GLove

i have not yet been banded, so excuse the ignorance here. Many of you refer to restriction, saying you feel more restriction after a fill. What is it that you feel? Is it a greater feeling of fullness after a bit of food than before the fill? Do you feel restricted immediately after surgery or is it only after a fill? does the restriction ease up after awhile? Trying to understand this term. Thank you.

i have not yet been banded, so excuse the ignorance here. Many of you refer to restriction, saying you feel more restriction after a fill. What is it that you feel? Is it a greater feeling of fullness after a bit of food than before the fill? Do you feel restricted immediately after surgery or is it only after a fill? does the restriction ease up after awhile? Trying to understand this term. Thank you.

Excellent post B-52. Thank you.

B-52, Thanks for your comment. I see you have been banded one year now. Can you recap your year for me? Any regrets? Any advice for those of us looking to be banded in 2012?

Post surgery and after losing some weight, do your feel less pain in your feet? Easier to walk? Thanks

Dannorex, your 2 pixs tell your story! Congrats. You look great. I also needed to hear what you said about this being the best thing you have done for yourself. My day is coming. Meet with surgeon Jan 12 and surgerynwill be scheduled for late February. I know I will have doubts, but I have researched this for over a year now and have decided to do it. I love salads too and thought that was a no-no as it could get stuck. Have you had any problems getting stuck? If so, with what foods? Thank you.

Good Luck! i started journey last March and hope to be banded by March 1. Please let us know how your surgery goes.

@ Banded DD: what a wonderful, uplifting post. Congratulations on your success. I really needed to read a post like yours today. I have not yet had the surgery, but feel better about my choice after reading your post.

Last month at a WLS support group they discussed Inositol for supporting hair growth after WLS. People using it for that purpose had good success with it. Google it and talk to your doctor about it. Most important thing you can do is get your daily protein.

Good luck. Please let us know how things go.

@ michele- thinking about you today and wondering how you are feeling about your surgery on Monday?

I have heard many people recommend biotin for hair loss. Has anyone heard of taking Inositol?. Last week at the LB support group meeting Inositol was discussed and found that several people were using it and they ALL said it was effective in supporting hair growth. It's a part of the Vitamin B complex and works as a cellular rebuilder. In googling it, it seems to have many uses. Just wanted to pass along this bit of information so you can check it out. Has anyone used it and if so did you find it effective?

Yes, i have officially been on this journey since March. I have thought about it and read about it for years. I have worked in the athletic department of D-1 school for 36 yrs and have self taught on nutrition and wellness. I was even a Aerobic instructor for about 5 yrs. I have worked out at least 5x per week since I was 21 yrs old. I LOVE excercising...i cant go a day without some form of aerobics. I am now into kettlebells and crossfit training....much of what our athletes are doing. BUT, Im a good 75 lbs overweight and just cant get it off. My problem is portion control and binge eating at night. I am textbook during the day and something clicks in the evening and I go crazy. I recently lost 20 lbs eating clean. I will be getting a Feb surgery date and frankly, I dont think I will be able to do it.

Michele, I'm so glad I have helped you. You have lots of time to consider this and no one should go into it without fully understanding it. It's a lifelong commitment. OMG, you are so lucky to have full access to the gym and nutritionist. USE IT! Make yourself a priority. Make this MISSION MICHELE and get in the gym and get it done. Get the book EAT CLEAN DIET by Tosca Reno. Use all your resources. If you are an athlete you have a competitive spirit and NEED to win. Do it for yourself Michele. You deserve it. Good luck.

You say you are getting back into your sport. Obviously, you must be training and competing. That expends alot of calories. Learn to feed your body what it needs to be competitive. I assume you have a coach who will guide you and teammates to keep you motivated. Watch the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead streaming free on Netflix. Very motivating.

Michele, no worries...since you are paying for this yourself, you can delay it a bit and see if you can be succesful with a smart eating plan. You say you dont have a clue what you are doing. If this is true then you should NOT have surgery yet. Research the hell out of this, understand what you will put your body through, realize what your life will be like for the next 60 yrs. You have time. You are only 22 yrs old. Get back into your sports and eat CLEAN. Go to EATCLEAN.com. Eat lots of protein, veggies, fruit and water. Cut out the junk, soda and sugar. You cant eat junk after WLS. As you have heard, lapband is only a tool. It does not fix the head....you will still have cravings. This is just my opinion. I wouldnt be saying the same thing to a 45 yr old who has been yo-yoing for yrs, facing diabetes and is morbidly obese.

Michele, no worries...since you are paying for this yourself, you can delay it a bit and see if you can be succesful with a smart eating plan. You say you dont have a clue what you are doing. If this is true then you should NOT have surgery yet. Research the hell out of this, understand what you will put your body through, realize what your life will be like for the next 60 yrs. You have time. You are only 22 yrs old. Get back into your sports and eat CLEAN. Go to EATCLEAN.com. Eat lots of protein, veggies, fruit and water. Cut out the junk, soda and sugar. You cant eat junk after WLS. As you have heard, lapband is only a tool. It does not fix the head....you will still have cravings. This is just my opinion. I wouldnt be saying the same thing to a 45 yr old who has been yo-yoing for yrs, facing diabetes and is morbidly obese.

Thank you Dave. If I Could be assured that my WLS after-life would be like yours, I would do it tomorrow. I change my mind daily and it's driving me crazy. I feel like Im resiging to a class of weakness by getting the band although intellectually I realize it takes much more strength to live a banded life.,,, thank you so much for your comments.

I am just one voice asking questions. I am not judging or telling you what to do. I am 57 and looking back at a 22 yr old woman and asking the questions i would have wanted someone to ask me. I think 22 is too young to make such a drastic, life long decision. You are barely out of college. How do you know you cant lose this weight? Have you really tried since gaining? What I have found in my yrs of researching this and i still havent made up my mind is that WLS will be the most difficult "diet" ( i fully understand it is not a diet, thus the quotation marks) that you will ever do. Smart eating plan and exercising seems way easier than what you have to put your body through with WLS....BUT, WLS gets results you may not get with diet and exercise. It's a tough decision. Im going through all of it myself. I have a feb surgery date and trying to prove to myself that I can get it done without WLS. I am super competitive person and feel "weak" if I have to resort to WLS.

You are 22 and a competitive athlete? How much overweight are you? What is your sport? Do you want to compete again? Do you miss the tough workouts? Did you enjoy them? Have you tried to get back into working out and eating the way your coach taught you?

Michele, you are only 22 yrs old. Can you do this through your 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's? Have you exhausted all non- surgical options? I'm 57 and wondering if i can do this through my 60's and70's. I can't imagine making this life decision at 22. But that's me. Good luck to you.

Michele, you are only 22 yrs old. Can you do this through your 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's? Have you exhausted all non- surgical options? I'm 57 and wondering if i can do this through my 60's and70's. I can't imagine making this life decision at 22. But that's me. Good luck to you.

I hear ya. I am in the same boat you are but my insurance pays for it all. I hear good and then bad... I get motivated to do it on my own and then I fail. I dont know if i can make the lifelong changes. Do you just do it and make it happen? am I over-thinking it? Yikes......

Is lapband surgery really easier than following a healthy diet/exercise plan? I hear of reflux, being stuck, slippage, fills, Vomiting, head hunger, hair loss, not enjoying alcohol, Water not going down, pills not going down, constipation...etc. In all the research I have done, getting serious about diet seems much easier life than being banded for life. What do you post- banders think? Im a pre bander just trying to make the right decision....

Although this blog writer had gastric bypass, her blog is an excellent resource of information, recipes and advice for WLS patients. I love reading through it: theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com