jay150

Just had my surgery on 1/24 - same situation. Hiatal hernia repair and bypass. Good luck!

I was banded in February of 2011 and seem to be settling in at the weight I'm at. I was considering a tummy tuck because I hav a lot of excess skin and fat in the stomach area that definitely could not be helped by working out. Has anyone had this procedure? Would love to hear some thoughts on this?

Thanks everyone. I just started taking biotin so I hope I notice a difference. I was banded in February of this year.

I have also done a Keratin treatment back in June, but it was not my first one and never made my hair this way previously.

Hi....I noticed that my hair is unbelievably thin. Has anyone experienced this, and if so, did your hair get back to normal? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

thanks!!! i will definitley give them a call

I just recently went for a fill last Wednesday....It is Monday and I am still eating the same amounts and am just as hungry as prior to the fill. I am also finding myself hungry in between meals. My NP was not aggressive with my fill this time, putting in 0.4 cc because I previously needed an unfill. Should I call and ask to have a bit more put in? I dont want a month to pass with no change considering that would kind of defeat the purpose of having a fill at all. I would appreciate any thoughts. Thanks!

Thank you both --- that puts my mind at ease a bit. I was becoming concerned that I stretched my pouch.

How do you know if you stretched your pouch and what happens if you do? Is this something that can be corrected with a fill? Lately, I seem to be eating much more with hardly any restriction and I am hoping I have not stretched anything. Thanks!

Best decision I ever made! My only regret is that I didn't have the surgery sooner. Good luck!!!

hi darlene....i was not charged for fills for the first 90 days after surgery...i now pay $30 for a fill. my surgeon did my first fill, but now they are done by the nurse practitioner. hope that helps!

it definitely is weird...lol. i guess i naturally assumed that i would be less hungry with each fill.....well, hopefull i will feel some kind of restriction soon. good luck to you!

Is it normal that after a fill, I feel just as hungry, if not hungrier than before I got the fill? I am trying to keep myself disciplined, but must admit that I am finding myself very hungry lately and not head hunger, actually hungry. I just had a fill recently and this also happened to me previously. Just wondering if anyone has felt this way. I am hoping to feel some restriction soon. Thanks!

Me too! I am a little over 4 months post op and sometimes when I feel I have had too much to eat, I get a pain in my right side. It usually passes after a few hours.

Thanks everyone....I actually just had surgery about 4 and half months ago so I am still kind of getting used to the idea and still dont feel ready to share with everyone, but yes, it is probably time to move on

Thanks so much bigtom...Congrats & Good luck to you too on your journey

for me, usually it happens right away. what does pb mean???

I am really upset. When I decided to get the surgery, I planned on letting the people closest to me know about it. I did tell a bunch of people, but they were the people that I CHOSE to tell. Well, my sister-in-law told her mother (who unfortunately has a big mouth so I can only imagine how many people know) and now my aunt calls me today asking me a bunch of questions about the surgery because my dad told her....I cannot understand how people do not get it when you tell them "keep this between me and you - i don't want anyone to know"??? I truly regret sharing the news with my sister-in-law and father. I know none of this was done viciously...they are both not the type that would intentionally set out to hurt me, but I just wish they would have respected my privacy. I guess shame on me for blabbing. Maybe I am overreacting???

I doubt your band slipped. My NP told me that you wouldn't even be able to get down water if your band slipped.

I would say to maybe get a small unfill...I went through something similar recently and my NP told me that if I couldnt keep anything down for several days that means you are too tight and you dont want your band to slip if everything is continually coming back up.

Im just about 5' 7" and at 184 lbs....i am wearing a size 14 comfortably (or 12 a little snug) ---- hope that helps

Thanks so much everyone! I am definitely going to keep smarter food choices at hand. I had my fresh fruit again this morning and am officially back on track...lol! I want that scale to keep going in one direction! @Jen (Band 29) - I don't feel too much restriction at this point either to be honest, but there is a definite difference from before surgery. I didnt realize how much discipline would be involved with the band pre-surgery. I am guilty of thinking that I wouldnt have to do as much work...lol, but hey, I am glad because I am learning the proper way to eat and have some help at the same time. Other than the few slip-ups I mentioned, I have really been sticking to 1200 calories per day, I journal all my food (I just jot it down on anything, a napkin, envelope...lol....whatever is handy) and I think that is what keeps my weight loss going. At my last fill on June 8, I was concerned that my band eventually would get filled all the way and nothing! Funny thing is that I had to go back and get unfilled 0.5ccs because everything was getting stuck...now I feel I need a little bit more...lol. I guess its all about tweaking until you get to that perfect spot, but at least now I am not as concerned about running out of room in the band before I feel restriction. @Rachael - I agree --- this forum is fantastic! At first, I was just perusing the website to do some research pre-surgery, but I must admit I am on here a lot more often than I inititally thought I would be and have found it to be very helpful! It is definitely a comforting feeling to be able to relate to so many people.

@Korilynn - I definitely would love to try your recipe! Thanks!

Thanks for all the advice. Getting the junk out of the house seems to be the smartest thing to do! Unfortunately, I have not been exercising much either. I am sure if I did, I would feel less guilty about indulging a bit. Yes, I am stressed --- we are in the process of renovating our new home and trying to rent out our current apartment. So paying 2 mortgages for the last two months plus the cost of renovating has been very stressful. I got back on track today - cut up all fresh fruit and made a fruit salad for breakfast! Thanks for the advice and suggestions!!!

Ok, so I had surgery a little over 4 months ago and am doing really well, I've lost almost 65 pounds and am about 25 pounds away from my initial goal, but lately I have noticed myself slipping up quite a bit. I was being extremely strict about portions, counting calories, etc. and now (for about the last 5 days) I am finding myself having trouble with nighttime picking. This was always a huge problem for me --- do great during the day and go nuts at night. I ate m&m's, 2 Cookies, some potato chips, etc. The sad part is a couple of months ago, this would have been a normal day, and now, even though these "cheats" happened on different days, I feel like I am pigging out. Funny how your outlook on things can change in the matter of a few months. I don't know whether I am being too hard on myself and whether I have to realize that its normal to give in to indulgences at times, but I guess I am just nervous because giving into indulgences is what landed me into getting WLS. I know what I need to do, but I guess I just need some motivation. I am so scared I may gain this weight back that I worked very hard to take off. Has anyone experienced this and does anyone have any advice on how they got back on track? THANKS!!!