Kristi Twisti

Sounds like you are going in the right direction. Good for you and good luck with your surgery. =)

Awe that's great about your son's family. I thought the girl was brought up wonderfully too.

When I got married in May, 2009 I had to be at about my highest weight. I had stopped checking my weight long before so I imagine I was somewhere around 400 pounds. Hubby and I got married at Disney and were having our photos done in one of the hotel lobbies. A woman came up to us and apologized for the interuption but said she had to tell me something. She said her small daughter had asked her if they would get to see any Disney princesses and she told her that they wouldn't until they got to the parks. Her daughter had then pointed to me and said "but mom, there's a princess!". I know I had likely gushed my thanks at the time. I wish I could let her know what an incredibly sweet and touching gesture this was. Considering at 400 pounds, even in my wedding dress I truly looked nothing like Cinderella or any of the other princesses, but it really goes to show what beautiful souls children and even adults can have, This memory has remained with me and fluttered into my mind while sitting at work today. I've never blogged before but such a happy memory is certainly a good place for me to start. -K T

The rapid weight loss can throw your body off and make you miss periods. You can always double check with your doctor though, it can't hurt!

Hi I was banded March 2011 in Tampa, FL and just moved to Fayetteville NC. I was hoping to find a local lapbander to be buddies with. Having someone around who is going through the same thing can be a big help. Send me a message!

Congrats on your pregnancy and engagement! Prayers sent regarding the cancer!

Hey Kelly have you at any point reached a fill level where things like bread just wouldn't go down? I can't do bread at all anymore. I guess after making myself throw up so many times (bad of me I know) I am now scared of bread. I still eat Cookies and cakes but don't even crave bread anymore. I've been so bad with my band it's amazing I haven't had a slip or worse! But basically I fought and fought with my band and finally let my band win. I don't know if this is what most people go through but I fought against it, like you are now. So with eating bread, do you have to drink after to make it go down or are you vomitting a lot? I can't drink after I eat otherwise everything comes up. But when I try to eat something (or when I did) it would just get stuck until it came back up on its own. When I was first banded, and even after my first couple of fills, I was still going out and eating subs and french toast and all that yummy stuff. I think it was my third fill that I finally felt a tightness that made me give up bread and things. Then on my next fill, it was obvious that it was impossible to even try anymore. Currently I have 5.3cc in a 10cc band. I really need a fill at this point but I am holding off for a bit. Rally just due to me moving away from my surgeon and needing to find a new one. lol I think getting into get a fill and discussing your concerns with your doctor will be a great thing. Also coming on here helps you see that you aren't alone and everyone is dealing with these issues too.

Hi Justin! I've been banded almost 10 months now so I'm a little bit ahead of you. Haha! I am trying to make some friends on here as it keeps me coming on here and accountable. I find when I let myself of this site for awhile I tend to lose focus. Send me a message with any questions or anything and good luck to you!!

Just wanted to say Hi and send a word of encouragement! The positive part of this is that you are already banded so no surgery that has to be done and no crazy pre-op dieting or insurance to deal with. I would try and look at this as a fresh positive start to 2012!! You've already made the appointment with your doctor so you're on your way. What do you think your real problem areas are? You said stubborness but what exactly? I know with me, I'm horrible with cookies, ice cream, anything sweet and sugary. Apparently my band hates everything thats not dipped in sugar. I think it is all in my mind though so I have to work on that!! Feel free to message me if you want or respond here but regardless, I wish you the best of luck!! It takes courage to get started again so you are already ahead of the curve!!

Thanks so much Mimi I am not going to do anything to my nerve, but sometimes I do want to. I need the health benefits of my band too much to have it out so for now we are stuck together. Actually I won't ever have Bandy out if I don't have too, but we sure do "fight" a lot. It always wins though. I think I may actually be a bit to tight but I'm just trying to push through it and it has already loosened a little. I also know now, I cannot have spicey foods. That wing was rough!!

:cry_smile: I guess this is me needing to vent/rant but I am really getting tired of being in so much pain. I get that I shouldn't be putting myself into a bad situation in the first place. I really thought I was doing better with my chewing and I've been vomitting a lot less. But today, I attempted a hot wing. I'm not good with spicey things, this was just a wing purchased pre-cooked at my grocery store. It was so spicey, I was tearing up just chewing it and I stopped half way through the wing. Bandy told me off the bat something was wrong. The stupid wing burned going down, burned in my little stomach then burned on the way back up when it finally chose too. Fine, so that sucked, but then why must the Vagus nerve sit there and make me feel like my arm is falling off also. I actually had it hurt so bad from my wretching once that I called in my hubby and asked that he carry my arm to the bathroom so I could check it out. It felt broke, from my shoulder down to my finger tips. I mean this really sucks!! Has anyone else dealt with this? I thought I was nuts until we discussed it at my surgeons support group. So that helped me mentally, but physically I don't want to feel like I have a broken arm or carpal tunnel when Bandy gets annoyed with me. Hopefully I don't sound like a lunatic I just really needed to vent! lol :myscared:

Sweetcalichic is so right!! I watch my hubby with food, or anyone else really and I get jealous at times. However, the weight loss is so worth it. Within months of being banded, I've gotten so much more energy, gone down many clothes sizes and just feel more comfortable in my own body. I do vomit often but you do start to learn, I am nearing 7 months out from being banded and still forget I have it sometimes, but I am learning. Being banded is truly a process, with its ups and downs but things will improve. Good luck to you!!

Hey there Congrats on being on your way! My surgeon put me on a 2 week liquid diet, pre-op. I was on protein shakes and water with crystal light. It was really hard but I lost 26 pounds in 2 weeks. lol It may be something to consider if you need a quick reduction or if it's coming down to the wire for you. I was put on this with the purpose of shrinking my liver, I wasn't given a weight reduction requirement or anything. Good luck with everything, the surgery is worth it.

Checking in ! October 01st ~ 324.0 pounds October 08th ~ 320.6 pounds

I wonder if the few days of the full feeling are possibly your body being swollen from the fill? I would think it would take a few days for the swelling to go down. I hope you can get this situation fixed and not have to deal with surgery again!

Sounds like fun!! :Dancing_wub: Name, real or screen~ Kristi Age~ 27 Weight on October 1st~ 324 Goal Weight for October 29th~ 304 Exercise Goal for October~ walk, walk, walk!! Dietary Goal for October~ Protein and much more water!! Personal Goal for October~ walking longer distances!! Date Banded~ 03/24/11 Total Weight Loss Since Banding~ 69 pounds

Hi Kristi from Brooksville, FL banded 03/24/11!!

Hi there if you are ever nervous, you are perfectly fine to call your doctors office. They always have someone on call who can help. Having said that, is your pain where they put your port? It will decrease but you will have a lot of discomfort at your port site for awhile. Even 6 months out, if I twist or move an odd way I will sometimes feel it pull and then it'll bother me for a day or two. It gets sutured right to your muscle and just hurts everyone from what I gather. Also, are you still taking your pain meds? I don't really like taking the heavy duty stuff they give so I got some childrens tylenol in grape. It is so sugary and good it's like a dessert. lol I hope this helps!

Hi Grace The 5% weight loss is an interesting requirement. There are so many crazy requirements; I don't get it. If we could all lose weight on our own, we wouldn't need the surgery!! I know, my surgeon put me on a 2 week liquid diet prior to the surgery. It was to shrink the liver, or whatever it is that sits in front of the stomach. Anyhow, in that 2 weeks time I lose 26 pounds. I was taking in 3 - 5 protein shakes a day. Now I don't really advocate going that hardcore because it was horrible and if you don't have to do this for pre-surgery, you are lucky! However, it will rip the weight off if you can't seem to get it off any other way. I don't consider Takins to be very healthy but it can take some intital weight off pretty quick. My husband is doing weight watchers and he loves it. He didn't join, he just went online and googled to find how many points he could have, and then just went and bought Smart Ones at the store. He's had great success with that and Smart Ones actually taste good so it's easy to stay on it. There are lots of coupons online for Smart Ones also so maybe this could be a good option! I hope this helps. You are on the right track with getting banded. Good Luck!!

I was at my surgeons support group meeting and one of the banded nurses mentioned that sometimes after a fill, water can have trouble going down. The surgeon recommends adding crystal light which adds just enough weight to the water to help it go down. It's weird but I've found it works. I hope this helps!

I tend to be a total worrier also, but I'm not sure you can ever be to careful, especially right after surgery. Does your insurance card have a nurse helpline you can call? I have one and find it really helpful. Otherwise just call your surgeons office, they always have a doc on call that will get back with you.

:Dancing_wub: Hi There. I'll be honest, I've been on the flip side of that. It took me a long time to get restriction. I first felt it some on my fill 2 months ago but after losing a few pounds, that did go away. I got a fill a few days ago and now feel real restriction. It's great, I just haven't been experiencing hunger. I wonder how long the woman had her band before it had to be removed or how full it was. I am now at 5.3cc of a 10cc band. One thing to consider is that while you may not feel restricted, you will still be eating much less. Yes, feeling hungry sucks but the band is just a tool, you still have to eat healthier and make better choices for it to work. I do hope you decide on the band or at least keep it as an option. It does work, just more slowly than other options. If you look at the statistics for weight loss between the various surgeries in the long term, you'll see they all get similar results in the end. Plus something else to consider, the band is adjustable, the sleeve and bypass can be stretched back out. I've seen many bypass patients in the band info meetings, 5 or 10 years out with all their weight regained. Just something else to consider. I hope it helps.

Hi Ash! I went to info meetings with the expectation that gastric bypass was my only option at my size but my surgeon saw no reason for me to not go with the band. I'm about 4 months post op and down 54 pounds and my BMI is about 10 points lower already. Please don't be discouraged from getting the band, look at all your options and decide what is best for you. Good Luck!!