renniemommietoo

I have not had a Band (I have about a week left to decide Sleeve (Scary), Band (Drama), so I can't really help you, but I will point out that I notice on these posts a lot of people's problems,struggles with the Band seem to be overly blamed on the Bandster. There is a lot of negativity and these 'helpful' posts seem to be more about arguing fine nuances of points or flaming others posts than anything else. It works for some and not others.
I think a lot of the issues with the Band is that they are marketed as something different than they are. I want a reduction in hunger, I want to not to have to work as HARD as many here do. To me it is sounding like a Tool that really won't work like I'd want it to. I understand your frustration with being able to 'test the band, and it wins everytime'. So, I say, call the Dr, start there. Luckily it has worked so far, hopefully it will continue to do so. Good Luck

Gosh, i am so sorry i have come across in this way. I did not mean to offend. I do not want to come across as arrogant and do not believe myself or make any claim to be any more important or knowledgeable than anyone else, infact, i often feel quite the opposite.
When i said: "We know from the other thread that it is a common occurrence, and that the less ignorant doctors and consultants advise that it is caused by trapped air trying to leave the body and swinging the arms upwards can help with this."
I was summing up, some what clumsily what i had gotten from this thread here: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f78/left-shoulder-pain-36357/ in the complications area. I was not stating it to be fact. Although, the amount of posts in the other thread (provided link) indicates that it is a common occurrence, hense why i said "We know from the other thread that it is a common occurrence". And, if you check the link (if you havnt seen this thread already) you will also see that in the thread, there are many stories of people whos doctors and/or consultants have not payed a blind bit of notice or acknowledgment to the shoulder pain, or did not give them any warning about the problem before the op, despite the fact that so many people seem to get it. These are what i would call the "ignorant" doctors, and it is upon this scale that i chose to qualify the "less ignorant" doctors, regarding the posts in the same thread where people spoke about doctors and consultants who acknowledged the problem and gave this advice about it. If you reread, i have not said that this is correct or that swinging the arms is a cure. It does seem like a bit of a lollipop solution in some of the severer descriptions people have given really, but, never the less, i simply stated that this is the advice that some people in this thread said that they were given by doctors, i did not support or advocate it.
More than this, the message your post has given to me is that there are different types of pain with different causes, some more severe than others. I am really sorry about this and for the discomfort you have experienced with yours, i really did not mean to offend you.
The purpose of my thread was to find out if it does go away and what works/helps with this.
As i say, your answer indicates that sometimes it does not, but i was also hoping for some stories of people who had it bad like you who it did leave eventually, to perhaps give some encouragement.
Love Dune.

Thanks everyone. I am trying to keep positive here. I just don't want to pour thousands of dollars into yet another diet that doesn't work. My fear is that I will be like the cartoon woman on the Slimquick commercials a few years ago who's husband and dog get skinny and she just loses her boobs. I mean, I'd love for the boobs to go down, but I want everything else to follow too.

I think what you are experiencing is normal. It took me about 6 months for my mentality to change about desiring food, even if I wasn't truly hungry. Desiring to chew, taste, swallow and feel full the old way. The lap band changes your relationship with food in my experience. That change does take some time and you will "challenge" the band and not be able to keep it down. Eventually, you will tire of this and learn to live with your band, physically and psychologically. I had my band put in March 2009. I lost 115lbs the first year and have since maintained that loss (I'm 145lbs, 5'7".) Currently, I can eat just about anything if I eat a bite or two and then wait 15 minutes to eat another bite. That's ok for the taste and act of eating, but I feel it's hard for me to get my nutrition that way. I bought a vitmix blender...IT'S GREAT!! For me, my strategy is to make sure I get my fluids, protien and Vitamins in first, then I dabble with eating bites at a time. I feel so much better and more energetic since I've began using my vitmix blender. It will liquify ANYTHING. I really missed my veggies with the lapband. I can't tolerate the skins of veggies. In this blender I can put in any mixture of veggies, skin, stalk and all and always a bit of kale, to make a liquid veggie drink. I add a good quality chicken bullion for taste and my powdered protien and I have a Vitamin, Fiber, Fluid, protien packed tasty drink. I've done yogurt and blueberries as a smoothie and can tolerate that too. I thank GOD for this machine. These drinks don't replace all other foods, but they are the base to my nutrition. Everything else is extra and for the act of eating, chewing, and enjoying a few bites of regular food. For me, this works and it quite satisfying and certainly health boosting. Of course, I still enjoy a dilly bar whenever I want one and haven't had any weight gain what so ever.
I remember the dietitian saying you shouldn't have to puree foods to be able to eat, that you were too tight if you had to do that. But they tell you to stew, or slow cook things until they are mush....whats the difference? The difference is cooking out all the nutrients is not good. The vitamix blender liquifies raw veggies, retaining all vitamins and fiber. I don't have stock in this company, I am truly just very excited to have come across this. It's very expensive 350-400 bucks, so I thought about it for 6 months before I broke down and got one. Best investment I've made since I got the lap band. I love the lap band!! Us bandsters just have to figure out how to have optimal health with the restriction that has allowed us to achieve our healthier weights.

Sounds like Grandma is pushing some of her own insecurities off onto you....Keep you head up I have been in the same boat having a brother and 3 sisters that are all pretty much a size 6 and below when I weigh in at 276lbs. Good luck to you on your journey....next time act surprised "A FAT JOKE REALLY IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?"