JerseyGirl80

Missed my Oct 8th check in, Starting weight was 254, as of this morning I'm 251.

Thanks Rachel. Where do you get the Just the Cheese White Cheddar snacks? I try to keep my carbs low too but I'm a chip/dorito addict and the cravings drive me crazy sometimes, I need my crunchy salty treats! lol

This really made me laugh lol because for about a week and half after surgery all I did was fantasize about food, cheese burgers mostly.. But the fantasies went away after a while, once I started eating food again I wasn't daydreaming or actually dreaming about food or seeing my friends turn into french fries anymore lol.

Snack foods always seem to be the easiest food for me to get down.. I hate that.. You probably really need to be getting in some healthy Protein. Have you tried eating Beans? Baked beans or something like that? I'm not a fan of beans but they're loaded with protein and they're much mushier than meats. Maybe beef Jerky if you can get something like that down? My doctor suggested beef jerky whenever I crave salt because its full of protein, and it's better than eating chips. eggs are always good to have, or maybe chicken salad if it's mushed up enough? When I was on my mushy stage I used to make a mashed potato fish bake. It was just mashed potatoes, made with skim milk, low fat mozzerella cheese, fat free sour cream, non-fat spray butter (just poured it out of the bottle) salt & pepper I would cook the talapia (with whatever seasonings i was in the mood for) in olive oil or pan spray then I would add it to the mashed potatoes and mix it all in, mixed it into a mushy mess lol, and baked it. I added alot of fish so it was more fish than potato. I really liked it and it did the job, it was pretty easy to get down and was filling. You could doctor it up, use different fish or even chicken, different cheeses and even veggies. Hope this helps a little. Have you tried the brand "Pure Protein" Protein shakes? they come in powder and also pre made ones in cans. I cannot stand the taste of powdered protein, it literally makes me nauseous. But the pre-made shakes don't have that whey taste. They're similar to slim fast shakes taste wise. I have a hard time eating in the morning so I have a shake for breakfast everyday. Sometimes I pour the can into a blender with ice and add frozen fruit to bulk it up, it makes it taste even better too. Or I'll add a scoop of non-fat low sugar ice cream. These cans certainly helped me out of my hating protein shakes funk. Good luck!

I work a desk job as well. They were generous with my time and allowed me to take as long as I needed, so I milked it and took from my day of surgery (Dec13th) off and didn't return to work until the day after new years. I was really tired most days once I returned. I'm a medical coder so I spend most of my day reading the unreadable and researching, which is a headache on a normal day. It was very hard for me to sit still and concentrate while I was uncomforable, itchy and in pain from the desk rubbing and my bra irritating one of my incisions. I had to keep getting up to walk around, and wound up leaving early a few times. This went on, but only at work, for a few weeks. Other than sitting at my desk I was fine, but everyones different, sitting may not bother you.

Thank you Jess. We're all in this together and just have to be patient and find what works for us. I can see now what my mistakes were and I'm trying to fix them. I'm not perfect at this and some days are a struggle, some aren't. But anything that's worth it, is never easy. And btw, I've been on Weight Watchers at least 6 or 7 times lol, it works but I'd always lose my mind and eat everything in site after a while. I definitely needed my band to keep my cravings under control or at least give me alot less space to pack it in when I indulge a bit.

In the end only you can make the best choice for yourself, it's your body. But, I chose to do the band because I wanted to lose weight slower, I also liked the idea that it was adjustable and that I'd still be able to eat anything I wanted (but limited amounts of course) without becoming physically ill (other than a few stuck episodes from time to time) what I mean by sick is with the other surgeries you could get very ill from eating certain things, or by having too much sugar. I liked the idea that I wouldn't have to deprive myself of some of my favorite foods like when I've "dieted" a million times before, doing this in the past only caused me to fall off the wagon and binge eat. Now everything is in moderation and I'm still losing. Another reason, I had many reasons lol.. I didn't want them removing anything, cutting me or re-routing anything. I did not like the idea that the sleeve and the bypass are not reversable, if something goes wrong with my band they can take it out, they can't give me back my stomach once they remove some of it... I also did not want to risk some of the side effects from those other surgeries, malabsorption, dumping syndrome ect. I felt safer with the band. My boyfriends sister had the bypass and she regrets it because she is always sick, since surgery she has become anemic, gets sick after eating alot of foods, her hair falls out and its very thin and brittle now. But I also have another friend that had bypass and she's doing great. I do not know anyone that has had the sleeve, so it's hard for me to form a personal opinion about it other than me not wanting to have part of my stomach removed. Everyone is different, but it scared me too much to have such an invasive surgery and by seeing some of the potential effects first hand. If for some reason the band does not work for me, and I had to do something else I might consider the sleeve as it seems to be better than bypass in my opinion. But let's hope that doesn't happen! So far I couldn't be happier with my decision, but it was a chance I took just like anyone else. There is no guarantee this will work for anyone, but we have to try. This is my attempt at taking my life back and so far so good. I'm loving my band, so far! Good luck you!

I had Aetna when I had my surgery. My first doctors appointment was in Sept and I had my surgery in Dec of 2010. I don't remember exactly how long it took to get approved, but it was quick. The office staff told me Aetna was one of the easiest and quickest at approving patients.

3 months for me, from seminar to surgery.

I've been on "DIETS" since I was 15yrs old, I'm now 31. I failed at every diet I've ever been on, I believe the main reason for this was deprivation. I'd quit all the "bad" foods cold turkey only to lose my mind while losing large amounts of weight only to "slip" and devour everything that was deep fried or covered in cholocate. Then I'd just give up on myself, and gain all the weight back and then some. I did this over and over again for as long as I can remember.. I've been banded almost 10 months, I do not deprive myself of anything. I've been losing consitantly, slowly but consitantly, and it works for me. I cut out alot for the most part. But the foods I have cut out are mostly carby filler foods that just take up space and keep me from eating my Protein, and to be honest I hardly even want to eat them anymore anyway. When it comes to my cravings (or my old habits coming back), I feed them, but in very small amounts. If I feel I need McDonalds, (which was my drug of choice, that and any other fast food) I'll have it, but maybe only a few chicken nuggets or just the meat off a cheese burger and 4 or 5 french fries. This will kill my craving, I physically cannot over do it because my band keeps me from it. But I do have some days when my band is easier than other days to "eat around" so I have to know how to limit myself. I do not keep junk food in my house, if I feel I need to eat crap like chips, chocolate or ice cream I'll buy a small bag or just a serving of it, have it and move on and continue to exercise and eat well the majority of the time. I understand everyone is different, and this may not work for everyone, but I am a true believer in having everything in moderation. Thinking back, deprivation was what got me to my heaviest weight, it caused me to lose my mind and over do it when "cheating" on diets. Now I'm satisfied, I can control my craving and I'm still losing weight. My advice to you would be not to beat yourself up about having some "slips" , it's ok to enjoy "bad" food on occasion, just not in outrageous amounts and not everyday. Stay motivated, exercise as much as you can and never forget why you got banded.. Good luck!

I used to take Flintstones but I got sick of them getting stuck in my teeth and I don't like the graininess of them. Now I take One A Day VitaCraves Gummies, they don't taste like vitamins at all and they go down easy.

Don't be bummed, stay excited and motivated, it sounds like you are doing great, congratulations! I wouldn't be too concerned, the doctors are being cautious, and you want them to be that way. The first month or so really isn't about losing, just healing, so they probably just want to be sure you are doing things the healthy way and not over doing it. Your weight loss will most likely slow down to a normal rate soon. I lost about 15lbs my first month post-op and I really wasn't strict with my eating and wasn't doing any sort of exercise. To me it doesn't seem to be so far fetched that you would lose 25lbs with being as active as you are. Alot of that weight is fluid after surgery and with being active and keeping your calories low you were able to take off even more which is a bonus, not all of us can do that right away. I don't think this is cause for alarm unless you keep losing 25lbs every month, that wouldn't be healthy for anyone. Remember, slow and steady and everything in moderation... Keep up the good work, stay healthy, and good luck on your journey!

I'm very large chested too. I have a tiny incision at the top of my belly, it's pretty high up so after surgery when I wore a bra it hurt, but only when I was sitting for more than a few minutes. Doc said to wear a bandaid on that one until it healed completely, it's probably my smallest incision but took as long as my biggest one to heal because of my bra rubbing against it. After about a month I was fine, it didn't hurt anymore. BTW, I always wear underwire bras, and the incision is just under where the 2 wires meet between my breasts, so while sitting it would really irritate me from the rubbing, I'd recommend a soft cupped or sports bra for a while.

Hello everyone, I'm in! This is my first time participating in one of these group things, so be gentle hehe.. Name, real or screen~ Victoria Age~ 31 Weight on October 1st~ 254 (doubt this will change overnight) Goal Weight for October 29th~ 244 Exercise Goal for October~ 2-3 miles of walking 3-4 days a week (I hate working out more than anything) Dietary Goal for October~ Avoid chips/doritos lol dang salty carbs! Personal Goal for October~ To remind myself that I CAN DO THIS! Date Banded~ December 13th 2010 Total Weight Loss Since Banding~ 44lbs (11 pre-op, 55 total) (didn't lose all summer, time to make up for it!)

I'm a food addict too, and like many others on here I believe in eating everything in moderation. Deprivation was a major mistake for me everytime I "dieted". I'd quit all my favorite foods cold turkey and when I'd become weak or just fed up with salads and grilled chicken I'd eat all the garbage I loved til I was sick to my stomach. I'd go on a bender that wouldn't stop until I just didn't care anymore about what I shoved into my face. That is the reason I've gained back all the weight(and then some) I've ever lost (pre-band). For us, unlike drugs food is everywhere. We dont have to go to a dealer to get a hit. We won't go to prison for odering a 20 peice nuggets and washing is down with #2 supersized. We are surrounded by food everyday. We just have to be aware of what we are doing. Seriously now if I feel I "need" chicken nuggets, I'll go get it, maybe I'll eat 3 or 4 and be full. That will kill my craving and I'll move on. This is how my life is now and I'm happy here. The weight is coming off slow, but for me the weight coming off fast means deprivation and that's never worked before and won't work now, even with my band. But Suzzie the other issues you are having with reflux are terrible, I'm so sorry. I hope you can find a happy medium with your band and start losing weight again. Also, here's a tip that might work for you when it comes to cravings/addiction. Do not keep crap in the house, ever. If you crave something or feel you need it buy a small bag of it, or a serving size. That's what I do and it works, for me anyway. I want something, I eat some in that moment once it's gone it's gone. Having it laying around would cause me to eat it just because it's there. These are very hard habits to break but it is doable, it's not a scam when people say "everything in moderation" there is truth to this. Also look for lower fat snacks/ice creams, at first they don't compare to the real thing, but they can kill those uncontrollable urges. There are many "healthier" alternatives to the garbage foods we love. I hope you do not think of yourself as "crazy" "weak" or "stupid" we are all struggling with the same or similar food issues and anyone of us could be in your shoes in a year or 2. The band was never a garuntee, we need the fills to help us, if you're out there with no fill how could you even be getting help from the band, it's as if you are on your own again battling your weight. Getting the band was for help, no fills+no restriction = no help. Wasn't that the point of all this? Perhaps you should see your doctor and get very small fills until you find that "sweet spot" where your reflux is under control and you have restriction. I wish you the best of luck and try to stay in touch and active on this site, it surely helps when you are in need of motivation or feeling down. Who better to understand you than others that have walked and are walking in your shoes?

I had habachi and sushi as my "last meal" lol and for dessert I had vanilla soft serve with wet walnuts and strawberries .. I've had it since with no problems (in much smaller doses though), and I've been losing consistantly since surgery. It's funny how I really thought and paniced about there being foods I'd never be able to eat again. Luckily I'm able to eat anything, although as time goes by and I get more restriction some things are getting harder to eat. But enjoy your last meal as it will be a while before you can enjoy real food again (other than liquids and mushies). Good luck!

My doctors office has support groups once or twice a month, I don't go to them because they are mostly bypass/sleeve patients. I also feel out of place with them, it's very uncomfortable. To me it's a different journey with the band compared to the bypass or sleeve and we need different support. Just like when I went to my pre-op "class" I was the only band patient there, and some of the things they went over had nothing to do with me and I was getting confused with what I had to do and what suppliments I'd have to take. The people giving the class seemed to just assume everyone was getting the bypass or sleeve. I had to ask a million questions only to be told, "oh that doesn't concern you, you're getting a band, this is for bypass/sleeve patients" it was very frustrating. I could be wrong but most of the time it seems like its more of a struggle for band patients. My boyfriends sister had the bypass almost 3yrs ago, and lost most of her weight within the first few months without doing anything, but she also regrets getting it done. She has alot of health issues since her surgery, she said if she could do it all over she would have gotten a band instead. It may sound catty or ignorant but I'm just being honest, I kinda get uncomfortable and maybe even a little annoyed when I hear about how much weight they've lost in only a few months with no effort. I understand they are more at risk and some suffer from Vitamin deficiency and malabsorbtion but like seriously, I'm still working my ass off even after surgery to lose weight! Now I'm just complaining lol.. Anyway, this is what I chose and how I wanted to do it, but I feel the support groups should cater to all WLS patients and separate bands from bypass/sleeve patients as we have different needs.

My Doctor said to stop drinking 30 minutes before and to wait 30 minutes after eating to take a drink. Do I follow this? Honestly, no. I tend to lose track of time before and after meals and if I'm thirsty I'm going to drink. This hasn't made me hungry faster as I stay full for long periods of time, but that's just me, every BODY is different. I also sometimes take very tiny baby sips while eating, which is a big NO NO and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but I do it because I just can't not drink. But I don't always do this, it depends on what I'm eating. Sometimes it's barely enough of a sip to wet my tongue but I do it out of habit, if I gulped any Fluid while eating I wouldn't be able to continue to eat. You get used to not gulping down 2-3 cans of soda while you are eating pretty quickly! (this is what I used to drink on a regular basis). Your new eating habits will mostly change out of "can't" rather than "want", which will in turn make you not want to eat or do certain things anymore. At a good fill level, you will not want to drink alot because you can't. This was a big worry for me because I'm a big drinker.. But after 9 months of band life, I'm more than used to my new habits with drinking and other things. So don't worry too much about it, your mind and body will adjust over time. After a while your body will know what you are comfortable with.

The brand is PRUE Protein.

I wouldn't recommend over the counter water pills, I heard they can cause kidney problems. I've taken them years ago, before I was banded, while crash dieting, it's only a temporary fix to flush the water out, they're not really helping you lose fat weight, just water weight and after a while they didn't even work anymore. I'd just wait it out and deal with a little bloat. Just drink lots of water, fluid flushes fluid and maybe avoid sodium around your time. Do it the natural way. It's only water weight, it isn't fat so you probably shouldn't worry about it too much. The possible side effects down the road from taking water pills isn't worth it. Good luck!

I'm not a fan of the powders. I buy the cans of Pure Protein they come in chocolate, vanilla (don't like this one), cookies n' creme and strawberry. They have 23grams of protein, 1.5grams of fat, 6 carbs and 1gram of sugar. . I get them at Target, they're about $7-$9 (depending on store location) for a case of 4, they're a little pricey but they're convient, they also have them at Vitamin Shoppe. I have them for breakfast everyday. I either drink them straight from the can or put them in the blender with ice and frozen fruit, sometimes I add milk or nonfat low sugar ice cream, they're pretty yummy.

I'm 9 months post-op and still have trouble eating breakfast. I've been sticking to Protein Shakes, on occasion I can have eggs or oatmeal. I play it safe and stick to my shakes (not much of a breakfast person anyway). It's normal for the band to feel tighter at different times of the day by the way, so it's possible to always have trouble with breakfast. When I want to eat but don't feel like I can, I'll drink a little bit of something hot or eat some Soup to "open me up" . I'd say it seems 6 days post-op might be too soon for you to be eating anything but liquids like broth soups, Jello and maybe applesauce. Even the soggy rice krispies could clump up and stick to itself making it hard to flow past the band. I started with mashed potatoes and egg salad when I got to my mushies stage (Doc suggested anything you could mash up easily with a fork for that stage). I didn't really start even creamy soups til about a week after surgery. books or suggestions may be good as a guide, but every BODY is different, you will learn what your body can handle over time. Be careful, you don't want to be vomiting at all let alone so soon after surgery when you're still healing. Take it slow, sip slowly and I'd suggest maybe drinking a hot berverage first thing in the morning, this usually helps me. Good luck!

It's ok, I freaked out too. Especially the last few nights before surgery, it was before I was active on this site so I was desperate for someone to understand my anxiety and frustrations. So feel free to talk it out on here as much as you need to. All of us were probably afraid of failing like we've all done before. I think it's safe to say that all of us have failed at dieting, if not we wouldn't be here, and every single one of us have taken the same chance by having the surgery. None of us knew for sure if we'd succeed of fail terribly. I'm 9 months post-op and so far I think it was worth the chance. But you have to be ready for the change, and it is a big change but it's a gradual one, not an over night one. Over time you and your band will work together. I spent many nights crying and freaking out about giving up my favorite foods, failing like I did at so many other "diets", on top of all the other worries with having surgery in general, but I've made it this far, so far lol. Luckily my insurance paid all but $500, if they didn't I wouldn't have had my surgery. So I definitely understand you freaking out about the money. Look at it as an investment for the rest of your life. Down the road it may even save you on future medical expenses that would have been caused by weight. Try to calm down (I know it's difficult right now) and take a breath, keep your eye on the prize and you'll be amazed by the changes that are to come. Good luck to you!

It'll be a year for me in December. I haven't lost as much as alot of people I see on this site, and that makes me feel a little discouraged so I know where you are coming from. Most of the weight I lost was in the first 4 months. I'm coming to find out that you have to be really patient, and it does take a while for the band to actually start working WITH you. Not all of us take to it at the same rate, it took a while to get to where I think I am now, hopefully my "sweet spot". Most of the year I thought the band was doing what it was supposed to be doing, but it really wasn't, I was still figuring it all out and still am, I guess.. if that makes sense, I was and am adjusting to my adjustment. Finally a week and a half ago I got a fill that made me feel like what I've been hearing everyone else on here talk about. Like, only being able to eat very small amounts of food, staying fuller longer, having to wait to drink, not being able to gulp down my fluids.. Where as before I was eating much less than pre-band but was still able to eat anything and everything without having to slow down too much or think about it much. There was a significant difference in how I was eating but nothing compared to how it's been for the last week and a half. I've lost almost 7lbs since that last fill, I hadn't lost any weight in about 3 months before that. And before that my weightloss was averaging about 4-6lbs a month, so they weren't huge losses, but they were losses. I've been good with my Protein intake, and cut back on carbs significantly. I've also started working out which is difficult for me because I absolutely hate it more than anything! But we gotta do what we gotta do.. For you to lose 40lbs slowly is a wonderful thing. It's great actually, considering you had back surgery and probably haven't been able to get around much. Of course we want it all off right now, but slow is better in the end. If you're anything like me you could have possibly gained another 40 on top of your original weight if you hadn't had the help from the band over the last year. Be proud of your 40 pounds and do not feel like a failure. My feeling is that the slower the weight comes off the better and easier it will be to keep it off. As long as you are losing and not gaining that in itself is a great accomplishment.

http://www.njbariatriccenter.com/ I absolutely love them! I believe it's exit 140 on the parkway (Union location), probably a bit of a drive but worth it.