle it.
    Breakfast buffet:
    One egg over easy, 2 strips of bacon, 2 thin slices of grapefruit and 1 piece of steamed broccoli. The amount was just right. I didn't over do it and was very satisfied.
  2. Dolittle

    Dolittle's Vacation

    By Dolittle,

    Lunch buffet:
    1 hamburger patty with a little cheese and lots of ketchup (I like ketchup), 2 small BBQ ribs and some kind of mystery meat. I ate half of the burger patty, ate some of the ribs and mystery meat and was full.
    A hour after lunch, and I'm not going to lie, I snuck in a very small soft serve ice cream cone.
  3. Dolittle

    Dolittle's Vacation

    By Dolittle,

    Dinner at a restaurant:
    I had a couple bites of a small appetizer (not pictured). Then for the main course, I had several pieces of meat and ate several bites of the tomato and potatoes, I left the rice.
    I still had room left to sample a little 2 inch diameter piece of cheese cake.
    After dinner, I socialized with our group and had a Tequila Sunrise drink. I didn't feel I over ate, But I felt full all day.
    I have issues with getting in my daily requirements of protein, so you'll notice I concentrated on the protein.
    Going to a buffet or going on vacation isn't a major challenge to the lap-band or sleeve lifestyle. I know a lot of it looks tasty, but just take a bite or two and before you know it, your full.
  4. Dolittle

    Drink, Drink, Drink

    By Dolittle,

    It's been 11 days since I had the sleeve revision. I'm feeling like I'm just water logged. All I have been doing is drinking. It's kind of hard drinking so many fuilds. Between water, protein shakes and brothy soups, I'm floating!
  5. Dolittle

    One week out

    By Dolittle,

    I'm one week out and back home now. Feeling pretty good and excided that the surgery and trip are behind me now. I'm amazed, I really do feel pretty good, it was alot like my lap-band surgery back in 2007.
  6. Dolittle

    LIQUID YOGURT

    By Dolittle,

    I got to try my first liquid yogurt last night. I can say it was OK, but it made my insides churn a little. Kind of felt like I was building lots of "GAS" lol. Doing good and feeling pretty good too. Met a group of nice ladies that were heading over to the OCC to have their surgery today. Wished them great success and told them that this surgery was easy. They all had smiles.
  7. Dolittle

    GOING WELL

    By Dolittle,

    It´s been 4 days since surgery and everything is going well. I haven´t been hungry. I´ve been drinking vitamin water and today I get to do some liquid yogurt. I´ll be going back to the OCC today to have my drain looked at and possibly removed. I´m a little bored, so feeling pretty good, last night I walked down to Revelution Ave from the Marriott,,, piece of cake. I took a taxi back, didn´t want to over do it, but I felt good.
  8. Dolittle
    Well, the big day is tomorrow, I have my bags packed. If all goes well, I should be at the OCC clinic at 8am tomorrow.
    I'm suprised, this morning I stepped on the scale and I was down 12lbs. The scale never lies, the pre-op diet does work, but its not fun.
  9. Dolittle
    So far the pre-op diet phasing into total liquids seems to be working. I'm having an easier time making the switch to liquids. This weekend I'll be running over to my local Sams Club and picking up a couple cases of protien shakes for the big push before my surgery.
  10. Dolittle

    Pre-Op Diet

    By Dolittle,

    Even though I'm scheduled at the end of the month, I'm opting to start phasing into the full liquid diet. Since the Fourth of July has past, I figured it wouldn't hurt to start now. Yesterday I did liquid soup and some yogurt. Stayed away from any solids and anything with fat in it. So far,, its going OK. As you know, two weeks before your surgery is when you really toe the line. I'll keep you posted. I'm also making sure I get my daily bicycle ride in. One, this make your lungs stronger. Two, burns calories. A win-win.
  11. Dolittle

    Paper Work

    By Dolittle,

    Times have changed since I had my lap band surgery in 2007. The OCC has refined their system and added numerous patient questionaires, pre-op diets, post-op diets and etc. Back in the old days, you called the OCC and set your surgery date, sent them some down payment money and brought the rest on your surgery date. You then showed up on your scheduled surgery date,, answered a few questions, did some lab work, talk to the heart doc, talk to the dietician doc and you were lap banded.
    Now, having raised their standards of professionalism and excellence, they have really raised the bar to new and higher levels. Its a win-win situation for all the parties involved. More paperwork means more info from me the patient. Thus, more info for them to make my lap band to sleeve journey a more successful one. The paperwork didn't take too long and it was easy to send via their web links. I'm hoping if everything goes as easy as this, my surgery should be a walk in the park!
  12. Dolittle
    I was lap banded in March 2007. This was a major life changing decision and I had anxiety like I've never had before. The lap band surgery was a breeze and the anxiety disappeared, as did my weight. I never anticipated how much success I would have with the band. I ended up losing close to 100 pounds in the first year. As time went by, I ended up leveling out on my weight loss and my body adjusted, my metabolism changed and slowly I was gaining weight. My band has been a great tool, like a friend that kept me in check with my eating. But, it's time for my lap band to go.
    Several reasons factored in to my decision to go with a sleeve revision. One of the biggest is what I mentioned at the start of my blog. Some of the other reasons had to do with aftercare. I had lost my fill doctor up in Chicago, he moved on to a teaching position in Cininnati OH and being a Mexico band patient, I couldn't find many American doctors to touch me. This alone was turning into a major pain in the butt. But, I really didn't need any fills any more. I had reached my sweet spot and the band was working, but my weight was just creeping upwards. I really needed to eat less. The band worked, but I always felt hungry. The bottom 2/3rds of my stomach wanted more and slowly I would eat more often. With this and my metabolism being at turtle speed, I was slowly gaining weight and heading back to my old life. There was also the thought something might happen to my band or my stomach because of slippage or erosion. I didn't have any of these issues, but would I in time?
    So,, I'm not going back to the old me. I've had a big taste of the good life. With 100 pounds gone and really enjoying the new me, why would I go back to the old me. So, I've done my "HOMEWORK" and have decided to go with a sleeve revision.
    I'm scheduled at the end of July. Do I have any anxiety, not really, been through it in the past. I made good choices with the band, such as going to the OCC and having Dr. Ortiz and Dr. Martinez as my surgical team, so why would I have any need to have anxiety or think twice about this decision. I'm really looking forward to this!
  13. Dolittle

    Year and a half post-op

    By Dolittle,

    I'm sorry I haven't kept up on my blog. Here's an update of what has happened since my LBL at Cosmed in October 2008 and my last entry in January 2009. I have pretty much stayed the same weight. I have my band adjusted for maintaining my weight. I haven't lost any weight since I had my LBL, but maybe I'm 10 pounds heavier. My weight goes with the season here in the Midwest. When I'm exercising, my weight goes down, when winter hits, I gain some. OK, now to the LBL. As I was saying in previous entries, LBL plastic surgery is major surgery. It takes a long time to recover from this, I know some that have recovered faster, maybe its my age (56) I don't know. In August and in December of 2009, I had to go back to Cosmed and have Dr. Quiroz fix a couple spots where some of the internal sutures were trying to migrate out. I took him about 15 minutes each time to fix, but this is a side effect that happens sometime. As of today, I still have nerve issues that I think will never get better or it's the best its going to get. I'm still numb or tinglely on the top of both hips, the top butt area and the top front of my legs. I mean it got better as time went by,, but, I think it will never go back to the way it was before. I'm also numb where the incision goes around me. I have phantom aches and pains I never had before, I just learn to blow it off and the next thing I know the slight pain is gone. I think its due to the nerve damage that comes along with cutting you in half and the Lipo they do along with the LBL. I think it's something I'll have to learn to live with. I'm I glad I had the LBL? Would I do it again? Probably,, I'm glad that I don't have that big hanging apron anymore. My sex life is alot better since I don't have all that loose fat, in the way, hanging and slapping around. LOL. My clothes fit better. When I look at myself in the mirror, I look better to myself, which is a self image issue. The nerve damage is something I didn't anticipate, but that was a risk I took and have to live with. So, If your thinking about having a LBL, just remember, not everyone has the same side effects/complications and post-op issues. If your going to do it, do it for your own reasons and remember it is MAJOR SURGERY!
  14. Dolittle

    Fill Trip

    By Dolittle,

    It's been more than a couple months since my LBL, If you remember,, Dr. Martinez pulled .5cc's out of my band the day before my LBL. I've really missed the restriction and gained 15 lbs during recovery. Today I made a trip up to Oak Brook Illinois to Synchrony Health and had a band adjustment. They added .3cc's and we'll see if this will put me back on the weight loss track. I know that I had .5cc's pulled in October,, but I didn't want to take the full .5cc's at one fill. I remember I may have been too tight back in October,, so the .3cc's could do the trick. As you know,, its better to sneak up on your sweet spot than to be too tight. We'll see how it goes.
  15. Dolittle

    2 month post-op pictures

    By Dolittle,

    It's been 2 months since my surgery,, as promised I'm posting new pictures. I merged three pictures together (pre-op, 10 day post-op and 2 month post-op) so you can see the difference. The healing process has been slow. They say it takes anywhere from 2 to 6 months or longer,, I believe them. LOL. I still have little aches and pains, depends how I move or stretch. The front of my stomach and the tops of my legs are still numb and swollen, but I can tell its getting less numb and swollen as time goes by. Also, I have a hard time telling the difference between my 10 day post-op and my 2 month post-op, but that's me. One thing that doesn't help is that since my LBL, I've gained 15 lbs, If you remember in a previous blog, Dr. Martinez removed .5cc's from my band the day before my LBL, So I have hardly any restriction. It goes to answer that question that pops up here at the forum about life after you have reached your goal, that question being once you have reached your goal weight do you have the band removed and you live a normal life?? I don't think so!! Old habits come back,, Thanksgiving and Christmas, AKA,, the fattening season doesn't help, plus not being able to exercise since the LBL add to the weight gain. I have made an appointment to get my band adjusted and have that .5cc's put back into my band. I should be able to start exercising at the beginning of the new year. I probably won't post new pictures till I hit the 6 month mark. I'll post a notice in the plastic surgery topic when that happens.

    pre-op, 10 day post-op, 2 month post-op, Front

    pre-op,10 day post-op, 2 month post-op, Side
  16. Dolittle
    It's been 4 weeks since my LBL surgery. Not much has changed, the healing process is very slow. I have been cutting and pulling stitches as my incision heals. I had to ask for help on a few of the stitches, my good friend and biking buddy used to be a nurse, she had to use her medical skills to remove several of my stitches that my wife couldn't get. It helped to share a bottle of white zin as we did this, it made it fun and she did a great job. I still have a couple stitches left in my incision on my right hip. That section is lagging behind the rest of my incision. I'm still swollen, the tops of my legs are still numb,, the left is worse than the right. My groin is still swollen and numb, but,, its all getting better,, slowly. I'll take and post pictures at the 2 month mark. If I did it now, you wouldn't see any difference.
  17. Dolittle
    Here are my 2 day pre-op and 10 day post-op pictures. I have a lot of swelling in the post-op pictures, so it's hard to tell what my results are going to be. They say it will take months for the swelling to go down. I'll add newer post-op pictures as time goes.

    Pre-op,,,,,,,,,,,,, 10 days Post-op,,,,,,,,, Pre-op,,,,,,,,, 10days Post-op
  18. Dolittle

    Pulled a Drainage Tube

    By Dolittle,

    It's Thursday, November 6th. I had an issue develope concerning a small lump at the top of my left leg/groin crease. It's about the size of a small jaw breaker. I called Dr. Quiroz and he said it was common to have a drainage issue in the lymphoid in that area and not to mess with it, it should go down on its own over time. He decided I needed to pull the right tube out and reassemble the suction reservoir to do only one tube. I disassembled the tubing and pulled the right drainage tube, it slid out real easy. I could feel it slide along my scar line on my right side. There was probably 1 foot of tubing inside. I also started appling a lotion on my surgical tape. This will release the tape from the scab under the tape. You don't want the tape coming off and pulling the scab with it. You want the scab to fall off naturally. Today I will monitor the left drainage tube,, if there isn't much I'll call Dr. Quiroz and he may decide to pull the left tube too. We'll see, I'm hoping the left tube comes out soon, it's a pain in the butt dealing with the tubes and reservoir. Other than that, each day gets better,, less pain and feeling stonger.
  19. Dolittle

    Back To Work

    By Dolittle,

    It's Monday,, November 3rd, I went back to work today and tested the waters. I retired young, a couple years back, from the trucking industry. I took this little part time job working at our county court house. I only work 15 to 20 hours a week. It's sort of like a hobby job. LOL. I had to go buy a new pair of pants to go with my suit coat. With being swollen and bruised really good, I had to buy a pair that was 2 sizes larger than what I worn before surgery. My biggest concern was hiding the drain resviour and standing on my feet for more than a few minutes. I only had to do court for a couple hours today,, I'm glad,, I was a lttle wore out from just that. I didn't have any leaks, so I must have done a good job with my bandages. So I concider this a good day. Tomorrow I'm off,, so its a R & R day. I can't wait to get rid of those drain tubes, Cosmed won't let you pull the tubes till you drain less than 25cc's in a day. I'm at 75cc's a day. After work I stopped by the local health store and picked up some Silver Nitrate spray, to spray into my belly button, I'm trying real hard to stay on top of that.
  20. Dolittle

    10 Days Post-Op

    By Dolittle,

    It's been 10 days since my LBL, My body still feels like I've been run over by a truck,, I can say it's not as bad as those first few days after my surgery, but, it's a slow recovery. The tops of my legs are still numb and tingly. My belly button is still leaking,, it leaks the same fluid that is draining from my tubes, kind of a light red colored water. I'm keeping my new button cleaned out and watching it like a hawk,, they say the belly button is one of the hot spots for infection after surgery. During surgery they pump 2 very large bags of fluid into you and 1 small bag of antibiotics, so your full of fluids and swollen. Your so swollen that I had made a mistake of not taking along a pair of sweat pants for my return flight home. The day I left RBTS I had to wear my shorts home, my jeans wouldn't button, even though they were loose when I arrived in TJ. Mornings are tough,, I'm stiff and sore till I get up and move around a little, but everyday it gets easier to get out of bed. I've learned to hold the front of my stomach with my hands when coughing or sneezing. If you don't, your in for some severe pain. Today I think I'll have my wife take some 10 day post-op pictures. I haven't decided if I'm going to post them or not. I have the before pics stored on my computer. I don't know,, its not a pretty site looking at pics of someones hanging skin or their post-op pics. The problem with the post-op pics is that your so swollen, stitched and bandaged up, its hard to see any results. I'll think about it today.
  21. Dolittle

    Wednesday,, Going home

    By Dolittle,

    It's a big day,, Today I head home. Staying a week in Mexico laying around a recovery house gets boring. It wasn't that I didn't like where I was or who was there with me, I was just ready to leave. I met some nice people while staying there. The staff at RBTS was very caring and loving. The girls that were there while I was there were very socialble. Kind of an everyone that's there is in the same boat as you thing. My last day was long. Breakfast at the RBTS and saying my goodbyes, then off to San Diego airport. by the time I hit home it was midnight. I'll have to work on a list of things I might have done different and things I'd recommend. Give me a couple days to think about it and I'll post it in this blog. I'd like to thank everyone who sent me email and well wishes. It ment a lot to me.
  22. Dolittle
    Hi everyone,, Tuesday was an exciding day,, everyone that was staying at RBTS went into town and visited Cosmed Clinic for their post op check ups. I'm telling you,, when you've been sitting and laying around for the last week,, this will make your day. LOL. Dr. Quiroz said everyone was doing fine. This would be my last visit before I head home on Wednesday. Dr. Quiroz gave me instructions on how to pull the drainage tubes and when the stitches come out. We have to email him with a record of how many CC's are draining, then he will decide for you when to pull the tubes. The stitches come out after rubbing your scar with this special cream he gives you, it will loosen up the tape and when the tape is gone,, you can cut and pull the stitches. Everyones biggest complaint is the lack of being able to have a bowel movement. We had to stop at the drug store for several patients to buy blasting stuff. So,, if your concidering going with a LBL,, bring movement drugs with you. I personally liked what Dr. Martinez suggested,, Milk of Mag. That worked for several of the patients,, but several had to buy the strong stuff. Back to RBTS and dinner with all "my" girls. During dinner, I was told that I was RBTS's first male patient,, so their all excided too.
  23. Dolittle
    I hate to tell you guys,, there just hasn't been much going on here at RBTS. I'm just sitting around on my butt trying to recover from the LBL. OH,, here's one thing,, My "New" belly button won't stop leaking, for some strange reason its leaking the same fluid that's running out my drainage tubes and into the holding bulb. The nurse here at RBTS is going to try to figure out a way to stop the flow. They say the belly button is the hardest thing to stop from being infected and it needs to stay dry. I'll keep ya posted on that. LOL. Exciding hey!
    Tomorrows schedule is a van trip to TJ and Cosmed clinic for a check up by Dr. Quiroz. Everyone that's staying here is going along. Kind of an one shot trip. You know this recovery stuff is really boring,, when everyone gets excided to go on a van ride. LOL. More tomorrow.
  24. Dolittle
    I felt pretty good today and the owner of RBTS had to take a couple patients to Cosmed for their post op check ups,, I decide I was bored and went along for the ride. Little did I know,, once we got to Cosmed,, Dr Quiroz wanted to check my LBL while I was there. He told me everything looked good and most likely I wouldn't have to come to the office again before I leave unless something popped up. I chatted with all the girls in the office and Joyce the coordinator and said my good-byes since I might not have to go back. The other girls weren't done with their post ops, so Sherri and I went running errands,, like to the grocery store and drug store to get meds for another new patient that was coming out of surgery and coming to RBTS for their aftercare. We had extra time,, so I took her over to the OCC clinic to meet everyone there and we chatted with Dr. Martinez about my band. I wanted to know if I'd needed to get my fill back before I left TJ. He recommended that I stay where I'm at now because of all the liquids they pumped into me during my LBL. He said the liquids would swell my stomach and I could get into restriction problems if I refilled my band. If you remember,, in a previous blog Dr. Martinez removed .5cc's from my band before my LBL. So,, I'll head back to Illinois with only 1.7cc's in my 4cc band. I don't know what kind of restriction I have now,, because I haven't really ate big since my LBL,, I just haven't felt like chowing down. Also,, maybe these last 2 years with the band, it has taught me how to eat small portions,, holy shit,, did I just say that. LOL. So we said our good-byes to everyone at the OCC. Just as we were leaving some of the newly banded patients came out and were sitting in the lobby. I chatted with them and ended up showing them my new LBL scar. I hope I didn't scare them. LOL. We headed back to Cosmed and picked up everyone and headed back to RBTS. The rest of the day I just kind of layed around. Come Wednesday I'll be pretty borded and ready to get home. I'm not used to this sitting around recouping thing.
  25. Dolittle
    Today is Friday,, my wife headed back home and I'll be here till next Wednesday. I'm feeling better every day. The girls here at Recovery by the Sea are really nice. There's 4 women here that had plastic surgery and I'm the only guy. 3 of them had LBL and one had a lot of lypo done. The girl that had the lypo is really sore. I think she had too much done in one visit. Another had the LBL and wanted to stay an extra week to have a face lift,, but Cosmed wouldn't do it. They were concerned over her saftey and her blood levels were low from the LBL. This goes to say that Cosmed thinks about their patients. They'd rather turn you down than risk your health. I'd say that was a big plus for Cosmed and Dr. Quiroz. They have a great reputation and they want to keep it that way. I probably won't do a blog tomorrow, I'm kind of in a healing mode and there's just not much I can write about till I go back to Cosmed for a check up, that would be either on Monday or Tuesday before I fly back home. I know many of you are watching and learning what it's like to go through a LBL. It's an adventure,, that's for sure.
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