CP-Mike

Crystal: It is good to hear you didn't have to battle Cancer! Even the scare is bad enough.. With regards to bruising, scaring, and time away from working out.. I have to be honest, it makes me wonder if you are trying to talk yourself out of the surgery.. If you are, that is fine, but you might want to look deeper to see why.

I don't know how much you need to lose or your overall health, but I can tell you that I would do it all over again even if it took 3 weeks away from work/exercise and caused more scaring. (I'll have to post some early and current scar pics).

Take a look around at the people who have been successful post-op and ask yourself if the journey was worth it for them. There is no reason it can't be as successful for any of us. One of the profound successes is Puddin.. She has a link to her pics in her profile.. Browse those.. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/members/puddin/

My point is that as long as the surgery "does no harm", once you are a year post-op and losing weight month over month, will the time away from the gym matter? Will a couple of scars matter?

Just my thoughts... for what little they are worth..

CP-Mike

Howdy from Cedar Park Lins!

I have had plenty of PBs. I have to admit, 99% of them were 100% my fault. I was not paying attention, in a hurry, took too big of a bite, etc..

The vast majority of mine are very small, not too unpleasant, and it's clears fast. Sometimes though, oh man.. The worst have been bread related.. As you can imagine.. It forms this "plug" that hits the stoma and smooth blocks it..

I'll share a bad experience.. I had to catch a shuttle to the airport, and had just snagged a grab-n-go Breakfast burrito... It stuck.. I couldn't get to a bathroom.. That was a very very bad 30 minutes.. very hard to hold..

Just like we all know, small tiny bites, and chew chew chew.

Juice! I want juice!! I crave juice!!! I need juice!!!!

My dietician made a big deal about juice being a no-no. And I hear that loud & clear. But I so love a large, cold glass of orange juice before bed! I know. It’s sip-sip-sip with the Band, no more large glasses of anything. Okay. I got that, too. This isn’t about what-not-to or how-to drink with LapBand so much as it is a plea for a safe, tasty “juice” drink.

(snip)

High calorie liquids are of course a bad deal.. BUT why does it have to be a "large" glass. If you are drinking it because you really enjoy the taste, then can't you get the same sensory input with 4 oz of it taken a tiny sip at a time? If you view it like a treat, have a tiny bit, and just account for it in your overall daily intake, then why the heck not..

Of course, I know I wasn't so good at the whole moderation thing pre-banding, but it's really help me cut back so I'm not stressing over 4 oz of something I really like, as long as I am still losing.

Of course Your Milage May Vary.

Good luck..

In my case, the lack of moderation comes in the form, now, of exercise and self-beautification. It seems to be my goal in life these days to turn the heads of all men, and then totally ignore them. WHY??? What am I trying to validate in doing that? I'll tell ya what: I'm trying to validate that I am actually attractive to men. My entire life was spent as the fat, funny, happy-go-lucky girl. No man wanted that. And it seems like I've been using men lately, too. I'll get the good-looking guy that would have never taken a second look at me before, use him, and then never respond to his calls.

[snip]

Alright, back to my point: At what point do we learn moderation? How does one learn moderation? Are there moderation exercises out there? I've been doing NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) lately, and that's helped with many things, like getting over this guy and truly believing that I don't need a good looking man to validate me. But can NLP teach you moderation? I'm afraid that I'd become obsessed with NLP in that Quest for moderation! In many respects, the lack of moderation has proved to be worth a lot to me. There are things that I'm very good at, as I suspect there are some very, very talented people on this board. Comes with the focus. So how do we learn moderation while still focusing on our goals, just not with crazy tenactiy?

Okay, I'm done introspecting on you. Anyone have comments on this or am I just spitballing?

Puddin,

Great post and I wonder if it might really be a great new thread to start!

I have often wondered what I would do if I could "snap my fingers and be smoking hot".. I too have always been the "big guy" in the bunch and "just like a big brother" on the dating scene. I can certainly understand the desire to be flirted with and just smile and walk away. That will be my only option now as a married man, but it'll still be fun if it happens.

I have a great wife who also recently was banded, and honestly I think she is going to start seeing a lot more attention. She disagrees as she already gets flirted with, ring and all, lol. As long as no one is crude, I am fine with it. We are both big flirts anyway.

As for using the super-hot guys and sending them packing, at the risk of being crude... BRAVO on you.. Having always been heavy too it's easy to see how pathetic and shallow so many people are, they reap what they sow. The challenge for you will be turning that on and off. You might just find that good looking guy that really is a great catch.

I don't know about you, but I have found that over the years I've developed perhaps a 6th sense about people by just looking into their eyes. I've seen such inner beauty hidden in overweight bodies. It's really cool to look around the pictures on this site because you can just see it. All sorts of great people finally shedding the weight and letting the inner beauty out.

Let us know how all the NLP work goes. It might well be something that many of us could benefit from.

Remote Control Easyband:

http://www.elecdesign.com/Articles/Index.cfm?AD=1&ArticleID=14680

I want to know how it reacts if, God forbid, you ever need diphibulation.

That certainly will introduce a lot of voltage into the body, I would think best case it would burn the system out causing the need for a replacement (should you survive the heart issue). Worse, what if it causes the band to contract dramatically and then burn out... OUCH!

hmm... Saline sounds good for now.

Dreamer,

That is a really tough personal decision. I too had never been "put under", so I didn't know how things would go. I was in the surgery center of a good hospital, so that did ease my mind. I also spoke with a lot of people pre-op, some of them with good knowledge in the medical area. One reported that the technology used now in anesthesia is so much better and more exacting that they wouldn't hesitate to go under in either location.

My "day of" experience was pretty good actually.. I was sooo wanting to get the "versed" pushed I was almost begging for it.. However, just having a loved one with you and trying to distract yourself is enough to get you to the versed.. I used humor, I was joking with every person I interacted with. I don't think I was too bad, but I didn't care, humor was my drug.

Versed is only pushed in the IV by the anesthesia specialist who is the last person you see before heading into the surgery suite. Once they push that, you can forget about any worries in the world. Someone could tell you the IRS was auditing you and you would not care..

Complications are rare, however, we made sure to get the most experienced (# of bands installed) surgeon in Austin.

Best wishes for a smooth procedure.

Man, I just can't find a brotha who either has been able to enjoy one, or will admit to it..

Oh well, in a couple of weeks I'll find out myself.. Who knows, maybe I can't..

My_o_My,

NOTE: I'm new, so I am really asking so I understand, not because I've been there done that..

Before this fill, what did a day look like for you? I am speaking of calories in the mouth.. Also, did you drink liquids with meals? (I am worried about this for myself).

Most of us got here with either just bad eating habits, or more serious conditions (food addictions, chemical/hormone balance issues, etc). Those issues don't just go away with the installation of the band. I found out the hard way yesterday when I got wrapped up in the hustle of a busy day and popped something in my mouth, didn't chew well, and then in 2 mins was in the bathroom for a PB.

Also, I've exchanged messages with other people who seemed so "afraid of failure" but in fact, they were subconsciously causing the failure because they were in fact "afraid to succeed" and very accustomed to "failing".

I also have trouble finding it. Thanks Alexandra!

Down 35 lbs since 1/15 as of this morning! I'm slowly easing in to soft/mushie foods. Not going to hurry. Get my first fill on 3/8.

Nice work on the 35 lbs!

I wouldn't count on drinking too much beer if you're serious about weight loss. I've brewed beer (not commercially) since the early 90's. Mostly stouts, IPA's and my personal favorite Czech Pilsner. Great beer, but tons of carbs. No wonder my weight shot up from 220's to near 300 lbs. The "low carb" beers, well, no thanks I'll drink Water. I've given it up. Maybe when I reach my goal, I'll sip one if it still has any appeal. If i were to have a drink now, it would probably be JD on the rocks....

Bruce

Bruce I understand what you are saying, I really do.. I too have done some HB'ing (not recently).. Since I drink for taste, it is totally reasonable for me to have 1 good beer with dinner and that's it. I also don't mind cutting down on volume, or giving up some cals other places as a trade.. all of those are fine.. BUT, saying "no more ever", or switching to liquor, I just don't see it. I have tried many many different distilled spirits and I have not enjoyed any of them.

If it takes me an hour to drink a 6-8oz of good beer before I get to eat my 3 oz filet, I'm okay with that..

But the point is noted.

Jack, I am sorry to hear about your situation, that stinks..

I do very much understand that we all make sacrafices of things we would not normally have based on medical needs... my band comes to mind..

I have some pre-op Guiness in the fridge so I will just have to test it out myself in time. I'll report back, but it's likely be several weeks..

Everyone should give a big shout out THANKS to Alexandra, the moderator. She agreed to make this thread sticky!

When I am having trouble like that I get some Lifeway Kefir. Sooo many times in the past when I had lower GI issues, it helped.

Lifeway Kefir

During my pre-op diet I was on Atkins shakes and had normal, but less frequent BMs. Just before surgery things softened up a bit, but never like what was described here.

Margi,

It's really hard for us to comment too much what's best for you without knowing more about your situation.

For me, I had the discussion about "going open" and what should happen.. I told him under NO circumstances was he to do anything other than a LapBand.. NO bypass, etc.. period. If things fall apart, fix the damaged parts, close me up, and then let's review the situation.

BUT, I choose that path because I am not heavy enough (in my opinion) to get a bypass.

Cascadian might have offered a nice compromise.. Perhaps research that..

Surgery on a Thursday, was able to "work from home" on Monday and returned to my desk on Tuesday (wished I waited one more day)..

If you have a job on your feet, TAKE A WEEK!

Jillrn.. The pre-op diet seems to do 2 things..

1) shrinks your liver (so they say), my surgeon was impressed with mine

2) proves you can follow important instructions

An important part of this journey is making the needed changes in our lives to work with the band in a healthy way. As we all know, regaining the weight is not the worst thing that can happen if we don't follow instructions.. There are serious negative results for doing the wrong things.

Part of my pre-op testing including a psych eval to make sure I was in the right mental state to learn and follow the instructions.

I did cheat some on the pre-op diet, but it was really pretty minor and obviously worked since my surgeon reported a "nice and small" liver to my wife in the waiting room.

Hey Mike, You sure are right about that! And that is what we were facing if we kept at this pace. My BMI was 31.5 right before surgery, so I was worried I might not pass, but I did. Hubby is about your height; 6'2", and was facing a few more health issues, so I don't want to scare him off, with any probems I have!

Well he has to know it's not "quick, simple, or easy", but it is worth it, at least at this point.. lol... We'll see in a year, but I doubt my attitude will change. I want my next 20 years to be better than my previous, and it wasn't heading that way.

He knows that everyone reacts differently to surgeries, but he has been watching me waging war the past few days with terrible pains in my left ribs radiating into the shoulder. I was hoping to stay off the pain meds, but oh well, this too shall pass!

Oh yeah, and the constant hunger! I hope I can get over that eventually.

The gas pains can be tough, I had some pretty tough ones the first couple of days while I was on pain meds, but by day 3 I was able to drop back to liquid tylenol, and then nothing. Are you moving around enough? I've read that you need to "walk them out". OH.. almost forgot.. heating pad.. Amy found that a heating pad behind the right shoulder on medium would really help, she set that up for me, and YES MA'AM!

The constant hunger surprises me.. For the first several days I felt not only not hungry, I felt like I had a huge lump in my throat.. I did "eat", if that's what you call Atkins shakes and Apple juice, but real "hunger" was not an issue.

Good luck to you, I saw that you had your surgery the day after mine, and are already back to work! My job is very physical, and I could not imagine even trying to work yet.

Thanks and best of luck on your recovery! We'll rock this thing!

My work is desk jockey stuff, which honestly I could work from home, but the project manager I am "working for" is an ex-marine, so I only worked from home on Monday, and now pretty much just sit, type, talk, and drink 3 Atkin's shakes.. weeeeee

With a physical job, no freaking way.. I'd still be out of work, but restless at home.

Get your hubby on the guys thread so we can talk some sense into him...

The poll leaves a big gap.

My surgeon was out of network, so we had to pay $2k to max out my "out of pocket" expenses, but the hostiptal and everything else was in network....

Hey Lee..

They should be excited to watch you lead.. Sure there are some issues, but heck, some short term pain now is far better than ending up with a heart bypass due to weight issues... Carpe Diem should be their rally cry!

SWEET! Just what I was looking for... You guys have been busy with the posts, took a while to read all of them! So many fun things to talk about..

First off, mad props to OUSooner boy on reaching his goal!! AWESOME DUDE! BTW, how tall are you?

- Girl overload.. yeah, I think there are waaaay more women just due to the fact that they are wired differently. They actually "communicate"... Guys "fix stuff" together.. It's great to have a buddy over to work on a car, but talk about losing weight.. screw that! lol... Seriously... I'm just glad some of us have managed to do both!

- Tummy Tucks are NOT GAY, or retarded, or any other non-PC word you can think of. MY plastic surgery budget has already been spoken for by my wife who is 3 months ahead of me in banding.. She wants a boat load of stuff done (TT,Reduction,Lift,Lipo), and well frankly, she's worth it.. If I have enough loose skin at my goal, yeah, I might do something too..

- Costs.. I'm not sharing my story as the cash guys might whip my a$$.. But, just as a point of reference, a friend in the medical center business told me her clinics pay about $3,500 just for the device itself right now, so by the time everyone else gets paid, and the room, etc, $8-15K isn't all that surprising.. I just wish more of you had United Health Care Insurance.

- Sex Drive and weak a$$ wifely excuses about bands.. I'd have to look back near the top of the thread, but one guy said something about his wife saying no due to concerns about his band... yeah.. riiiight... and she has a head ache too... My wife has had no complications with HER band and our "quality time".... I'm not expecting any with my band either, but I'm just now feeling up to it post-op..

Oh, and, seriously guys, every ANNUAL physical, get the doc to check your T levels.. not just basic, but FREE Testosterone... Seriously, even if you're under 40... It is worth it to get that checked, because it will suck the life force right out of you, not just sex drive. There's no shame in using medicine to be 22 again! I want to be that dirty old man next door with the hot wife.. I've got all of it but the age, and that's coming !

- Beer! PLEASE someone tell me what their post-op experience has been so far.. Now keep in mind I'm a bit of a beer snob, so if crap like Bud Light and others are too carbonated, that is fine.. But what about things like Guiness, Bass, Sam Adams, etc..? PLEASE tell me it works.. I don't mind drinking it slowly.. Only bad beer must be chugged ice cold...

Mike

Are there any other "Banded Duos" out there lurking?

I was banded 15 Feb 07 and DW was in Oct 06.

I'm doing pretty well and am in that 1st 10 day loss period. She's getting a little frustrated cause my loss has passed her initial loss, but she honestly understands why... I was a BAD BOY just before my pre-op diet started. I got a lot of wild eating out of the way really just for the shear decadence of it.. lol So it was easy to lose that balloon weight...

Anywho, I was hoping to restart the thread and see how other couples were doing out there.. I'm really optimistic about it since we really now know what each other are going through.

Mike

I've been lucky without a lot of itching sensation, but it does mean it's healing, so it's good. It was great to finally take a shower and get the large gauze pads off.

As for applesauce, I've had a bit myself, but I put just a TINY bit in my mouth and washed it down with apple juice.< /p>

The Dr's guidelines are good and conservative and should work for most any body and worth following. My wife (banded in Oct) moved a little faster than the guidelines and did fine, it's really a matter of chewing well and not over doing it while you are still swollen and tight post-op.

Small amounts of Yogurt has done well for me too.

Kelly,

I so understand where you are coming from! Without question I was not at all happy about being "put to sleep".. In the end, it was fine.. You might call your surgeon and ask them about a Valium to take the day before, but honestly, you will be given something in the IV before they wheel you back.

"Is the surgery worth it...?" Well that is a question only you can answer for yourself. I asked that same EXACT question.. Here are my thoughts "HELL YES!" I am almost 40 and I knew that if I did not get my weight under control now, I was most certainly going to end up going under the knife for something like heart issues. Remember, this is not getting plastic surgery, this is about getting healthy for life. A lapband is a fantastic tool for that effort.

As for love life and weight loss.. oh man, as you can see first hand, it's tough, when you look at your 1st marriage.. My wife and I are about the same amount over weight, and we are now both banded, so we'll lose together. You didn't mention if your current hubby was chubby or not, but I have heard of cases where one side loses a LOT of weight and the other does not, and how this causes trouble.

Just a general thought, our choice to band, in the end, should be about our long term health, and perhaps while selfish to say this, in the end, our health should take 1st place to anyone else's wishes. Just in my opinion only, if any bandster purposely sabotaged their success because of a chubby hubby who started getting insecure, that is a huge mistake.. (just speaking in general here, not about you)

You are going to do great, focus on the road ahead and not the near term hurdle of surgery. It goes by faster than I thought, and honestly, it really was way easier than I thought it would be.

Good luck!

Mike

Surgery was successful and am back home doing better than expected..!

:clap2:

It's on now!

Feb 15th, 2007 at 11:00am Central Time, Seaton Hospital, Dr Clark (he ROCKS)

I am NOT looking forward to being "put under". (big chicken)

I AM looking forward to getting my weight back under control.

I AM going to carb out for 9 more hours... Pre-op diet starts tomorrow... Woo hoo.. Bacon and eggs for breakfast.. lol

:clap2:

this thread is great!!!! I'm HOPING my change.. changes the family, but dbf eats HORRIBLY.. and he is a night eater... I do worry about him, but it is HIS choice.. and I myself don't want the food police patroling so, I won't BECOME the food police....

One thing I have tried to instill in my 3 year old is that finishing our plates are NOT a race... (he is always saying.. I BEAT YOU)

I do hope that less junk and more healthy options will flood our home..... and even though fruit has carbs I think a cut up apple w/peanut butter is a far better choice than chips and a box of girl scout Cookies.

Good points Tracy..

Specifically..

- If DBF is having such a hard time, hopefully you will lead by example and he will follow. If not, he's killing himself slowly, like many of us were.. We all know about that..

- "cleaning the plate" is one of the WORST things my parents generation believed in. With our 7y/o the only time he is asked to eat anything is when he wiped out his starch but ignored his Protein (usually lean chicken, etc). I'll ask him to take a couple of bites of the Protein to balance the starch, but I don't care if 1/2 of his food goes to waste. I'll never make him eat. He goes in cycles.. When he is about to hit a growth spurt, he eats a lot, and we monitor the carb/protein balance just to help assure it's not too skewed. once the spurt is over, he eats like a bird.. all good in my book.

- We ditched most of the true junk, and the few chips are balanced with things to go with them. Apples with PB are great.. We found some good natural PB with no TransFats and we all seem to enjoy it. He also loves banannas. Carb haters can bugger off.. If my kid wants lots of fruit, he gets it. Chips/cookies/candy/soda... no.. they are very seldom in the house, and when it is, we'll have just a few and focus on savoring the taste of those few, not eating a box of them.. I want to leave him with the gift of healthy food attitudes.. Hopefully we succeed..