SageTracey

I didn't announce it to the world when I went on the pill or blood pressure tablets. Neither did I announce it when I had my surgery. I just kept it to immediate family who I wanted to know in case of any complications with the surgery. Now I am happy to share, especially when people who have a weight problem ask. But I do regard the surgery as my personal medical information and have dealt with in the same way. There is nothing dishonest about not telling people. In the early days I would say that I was watching what I was eating plus exercising more - true on both counts.

WTG. Just be sure to build up at a regular pace and don't overdo things and set yourself back. Congrats.

Go for it and enjoy!

I guess it depends on the state of your marriage going into this. My husband (married 28 years) is my best friend, greatest supporter and all round champion. Not only did he suggest I look at lap band surgery (which I was already starting to do), but he has been beside me every step of the way, literally. He is not a morning person but now he gets out of bed with me every morning to exercise. We walk, cycle and dance together. I love swimming but he was a non-swimmer so he went and got adult swimming lessons. He does not judge me when I slip up but he is always there with a hand to support me. He is genuinely proud of my achievements and takes great delight, when we catch up with people, in saying, "Oh, you haven't seen Tracey for a while. Isn't she looking great!" So for me, absolutely no marriage trouble, but I have read of it with other bandsters. Good luck.

What is a flex belt?

That's a difficult one to measure in my house as my youngest moved out soon after I was banded so the grocery bill naturally dropped. Hubby is great and prefers to eat healthy with me so we are spending our dollar wisely but I am not sure that it has come down that much.

I suspect you could be a little too tight but best to speak with your dr.

You are only just getting your second fill so you are still quite early in your banded life. Remember, this is a life change, a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time for you to get restriction and for the band to work as you expect. Keep following your dr's advice and you will be fine.

Congratulations! What a wonderful outcome. Best NSV ever!

and here you are talking to people! LOL. Great advice already given so I won't repeat it. Good luck.

Congratulations on your first day of graduate school. The fact that you recognise this as a stressful event means you are well on the way to coping with it without emotional eating. WTG! Best wishes.

Sorry I can't offer any insights but I just want to wish you well in getting answers! Please let us know how you go.

Agree with all of the above posters, however, it sounds like you need to reset your mind as well. I found that having small goals and rewards has worked well for me. i.e. to get down from a size 24/26 to size 18 - reward - some new clothes. To look great at my son's wedding - my reward - looking and feeling great and wearing an awesome dress. To get below 100kg - reward - a new gold watch. I am a bit stalled at the moment but have realised that this is because I don't have a specific goal to work towards. I have signed up for and am training for the Great Victorian Bike Ride at the end of November, but I already have a good level of fitness and all the gear that I will need to complete the ride so it is not helping me to work towards a goal. Time to get serious with myself and set a new goal!

glad to hear you are trying to get into your dr's as a matter of priority. Ongoing reflux as you describe can also damage your oesophagus.

Firstly, you are not a failure! Sounds to me as though your dr was not listening to you. Can you be more assertive in insisting on a fill? Explain that you are able to eat larger portions, that you are getting hungry after short periods of time and that your weight loss has stalled. Reassure him that you are making healthy food choices and are exercising, because if all of these things are true then you almost certainly need a fill.These are the standard questions that my surgeon discusses with me every time I go in for a visit. Sometimes I come away without a fill because we agree (i.e. my care is a partnership!) If he still refuses, then I would be looking for another dr to manage my care.

Hang in there! It is really difficult for our loved ones to understand what we are going through and also why they cannot necessarily see the weight just melting off us. Remind your husband, and yourself, that this is a marathon, not a sprint. Thank him when he is supportive and choose your battles when he is not. For example, I don't kick up a fuss when my husband chooses not to get up early and bike ride with me but I make sure I thank him for the yummy healthy meals that he prepares for us.

Hey Elcee, hope you start getting some answers quickly! It's a real shame that GPs can refer us to specialists for the lapband yet know so little about it themselves. Wouldn't it be great if our surgeons had a GP-pack of information that we could take back to our GPs so that they at least have some good basic information on our files! Good luck and take care.

You are definitely not the only one, in fact, it is perfectly normal. Just keep on doing what you have been doing and keep your eye on the big picture. You'll be right!

One reason for the four week gap between fills is that sometimes it can take a couple of weeks for the effect of the fill to be felt. Having fills too close together could mean that you end up overfilled and need to see your surgeon again for a slight unfill.

I am always starving after exercise, especially swimming. Sometimes I wish I couldn't eat afterwards.

My major incision didn't heal as well as the others. On my first follow up visit, my surgeon cut off the yukky bits and pulled it together again with a steristrip. It is still my largest scar but really doesn't bother me and certainly doesn't affect getting fills.

The excess skin question is one that even the experts cannot answer because our bodies all behave in their own way. I was worried about it initially but quickly realised that I would rather live healthily with excess skin (and the option of surgery to remove it down the track) than to live a shortened, unhealthy life as a morbidly obese person. With a 63kg weight loss so far, I am loving the healthier lifestyle and am not terribly fussed (yet) about my excess skin.

Could be inner ear, could be vertigo, could be, could be, could be lots of things. Good luck.

Just a thought, I get shoulder pain when I eat too quickly or too much. I am 16 months post op.

Don't give up on yourself. Yes, yourself. You made the decision to get WLS, you jumped through all of the hoops. In hindsight, you may feel that you were not adequately prepared to live the life of a bandster. Now you know more than you did before. Now you have experienced how great it feels when those pounds are coming off. I'm guessing that all of your reasons for originally getting the band are still present and still valid. So here's what I suggest you do. Suck it up and face up to a berating from your surgeon. Tell him/her that you are ready to recommit and you need their help and support. Nothing that you have told us indicates an issue with the band that means it should be removed. You still have the opportunity to make this tool work for you. You are worth it. Give it another go !