Cazzy

I am allergic to steri-strips, i get blisters under them if they get on my skin if u see red around them go back to the doctor !

Gratz Dolly keep up the good work !

Gratz and as my mother would say 'if only we could see ourselves as other people see us ' keep up the good work !

As one of the heavier start weights too i have been pretty low carb since i was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes some years ago, ive never had a problems with bad breath, ive never heard of that problem with a low carb diet ... I drink tea and coffee when i feel like it but some surgeons dont let u take caffine so check it out with your doctor. I eat alaskan smoked salmon for low carb high protein i love fish and white meat and stay away from root veg and large amounts of fruit and sugar and flour. I make salad dressing with lemon juice, cider vinegar, whole grain mustard and some splenda ... much better than creamy dressing Meant to add my weight loss has slowed a lot now i am struggling for every lb but it wont beat me lol

Sounds like u are jumping through as many hoops as life throws at you, it is a real pain but u are better off being in the best condition for the surgery as u wont be able to eat much after particularly on the liquids post-op and with a low blood count u could cause yourself even more problems. I know all delays are disappointing but better to get it right the first time than have problems post op. Did your surgeon give any indication as to why your count was low ?

When i had a 1 mls unfill the surgeon told me to return in 2 weeks if i needed some of it put back. He put in 0.5 and that was perfect. Give it a couple of weeks if u still feel like u are eating too much go back and get a small amount put back. I understand your fear of eating too much after an unfill i felt like it too, just give it a couple of weeks if it looks like u need a small fill then go back .. solution is easy so dont battle on and worry about it all the time

Its not unusual to not lose weight after surgery everything slows down including your metabolism, u tend to retain some fluids from the iv and ofc bloating. I have had IBS for a long time and i know when i am bloated i lose no weight at all .. to be honest it drives me nuts.

Good luck and hope your travel goes ok, u will probably be very very tired so make sure you get enough rest when you get home ... totally agree no pain-no gain

Normally the biggest 'pain' is gas, this does eventually go but for some it can last over a week post-op. It is relatively minor surgery, i felt ok pretty much just like i had been punched in the stomach but apart from that i was a lot better than i thought i would be. I had more trouble having wisdom teeth out

When we need to lose over 200lbs the weight generally does come off quicker but that is only initially after that its all hard work from there but worth every bit of work. Its only recently that i actually started to feel like i am not 'fat' any more. I need to lose a few lbs more but now its slow, but to lose only just a lb at this weight notices much more than it did when i first started, when it was just a 'drop in the ocean' I used to wear 6XL t shirts to hide myself under, now i wear L and share t-shirts with my other half lol his wardrobe is mine now ... Good luck to all the 'bigger' banders !

Good luck Jim, it does seem like a lot to lose when u first start out but just follow the rules, keep your calories burned more than calories eaten i am sure you will be fine. Hell i managed it

Why did you have the lapband removed ?

Chat doesnt appear to be working ...

Your stomach internally is surrounded by fat as you lose weight ( internal fat ) the band losens and your stomach shrinks .. imagine a normal belt like on a dress or skirt, as u lose weight u need to put the belt on the next hole, same with the band u lose weight band losens and u need a fill to tighten it..

I drink prune juice or eat a few prunes every day .. best natural laxative u can get tbh... 3 of the nurses when i had surgery told me they were banded and all drink prune juice so i took their advice , never had a problem since

I would go with this choice too

Glad it all worked out

I have just been clearing out some old clothes and omg was i really that big, i cant believe that they actually used to fit me ( size30 UK) and some were even tight i am mortified that i had to spend so much money on trying to look ok, I am making sure they go to a good cause but i will NEVER wear anything like that size again ! Gratz to all of you wearing 'normal' sizes now

You can normally drink almost right up till you eat as the things like water pass straight through the band, but during eating and 30 mins after is a real no no. If you are getting thristy during a meal are u having a lot of salty food or adding it ?, its not good for weight loss tbh, i was a salt lover till i was banded and have gradually cut right down . Use black pepper or chilli flakes instead

I think a lot of people who have loose skin over here use things made of spandex, its good for keeping loose skin tighter but if its more than skin then i would think more support would be necessary like u would get in a girdle. I have a lot of spare skin and weat tummy control leggings till i can get a TT.

It woulld have been better to ask the doctor if he removed any liquid while u were there , i know sometimes my one withdraws all the fluid then puts it back in plus some, that way they can check for leaks.

Thanks for commenting on the x box have been considering getting one for the dance routines, i might take the plunge now

If water wont go down then you need a small unfill, your doctor is right in that when u start dropping the lbs the band does loosen but u cannot afford to get dehydrated, I had exactly the same thing a couple of months ago i had a large fill and a week of struggling to drink much at all. I went back and got .5 taken out and it did the trick so if u do go back just get a small unfill and u should be fine. You cant really leave it for long if fluids wont even go down. Warm water/ tea / coffee if u allowed will go down easier than cold drinks. Also check out using ibuprofen with the doctor as this can irritate the stomach.

It can quite often be several fills before one feels any form of restriction, being banded is a life long comittment to eating healthy and getting fitter. Its not a quick fix and takes time for the band to really start working with you. It took years to accumulate the weight we all put on and will take some dedicated time to getting it off again. The quicker fix would have been the bypass. I really dont understand why this wasnt explained to some of you pre-op. Theres lots of threads on this forum regarding fills and feeling restriction, its only a very small minority that feel restriction from day 1 so please just give it time, work hard and u will eventually see results !

My doctor advised 6 months post op for abs work, which i did ..