Holly Dolly

I know I have a hard time with chicken if I eat too fast. I now prefer boneless, skinless thighs compared to breast meat. Put them in the crockpot with a can of cream of whatever soup and it is good!

Sounds great! And just an FYI.....Hormel Brand turkey pepperoni is great! The calories per serving are 70 for 17 pieces and just a few go a long way.

You are a Rock Star!

I ate salmon almost every day in the beginning.

My doctor said before surgery that he uses both of the brands. Not sure why he chooses one over the other but I have the Lap-Band.

Are you still hungry? Is that why you think you need to shrink your stomach?

warm those feet back up! You will be happy a year from now, mark my words!

Set your goal to whatever you want it to be! I set my first goal to 160 because 75 pounds to lose seemed like an eternity away! I am now 155, with a goal of 140. The other morning I was thinking to myself, "Dang, I think I just might be able to keep going and get into the 130's!!"

I am so happy that you decided to go with Dr. Oliak. Take full advantage of the support groups offered. This coming up Monday's meeting is in the Chapman Hospital. Dr Oliak will be doing the class that night, you should try and go to it.

I was banded Feb 2011, I am down 80 some pounds. I still find it a struggle many days. The band has not controlled my hunger like I was hoping it would. Everyone is different. My brother had it a year before me and he can go all day without eating and not be hungry. Me? I am hungry about 2 hours after eating. I eat between 1000-1300 calories a day and aim for 60 grams of Protein. So what may be easy for some, isn't easy for all.

For the most part I eat the same thing as my family for dinner every night. I had 3 ounce steak, 1/4 c rice a roni and some green beans for dinner tonight. Like Shirley above, I also will have 1/4 mashed potatoes or a baked potato the size of a golf ball. You'll figure out what works for you. Because what works on one person may not work on another. I can pretty much eat anything if I eat only a small amount and eat slowly. The one thing I do miss though is snow peas. Even when I destring them, they seem to get stuck.

There really isn't anything that I wish I knew before the surgery. Except that the surgery and weightloss is not as easy as it looks like on the TV commercials! My best advise is to weigh/measure and journal everything you eat! If it wasn't for that, I could go go way my calorie allotment for the day. Linda, In the beginning when the weight was coming off slower than others in my support group, I was disappointed too. But then I would tell myself, "If I wouldn't have had the surgery, I could be heavier than the 238 I started at!" Believe me, I had to tell myself that many times! Here I am, 11 months out and down 80 pounds.

In the beginning I was discouraged because I wasn't losing as fast as some of the others. I was down 13 pounds the first month whereas others were down 25 or more. Slowly but surely it has come off. I am 11 months out and down 79 pounds. I have surpassed my goal of 75 pounds for the first year. The key for me is weighing and measuring everything I eat and keeping track of it in my journal.

I would have to say that I contribute a lot of my success to the support that I get on almost a weekly basis from my Dr.'s office. I couldn't imagine going out of the country and not having close access. I went camping this past summer, had a problem and my PA came into the office that night at 9:30 for me. I paid $13,900 for my surgery, which included all the support and 3 months follow-up visits. How much is the surgery in Mexico?

Sometimes I have a problem with eggs too. If I add 1/2 oz cheese to my egg whites they seem to go down easier and I don't feel them getting backed up. Last week I was getting tired of the same thing every day so I had a whole egg with 1 egg white and now realize that eggs alone will not go down as easy!

I have a 10cc band and I am filled to about 6.75 now. I don't feel restriction unless I am really hungry and take too big of a bite. The band has not helped control my hunger. I have been on phentermine for 2 months and now I am weaning back to 4 days a week of taking the pill. I think I need another fill, but the PA is concerned that I have too much now. She is happy with my weightloss and I think that is the reason she doesn't want to add anymore to the band. I weigh and measure everything I eat and I have accepted that that is all I get. The only dissappointment I have with the band is that I feel hungry within 2 to 2.5 hours after eating.

I am so very happy that I chose to go see Dr. Oliak. I had my surgery in Feb. 2011 and it was the best decision I have ever made. He and his entire staff are very professional, supportive and super nice. I had my surgery at Placentia Linda Hospital and they were great too. I believe that one of the main reasons I have done so well is the support that I get from Dr' Oliak's office. They offer a weekly support group meeting that I really enjoy and get a lot out of. I have met new friends who have gone through weight loss surgery with Dr. Oliak also and this too is a HUGE support system for me. I have a few friends who have had the lap band done elsewhere and they have not been as successful. I really believe that the support you will receive from Dr' Oliak and his staff and fellow patients is what sets this place apart from others.

I was banded on Feb 4th, just had my first fill on March 7th. I have been eating around 1000 calories a day and I too have only lost 13 pounds. Looks like we are in the same boat! But it will come.....

Good luck everyone going in for banding today and later this week! I was banded on Feb 4th and doing pretty good if I do say so myself. I have slight shoulder pain from the gas, but nothing that is intolerable. I have been drinking my shakes and tolerating everything. Have felt hungry at times too, so looking fwd to the first fill!