NWgirl

The port should be under the largest incision either on the left or right of belly button. I have heard of some rare placements where it is by the breast bone, but the most common is by the belly button.

I have 4cc currently after two, 2cc fills. I definitely am forced to eat slower. I feel some restriction and like where I am now. I am thinking I need one or two more cc to be perfect.

If you do not eat enough protein, then you may lose hair. It seems a lot of us take biotin to prevent hair loss.

"Bandwagon" and also an accompanying book. If you go to her website http://jean-onthebandwagon.blogspot.com/ you will see the books for sale on the left hand side.

You should check out the band with plication thread they have going on here. I have not heard of someone getting it after the fact, but know I would have opted for it if my Dr would have been performing it.

Schedule one of the seminars and see if it sounds like something you'd want to do. Maybe try to find local bandsters in your area and meet up with them and talk about your desires and expectations and see what they say.

I would say if you want to give formal weight loss one more go, do it. I would even say do a supervised diet like you would be required to do for insurance (if you have insurance, this would be a plus and possibly one of the requirements you would have to satisfy anyways). This way you can really decide if you can do it alone or if you need the band as a tool. I can honestly say the last big diet hurrah I did consisted on exercise 5-6 days a week and 1200 calories a day for 5 months. After 3 months, I stopped losing, and at 5 I decided all the work and diet was not worth it if I wasn't seeing results and was always hungry. With the band, I acclimated to the lower calories for my pre-op diet and post-op diet. I am technically on a "diet" now, but with my second fill I can definitely feel the restriction and am forced to eat slower and eat less. I feel so hopeful and excited about my band and the idea that food will no longer rule me. Heck, even at almost two months post op, food is not the main focus anymore!

Honestly, the healing all depends on various factors with the individual (age, activity level prior to surgery, etc). I, personally, flew to/from Las Vegas for a work convention four days after surgery and spent a lot of time up and about. I felt almost 100% normal after day three but did make sure to take my pain meds and a small pillow to hold against my tummy just in case I started to get sore. My main advice would be to have dedicated liquids for your diet. My hotel room did not have a fridge so I had to do soft foods for a day until I got back home.

I stayed up til 2am the night of and had to be at the hospital at 5:30am. It was easier to keep my mind busy watching movies and such than try to restlessly sleep

The point of the liquid diet is so the stomach is not pushed to churn, which it does to digest solids. By not churning, the sutures have a better chance of getting healed and in place much better. I am sorry your Dr didn't seem to care much. I actually find that the dietician at my clinic is the best contact, as the surgeon is a wee standoffish. It's nothing personal, just her nature, and she does answer all questions I pose.

I have never tried to get pregnant, but can only imagine the pain it can bring if you can't have children. At least now the cards look in your favor, and if this isn't the one, there is much hope it will come in the future!

I am 23, 5'7" and weighed 250-260 at the start of my process. I have hypothyroidism, but have been medicated for it since January. Prior to deciding on WLS, I had tried so many diets and exercises to lose the weight and always failed. I figured that if I couldn't do it working my hardest, I might as well get WLS because the weight wasn't coming off any other way and I'd rather get the band now without all of the other health problems related to obesity than get it later on top of those problems. Ultimately, it is a very, very personal decision. Think long and hard of the changes you will need to make in your life and decide if you are really ready to commit to these changes.

I should be eating about 70g protein a day, and so I really plan my meal around protein. Remember there are other protein sources (cottage cheese, etc) that are available. I especially love to add pineapple to my cottage cheese, it always tastes like a treat! I am actually at about 1200 calories per day, 800 is too low for me to feel good on. I also like to get 80oz+ water per day or else the losing is slow.

You are hungry now because the swelling from surgery has gone down. If you want to lose weight at this point, you really need to diet or else you will just eat the way you always have. A good analogy is that you've got yourself a car, but no gas in it. When you start adding gas, it will run.

I'm glad you are feeling better. My dietician also wants me to look at this as a lifestyle change and not as a diet. I've embraced that idea and don't feel deprived or guilty if I allow myself to indulge, although I do not indulge all of the time. I also try to practice mindful eating instead of zoning out and eating like a crazy person. We did not learn our eating habits in two months and we are surely not going to change them in that time. Next time

Make sure you are getting plenty of protein (body weight x 0.3 = grams per day), plenty of water, and that you are tracking your calories. It seems that when we eyeball food portions, they can be very incorrect.

I put on 10lb before my first consult because of the bmi threshold. I was weighed with clothing on as well (no shoes), so I was okay.

You need a fill. As you lose weight, the visceral fat around the stomach goes away and the band loosens. Losing weight is a little different. We all lose really fast in the beginning due to the liquids, but it slows when we go to real food. Just keep up with what you've been doing, and if you need to, add a healthy snack so you are not hungry.

Probably no drinking 30 minutes before or after a meal. Not positive so hopefully the poster will reply...

That is exactly how I feel! My second fill has definitely helped cut down the amount I can eat at one sitting and makes me eat slower or else I get stuck. I have been transitioning from not counting calories too, but that is something that I have been doing for so long that it's hard to break out of. This last fill was really the "ah ha!" moment when I knew the band was going to work.

Some Dr's are in it to make even more money. Hopefully you are going to check out a center of excellence. I have heard that some charge program fees, but most do not.

I had a one month post-op followup, some have a one month and a 2 week follow up. some people are also able to get their pre-op appointments scheduled in one or two day increments to save on time.

Chest pain all the time, or when you are eating? If I do not eat properly, I get "chest" pains but they go away once things have settled. If you are having constant pains, you should contact your surgeon.

I personally would elect to have the surgery at the hospital closer to school. You could drive up for the surgery and then drive back home. This way, you are always near your surgeon and don't have to worry about any mishaps. It seems that you can find other Dr's to care for you after, but sometimes they want you to get some tests done to verify that your band is in good condition/placement before they will take you on. It is also a plus to get your surgery at a center of excellence, as they must meet rigid standards to be branded as such.

I personally would elect to have the surgery at the hospital closer to school. You could drive up for the surgery and then drive back home. This way, you are always near your surgeon and don't have to worry about any mishaps. It seems that you can find other Dr's to care for you after, but sometimes they want you to get some tests done to verify that your band is in good condition/placement before they will take you on. It is also a plus to get your surgery at a center of excellence, as they must meet rigid standards to be branded as such.