Lap Band Surgery Day Zero

 We arrived at Shawnee Mission Medical Center at 7:20AM and in about 20-30 minutes, I was sent back to get myself ready for surgery. The pre-op nurse was excellent and come to find out, my dad was HER pediatrician. She had to have been in her early 50's if that tells you anything. I'm only 31!

At 9am sharp, we began the procedure without a hitch - I don't even remember my transition into "fuzzy-land".

When I woke up, the attending nurse kept prompting me to breathe -I had learned that this is how a person comes from under anesthesia. It was so hard to breathe but the more I did it, the more I started to wake up. My stomach felt tight and painful and I was only a bit nauseous. By the time I was able to actually carry on a conversation, pain killers and nausea medicine were administered upon my request and I felt more comfortable. The older man in the next bed over had just had a tumor removed from his bladder, therefore getting him to urinate was imperative before he could be released. I have never heard the words "piss" and "leak" so many times in one hour. He was an interesting guy....but I was pleased when his wife finally came to follow him out!

My partner came to help me dress and escort my own entourage out the door......she pulled my trusty civic around and we were on our way. The stop by Walgreens to drop of my script and a brief stop by Sonic for their awesome ice was just enough before I wanted to pass out again. I finally laid down after about 10 minutes of zombie--mode on the couch. When I laid down, I naturally slept on my side with a bank of pillows behind me. This is when the real discomfort introduced itself. The gas they use to puff up my abdomen in order to work was redistributing itself though my abdomen, shoulders and chest. It was terribly uncomfortable. My incisions hurt of course and my stomach is sore but somehow I'm a little bit hungry and keep belching. Good times.

We've walked twice (1/3 mile in all) and have taken two naps. I'm starting to feel better. I've been sipping my grape protein drink with Sonic ice and I'm feeling ok........just bloated and sore. This will get better and I can't wait for a full night's sleep tonight. I also have GOT to weight myself tonight before bed. I can't believe I didn't do that last night and they didn't weigh me at the hospital. 

I'll write more tomorrow about how I'm feeling. If there was one thing I researched before this surgery, it was to find out exactly how I'd feel and better yet, how much weight could I potentially lose in the first few weeks. I never really found a straight answer so this is why I'm documenting this journey. It would have been helpful to get someone else's personal details about this part of the surgery.