NWgirl

I was told to avoid caffiene for 2 weeks. Carbonation is the really iffy one (my team did not say no carbonation, but some are adament about avoiding it).

I am so happy about where I am right now, but if you break down my ticker from pre-op to now, only about 30 of those pounds are post-banding. Guess what, it doesn't matter! As long as the downward trend continues, I love it!

I love the Lose it! app for phones because it also has a scanner for barcodes, which is pretty convenient! As stated before, the choices you make are your own choices, and the band cannot help you make the right choices. I think you need to regain sight of why you made this lifestyle change so you are motivated to do what is needed to get healthy.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/topic/4543-before-and-after-lap-band-surgery-pictures-only/

Good luck! I would recommend a small travel pillow to hold against your stomach when you move around.

Like others said, if you are in the USA and on a parent's plan as a dependant, new health care laws let you stay on insurance until you are 26- previously it was 24. I would make sure you've got your ducks in a row and check your insurance specs.

I was not given the option to have a removal, but was aware that with extreme weight loss it can go bad. I was given a gallbladder medicine to take twice a day for six months that is supposed to prevent any gallbladder issues.

I am guessing these people are worried about what could possibly happen to you in surgery, and are not intending to be mean or hateful. Just as you are getting WLS and don't want people to judge you, you should also refrain from judging others based of food consumption, etc. I notice the further along I get into my journey, I find myself starting to judge someone else who looked like me five months ago and I quickly remind myself of the pain and self hatred I carried with me then. All of us obese people have our own pains and worries in life, and only some of us are willing to drastically change the way we live. Just keep your head high. The best thing you can do is to tell these people the facts about surgery and prove to them that it does work. Just don't fall prey to the negative comments.

You've got to ask yourself if you are ready to follow the rules and eat the right amounts of food for any type of surgery? Overeating is the cause of a dilated pouch. In gastric or the sleeve, you can stretch the stomach and it does not go back. I have heard of banded folks who have stretched their pouches and their Dr's have put them on a rigorous 30 day liquid diet and did a complete unfill to try and remedy the situation. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

I hope someone can answer your question better than me, but here's my go: It is possible that you've lost more belly fat or that your port has detached partially or fully from the abdominal wall.

I would personally ask the Dr to put the one in that they have the most experience with. I know there are a few here with the Realize, but it seems most have Allergan Lapband. From what I've read, the Realize is a low pressure band so it requires more fills to get to restriction. It also has the lowest profile port and has metal clasps on the port that grab into the muscle wall. I also know that Realize discontinued their support site at the beginning of the year, but I think anyone can register on the Allergan site if you like that sort of thing. Comparison Chart: http://www.wlshelp.com/lap-band-vs-realize-band.html

You could also try a chicken salad mix or tuna.

Congrats, before you know it your date will be here!

My gynecologist told me that the best BC for any WLS (including us) is either the Nuva Ring or Mirena. She said this is because for some patients, hormones after surgery may go wacky and make the pill form under perform, resulting in pregnancy!!! I have been on the Nuva Ring for three months and really like it. I don't feel it after it is inserted and I just have to remove it once a month. I would love Mirena, but my insurance will only cover it if there is medical necessity and not for birth control purposes.

Like it has been stated, the study posted here is one that used older band models and only had about 50% of the solicited patients actually respond. Obviously, there are things to consider when stepping into any type of procedure, but I would look for more up to date information.

If you go up to the tabs on the top of the page, there is one that says surgeons. When you hover over the tab, you can select search for a surgeon in my area. Some may even have other member reviews, which is useful.

I used to have headaches all of the time pre-band with no apparent cause. I attribute it to an overload of crap in my system. As for those of you on the pre-op diet, take it one day at a time and remember why you're doing this. Cheating on the diet is only cheating yourselves.

This is a question you should pose to your nutritionist as our body compositions do vary and dietary restrictions vary as well. My nutritionist told me to eat grams of protein to satisfy the following equation- Body weight x 0.3 = protein in grams. I was not given any limit on carbs, just to focus on a healthy eating lifestyle. I got the lapband so I didn't have to diet for the rest of my life, so I eat what I want in small quantities.

Bandwagon is an awesome book! I bought it after surgery, but still go through it when I find a question or need some wisdom.

I would say if you have to ask whether you're hungry or you are feeling gassy, bets are you are not hungry.

Gosh, you will lose weight ASAP if you had to follow that schedule each time you got a fill- that would be terrible!

Don't feel that way. Your Dr crossed the line and you need to FIRE him!!!

Get a new Dr. You are the one paying him for his services, so for him to be so rude is astonishing. How are you supposed to succeed at this without the proper support? What happens if you gain a few pounds and are too embarrassed to return, thus gaining more weight? I would start calling local Dr's and find someone who actually wants to help you.

The reason Dr's don't like to give fills two weeks or less before you are out of town is because it can take up to two weeks to actually "feel" the fill. If you get too tight and your Dr is not around, it's problematic. Also, like the others said, 20 pounds in that short amount of time is awesome! According to my weight graph, I have only lost about 22 since my banding 4 months ago and I am perfectly content with the downward trend! It's more than just a get band = lose weight game, there are a lot of mental aspects to it all.