stratcat

I had severe stomach problems after my band due to the strong meds. The antibiotic in particular. A call to my PA helped, he took me off meds as soon as he could.

Hi, I wanted to check in and see if there were others like me out there who had success and then for whatever reason......stopped pushing to lose and just maintained? I am ready to restart and want to connect with other restarters.... I would like to hear your experience and be part of your support team and would like you to be part of mine. (also some of the newbies here need to hear some stories about trials from people that were not instantly successful BUT are still trying).....I think there are more strugglers out there than instantly successful folks ( by this I mean folks who have surgery, lose their weight and live happily ever after). In my warped world eating was/is too big of a problem for surgery alone to solve. I am not ashamed to say ( at least I am trying not to be ashamed) that I still struggle with choices. My reasons to stop were VERY valid. For those of you who are just banded, don't Freak out when I tell u this but life can throw you some curves and the band is forgiving. You can fill it up and diet like mad or you can deflate it and deal with family crisis, health emergencies, or emotional needs. The band is a lifetime thing. Not a RACE to the end. So if anyone out there is thinking of scolding me or anyone who responds to my post.....DON'T......

Be gentle with yourself. Life is about learning how to pick yourself up and go on. Not allowing in a mistake to keep you down. Celebrate that you are learning and growing. We all go through the same thing. Over and Over again. Different situations, same feeling of worthlessness. And, just as you would tell me, I am telling you. Go easy on yourself. I made up my mind that i was only fat. Others have their own crutches - drugs, alcohol, affairs, spending habits......whatever. ..............And I am learning to deal with my problem. But thanks for posting your feelings. I learned from your post and the others who posted. I have been beating myself up for the fact that I quit after the first 60 lbs. I am going to take my own advice and be gentle with myself, acknowledge why I stopped after the first 60 lbs,and simply go on to lose 60 more. You are on the right road. The first couple miles (weeks) are bumpy. Have faith - it gets SO much better. You will be smiling in no time.

How r u feeling now? I do not understand what is going on with you well enough to offer specific advise. BUT, I will tell you what I would do and have done on many occasions. When I had something happen that I did not understand I called my doctor's office and asked to talk to the Lap band nurse. Usually most bariatric practices have a nurse that takes calls from perspective, pre and post lap band surgery folks. She had time to listen, answer questions and offer advice. In the one or two situations (I called plenty - I took her at her word that she was happy to be of help) she escalted my question/situation to the doctor or PA. She would usually call me back in a couple of hours and let me know what the doctor said. Just talking to her made me feel better. Most of my questions she was able to handle with some simple words of advice, encouragement and sympathy. I love nurses. DO NOT feel embarrased to call your doctor about anything. But PLEASE, remember your manners and ask your questions nicely and thank everyone who takes the time to talk to you and help you. I hope you are feeling better.

Hi, back to my fav. lap band site. Banded 2/15/11. I am a 50 year old female. 6' tall and 320 (Oh say it wasn't so - but it was) at my highest. My port is located above my left breast and is hidden by bra strap. (my doctor perfers this location - and it seems to work just great and is covered by most bathing suits) I include this info in case anyone wants to ask me questions about my unique port site. I am a self-pay who took advantage of a $10,000 package available here in Middle Georgia (now $12,000 ). I include this for those of you who are considering self-pay. As I said, I was banded Feb 15, 2011 and lost 60 lbs within 6 months. My journey has been atypical. I have had alot of stops and starts. I have had several over-fill issues and my lap band service center has changed three times. First my hospital closed the bariatric surgery center, then my new doctor moved, and now finally, I think I have got a steady place. I rebounded 10 -15 lbs when i had to have the band totally emptied then work back up to a reasonable fill level. Now that i have a new place to go to see a doctor and get fills I have decided to stop coasting and start working on losing the rest of my weight. I hope to be chatting with people on the board and sharing your experinces as well as finding encouragement for myself. Feel free to drop me a line. Terri

Hi everyone, I dug back in the archives, read this over again, and was so moved by the replys (all over again) that I wanted to share it with everyone that is new to the site.

I bought $10 worth of baby food. Only attempted to eat one --- and donated the rest to a food drive. It was NOT for me.

Hi, I am concerned about how tired you are......... I think you should talk it over with your doctor's office. It just seems a little more than what I or others I know of, experienced. I walked through my workplace the next day to prove that I survived. I went back to work on Monday, (surgery on Thursday)..... My doctor's office said that most folks do the same thing: Surgery Thursday, Work on Monday. Especially the folks that don't tell anyone what they have done..(as they told me YOU WOULD BE AMAZED) .....but for you to be a week out and still so weak that you are sleeping so much-- perhaps it is your meds causing this fatigue............. BUt since the first month is for healing........and no one can dispute that sleeping is the best medicine........you may be just fine ....... Call your doctor's office. If your doc's secretary is like my doc's, she will provide some advice, or catch the doctor in the hallway for a quick opinion, or (as happened with me only 1 time - get the PA on the line ASAP ). As for your feelings -- they might be causing some of the fatigue... Some folks can be so cruel, and petty. Try to keep your chin up (your much smaller and cuter chin) If feelings continue -- you may do what i am doing and consider a councilor ---- I have finally resolved myself to going. I have some self-sabotage head talk going on that I wanna sort out. Besides, the band is only physical - my mind got me to the place I was JUST as much as my stomach did. I am slowly realizing that I gotta deal with my emotional eating behaviors..... and the band won't fix them. But as far as the haters go .......... Looking Great is ALWAYS the best revenge. Let them eat their nasty little hearts out. Best wishes for a successful journey. Terri.

Well, this may not be what you want to hear, but this is what I would tell my BFF. Your health care folks are the ones to heed and trust. But, truly they do not seem too worried as they asked you questions (and got good answers that made it plain you were eating sensibly) and let you go home with only the follow-up appointment. Basically, they are in wait, watch and see mode. I would think that if you keep losing as this rate, they will do something to slow you down, as it is a strain on the body to change too fast. Also, skin elasticity becomes an issue and we all want tight skin. Also, you want to burn fat only, not fat and muscle. But nearly everyone with big drops slow way down after the first month. (I did) ........And sometimes, they then plateau for a month or two. (three for me).. There was a recent post on this site asking folks 6 months or farther out from surgery how much we had lost at 6 months. And it was kinda cool. We all had lost about 50 lbs (give or take 10 lbs) but some had been fast, then slow and some had been steady. I loved it because it showed me that WE ARE ALL GONNA GET THERE IN OUR OWN TIME If the doctor's office does end up slowing your weight loss down a little, don't sweat it, you will have a band for the rest of your life. Enjoy the jouney. Terri

Hi, saw your post, and that today was your first fill. GOOD LUCK. I hope you post back and say that is was so easy that you will never be nervous again. Terri

The threat that I mentioned is on the pre-lap board and is called: Bandster basics & a day in the life (168 lbs down and 2 years out) It 's last post was on 9/15, but since you have the title, use the search up in the right hand corner. Also, if you leave a comment, you will bring the threat up to current so others can enjoy this post too. Once again, it is REALLY worth finding and reading. Terri

We All worry about this kinda stuff......... you are normal. There is a really good thread on the pre-lap board that really addresses many of your questions (it might be burried a little bit, but look for it, it has about 2000 reads last time I checked. and it is written by a successful bandee to people with just your questions.) LET ME KNOW IF YOU CANNOT FIND IT - it is a wonderful post. As for everything else, take it one day at a time, one question at a time. I called the doctors office to talk to them CONSTANTLY about my fears - they had one particular person who dealt with calls like this and gave advice. And later, after surgery, she was the one who told me that either everything was normal (many times) or that I needed to talk to the PA about this situation (only once, and he took me off a med that was too strong for my stomach). Before surgery: I FINALLY settled down and relaxed when I was patiently told that it was a 45 minute out-patient surgery. i had somehow built the surgery up in my mind to something bigger than it was. After surgery: I have had my bumps: an overfill and intolerance to a med (raging diarreah - ew); And I still could have a problem - but seriously I am off my Blood Pressure meds (122/80 today) and no cholesteral meds anymore ......and I am not even half way an my weight loss journey. It has been wonderful--for me. I now longer agonize on how and what I am going to eat: the answer is anything I want that I can tolerate in a small portion. BUT: you must decide what is right for you: ask your questions and demand answers: I was truly pissed when I was told i would have to give up diet coke and wanted (DEMANDED) to know WHY- which I found out- and now I don't even want it. Also, I was pissed when I found out that you have to go back on liquids for a few days after a fill.......at my first fill. (I thought someone shoulda told me earlier ) Good luck, Terri

I had lost just over 50, but stalled out in last part of June due to an overfill............I think I just needed a break,(and my doctor's office said that it was OK -- the band is forever). I have lost about 6 more in the last 2 months --- ( almost 60 lbs in 8 months - PTL). I have an appointment later this month for a fill to get me back on track. My last fill was in June. I thought I'd get aggressive and try to loose 20 more by Christmas. I am not even half way yet....but I feel no rush and am hoping the slow approach keeps my skin tight. (I am 48 years old). I have a long journey, almost 150 lbs -- so I decided to take it slow and steady and enjoy the journey. I wish you a wonderful journey, too! BTW - the thing below is inaccurate and i forgot PW to update.

My port is above my left breast, about 2 inches down from arm pit level. It is sewn into the muscle so that it moves naturally. It is very easy to find, and sometimes sticks out a little if I move just right. (I think I busted a anchor stitch my first day home after operation -- I don't care for this but so far it is very unnoticable to others ). The skin is thinner, so the doctor/PA uses a smaller needle to fill the port, and I never need him to numb the area. So far so good with this location. A bathing suit strap, or bra hides it easily. And the scar is nearly gone --- this part of the body seems to have healthier skin than my stretch-marked abdomen. So where's your at ............... and what are the pros and cons for you?