Thursday, November 8, 2007

My LapBand

I am hungry. Hungrier than I have been in a really long time. Starving, actually, and ready to gnaw off my right arm (I am left-handed, see). Why?
Last Friday, November 2, 2007, I had a LapBand installed. I have been researching the LapBand for quite a while now, and after my second trip to the emergency room in a year I decided to do something about my problem. I have a bad back. The problem with my back is my front. Since I can't seem to control when my back goes out, I decided it was time to control my front.
My insurance company will not pay for wieght loss surgery, no way, no how. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth, I decided that I would go the self-pay route, which led me to check out surgery in Mexico. I found out that I could save around $11,000 by going south for surgery.
The doctor I chose has done more than 1500 LapBand surgeries. The hospital is just over the border in Mexicali, and most of the staff speak wonderful English. The hospital was cleaner than anywhere I have been in the States. I had a wonderful experience there, and I made a lot of new friends. There were 5 of us that had surgery that day. We all hung out for four days and became pretty close.
I am in what is affectionately referred to as "Banster Hell" right now. It is the period after surgery when everything is healing and becoming fixed in its permanent position. Hence the starvation. I am on clear and thin liquids. On Sunday I am able to move to the next phase- soup! Yay! It is my 41st birthday and I plan to celebrate with a huge (3 oz) bowel of Campbell's Select Butternut Squash soup. Maybe I'll even have a sugar-free pudding some time Sunday. Until then, though, I will continue my broth, sugar-free Jell-O, and tea diet. I know it is only temporary, and so for I have lost 12 pounds. Not too shabby for 6 days post-op!

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