Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!
$99 Yearly Supply Alert! 🌈 "1 per Day!" Bariatric Multivitamins
Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0
  • entries
    36
  • comments
    4
  • views
    6,002

About this blog

Lab Band hopeful

Entries in this blog

 

Day 5 post op

Itchy itchy itchy!! The bandages were driving me crazy (the big white ones) but my doctor gave me permission to remove them on Monday May 11th. Today I gave up, removed them and ohhh gosh it felt so good! I still have bandages over the stitches so I have to be careful about them.   I've been drinking a lot of water today and been careful eating on schedule so now I don't feel that hungry as yesterday. And I can burp! and I loved it! There came a huge burp and it was such a relief! Glad I was alone in the room because it would have been borderline rude to burp like that haha.   I went to the store today and I was exhausted after it and went to have a nap when I came back. I have no energy to do anything. So happy I decided to stay home from work for a full week.   I'm learning how to bring more calories to my liquid diet, like adding butter to my soups. I would never do that before, ever!   But I 'm longing for some food! real Food. Can't wait until I get to taste some again. I'm dreaming about food but I know that my life with food will never be the same again and I actually look forward to a healthy relationship with food! And to finally feel full! Because before the lap band, I hardly ever felt full, except when I went to a buffet haha.  
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

Christmas!

Christmas! My favorite time of the year where I can eat as much as I want of great food and lots and lots of candy. Everything is allowed!   Hmmm no anymore! This is my first Christmas after the lapband and it's been different than the Christmases of the past.   Here in Iceland, Christmas is a 13 day celebration. You can just imagine all the food involved in that celebration!! Main Christmas meal with my family was Beef Wellington. OMG it was so good but I ate so little and the slices were so thick that I had to throw half of it in the trash. I felt so bad throwing such a good food out. We had so much left over that I didn't even feel right keeping it for later eating. Also we are big on smoked meat. We have both smoked lamb and then smoked ham (ham for new years) and I just had a little amount. I can tell you that I have NOT failed my band. I am so happy yay   This is the first Christmas in probably my entire adult life that I haven't felt sick because I ate too much. I was being so careful. But we do have appetizers and deserts ugh those are my worst enemies! I decided to enjoy Christmas and have a little of everything and I do mean little. Trust me I've been very careful of not over eating. I never felt this "ohh I'm full" feeling this Christmas.   But eating little doesn't mean the calorie intake hasn't risen. But we have to live, we have to enjoy.   And let's talk about that a little.   I asked if I could eat some pop corn at a movie trip. I got the response that it's high in carbs and we should not do recreational eating. Ok ok, I totally get that. But I go to the movies literally once a year! I don't enjoy going to the movies so on special occasions I do go if someone asks me. And yes that's once a year. A small bag of popcorn (not American size), and I mean a small size, this one time will not do any harm, seriously. What it can do though is that you could begin to crave it and eat it more regularly at home, now that's bad. But a small bag, not even a 0.5l Coke bottle fits in it, will not do harm. I had some and well IF and I say IF I have some again, it will be as a meal because that little bag made me full. And also some of it got stuck and I didn't feel that at all until I drank water. So I don't know even if I want it again.   I've done LOTs of diets, I've done really well but I have always given up! Why? because the restrictions were always so high. NEVER eat candy, NEVER eat cakes, NEVER eat any sweets, NEVER this and NEVER that. Sure it works for some people but we all go through our own paths in this fight. Don't judge if someone decides to NEVER have something or if someone allows them selves to have a little on special occasions. What ever works best for us.   Like my doctor says, we are humans, we have to be nice to us once in a while, or else we will not manage. And once in a while does not mean every week, it means like once a month or on special occasions.   So, I might not loose weight this Christmas but I'm totally fine with that. I've accomplished so much this Christmas, I've won many victories (throwing out left overs) and my Christmas is so much better now than before. I love it and I feel good   After Christmas, I'm going to work harder on my goal. I have set a goal for April when I'm going to renew my clothes and I'm going to make it
lapband78

lapband78

2
 

Christmas aftermath

Christmas is over, it's January, a whole new year. New beginnings.   So in my last blog I did talk about calories and there being a lot of them during Christmas. I did not step on the scale until this morning. I was dreading it!! Seriously.   But I am my worst enemy. We are we so mean to our own mind, why do we think such bad thought about what we do? I was sure I'd gained at least 5 pounds!   BUT!! I had lost weight!! yesssss so happy. Not much but hey! from thinking I'd gained 5 pounds to loosing a few grams hah! I'm happy with that   After getting the lap band I've really missed carbonated drinks. Like carbonated water (no added flavors or sugar) and maybe a beer when out with friends. But I haven't had a single drop of beer or carbonated water since May last year. I did try a carbonated Christmas drink that we have in Iceland and it gave me nausea. But I wasn't giving up. And I won! I can drink carbonated drinks. I just have to be very careful!!. I don't drink diet or sugar drinks (pepsi, coke, mountain dew..) stopped that 4 years ago. But carbonated water mmm love it. Like the fizz. So what I have to do it to pour it in a glass. No drinking from a bottle. Let the fizz set so the drink looks "calm" (wait a minute or two) and then drink it. And then be careful, be extra careful to burp!! yes burp, that's the magic.   But burping means I can't drink it anywhere. Not at work, restaurants or any public places. I know my manners haha. I can only drink it at home where I can give it a big loud burp. Because if you hold the burp, the nausea comes.   I think I've developed a six pack under all that fat from all the stomach exercise on burping and well when I have Productive burping or food stuck. I never new I could manage stuff inside like that.   I'm seeing my doctor on Wednesday. I'm going to ask for a fill because I kinda feel hungry about 3-4 hours after lunch. And I mean hungry, like I want to eat anything I see. Maybe that's Christmas aftermath. Maybe I'm thinking more about food now, something I didn't do so much after Christmas? Not sure. The brain is a tricky thing. I have now a 6.2 or 6.3 cc in my band and I think it's ok to put more in it. My doctor is careful with fillings and only wants to fill it with 0.1cc at a time (at least with me)   Oh and this weekend is so difficult. I'm having the cravings, candy cravings. Like Chocolate! I have not and will not cave in. I'm thinking about how happy I was this morning when I stepped on the scale. So I will not have a single bite. But ugh hate days like these!   ok so 2016 is starting very well and my goal is to loose about 20 pounds before April (omg!). I will succeed!
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

Changes in body

My weight has dropped since the surgery, a healthy drop. I'm only counting my weight loss from the day of surgery, not before. But my body has changed a lot more than my weight. I don't know why but it has. I was in a bath tub yesterday and I could easily put my arms down by the side. If I did that before, it would get really tight. My clothes are getting bigger, specially around the arms. I notice my chin has changed and my fingers. My pants are way to big now, and I need to buy new. Why there is more change in the body that the weight surprises me. I mean I have weighed this before and not looked like this. I love it   I struggle a little with the amount of food to eat. I try to figure it out but it's difficult, specially at work where I'm not measuring in a cup. I have a small dessert plate that I put my food on and I think it's the right amount, maybe a little more, maybe. But then when I'm eating with other people, I sometimes forget my speed and eat faster than I should. That means I get a reflux and have to wait a few minutes before I continue. But hey, it's only my 4th day on solids, so I'm learning.   But I keep thinking about Band slippage and I'm so afraid it will happen. Last night when sleeping, I woke up a few times thinking I could feel my band. I guess it's imagination but it's nerve wrecking I think. I need to Google how it feels like when people have a band slippage so that I can stop worrying about it so much.   But over all it's going really well. I need to add some amount of food for breakfast because I get hungry so soon. I usually don't eat a lot. So now I have some chicken sausages and eggs. Cheerios is NOT working as breakfast. It tastes terrible when you have to chew it a lot. But I'm not used to eat hot breakfast but I'm kinda looking forward to it.   Over and out
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

Change of attitude?

Ok so my edema has been bothering me.   To explain, I gained 2kg or 4.4 pounds over night this morning! And no I did not eat that much. This just happens *sigh*   But ok now it's evening and I've lost most of it again. But I can hardly eat for breakfast and lunch.   So what to do?   I've decided to approach things differently. I don't eat breakfast and I have no problem with that. For lunch I've decided to go back to basic. Mashed food and liquid. I had a mashed banana (I like that), small protein drink and a small smoothie.   Now I'll see how long I manage that. I was a bit hungry at 4 pm when I came back home but I was careful not to overeat.   So now I'm going to stop complaining and adjust. I've seen that other people also have problems with AM eating so I'm there as well.   But every time I have to pull up my pants or even panties (haha), makes me very happy and gosh never turning back!
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

Booze problems

Nope, not an alcoholic hehe. I just have some alcohol problems as in choosing what to drink.   Before the lap band I mainly drank beer when out partying with friends. Now that's off the table I actually don't really miss beer since I never drink except when I'm going out to a club or loosen up with friends. That happens maybe 2-4 times a year so it's not something I'm crying over.   Last night there was Christmas party at work and I wanted to dance and have fun. There were 3 kind of alcohol free of charge and it was beer, white wine and red wine. I chose white wine. I had a few glasses.. ok maybe a lot LOL but omg I woke up wanting to throw up! I have had a lot more to drink than last night so this very unusual.   I did NOT want to throw up with the band, no way. So I do think that White Wine is off the table as well when I want to loosen up a bit. I think red wine will be the same. So that only leaves the hard stuff, like clear liquids. Rum or Vodka. Some would say Gin but my taste buds don't agree with that haha.   I am also seriously thinking about never drinking alcohol again. It's not an important part of my life and well I should learn to party with out alcohol. Through many of my diets through the years, alcohol has been forbidden and it was no problem. Ok I didn't take on the dance floor but I can learn.   This blog sounds like I'm obsessed with this. I'm really not. I'm writing this down so that I will remember when it comes to my next party in March. I will come back to this blog and be like .. ahhhh yes exactly, do not drink white wine.   OH and for the very first time I received a lot of compliments on my weight! People said they really noticed that I lost a lot of weight yay so happy.
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

40 Pounds

I met my doctor on Wednesday and I've lost 18kg/40 pounds!! I was so happy. And he was very happy with me. He didn't want to give me a fill since I'm doing really well. He also said I'm putting too much pressure on myself. That he was happy and I should be as well. I should read too much about how much other people are loosing because our bodies do not work the same.   But I'm incredibly happy. Also this is kind of a milestone. This is the second time I've lost 40 pounds in one run .... and well then I gained weight again. But this time, I'm going to get further, I'm going to loose more so ever pound after this will be a new milestone yay.   This Friday I was sooooo hungry at lunch that I was dreaming of all kinds of food I was gonna eat that day. I had an omelette at work. I ate a bit too much. I ate until I was full and I never do that. But hunger does that to you.   I was full all day! I couldn't imagine eating dinner even. I did but just a little. Before the lap band, if I got full, I could begin to eat again in 2 hours but not now. And guess what, I love it. This rarely happens that I eat so much. maybe happened 3-4 times in 6 months. I told my doctor that I was still learning and he understood that. I will do mistakes and learn from them. Ok 3-4 times eating to much haha, ok I might be a slow learner hehe   But I'm so happy now. I tried on a dress I wore last Christmas and it's too big now And my panties. Seriously, I need to renew them! They are a size too big.   My bra is still the same size ugh! hate that. But I was telling a coworker how much I'd lost and she told me that she noticed my hips ass getting smaller and yay again! soooo happy! I've always hated my hips and ass. I would do the Kardashians proud. They were even large when I was in a normal weight.   But so far so good! loving my new life
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

31 pounds gone

Today I had my third fill since my surgery on May 8th. I have now got about 6.1 ml/cc in the band. The fill was painful!! The nurse was stuck the needle in and was moving the needle inside of me to find the port opening. She told me to push my body like I was doing a push up and I had to hold that position for 5 min to keep the port still. OMG it was painful!! I asked for a break because it was starting to hurt really bad where she had the needle. By then the doctor noticed that something was wrong and came to me. He took a new needle and stuck it in (omg it hurt because I was so sore) and found the port after like 30 sec. He then told me that the port is lying with the opening at the side. Ok sorry for the language but F*** that S*** sorry, but it hurt, really hurt. And now I'm really sore and have a blue mark.   I kept thinking, where is that X-ray machine some doctors use when making that fill! Seriously ugh. I like my doctor but I don't like pain. I'm gonna remember this next time and tell them that the port is sideways. I might even opt for an operation to fix it. But let's see what happens.   Anyway, I'm slightly under the curve for the weight loss. I'm 31 pounds down since May 8th. Trust me, I'm happy! really happy. I haven't had this weight for YEARS! but I'm disappointed in myself for not staying on the curve. But my doctor and I blame it on my trip to Spain where I didn't stay on a health diet.   I'm going to prove to myself that I can be on the curve in the beginning of December. He said I'd be there in January but I'm putting some pressure on myself now.   I admit that the two weeks since I went on the vacation have been really difficult mentally. I was so sick on the vacation and soon after I got home, I was laying in bed for 3 days. My throat hurt really bad and well ice cream helped a LOT. Felt like when I had my tonsils removed. And trust me, ice cream does not help with weight loss haha.   Don't judge though and think I'm not ready for this battle. I had a relapse. I did loose weight through this period, just not enough weight. I am now on the straight and narrow and back on track. I think you learn from a relapse. Being sick isn't a good thing and you seek things that make you feel good.   I have been mentally ill as well a few years back. People were either getting sick or dying around me. I took it hard and had depression. I gained a LOT of weight. But I have learned from that experience. I know the warning signs. Food will not be my friend like that again. Now I have learned about physical illness and food can't be my friend there either. I will not allow it.   Weight loss is a battle. You might think you have it all, you had a surgery, you are mentally ready for this, physically ready but what makes you stronger is if you can stand up again when you fall down. That will make you stronger in this weight loss battle.   But 31 pound is something to be proud of and I'm going to remember all the milestones and reach for the next one. I can't wait!
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

3 weeks

Today is 3 weeks since I had the Lap band operation. I didn't have a good day   I was taking some medicine, 2 tablets that I broke in half but after taking them I felt like I had to throw up and following that I had a stomach ache. I ended up taking 2 hours off from work and was feeling terrible. For dinner I decided to have a soup (yes back to liquid for 1 meal) and that fixed EVERYTHING! I feel so much better. So weird because I ate lunch and had a snack after the medicine. But ok I'm still learning. I need to break medicine into 4 pieces, need to eat more slowly and eat less. Those are the 3 things I need to figure out. I thought I was doing a good job but guess not.   I lost 0.5 kg this week or 1.1 pound. I like pounds more than kg because the pound number is always higher haha. I'm actually not expecting to loose more kg until I get the fill and can start to exercise for real. Yes I know the fill doesn't do the job but I'm eating more than a cup a meal like you should do after the fill. I want to get to the point where I only have to eat 3 meals a day and only 1 cup at a time. I know it will take time, I'm not unrealistic but I'm working towards that goal. I know they take the first year to figure out the correct fill. And I never in my entire life thought I would be excited to exercise! But now I can't wait, so weird. But I have a feeling that with my much better diet and exercise, I will get the weight down.   I really appreciate this forum here, it has been such a great help and lots of different opinions and stories from people. I wish I had known about this site before the surgery, I could have learn so much from it
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

11 weeks post op

The longer time is passes since the surgery, the less stuff there is to blog about. This Friday it will be 11 weeks since I had the lap band. I‘m still very happy about the lap band. It has changed my life in so many ways.   Yesterday and today I've had blocking issues. The food gets stuck, even though I chew and chew and chew. Today at work we had chicken breast for lunch but it was dry and I could feel that I was a bit tight. I just stopped eating the chicken I just ate the veggies and potato. I don't want anyone to know I have the lap band so I have to be careful not to get BP at work.   I can have a bite of chocolate or a small slice of a cake without wanting to have more. I feel that for the first time in about 17 years or more, I can eat like a normal person. I eat the same portions as my „skinny friend“, no wonder she‘s „skinny“ I use the „“ because to me she‘s skinny but she‘s a normal looking girl.   I also love that when there are deserts or a cake, I am at piece with just one slice, small slice. Before the lap band, I was always hoping that people wouldn‘t take big slices so that I could have 2 or 3 or even 4. DON‘T EAT MY CAKE! I was always worried that I wouldn‘t have enough.   Today I find my self sharing! I had some people over for dinner and I had a dessert. I actually gave them the rest to take home. OMG that would NEVER have happened before. I would have eaten the rest alone!   Ok let‘s talk about summers. This season is difficult. People have more time to prepare stuff to eat. Always baking and having people over for lunch or dinner. And ice cream omg!! seriously who can say no to ice cream. I‘m not behaving well in this area. But I‘m still loosing weight and my doctor is happy about my process. But then again, I don‘t eat like I‘m starving. I just have a taste. I bought two sorbet ice creams in May. Small boxes and they are still in my freezer, I haven‘t had half of it. Before surgery I would probably have bought 4 or 5 more boxes or more..   My biggest problem still is that I‘m eating too fast!! And oh my the PB is terrible! I‘m finding out more and more what I can‘t eat and I avoid that food. Because PB is not worth it. I‘ve also found out that if I get too hungry, I eat faster and I get PB. I have to remind my self always to eat sloooooooow!   That‘s it for now J
lapband78

lapband78

0
 

1 Month banded

Today is one month since I got banded. It had been an emotional roller coaster. First because of pain from the surgery and then food craving. The food craving will not go away but I will learn to live with it. Right now I'm craving bread, any bread with anything on it. But I'm going to make a Cauliflower bread tonight, I'm excited.   I had my first solid food yesterday. Chicken in a sauce and some lettuce. I was very careful on the amount I ate and chewed slowly. My family ate maybe 4-5 times more than I did, but it still took me longer to finish my portion. I had a tiny little nausea while eating but nothing that bothered me. And I have to tell you, I wasn't hungry and I managed until breakfast!! I was sooooo happy. When on liquid diet and soft died, I always had to have an evening snack. Yay   Today I had yesterdays leftover for lunch and I felt so sick!! The nausea was bad, but then after 2 hours I released a burp (haha) and I felt a lot better. I guess I ate to fast or something.   Now it's been 5 hour since lunch and I'm feeling a little hungry but I'm going to eat dinner in 1-2 hours. I hope I make it.   Happy 1 month anniversary to me
lapband78

lapband78

0
Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

Bariatric Forums

For Patients

Health Professionals

Search Surgeons

Bariatric Surgeons: Want to research a weight loss surgery surgeon? Enter their last name below to start!

×