♥LovetheNewMe♥

Congratulations on your 1 year bandiversary. You are exactly where I was at one year and I agree it does feel fantastic. Keep up the good work, I can say as each year goes buy the emotional battle with food does get better as new habits and behaviors are developed and fine tuned. Good luck with the remainder of your journey.

Well where it started and where it is now are two different places. Mine is above my waist, to the right, It did not use to be that visible but as you become thinner it is more prominent. I can feel all the way around mine now and if I hit it it hurts, Sorry I know TMI but just so you know when as Kime stated the port is visible once you lose your fat from around the belly. Small price to pay and some people have a revision to what is a low profile port. Have no idea but had enough surgery and will stick with mine, no need messing with a good thing.

Highly recommend Victoria Secret, they do a great job of making sure you find the right bra that fits and looks good under your cloths and I go free panties to. I had to laugh though, the girl asked me what kind did I want. I must have had a reallly odd look on face and she said do you want cheekies or hipsters. I made the mistake of asking the difference, well I to say the least at 57 I took the hipsters. Even though I am little know still too much cheek to hang our. lol

Be safe, I have family and friends in NJ, RI and WV. All are safe but NJ and WV both hit hard one with the direct storm and WV with the snow storm. Glad your family is safe.

I have one question, you have a lap band and your husband is a diabetic, why would you make a cake?

My point is that the band can not stop you from eating the crap we always ate. It will help you feel full but it does not pick and chose what we eat we do, so my point was you get out of this what you put into it. I have chosen not to get any more fills because I hate the way they make me feel. I have chosen to work on my behavior and not rely on my band to control my hunger. I have had to many friends that have lost their bands due to band failure, slippage, etc and if it happens to me I want to be prepared to keep my weight off. My insurance will not replace my band or do any other type of WLS because I am at a normal BMI for my height so If I lose my band for any reason I am on my own unless I get fat again and I am NOT going to do that if I there is anything in my power to prevent me from gaining the weight back. So I have chosen to continue to work on modification of my food behaviors which honestly is what long term weight loss is about. No WLS is permanent unless you continue to exercise and eat healthy. Yes the band did help me in the beginning to control my hunger and learn portion size but it did not fix my head hunger, I worked on that myself with counseling. I am not bashing the band, I know I would never have been able to make a commitment to losing this amount of weight without it, I do not regret my decision but long term, I better have my head screwed on right or I will be right back where I started.

Well it has been two years this weekend since I had lap-band surgery. Official date for surgery was October 27, 2010. All I can say is wow, I have learned so much these past two years and still learn everyday but only hope and pray it all sticks with me for the rest of my life. When I started this journey two years ago, I was morbidly obese and like many of you had struggled for years with the ups and downs of yo-yo dieting. My medical health had started to suffer under the weight of my added poundage and my life expectancy was being greatly affected by my poor choice of diet. I loved food and what is even worse I am an excellent cook and baker and was so scared I could not change. This journey for me has been a very personal journey like I know it is for all of you. I think my biggest fear in the beginning was that I would fail or I would lose some weight but not all the weight. Can anyone identify with those thoughts? I am sure you can. On the outside to people looking in, I look like I have made this journey easy but that is so far from the truth. I fight back the urges of my alter ego daily. What do I mean by that, I have head hunger just like the rest of you but I know if I allow myself that one indulgence that I may not be able to stop. Everyone has those few things that I chose to call their kryptonyte and those are the things that if presented with them you find them the hardest to resist. Mine are potato chips and french fries. Hmmm, wonderful crunchy salty yummy potato chips and wonderful hot salty FF from of yes McDonald's. Today if presented with these two items I would still indulge in their forbidden goodness. I know, I know, I should be stronger right, well I am human and we all have our weaknesses and that is mine. So how do I avoid them, simple don't buy them. If you were to do a sweep of my cupboards and fridge and freezer you would find healthy snacks. Apples, bananas, natural peanut butter, SF syrups, Dark Chocolate (I buy one bar at a time of Chocoluv Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt and it has to last 2 weeks, that is one itty bitty square at a time), healthy pop corn(no added butter) Raw Almonds and protein shakes and bars. May sound boring but I have found these to be my new delights when I want a snack and actually find myself craving my new found healthy snacks. I still have several obsessions with my weight loss journey, I have to record my food intake daily, (MFP) I have to make recipes for any foods I do in combination (I use the recipe builder on MFP, before I indulge in them), I still 2 years out weigh and measure my food, I still eat off a salad plate. (All of these rituals sometimes drive my husband crazy, he even told a Friend this weekend that he was actually jealous of my blogging and all the time I spend on MFP and LBT, I looked at him and said. Seriously, "Would you rather have the old Diane back?" "If not get over it, deal with it, this is my therapy and this is what helps me stay honest and clean with myself." So now you know my other obsession today, my computer time, this new found love for recording food, responding to blogs and forums is my indulgence and helps me stay focused on why I am doing all of this. So if your still reading my long winded ranting, I am sure you are wondering where the pot of gold, the fairy dust, magic wand and words of great wisdom are? Well guess what there are none, there is no magic, there is nothing special about lap band, it will not help you fix your obsessions with food, it will not cure your head hunger and most important it will not stop you from eating. Now it will give you some negative reinforcement if you chose to break the rules and over indulge in bad band behavior. So I guess one word of wisdom is to get your head screwed on right. You see day after day I read on this web site all the comments from fellow bandsters about needing help because they have fallen off the band wagon, they need to refocus, the need to get back on track, they say they cheated, they say they have been banded for days, months, years and still are struggling with losing weight. Honestly all of this makes my heart hurt, , you ask, Why? Because, these people are still waiting for the band to tell them not to eat (RESTRICTION), their still waiting for that wonderful Sweet Spot they told us that would come. That wonderful spot when the band was perfect, and it would help them not feel hunger and take away all the urges for wanting to eat. They told us this would help, they told us this was going to be a tool and this tool would help us not to feel hungry and help control our hunger. Guess what guys, STOP WAITING because that day will never come and if it does it usually only lasts for a few weeks or months and over time we lose fluid in the band, it loosens and you get a fill and you start all over again. So I guess my one small gem of wisdom is learn to control your head hunger and stop waiting on the band to control your eating habits and learn to control the band. The only person who can really help you lose weight is YOU, yes the band is a tool, you can have more fluid put in to it and continue to sit and wait for that wonderful SWEET SPOT or you can take control of your life and learn to control your behavior and relationship with food. The band is not going to fix you, you have to fix you and that my friends takes time and patience. That is where the word cheating comes in, when you fail to fix you, you continue to make the same bad choices and excuses day after day, month after month and wonder why you are not losing weight. It is easy to blame the tool, after all they did tell us this tool would help us to succeed where we had failed with so many other diets and plans. But guess what there is no full proof guarantee with WLS of any kind. There are many people who have the band, the sleeve and full bypass who continue to loss and gain the same weight over and over again just like they did before. So what do I do if the band is not working for me? I suggest you take a good long look at the person in the mirror because honestly she or he are the only persons who can really help you to get to where you want to be. I want to share a poem with you that I find very motivational and have kept a laminated copy of this on my mirror in my bathroom. Any of you that have followed me these past two years have heard me time and time again speak about positive affirmation's and learning to love your self. The key to my success is not my band but me, I have changed. I am not the same person I was 2 years ago. I don't think the same and I don't feel the same. I have reached my goal weight and on the out side I am thin but on the inside is where I really feel different, I no longer feel like a fat girl. Yes I will continue to work on the emotional me and I will always remember where I once was. After you read the poem below you will understand why I titled this blog, Is it really worth not cheating, because if you fail to lose weight and fail to learn to control your food chooses the only person you are failing is you and honestly haven't you hurt yourself enough! So if you are still struggling with losing, still waiting on the band to fix you, get some counseling, dig deeper into yourself and find out what makes you tick. You are worth it but you have to know that and really believe it. You see I am not allowing my band to control my journey any longer nor am I allowing the band to dictate what I eat or when. i am in control of me and my behavior, yes i have bad days but the success to those bad days is I do not give in to the behavior because i have to face the 'Lady in the Glass" Enjoy and I wish everyone peace, hope and success on the journey we call "Bandster Living." I am not perfect but a work in progress and taking this one day at a time. The Man In The Glass Peter Dale Wimbrow Sr. When you get what you want in your struggle for self And the world makes you king for a day Just go to the mirror and look at yourself And see what that man has to say. For it isn’t your father, or mother, or wife Whose judgment upon you must pass The fellow whose verdict counts most in your life Is the one staring back from the glass. He’s the fellow to please – never mind all the rest For he’s with you, clear to the end And you’ve passed your most difficult, dangerous test If the man in the glass is your friend. You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years And get pats on the back as you pass But your final reward will be heartache and tears If you’ve cheated the man in the glass.

Debbie, Everyone's journey is a little different. But this is how it should go. Once you go to the meeting, meet with your physician and you make a decision together if lap band is for you. You will do some sort of diet 2 weeks before surgery (this is hard but necessary to shrink the liver, all docs are different and this diet varies) Mine was an Atkins no carb for two weeks and liquids 2 days before. You are normally in the hospital less than a day, I was banded in the morning and went home late that night. They would not let me go home until I went to the bathroom, I argued with them until they let me go home. I was dehydrated from the lack of fluids and it is hard to pee with no fluids on board. (I'm a nurse so I can be a little more difficult) You will have pain post op, this is major surgery even though it is done lap, you pain is GAS, sometime nausea and port site pain. Take your medications and walk after a few days to a week you will be back to normal. I took 5 days before going back to work but I have an office job and do not lift or tug on anything. The first 6 weeks ate being banded do not expect miracles, this is not a fast fix to losing weight. You have little or no fluid in your band and it takes time to get used to eating with the band. For some reason things tasted different to me immediately after banding, no one can explain this but I have read it on the forums over the past two years from others. You will be on liquids and progress back to solid food. Every doctor is different, I strongly suggest you spend a lot of time preop learning the rules of lap band, clean your pantry out of all the junk food and start stocking your house with healthy food. If junk is in the house you will be tempted. Lap band does not control your hands and your mind (sometimes we all wish it did) so get it out now. If you have family make sure they understand what you can and can not eat or should not eat. Support is key to this process. I left out the physiologist visit, this is not to be understated and one of the most important persons and part of this journey, your head has to be in the right place and very engaged to be successful. Most lap band failures are due to the person not being able to follow rules, think about it. We all have food issues of some type or we would not be resorting to WLS to help us lose weight, so get your head on straight if you want success. The first 6 weeks after surgery, you have no or little fluid in your band, do not expect to lose a lot of weight during this time. This is the time to practice the rules and get ready for the next phase. Once you have your first fill you will notice a difference with eating, I thought I chewed well during the first 6 weeks but found out very quickly that I did not after having fluid added to my band. The band is not about restriction, it is not meant to stop food from going through, the purpose is to help you feel satisfied. My best advice is to read, read, read and make your self as knowledgeable about the band, a well informed bandster is a successful bandster. I always say, everyone needs to go into this with their eyes wide open. This is not a fast fix, you lose 1-2 lbs per week if your lucky, you have to exercise, you should eat different than you did before surgery. (some people chose not to count calories or change eating habits, some lose, some don't) There are complications with lap band but there are with all surgeries, my physician is doing more gastric sleeves now than lap band due to the problems that many have with lap band. I am lucky, I have had minimal issues with my band but the band is fickel and you have to learn your body and learn to listen to what it is telling you. Some days I don't even know I have a band, most days, but if I am stressed or sick my band restricts me more, it is tighter, it is tight in the mornings most days and I have to drink warm liquids to loosen it up. The best advice I can give you is listen to your physician for real information, all of us can share but it is individual and we are not physicians. Good luck.

Most insurance companies now days do insure preexisting conditions with a waiting period. The waiting period is usually 6 months to a year.

Hi Suzanne, I am chiming in. I will be 57 next week and will be Banded for 2 years (this weekend) at goal for one month and 2 weeks. lapband gave me my life back, or maybe I should say, I gave me my life back by getting a lap band. I have learned to eat healthy and actually feel good about myself for the first time in a very long time. As for throwing up, yes some people do but the majority that throw up have issues with the band or cause it by not chewing their food or eating to quickly. Pills go down without a problem, you just need to swallow one at a time. I do chewable vitamins, consider these my treat for the day. I suggest you go to your consult an attend one of the local free seminars in your area so you can ask questions, seeing successful people helps. But WLS like everything else is not cure for obesity. The only person who can make you lose weight is you, will lose in the beginning just by having surgery but for the long haul if you want to get to your goal be prepared to work hard. Good luck, this is a great supportive group currently so your coming to the land of the banded at a good time.

I wore spanxs from the time I started losing weight and things started to giggle. Never heard we could not wear them. I will say I have to be careful with pantyhose, some of the waist bands fall right accross my port and by the end of the day I can have a tummy ache.

Kime, First I want to tell you how sorry I am for the loss of your Grandmother, how wonderful that you were able to share her life all these years. The loss of a loved one is so stressful, it pulls at the strings of our heart and stretches our emotions in ways we never felt were possible. I am so very sorry for your loss. I am sure your grandma was so very happy and joyous to see that you had finally taken a step in the right direction to make sure you were around to see your family through the eyes of an old lady. I too am a southern girl and the majority of our family gatherings always have and still do revolve around food, good food, unhealthy food and the kitchen. I can remember as a child a game my brothers and I would play, (not only am I southern but Italian. kinda like have a double whammy. Fried and pasta) Mom would make homemade ravioli and we would count them as we ate them, the one the ate the most got the biggest piece of dessert. (I gotta smile at the now) So as far as food I do feel your pain. So her comes the preaching, Stop feeling guilty over a small set back, this is life and in life we will sometimes make poor choices. This is not a diet and you can get back on track. You have made excellent progress and you know what you need to do to be successful. When we are sad and depressed we need to move, take a walk after work, the exercise will release some positive endorphins which will help with the sadness your feeling. Your mind is still sad for your loss and you are going to need your strength to get you through this. I know you had a stuck episode from the chicken and sometimes this takes a few days to get over, sometimes after one of these it seems like everything gets stuck. So drink more protein, eat Greek yogurt, soft egg whites with a little cheese. Go back to your soft stage for a week to give your tummy time to adjust. If it doesn't get better in a few days, call your physician. So pick yourself up, pull your Big Girl Panties on and Deal With It. The one thing we all have to learn is how to deal with what life throws us, it we chose to wallow in self pity we will go right back where we were and NONE of us want to go back there. Do we?

Awesome and congratulations, I love non-scale victories they mean the most sometimes.

I struggled with chicken for a long time and still do if it is dry. I have learned to cook so meats say moist and I rarely heat anything up in the microwave, it drys it out. I went through a phase after my third fill where for months I only ate seafood and ground turkey or deli meats. Eggs are another issue for me some days. Even after two years I still have to wait to eat in the mornings or I will get that little stuck feeling in the back of my throat and I have to eat very slow. All I can say is that it does get better.

I had a lot of reflux in the beginning and took meds for the first year, as I lost weight that got better. If you are refluxing when your sleeping you may have to have an unfil because of potential to aspirate. Good luck.

Not sure how long you have been banded but what I could eat two years ago and what I can eat today are totally different. I can eat lobster if it is cooked really well, now if it is over cooked and a little over cooked I can not eat but I can't eat shrimp that is over cooked either. Maybe it was the way the lobster was cooked. But they do say shrimp and lobster are two foods that may be more difficult. If I lived in NE, I thin I would be in heaven for a while, I love seafood and yes we get fresh sea fo od in SC but no where near as fresh as NE. Oh and I do occassionaly allow myself fried clams or calamari but it is usually only 3-4 pieces, the breading fills me up and the fried foods make my stomach cramp.

Stuck episodes are not fun but we cause them ourselves by not chewing, taking to large of a bite, etc. They do hurt and you almost always vomit and than it irritates your band and your not able to eat for 12 hours or more. Too many of these will cause your band to slip, so lessons we all learned the hard way, chew your food and take itty bitty bites.

Hey MD how are you doing, we haven't heard much from you lately? Were you banded?

Get rid of it ladies! I did this in the beginning. I would surf the bariatric sites looking for new things to purchase, vitamins, protein shakes, protein chips, protein bars, powdered peanut butter and the list goes on and on. A couple of months ago my hubby says to me, why can't you just cook like everyone else and we have something normal. I had to smile, as i innocently looked up at him and said What you don;t like the quinoa I made. It is full of protein and it is good for you. Yes Diane but guess what you can only eat a 1/4 cup and we have to eat the rest of it because you also don;t do left overs. All I could say was, Oh!. So I stopped, I realized I was hoarding food that I would never eat and my family was not going to eat. I took it to the local food pantry. Hopefully someone will appreciate my healthy food. My new habit is the gift shop at work, they have payroll deduction and some really cute stuff, I just hope I don't have to pay them to work in couple of months. ;-_)

I get asked this question all the time; How were you able to lose weight with Lap Band? Simple I followed the rules! I read on this web site all the time about every one hoping to get restriction and frustrated because their band is not tight enough, worried that they need more restriction. Well bandsters, the band and our weight loss is not about restriction, that is not the purpose of the band. The purpose is to slow down your eating so you eat less and become satisfied sooner. So if you are new or struggling, read below. I have lived by the rules of lapband throughout my 2 year journey. It has not always been easy and yes there were times I was hungry. This is not easy, it is a very emotional and personal journey. No two people react to the band alike and you have to have a lot of will power and want power. If you are on this site and had surgery, I know you have tried everything else and our now hoping the band is the answer to your prayers. Well it can be but it can also be the beginning of your nightmares if you do not make healthy choices. You and only you can make the band work and the sooner you figure this out the more successful you will be. I am now in my maintenance phase of this journey and living happy with lapband. I have worked hard and continue to work hard to make healthy choices to sustain everything I have worked hard to achieve. Is is easy no, but it gets easier everyday. You can be successful with lapband but you have to follow the rules. You have to become knowledgeable about the band and how it works. You have to deal with your behavioral issues surrounding food and you have to modify your behavior. If you do not do these things, you may lose weight but research has proved that successful WLS patients modify behavior. Below is an article from another site I wanted to share for all of you who are new and for those that are struggling and of course a reminder for us that have been successful. Good luck and success to all new and old, LovetheNewMe! EDIT/Addition added after original post: Just to give credit where credit is due this post came from Dr. Simpson's web site. This was a site I found very early in my band journey and have referenced it many times. It taught me things about the band that I was not aware of, it also is the site that helped me lose my last 30 lbs. this is the web address, check it out. He is one MD who coaches his patients that they can lose all of their weight. I read his book , "Losing the Last 30lbs" and it was very helpful. http://drsimpson.net/index.htm Weight loss surgery works by decreasing appetite-allowing people to eat less and utilize their fat stores more efficiently. What successful weight loss surgery DOES NOT stop you from eating anything. Whenever a patient says they don’t “feel restricted” it means they want the operation to do something that they won’t do for themselves. In this case, they want the operation to keep them from eating too much, or eating something. Successful patients DO NOT describe appetite suppression in that manner. This became clear when several groups showed that food remains above a well adjusted band for only a minute or less, not longer. It is not that the band keeps food from going through it - -it is the act of food going through the band that allows the satiety mechanism to go into effect. The study was simple – take a patient who is losing weight, and feels their band is at a good point. Give them food that they say satisfies them for a long time, and label the food with something we can see on an x-ray. We were shocked, and others repeated this experiment. But, then it all made sense. Whether they have a band, a bypass, a sleeve, or a DS – all of the operations allow a smaller amount of food to provide appetite suppression. Without that, appetite suppression does not occur. This is revolutionary in all aspects of patients – it is not “restrictive,” and having the band tight is not helpful. The bottom line is simple: solid food, slowly eaten, provides prolonged appetite suppression. This can be all overcome by: eating too fast (for band patients this leads to esophageal dilation, erosion, or slips or by drinking liquid calories, or soft food. What works for our patients who have had long term success: Measuring the food they eat Not depending on the band to tell them when to stop Not depending on the band to tell them when they are too full The Lap-band will NOT tell you when you are “full” The band will NOT stop you from eating “more” food So the latest revolution in weight loss is not in a new tool, it is in those four simple words that will keep your tool sharp: eat small portions slowly.

So sorry, good luck with the sleeve. My BFF had the sleeve option 6 months after I had the band and has had excellant results. Band is not for everyone, you can always still come back to site for support. WLS is WLS and we all need support in this journey. Hugs and prayers!

Shakes were hard for me, i tried multiple ones before I could tolerate them. I do not like sweet milk so I struggled. The premixed smelled like Emsure or Boost and the smell alone would gag me. I drink a brand called Prue Protein, I like the vanilla and the chocolate. I mix mine with water and I only use 4- 6 ozs. I figured lower volume I could get it down. Life above I add to my shakes, the chocolate I add SF coffee syrups, PB2 peanut butter, Cocoa Via for added chocolate flavor, instant coffee, ice etc. I try to make them like a frappochino from starbucks. The vanilla I add fruit, peanut butter, a packet of the flavoring that you add to water bottles. Like I said I had to be creative to get them down. Now I like them and drink at least 2 a day. What are you drinking now? Jillian Michaels powder is not bad either but less protein and more calories per scopes.

You need to see your WLS, band too tight. The reason chocolate goes down is because it dissolves in your mouth and requires little digestion. When your band is too tight you will not lose weight. I have had experience with a tight band before and you need the advice of your doctor, your not doing anything wrong.

Agree with New Dawn comments. Just because you can eat as before surgery does not mean you should. You are experiencing what a lot of new banded people experience. Expecting the band to tell you not to eat. As stated above there has to be more "want" power than "will" power with banded living. There are many times I could eat more or even "want" more but I have chosen not to eat it because I "wanted" to be thin more than I wanted to stay fat. Throughout my weight loss I consistently stayed around 1000-1200 calories and sometimes I stayed in the 900 calorie zone. I did not start eating more calories until I got closer to goal and my weight would stop coming off. Protein is key to weight loss and so is exercise of any type. The weight loss will be slower for some than others. I had over a 100 lbs to lose so the first 50 was my easiest. The last 70 I worked hard for, always changing up my food choices and exercising my butt off. This journey was not easy, actually a lot harder than I thought it would be. I lost a steady 1-2 lbs a week or sometimes less, I lost inches sometimes and never dropped a pound. My main point is the band can not do this alone, if you are going to wait on restriction to tell you how much to eat you are going to be frustrated and disappointed in your band. Advice, do not go down that path, start working on your head and why you make poor choices, because some days our heads win out over our "want power" so we have to constantly be conscious of our choices. Good luck!