Well...to be honest w/ ya...i kinda skipped the pureed phase lol! I tried it 3 times and still had a hard time eating the food, so i just ate what i could tolerate which was mostly mashed potatoes,cream of wheat and sf pudding. Im 5 weeks out and im just starting to be able to eat beef and pork. My problem now is that im hungry like i was b4 the surgery. The first 3-5 weeks were ok on mashed potatoes and stuff but now that im hungry it doesnt seem to be enough.I really need a fill lol! So anyways, i would say go ahead and try what you think u can tolerate and make sure you take tiny bites and chew,chew,chew!! Im definatley not a Dr. but I know a few people that had GB and went off of pureed early w/ no problems.

Hi Melanie!
Wow, I can't believe you only waited such a short time! Are you're eating restrictions like mine? 2 weeks of liquids, then 3 weeks of pureed? I'm so tempted to go on to the next phase which is soft foods, I have a week left. Pureed stuff is nasty! Let me know how your fill goes!

Hi Sherry!
I only waited 15 mins or so in Ali's office! I did tell him about the indigestion and what I was doing for it and all he said was it will eventually get better. He did not give me A fill. I go back to him next Tuesday and I am supposed to get A fill then. Also,he did not check my incisions or port site, nor did he ask me how they felt. I kinda thought that was odd as that was my 1st visit to him since the surgery. I didn't think about it myself until after I left his office. I am glad to hear that your air bubble went down! I don't think I would have been able to stay in Hamot for days! Between the nurses not listening to me and the people from the IV team constantly blowing up my veins..1.5 days was enough for me lol! Let me know how your appt. on the 2nd goes!!

Hi Melanie!
I hope you continue to feel better. I also hope you don't have to sit in Dr. Ali's office for 2 or 3 hours waiting to see him! Please tell him that you increased your dose of Nexium, because that's way too much, and I could be wrong, but Pepto Bismal is a no no, and I can't remember why. I would have died if they even suggested taking me back into surgery! I had a big air bubble in my remnant stomach, and it hurt pretty bad for 4 days. I couldn't go home until it got better, and thankfully by day 4 it did. Let me know how your appt. goes. I don't see him until June 2nd. Sherry

OK...so 1 more post! I also wanted to say that I am as well an animal lover! I have 5 cats and 4 dogs in a very small house lol! I have a St. Bernard named Oscar and he will be 4 on Dec 24th. A black lab named Sadie who is almost 13 yrs old. A Pekingese named Gizmo whom will be 2 next month and a puggle named Max whom is 7 months old. The puggle is my hubby's so he is on the truck all week w/ him and only home on weekends lol! Thats all for now...I promise lol! Im off to bed! Have a great night!

P.S. Sorry for 3 different posts...it wouldnt let me post it all at once lol! also to answer your question...yes,i had a very hard time drinking for the 1st 3 weeks. Sometimes it still hurts a little bit, but nothing like it was.

So i came home and have still had a lot of problems until last week when a friend of mine whom is a nurse pointed out to me that since i was diagnosed w/ severe reflux that maybe i shouldnt have been a candidate for the surgery. well...once she explained it all to me i started taking 3 or 4 nexium a day and drinking pepto like crazy. needless to say...im feeling a lot better the last few days. Ali only put me on 2 nexium a day. So I guess i will have to see what he says tomorrow. If anything,he is gonna have to up my nexium some more or add something else to it. The bad thing about it all is when my reflux is under control....im able to eat. so anyways,thats my story lol!
How are u feeling now? I need to get some pics on here. I have alot of family pics on myspace and a few pics on facebook. I dont really have alot of pics of myself as ive always avoided being in pics as much as possible! I sure cant wait till i dont gotta avoid the camera anymore...lol!!

Hi Sherry! Sorry it took so long for me to get back w/ ya...i havn't turned the comp on in a while lol! I actually go in and see Dr. Ali tomorrow. Im not sure if hes gonna do A fill or not. I also gained weight in the hosp! On the morning of my surgery i was 281 and after surgery i was 290. i got down to 270 but now im at 273. ive gained a few pounds as im hungry now..lol! I had a problem keeping down even a sip of water after my surgery so the next morning after my surgery,(after i cried and cried to the nurses for over 17 hrs), they finally contacted Ali and he sent me for a barium swallow immediatley and that showed that the band was too tight and they had to take out all the fluid. they wanted me to stay in the hosp for 4 to 5 days till the swelling went down to see if i needed to go back in and have the band removed and a bigger 1 put in. Of course I refused lol! There was no way i was going through all that again so soon lol!

Good morning!

I weighed 303 pounds @ the hospital right before surgery. The next day I weighed 323! They gave me a lot of fluids in the OR. I just now lost all of that water retention, and am back @ 303. Oh well, I feel good. Are you having any trouble with drinking fluids? How soon do you have to get your band filled? I am glad you're doing well too!

That is so great that u feel so well!! guess that means no regrets for u..lol!! im doing pretty good. Im 2 weeks out today. I have lost a total of 14 lbs so far. I had a few complications w/ the band, but was glad to come home from that hospital!! still a little sore where my port is but otherwise i feel good.