mnies

I'm a bit frustrated right now. I have friends who had the lapband and as I talk to them about my post surgery eating they always say they didn't have to worry about the diet and didn't have to eat like I do with the mushy foods and such. I am trying really hard to do what I am supposed to and my mom is trying but not sure she is cooking they way she is supposed to. I haven't been eating a lot but didn't do a good job on my carb and fat calories. I didn't lose anything for about 3 weeks. Everyone said that it was okay because you need to have a stale (not losing or gaining weight) period. So, I really looked at what I was eating and such and really tried to stick to the carb and fat count. I have started going back down. I was 289 when I first met with the doctor was about 278 before the 2 week diet and 265 before the surgery. I am now down to 251 and excited to hopefullly get down below 250, I can't complain because I have lost 38 pounds so far. I am pretty active person. I was working out in the morning from 5:15-6:30, working as a teacher from 7:30-4:15 and then cleaning horse stalls from 5-6:30. The discharge papers said I couldn't lift over 20 pounds for 2 weeks. So, of course the day after 2 weeks I went to the gym and lifted weights. The next day I go to the doctors and they tell me not for another 2 weeks can I lift. The problem is I have no one to clean my horse stalls and can't afford to not do them. So I am taking it easy and making sure I am not lifting about 20 pounds. It takes forever but I am doing it. I kinda rebelled on the food and am now very nervous. I have been eating mushy foods but maybe too much. I finally started packing my lunch the night before and counting the calories so that I make sure I stay below my 24 fat and 40-60 carbs. I ate some salad and some bread..but my guide said I could have toast so I figured cheddar biscuits were okay. I have found that certain things irritate where my port is..at least I thiknk that is where it is. Pants that tend to sit right at that spot irritate it. So, today at the end of the day my port area really starts hurting like shooting pain. The pain follows down into my lower stomach area...as if I am having cramps. My back always hurts after cleaning stalls but it really hurts tonight. I am scared that I have a hernia from lifting, even though it is under the weight limit. I have also had lost of constipation and have had to take things to help move things along. Also, I ride horses and my horse was a jerk last weekend. He tried taking off. I did have permission to ride from the doctor. I want this to work so very bad. I want to be able to lift weights and do aerobics like I did before. I want to be able to clean stalls and not worry. I know that I have to do as told. I am not sure why I was rebelling and in the end it will all work out. Everytime I ask the nurtionist if something is wrong she says I will know because it will really hurt. I am nervous about my doctors appointment next Wed but they will do an x-ray so by then I will know if everything is okay. I did such a good job the 2 weeks before the surgery (even though I about killed people for the first 3 days). I am a big worry wart. Now that I am in the right frame of mind, I will find success. My goal is to be down to 160-170 in 1 year. I lost about 120 pounds in about 6-8 months before so I am sure I can do it again. I don't think they will put much of a fill in because I can go about 3 hours before I am hungry. Thanks for letting me ramble. Not sure if anyone will reply but it helps to get it out.

So things were going very good for the first 5 days. The weight was going down, feeling full after eating. Now I am eating mushy foods and the weight is coming back on. I am trying to make sure I get some exercise. I go to the barn, brush the horses, did house work today, walked for 30 minutes yesterday, can lift 2 pound weights but it not going in the right direction. I'm trying to make sure I have the protien in the foods I eat. Maybe I need more protien. I don't know but it is a bit frustrating for me. I don't want to become paranoid about what I eat but I am afraid that is going to happen. I was so happy to finally be able to eat again. I want and will do whatever I need to to be successful. I just hope it starts going back down again soon. Any suggestions?

I was looking at people's comments since their surgery. I'm glad for those who it is working well and am sorry for those who are having issues. I feel very lucky as I was able to quit taking the pain meds the same day I came home. I made sure to get up and walk around anytime I woke up and I definately think it has helped. I have been walking around and doing things to try and help pass the gas. I think my only complaint is today I had to take pain meds to get my stomach to loosen up because of all the gas and the gasx isn't helping too awful much. I am definately going stir crazy as I generally don't have much if any down time. I can't work out, go to the barn and clean stalls and I don't have much at home to keep my mind occupied (being a school teacher I am always thinking about things). I will be glad to go back to work and back to a routine. I did well today on the food. I kept my plate very small and made sure I chewed my food up real good. Today was the first day I have started to feel hungry. I need to drink more Water and eat more protien so that is my goal for this next week. I am happy to say that everyone in my family ate smaller portions so I am hoping this will not only help me but the rest of my family also. Good luck to all.

I was banded on December 21st and have lost 7 pounds. I know it is early. I lost 15 pounds with diet and exercise from late August to December 7th and 10 pounds from December 7 to the 21st. I have lost a total of 30 pounds and am very excited!

I can't lift anything over 20 pounds for 2 weeks. I am going to wait at least a week before I go walking at the gym and maybe the two weeks. I want to exercise too but don't want to mess anything up. It's not worth going in for another surgery.

I got mine on the 21st and it is now the 24th and I am doing great. I was nervous at first when I read some of the post surgery notes but mine went fine. I was given meds to get me home and slept most of that day. The biggest problem I had was pain in my neck and shoulder but that might be from the gas. It is interesting learning what my body is now like, learning portion size and how it feels to be full. I think the most interesting thing for me is that I feel full up under my chest and not in my lower part of my stomach. I got on the scale and have lost 5-6 pounds already and am amazed. I ate only 2 meals 3 days before surgery and quit losing weight, I think because I stopped eating. I am amazed at how much I have lost in the past couple days. I feel really good and want to go to the gym but am going to wait at least a week or two. I just don't want to have a bunch of lose skin but my mom said I don't want to do too much so that things don't stay where they are supposed to. I tried some baby food since it was easy and didn't require work but the chicken stuff is HORRIBBBLLLEEE. A friend said her daughter doesn't like anything chicken either. lol I am working to make sure I eat early enough that I don't feel funny or stuffed or bloated before I go to bed. That's probably going to be my biggest problem because of my work schedule. I am very excited and am looking forward to losing weight and KEEPING it off.

I called my insurance company and I am lucky because they don't require the 6 month diet proof, however, this is something that your employer has to agree to pay more for. I am a teacher, so they figure the less I weigh the better for my job. If you follow all the requirements it should go smoothly. I have a pacemaker and was told it would be okay if I got the approval from just my cardiologist. Then they said, 2 weeks before surgery, I needed to get an appointment with my primary physician, which I haven't seen in about 1 1/2 years, for a physical. I explained that I have seen my cardiologist more and they let me get by with that. They were very good at working with me at the doctors office because I was getting very upset when they said I would have another hoop to go through. Just follow through and I think you will be okay. It took me about 1 month to get all the information to my doctor and then get the insurance to approve.

That does suck. I hope you get a new date soon. I definately understand when you have been doing the liquid diet. It sometimes feels like you are on an emotional rollercoaster. Hopefully you will get to be off the rollercoaster soon.

I definatly think that your body knows if your hungry or not. It's hard but you can do it. I have been on the pre-op diet since Tuesday so about 5 days...wow..it seems longer. The first two days were horrible...I had a headache each day and was super crabby. I was on a 5-6 medifast diet with 1 protien bar a day. As much sugar free Jello and Sugar Free popsicles as I wanted, boulion cube soups and sugar free drinks like crystal light, ect. I have a whole book of what I can eat.The second day I had a brocolli cream soup and felt sick to my stomach. The next day I tried a protien fruit drink with sprite zero and was about to get sick in front of my students. I ate some Jello and had a hot chocolate protien drink and again felt sick. Finally, I called my nutrionist. She said some people can't tolerate the drinks and such. She allowed me to eat 6 oz of chicken and tuna in water. This has definately helped. I would call the nutrionist. I love the protien bars and the chicken and rice soup but that is about it. Since I ate the chicken my headache has gone away and I don't eat as much. I am worried about not working out because I have a pacemaker and don't want to overstress my heart. One of the ladies at work that had the surgery last spring from the same doctor said she just didn't eat because she couldn't tolerate the protien foods and was afraid to mess up. I am happy to see the pounds come off but am nervous about the surgery because I don't want anything to mess this up. I lost 120 pounds about 6 or so years ago. Then a virus attacked my heart and I gained about 60-70 pounds back. This is the best option for me, so I am going to do everything I can. Just hang in there and keep talking to people who are going through it. They have good advice and definately use your doctors and nutrionist to help you be successful. Good luck.

Hi, I am set for surgery on December 21st. I have started the pre-op diet and have been doing the Medifast shakes and stuff. However, I felt sick for 2 days and was really grumpy. I am a teacher and it didn't work having a headache and feeling sick for the 8 hours the kids are at school with me. I called my doctor and they said I can have 2 packets of shakes/juices/soups, 2 6oz chicken and 2 cans of tuna in water. I am a much nicer person. I am very nervous as I have a pacemaker and this is one way to get the weight off. I still have to buy some of the liquid drinks but haven't done so yet. I started working out at the Y about a month or so ago and lost 15 pounds. I was 289 when I first visited the doctors and was 274 when I went in for my nutrition class. I have been losing about 2 pounds a day on the pre-op diet. Feeling sick is one way to definately stop eating. I have found that I like 1 of the soups and 1 of the shakes/pudding. When I drink the hot chocolate it makes my stomach turn and churn...but I am going to do whatever I need to do.