JerseyGirl80

I guess it's kinda common sense but this was a little confusing to me too. But right after my surgery, before I went home, I asked the post-op nurse what "clear liquids" meant exactly. She said "any liquid you can see through" she said, water, jello, sugar free ice pops, chicken broth/stock (low sodium low fat is pretty see through) and sports drinks like gatorade (I love the low calorie ones, I lived on them my first month post-op, I still drink them during work outs and after fills). No thick fluids like creamy soups/protein shakes or anything you can't see through, like coffee or milk I would assume.

26lbs is awesome, congratulations!

Everyone is different, every doc suggests different things. I would consult your doctor or nutritionist about this. But for me, I'm not a big soup eater, but when I'm in a restuarant and I'm feeling that I might be a little too tight to eat my meal, or if I just really want soup, I'll order a cup of it as an appetizer (I don't always finish it) for me I find that the hot liquid opens me up just enough to be able to eat some of my meal on my tight days. I use this "technique" while dining out because the last thing I want to happen is to have a "stuck" episode in a restaurant. It's happened to me before and it sucked, big time. My nutritionist told me to avoid Soups because they are pretty much wasted calories just like drinking beverages that are high calorie, the soup goes right through and really isn't very filling (for me anyway). Creamy ones are usually high in fat and calories and the others like chicken noodle for example, are similar to eating and drinking, the broth can flush the food through quicker which can cause you to keep eating. The point of our bands is to eat things that will take a while to digest/pass threw the band so we stay full. So I try to limit how often I have soups, I don't eat them as my actual meal. if you are going to eat soup, I'd limit the broth and eat most of the gurth of the soup, like the meat and veggies so that this will keep you full for a longer period of time. Hope this helps! Good luck

2 weeks after surgery I hurt myself taking out the garbage so I got scared.. I ended up waiting a month for sexy time to start up again, my tummy just hurt too much and I didn't want to pull anything. It may be TMI, but after 62lbs lost it has gotten better, easier, a little more creative and more frequent.. I actually want it more now LOL.. It feels good to not feel like a total pig fighting under a blanket anymore..

You mean a 6month pre-op diet? It depends on your insurance and/or your doctor. I was on a semi-diet that was given to me by my nurtrionist for 3 months. She went over what I should eat and how, which was very similar to how I ate anyway from doing years of Weight Watchers, so it wasn't a very hard transition for me. My 3 months of "diet" was really practice, practice of eating slower, practicing my chewing and taking smaller bites, trying to not drink while eating, picking healthier food while dining out and at home, and not eating BAD fast foods (which has always been my drug of choice). This part of my "pre-op dieting" was VERY important. I think everyone needs this kind of practice, it was only then that I really realized what I was getting into, and made the post-op part much easier. I wasn't starving and was allowd to make my own choices, which to me was realistic. Some doctors require certain types of diets, luckily I didn't have to do a 2 week liquid diet before surgery or do any kind of crazy meals plans, which it seems, almost everyone has had to. You would have to dicuss this with your surgeon to see what he requires of his patients. Most of us have been on lots of diets over the years and have lost tons of weight only to gain it back and then some over and over once we start eating "normal" again. Gimmick "diets" don't work, we have to find a healthy balance. The band teaches us a new way of eating, teaches us to adapt to our new "stomachs" this is what helps us lose the weight and keep it off. It's a life long way of eating, it's not supposed to be about starvation or deprivation, it's just a whole knew way of thinking and eating. Good luck to you!

sugar free Jello chocolate pudding pops (I've seen them in store brand too) these are really good and usually about 60 or 70 calories. Weight Watchers also make HUGE chocolate fudge ice bar/pop things, sooo good. Diet hot chocolate is usually what I go to when I need something sweet. I'm not a big sweet person but I do keep some of the different Weight Watcher Desserts and or ice creams on hand for when I'm in need of something sweet. Skinny Cow also makes some good low cal treats in small portion containers. There are always much healthy alternatives for our favorite treats, we just have to find them lol. Everything in moderation, I don't believe in deprivation. Treats are ok, just not all the time. P.S. I just had a snack size bag of peanut M&M's (there were only 6 or 7 in the bag lol), yes I'm a bad girl lol. But for 103 calories, on some days it's just worth it..

Congratulations!

I guess they just don't get enough out of their own lives.

Thank you. This woman isn't worth me trying to educate her, she's just one of those know it all people that think they have so much life experience that they know more than anyone younger than them. She has reached her cap of knowledge, she cannot retain anything else because everything she thinks she knows is all there is to know, it's just not worth my time.

Thank you!

Thank you Kat!

Thank you Ro-Jae!

lol, no it's always funny, because I really do hate people as a general rule. I know it's really negative for me to feel this way and it may sound really bad to most people but too bad lol, I'm just being realistic. The majority of people in this world are too stupid to be allowed to breathe and I just can't be bothered with them. Some people are ok, at least the ones with something interesting or entertaining to say. This is probably why I don't care what people think and usually just laugh at them.. But this B***ch really rubs me the wrong way, I think it gets on my nerves because she's a co-worker and there's nothing I can do about it.

lol, I'd of loved too.. but I need my job. I doubt it's jealousy, she's thin and has never know what it's like to have a weight problem. It's also part of her judging me because "you can do it on your own, just don't eat as much and workout", most thin people always think it's that easy and I know she's thinking it too.

First of all congratulations on being banded and on all the weight you've lost so far.. I was very happy to enter my mushy stage as I couldn't stand just drinking and slurping cold sweet drinks and jellos anymore. It was quite exciting to even eat mashed potatoes or egg salad once I was able to.. How sad lol.. But anyway... Don't be bummed about not losing. You know it's time to heal, not lose, losing will come. People say this over and over again on here, you know you didn't gain the weight overnight, so don't expect to lose it overnight. Us that have had fills and have lost some good amounts of weight still have periods of time where we don't lose or we may even gain a few, you cannot let these little things get you down. It happens, it's just part of having a realistic goal and keeping the large amounts of weight off permanently. Keep your eye on the big picture. We've pressured ourselves, deprived ourselves and beat ourselves up lots of times on other "diets". This is your new life, take time to get to know your band and get used to it, in time it'll start working the way you want it to. And remember, some of us lose quickly, some slow, but as long as we are losing we are all successful at this. Good luck to you and be patient.

"Medically necessary" is basically a co-morbidity. The insurance companies are looking for a medical REASON as to why you need WLS, morbid obesity or a high BMI are not always enough of a reason for them. Some examples of medically necessary diagnosis' or co-morbidities are sleep Apnea, PCOS, Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, and other cardiac or pulmonary conditions. They want proof that your weight is a threat to your health. Which is stupid because obviously weight is a threat to ones health! But if you do not have any other co-morbidities as of yet, they could deny you for this. Do you know for certain that you do not have sleep apnea? I didn't think I did because I didn't have any of the common symptoms, but it turned out that I did have mild sleep apnea after taking a sleep study (which was a requirement for me). My family history of diabetes, high blood pressure and my PCOS and Sleep Apnea helped with my insurance approval. They also wanted PROOF that I had been overweight for at least 2 years, the only thing they recongnized as actual proof were my medical records from my OBGYN. My weight history from Weight Watchers meant nothing. Also, I didn't need to be referred from my PCP, I went straight to finding a surgeon and was still approved after my medical history was submitted to insurance. To insurance companies if it's not on paper (medical records), it didn't happen or it just doesn't exist. So not really having much of a medical history might be a problem. I don't know what your insurance requires (they're all different) but be prepared for anything, things can get quite messy. But hopefully things will go smoothly for you. Good Luck!

Go to, My Settings - Settings tab - Notifications Options. Incase someone else needs it..

Thank you Cindy, normally I could give a crap about what people say or think, this just really pissed me off today! Thanks for the support. I guess it's the nay sayers that keep me going, I have nothing to prove to anyone but myself, but it'll sure feel good when I can rub it in her face once I get to goal! (Hopefully!lol)

Thank you. I didn't care about telling people, for the most part I've got nothing but support from everyone, but I guess there's always some A-hole's in the bunch. I figured, for me, it was just easier to tell most people than to hide it. Believe me if it wasn't a work enviroment where it happened she would have never said a word to me again about anything, because I wouldn't have been so nice about it. Also, this woman gives her stupid opinion to anyone and everyone about anything because she thinks she knows it all, so it's not just me and I should just expect stupidity from her. Mind you she can't even write a proper sentence, but that's another story... I guess I'm just sensitive today.. I do understand why people keep it quiet, but again, for me it's just easier to not to. Thanks for listening to my rant.

I'm not the type to let what people think bother me, but just now a co-worker said something that made me want to punch her straight in the face.. After complimenting me on my weightloss, she continues to go on about how the lapband doesn't work for long making it very clear that I'm going to gain all my weight back. (I know the risks and the general outcome of this surgery, I don't need some illiterate old bag telling me anything) anyway.. She said "You know it stops working right? I know someone and it stopped working for her after 2 years, she got fat again, but you look great." As if finishing with another compliment made what she said ok.. Trying to be nice (which is really hard for me to begin with) I just said "Well everyone is different, you have to keep getting filled and keep seeing your doctor, you can't just eat whatever you want and expect it to work". OMG if I was in a cartoon at that moment smoke would have been shooting out of my ears! lol I really wanted to tell her to go F**k herself. The woman has been against me getting surgery from day one, and has nothing but negative things to say about it. I kinda get the feeling like she looks at me with pity whenever we cross paths because she knows, or thinks she knows, that I'll gain all my weight back. The look on her face speaks a thousand words. I swear I'm reminded daily as to why I hate people!

Hi Erin, congratulations on your decision. I'm a recovering binge eater myself. So far my band has been a life saver, I can no longer binge eat. I do still want to on occasion, but no where near as often as I used to. The best part is that my band doesn't allow me to binge when those cravings start. The other night I said "screw it" and I decided to binge a little... I am laughing just thinking about it because my "binge" eating the other night consisted of an extra cracker and a second laughing cow cheese, which I couldn't finish btw lol. I don't keep crap foods in the house so cheese and crackers was the most damage I could have done... so much for that lol. Good luck to you!

Saturday weigh in 248lbs, October starting weight 254lbs. 6lbs lost.

My surgeons office got proof of me being overweight themselves by requesting my medical records from my primary doctor. They will probably ask you for your primary doctor's information to contact that office for your records. I didn't do any running around to get them any information, they did everything themselves. Some doctors charge you for a copy of your records. I'd wait to see what your surgeon says.

You're welcome, you are not a PITA lol, please ask as many questions as you want, we're here to help. I found my whole process to be very fast. I went to the seminar in Aug 2010, had my 1st appointment with my Doc in Sept 2010, and I believe I knew my surgery date sometime in Nov 2010 but knew the estimated month probably in Oct 2010. I was originally scheuled for Jan 2011, but had to change to Dec 2010 because my insurance was changing at work come the new year.. That wasn't fun! Anyway the thing I loved about my surgeon was that he did not pressure me or try to push certain surgeries on me, he asked what surgery I wanted. I don't know if he does this with all his patients or if doctors try to convince some people to do the bypass or sleeve due to diet history, health issues, weight, loss expectations etc., but there was absolutely no pressure from my surgeon to do anything other than what I wanted. I have to admit when I first met with him I was a little ify, his personality was a little "stuffy" for me, but he did warm up a bit after I was seeing him for a while. So I'd say, give your surgeon a chance. I work for doctors, they don't have the best personalities to begin with, most but not all lol, some of them have great personalities you just have to find the right one for you. My thing is, these bariatric docs probably see so many overweight people for consults that seem all gung-ho at first and never come back, or fail at losing any pre-op weight because they just aren't that serious. So when a new patient comes in they probably just take it with a grain of salt, they're really not sure how serious a new patient is. So I'd give your doc a chance to prove that he's human lol. I also wanted to say, the other surgeons on my docs staff seem to be a little more laid back, the head honcho is a little less, but he's the boss and very professional. I love them all, but the woman doc in the office is my favorite, shes a sweetheart, I see her all the time now, she does my fills and follow up visits. After babbling all this time my point is, give your surgeon a chance, but if you really aren't feeling it, move on and find someone that you like. This is long term care and you will have to be with him for a long time and have a relationship with him and his staff. You want to enjoy this experience and feel comfortable. I'll shut up now!

I'm happy to help if I can.. Honestly I didn't do any research trying to find the difference between the two. That may have been an oops on my part, but I'm happy with what I have. Others may have choosen one or the other for good reasons, but I don't know. Keep talking and looking around the site, I'm sure there are other people with a Realize band here. I do think it's great that you are researching as much as possible, I would definitely encourage it. I really don't even think about the difference, I come to this site because I like it, I never thought twice about not being here because I have a Realize band, I just think of myself as banded and when I talk about it I actually say "I have a lapband". So to me, I really don't see that big of a difference from what I've read on here compared to the Realize website as far as how it works and such. As far as positioning and it being able to be seen under my skin was never a concern for me. I've been fat so long I don't care what kind of mess my body looks like after I lose my weight and if you can see the little alien port sticking out a little, so be it lol. I'll just be happy to be a normal size for once. It never mattered to me whether I had a LapBand or a Realize, as long as I was banded. I was reading a post the other night and some people were saying how their lapband port is very noticable now that they have reached their goal weight, but it doesn't seem to bother most of them. Others said they could feel theirs but not see it, or only able to see it while laying down, everyone has a different story. I'm no where near goal, but I've been able to feel mine since my abdomen healed enough for me to go feeling around for it. As to why my doctor chose Realize over LapBand, I don't know. Maybe it's easier for him to manuver while operating? maybe his patients have better results? or maybe that was the only band that was available that day? Who knows. I think the difference is brand and models, they both do the same thing in my book.