Butterfly Queen 111

Check the Woman Within catalog as they carry boots made for larger calfs.One word of caution though-I received their catalog in the mail and some of their boots and shoes are marked with a black square down beyond the product description in the catalog that denotes the item contains a hazardous material "known to cause cancer " that must be disclosed in the state of California.Its proposition 65.Look out for this if you buy boots or shoes from mail order as they must tell you which have hazardous materials .

Yayyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!! Good for you! Keep up the good work!

Dear Shangefan-

It sounds to me that you have had a lot of major life changes happening in a short amount of time which would overwhelm anyone.I think you should search online for some post op support group meetings in your area for local doctors,and attend some of those.That way you might be able to ask some patients how happy they are with the doctor they chose before you commit yourself to him/her for fills.As someone else here said,choose a Bariatric Center For Excellence if you can.You will get the best care possible at one of these.

I think possibly joining Overeaters Anonymous (do a websearch to find a local chapter) may also help you as you will be able to get the help you need to conquer overeating with the help of others going through the same thing.Just because we have a brand new "magical" band in our bodies does not mean that our old ways of thinking and feeling about food eating and excersise have been removed/or replaced so we must face these issues too as Bandsters.You can also join a church group or other group where you share interests (do a websearch or look on your local craigslist).I believe you feel isolated due to the move and losing your job,and leaving the friends you had back home.Joining OA and support groups etc.will help you form a social support network of friends and possibly may help you ask around and network for a new job.

You are not a failure,but just a human being who is going through a lot of changes.I know you feel overwhelmed but you just gotta take back control of your health and your life by finding that new doctor,getting those necessary fills and eating good,nutritious foods and excersicing again.

Taking care of your body and health by loving yourself enough to put yourself first and getting support from others will help you turn this depression thing around.

Before Thomas Edison actually invented the light bulb he tried many, many times.When people asked him how he felt about how many times he "failed" before he invented the light bulb he casually remarked: "I have not failed,I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."Don't beat yourself up for the weight gain or the things you think you did wrong,just make a commitment to a fresh start and forget about the ways that you found that won't work and start back using your band as a tool and the band eating skills that do work.

Also as a sidebar,could you possibly have SAD>>>Seasonal Affective Disorder in which you also can feel depressed from lack of natural lightin the winter?I just recently purchased a blue lightbox last week to help the symptoms of this and I am already feeling better. I think this is an often overlooked source of fall/winter depression so I just wanted to mention that too.

Goos luck to you in all you do.I am sending big hugs your way. ((((HUGS))))

They tell you no straws for the same reason as no beer or soda-it supposedly adds air into your pouch which can hurt and or stretch your pouch.

Oops...computer glitch.I didn't mean for this to post 3x.

Dear SkinnyMiniMe-

Do the plication too, and name your band "Knowy Will".Because I Knowy Will make you lose a lot of weight!I had this done and I have lost 37 lbs in 10 weeks.Plication keeps your band from slipping and will help you lose weight even after you may experience some stretching out of your stomach after about 1-2 years.I am not hungry a lot and the plication in my opinion is an excellent addition to the lap band procedure because it is done at the same time.Do your research on this and you will find that peorple who get band+plication lose weight similarly to Gastric bypass patients.:-)

Dear SkinnyMiniMe-

Do the plication too, and name your band "Knowy Will".Becasue I Knowy Will make you lose a lot of weight!I had this done and I have lost 37 lbs in 10 weeks.Plication keeps your band from slipping and will help you lose weight even after you may experience some stretching out of your stomach after about 1-2 years.I am not hungry a lot and the plication in my opinion is an excellent addition to the lap band procedure because it is done at the same time.Do your research on this and you will find that peorple who get band+plication lose weight similarly to Gastric bypass patients.:-)

Dear SkinnyMiniMe-

Do the plication too, and name your band "Knowy Will".Becasue I Knowy Will make you lose a lot of weight!I had this done and I have lost 37 lbs in 10 weeks.Plication keeps your band from slipping and will help you lose weight even after you may experience some stretching out of your stomach after about 1-2 years.I am not hungry a lot and the plication in my opinion is an excellent addition to the lap band procedure because it is done at the same time.Do your research on this and you will find that peorple who get band+plication lose weight similarly to Gastric bypass patients.:-)

I am able to wear clothes I haven't worn since 2008 when I quit smoking and gained 58lbs.The clothes actually look like they are a little loose for me and they are 2x.I wore a 3x before I started my journey.I have lost 34 lbs.

I also very recently had a plateau breakthrough by reassessing my diet and eating only lean meat (chicken) steamed veggies (organic) and oranic fruit plus salad/raw spinach (oragnic) without dressings.< /p>

I think I was eating too many soft slider foods but now that I am clear for real foods I am adjusting what I eat yet again.I have only had 1 small .5cc fill and I get another fill Friday November 11th,which will be a larger fill like a 1.0 cc hopefully!

Please go see your doctor if you take a Gas X and nothing happens.Are you constipated at all? Sometimes thesmaller amount of Water we take in post op causes this.Also could it be gallstones from rapid weight loss perhaps?Anyway call the doctor if the gas meds don't work.

Yayyyy!!!!!!!!!!!! Normal sizes,here you come! Good for you!You're my Hero, and I wanna be there right behind you soon (8 weeks out post op)! :-)

WARNING>>>>>

A big reason why the LAp Band will not work for some people-per some folks in my surgeon's office...

My surgeon's office has a policy that he will not treat you unless you pay x amount of money IF you had your band put in in a foreign country...

Why you ask?

Becassue his office has witnessed LOTS of incidences where people went out of the USA to get a band put in cut rate cheap, and came back with the following :

1.No Band.

2. A Port and no Band.

3.A Band and No port.

I am not joking.This really happens! If you are considering Lap Band for Pete's sake, go to a Bariatric Center For Excellence in the USA and have it done by a legit doctor no matter what the cost!!!!

And,how would anyone know if they got ripped off???I mean you can't look inside your own belly and see if the band is there!

Ew...sugar makes me feel really bad too just like a sick headache hangover.(shudder!!!).Yep,it is definitely of the Devil.LOL

Oh and I also wanted to say seriously consider AA if you need help to stop drinking.>I stopped drinking in 2006 .I did not go there but it may help you.Alcohol is 100% empty calories without any nutritional value whatsoever and the carbonation (as in beer) can stretch your pouch too.

And remember,you have not 'failed' yet-you are just having a setback,and you realize what you have done wrong.Now,dust yourself off,get up and get backon the wagon and if you really really want to,try to make this band work because you are "married " to it for life and the two of you must work together to have harmony.

Good Lord!!!!!!I am not going to say shame on you but instead you need some help immediately with this journey.You could be a danger to yourself eating those things!!!

Identifying the problem is the first step to solving it.No the band will not "work for you" because no,it is not magic(I wish it was!) but instead you must do the work first and foremost (good food choices,following your doctor's recommendations to the letter and excercising 30 min a day minimum 3-5x per week)and the band will mereley help with your portion size,chewing thoroughly and eating slowly which helps with feeling satisfied.It really is a process, not a magic bullet.

You must be ready able and willing to make a permanent lifestyle change forever and ever amen.

Meaning=You must commit yourself to feeling good and being healthy with the Lap Band and say goodbye to the foods that are literally stealing your health and your life away!

I recommend that you get to an overeater's anonymous support group pronto,(do a websearch)visit an nutritionist and cover what your food choices and portion sizes should be plus how many times a day you should eat and no more,plus what supplements you need to take.Last,see a psychiatrist/psychologist if you think you are still "comforting yourself" with food.

Depression = comforting your self with food = weight gain (I should know)

I am not trying to be mean,I just don't want you to cause yourself a serious complication by not following doctor's orders on this and eating all that horrible food.You can serioussly damage your band and even cause band slippage/erosion from poor behavior choices.

Good luck to you and I hope you take me seriously but know I am not trying to hurt your feelings but instead to help you with this.(((HUGS))))

I have noticed that since I have been banded I hiccup more after eating,my stomach gurgles and makes noise like crazy and when I am through eating every time now my nose will start to run.It is very important to listen to your body

especially now since youhave been banded.Your body will let you know what is going on. :-)

I too have the fill issue going onI was banded August 31st 2011 and had Gastric Plication/Imbrication done..I just got a small .5 cc fill on Oct 14th and I am not feeling too much restriction so I am going to ask for a larger fill Nov 11th my next appointment.My surgeon's office does the fills with flouroscopy.I really am anxious to find the "Green Zone" becasue I feel as if I am eating too much but when I count my calories and protien I am doing everthing correctly.

Since my surgery I gurgle, growl, swoosh,grind,whine, and glug.I think it is my stomach's way of getting attention now that I am banded and I don't feed it as much or give it the attention that I used to.

Call your doctor ASAP! I used to stop breathing and have this happen before I found out that I have Obstructive sleep Apnea.

You know,I am going through the same thing!I weigh every day and I have been stuck on the same 2-4 lbs ALL MONTH. :-(

Yesterday since I am 7 weeks post op,I changed my diet around a little-I ate lean skinless boneless grilled chicken, greek hummus,tzatziki and a litle pita bread, and salad plus I made a protien drink with Water instead of soy milk and I had an apple (peeled) and some eggs with a little cheese for breakfast.Dinner was 1/2 of a salad and 1/2 of a bowl of chicken noodle Soup.< /p>

I am incorporating fruits and veggies back into my diet after the last of the mushies.I am actually chewing a LOT slower (as compared to pre-op) because I am scared of getting something stuck,and I am enjoying my food a lot more which takes away the feeling of deprivation like you get on traditional diets.

I also worked out for an hour and sat in the sauna at the gym for 30 minutes.I actually have broken the plateau and I am now down 2 more pounds to make a total of 34 lost since pre op August 17th (liquids).

The leader of support group I go to says that a food /exercise diary can be a great tool for breaking out of a plateau because it makes you realize exactly what you have eaten and how you have excercised and allows you to make adjustments to what you are doing.

I also think incorporating some new combos of veggies or daringly changing up how/how long/what you do for movement and excercise helps too.

Try placing a heating pad on your shoulders.The pain may be from the gas they use to inflate your belly when they do laproscopic surgery and it really hurts as it moves around in your body.If this doesn' t make it go away after a few days then call the doctor,My back/shoulder pain lingered around about 4-5 weeks after surgery.Don't keep taking the aspirin/pain killers though because you an cause serious damage like band erosion.

I love the Jay Robb brand protien in chocolate.It has 25 grams of Protein per scoop and has no artificial colors or sweeteners and is made from cows not given chemical treatments/hormones.I mix this with Silk Organic Soy Milk and it becomes thick just like a milkshake andit is very tasty! If you look up the phrase "world's best tasting protien " you'll find the Jay Robb brand.This is the only protien I use so I can't recommend a ready to drink type because don't use that.

Butterfly Queen you are very kind

Thanks Ladybug. (((Hugs)))

No because you will still have anesthesia in your system and you may be a danger to yourself or others,even if you do not feel "loopy".I was banded and had imbrication (stomach folding and suturing) and did it on an outpatient basis and still my surgeon would not let me drive myself home.This is just not safe for you to do.

I found this tip in Jean McMillan's book Bandwagon:Mix a lttle meat tenderizer with warm Water (about as much as a shot glass)and drink it.This will help remove the blockage. I hope you feel better!