Hello all! This shares my initial Orbera experience.
The procedure was not covered by my insurance (& neither is Ideal Protein). Approximate cost for procedure (including all - visits and removal of balloon): $5700 USD.
Prep:
2 weeks til placement of Orbera:
*Began taking Omeprazole 20mg twice a day for 30 days, then once daily through duration of Orbera
*Schedule off a week of work for recovery in case of severe nausea/vomiting
Scheduling a week off work was not as easy as I hoped, but will depend on what you do for a living obviously. Also, I did not tell HR why I needed a week off, because it's none of their business
Day before placement of Orbera:
*Liquid diet, nothing solid. Nothing at all after midnight.
*3-4 hours before procedure (aka 4-5am), take 1 tablet of Emend 40mg (anti-vomiting med)
*3-4 hours before procedure (aka 4-5am) apply 1 patch Transderm Scoalamine 1.5mg behind ear (anti-nausea med)
Ugh, the all liquid diet was difficult. I had to keep reminding myself not to eat solid food. Luckily, I was working a 12 hour shift so was usually too busy to worry about sitting down for a break, let alone a meal. I ended up having Soylent for breakfast/lunch/dinner, which worked out perfectly.
Placement of Orbera:
*IV of protonix (anti-stomach acid medication)
*IV propofol (that stuff Michael Jackson was addicted to) for anesthesia.
Woke up at 5 AM to take Emend & apply nausea patch. I am NOT a morning person, especially without my coffee or breakfast. The boyfriend was driving me to the surgical center (sans breakfast and coffee). Pretty sure I glared at him the whole way as he scarfed down a (admittedly gross-looking) protein bar.
Checked-in at the surgical center and got to wear the open-backed gown (anyone who has had surgery knows it well). Retained socks and underwear which was nice because cold as heck in that place, even with a blanket! Literally an hour of requisite paperwork and interview questions later (from nurse and anesthesiologist) I was finally wheeled into the operating room. I was given a lovely neon green mouth guard to keep mouth open & prevent biting staff when sedated and being scoped. As I waited for the Propofol to take effect, I had just enough time to think, "Hmm, I guess I don't have to count backwards from 100," before zonking right out.
Total time out: 15 minutes. Propofol was great-did not feel sedated at all when I woke up.
Total time in recovery room before discharged: 30 minutes. (And literally 20 of those minutes were waiting for boyfriend to get un-lost and find the parking garage to come get me.)
Total mL saline added to Orbera: 650 mL
Post-Orbera Placement meds:
*Zofran ODT 8mg (anti-nausea/vomiting med): every 4 hours for 24 hours even if no symptoms, then as needed
*Levsin SL 0.125mg (anti-stomach spasm/cramping med): every 4 hours for 24 hours even if no symptoms, then as needed
*Emend 40mg: 1 tablet the day after placement (tomorrow)
*Ativan 1mg: 1 tablet 3 times a day as needed for anxiety/sleep
*Maalox: 10 milliliters as needed for acid reflux symptoms
*Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen 7.5/325mg solution: 15 milliliters every 6 hours if needed for moderate pain.
*Cost of all medications: approximately $250 (mostly because of Emend. Emend has a generic but was still crazy expensive, I think $150 for 2 tablets???)
*Return to taking normal daily medication as prescribed (blood pressure, etc).
Drug thoughts: Zofran tastes gross. Levsin is minty so not too bad. Yay for only having to take both of those (hopefully) for only 1 day.
Post-Orbera Placement directions:
*Clear liquids only (broth, gelatin-ew!, ice chips, water, apple juice, coffee, tea, etc.) NO carbonated drinks! Maximum 1 caffeinated drink per day to limit dehydration.
*Drink at least 8 cups of liquid daily in small sips (only 1/3 cup liquid at a time).
*Sit upright after drinking for 3-4 hours. Use a recliner if resting.
*Rest for 3 days after placement. Walking/light activities are allowed.
Drinking small amounts is weird. Normally I'm on the go so I drink alllllll my liquid in one guzzle (an entire glass of water, etc.). Broke out the beef broth I bought and heated up 1/3 cup, because I was STARVED by the time I got home (around 9 AM). So far so good. Several 1/3 cups later over several hours and I finally check the nutritional content of the beef broth: 15 calories per cup. LOL So probably have only had like 100 calories today??? I was wondering why I was still hungry.
Current time: 2 PM (post-procedure 6 hours):
No major nausea and no vomiting. Stomach is a little queasy, but I'm assuming that's because it's confused about the balloon and lack of solid food for the past 2 days.
Stats: 1/31/17, 3 PM
Age: 33, F
Height: 5'2"
Chest: 43.5 in
Arms: 15.5 in
Waist: 37 in
Hips: 50.5 in
Thighs: 31.5 in
Weight: 214
Body Fat: 44.1 %
Lean Mass: 119.67
Hydration: +5.28
RE: Ideal Protein
Ideal Protein was offered as an adjunct to Orbera by the gastroenterologist. Met with the rep on Wednesday and got a bag of samples. Probably will not be officially starting on Ideal Protein until Sunday or Monday (depending on how I feel about solid food). Cost for initial consult with rep (who is keeping track of my stats, above), which includes weekly follow-up visits and the bag of starter samples: $281. Will need to purchase weekly from rep but cost varies depending on the food item so not sure how expensive that will end up being.
Wish me luck guys!
~L
