Banded!

It's done! 

On surgery day, we woke up at 4am.  I showered, the wife packed a bag ("just in case!" she said) and we headed to the hospital an hour away.  We got there just before 6am and checked in at the ER (because the regular hospital is closed that early in the morning).  We waited in the waiting room for about 20 minutes, then they called me back.  After I peed in a cup and changed, the nurse started my IV.  My wife came back and sat with me and we watched QVC until 7:20, when my surgeon and the anesthesiologist came in to see me.  I was feeling quite anxious the whole morning - I kept tearing up.  I remember being wheeled back to the OR and the anesthesiologist telling me that it was time for happy juice.  Then I was out.

When I woke up, it was 9:30am and I had to pee something fierce.  The nurse helped me up from my bed and I went to the bathroom.  When I came back, my bed had been replaced by a recliner.  They brought in my wife, and I walked across the room for the barium swallow.  That took about 30 seconds, but the barium made me a tad nauseous, so the nurse gave me a little something in my IV and I felt better right away.  5 minutes later, I was getting dressed.  They brought me some ice chips while we waited for the doctor to view the results of the swallow.  After we got the a-okay, they wheeled me out to the car.  We were on the road by 10am.

I was awake the whole ride home and since then I've just been taking it easy and recovering.  I have to be honest, though, a lot of my anxiety was pretty pointless. I haven't had any nausea at all since the barium.  I pretty much stopped taking the pain meds on Thursday.  I don't have any shoulder pain, which was one of my biggest fears.  I've been taking a lot of Gas-X, and I got TOM yesterday (Worst. Timing. Ever.), so I feel pretty bloated and greasy, but I haven't been in pain at all.  Yesterday, the wife and I even went to the movies and saw Battleship.

I'm allowed blended soups and thinned out sauces, but I've mostly been sipping on apple juice.  I get a touch of what I can only describe as indigestion when I swallow, and I'm really hoping that's gas and that it will go away soon.

Oh, and the doctor told my wife that I'd done very well on my pre-op diet (I ended up -18.5lbs pre-op, with another 2 since Wednesday).  I credit the cottage cheese.

Thank you all so much for the support.  I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.  I'm looking forward to the rest of my recovery and to life with my band.