Jim1967

I told a lot of people but not everyone. If I am asked however I will be honest and upfront. It is hard to hide the fact I lost 220+ pounds in under 2 years. My reasoning behind not wanting to broadcast it originally is because I was afraid of failure and being known as the fat guy who couldn't even lose weight with WLS. Not afraid of that anymore and I will talk up how the band added years back to my life. It is a very personal decision to share with people but once you put it out there it cannot be taken back. I always tell people to give that some good thought before hastily offering up the info.

I wouldn't worry too much about the rapid weight loss. You are probably losing a lot of water weight. Your body is also going through the detox stage as well. Just make sure you stay hydrated. I know this is tough but you are tougher and you can do this!! Keep your eye on the prize.

I am no medical expert but it sounds as though your Doctor filled you too much too soon but either way you shouldn't be in pain and certainly not to a point you can barely walk. I would call right away and get in there. May be they should do a fluoroscopy to make sure your band is healthy.

Not to be gross or anything but,,,fluid in equals fluid out. I would definitely call the Doc and also maybe some Imodium.

Easiest way would be for the Doc to pull out the saline and see how much fills the syringe. How big is your band and how much should you have in there? I have an 11cc band with 9.5cc filled. Could be you just do not have enough.

I would suggest a call into your Doctor to let them know you are struggling and get some professional input. Maybe they will at least allow a protein shake.

Congratulations!!

I am in the process of arranging a new study. Last few weeks I have been sleeping pretty poor both with and without the CPAP. I guess after 220+ pounds I may need some adjustments.

Awesome App. Thanks for mentioning it. Good to have in the toolbox to assist in training yourself to chew slow...

Good point!! I do avoid things like Cheez-Its and chips because they've always been my trigger food so I guess in a way I do deprive myself but at the same time I no longer crave them. Perhaps if I allowed myself a taste it could be trouble. I would just rather not mess with things.

I used to eat 1 slice of wheat toast and 1/2 cup of egg for breakfast. Since my last fill I was too tight so now I either do a shake or just the egg. I agree with Missy though about the deprivation. If you deprive yourself then you are just dieting.

My last meal was Mexican with many Guinness from the tap. I told myself no more carbonation from surgery day on. So far I have stuck with it. It is amazing how all my cravings are gone. I will forever refer to myself a recovering binge eater and it still amazes me how much of a grip food had on me. Loved the article as usual Jean. You really know how to write for us all and speak our language and keep it interesting...

I will be honest there were times when I was very worried about failing. Failing to lose weight after bariatric surgery was a big fear for me. It is so difficult not to look at the long road ahead. Patience was my biggest challenge. There would be times when the scale wouldn't move for like two weeks and I would be so down on myself. You will have ups and downs there is no doubt. I agree with everyone else on those mini goals and I believe in rewarding yourself when you hit them. Not necessarily food rewards because it can be anything. Week at Disney World is waiting for me at the end. I recommend you definitely utilize this site and make some good friends. They can help you on those 'off' days should they come.

You can do this if you are truly committed to the life style change. I had 268 pounds to lose when I started at 488lbs. This mornings weigh in I was 265. I haven't gotten around to updating my ticker yet. As I approach my goal slowly but surely I may adjust it. Right now I am all about 220 which would be a 268lb drop. As time goes on just enjoying the new found freedom has me focusing less on the numbers.

I would say try it but I would closely monitor for trends going in the wrong direction. I lost 170+ doing Atkins between 2003 and 04 and I gained it all back plus another 90. Losing weight is easy...keeping it off that's hard.

Gas pain for me was pretty bad for the first 4 or 5 days. Just make sure you stay hydrated and sip. Do not ever gulp especially this early on. Walk as often as you can cause that will help reduce the gas pain quicker. As for restriction seeing that you are newly banded chances are you are feeling like you are because of all of the swelling. So it is quite possible you are feeling restriction but it is also possible this feeling may not last as the swelling decreases. Spend this next month concentrating on healing and staying hydrated and the weight drop will come. Patience was really difficult for me during what is called Bandster Hell. Bandster hell is that time between having surgery and finding the green zone (optimum restriction) to maintain a more steady weight loss.

I can actually feel the liquids going down more than ever. Especially cold Water. Rare times I eat ice cream I can feel that slide right on through as well from top to bottom. Here is a good description on restriction and what to expect. I love reading this often as it is a good reminder. http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html

She was banded in 2012 and I am sure she just made a mistake with the date. Hell, sometimes I catch myself saying 3xx as oppose to 2xx when talking about my weight.

I disagree with most stats anyways as this is an individual based experience. Some have more success then others but I am not so sure that is all because of the band. Again, band is just a tool so it is really in the hands of the person to put it good use and put the work and effort in. Someone who exercises regularly and watches portions/quality is going to be far more successful then someone who doesn't exercise and eats whatever they want until the band says they're full. Good choices are key. Compliance plays such a huge factor in gauging success. I think I would be further along my journey if I exercised with more consistency.

Just remind yourself every minute of every day why you need/want this. It will take some discipline and hard work but I promise it's worth it...

Been there, done that...

I can and have dropped 170+ pounds on my own with no surgery. What I couldn't do was maintain and keep it off. So while your asking yourself all the questions about doing it ask yourself if you were able to do it can you keep it off?? Some can but most cannot. What the band has done for me is I can live my normal life without dieting and still have weight come off. You do have to make good choices and work with your band BUT I will tell you most times it is effortless. It is also good to hear the good, bad and ugly that way you can assess for yourself. Some of that bad and ugly you may hear about is because the patient is non compliant. This is a life style change and you are not 100% committed then you need to step back and re-think your game plan. As for the negative surrounding people you have in your life I will say this: This is your life and you only have one trip down the road of life. People can either get on board with you or they can step off. Btw being nervous about surgery is normal. I had doubts from the time they wheeled me out of the staging room to the actual OR. 488lbs I was so nervous I wasn't going to survive the procedure. I made it a point to see friends and relatives and have that final "See ya soon" just in case. Here and the now I would not change a thing. I have lost 219lbs (haven't updated my ticker yet) and have added years of travel back on the road of life. Whatever your decision is please please make it your own and do not do or not do it for someone else. Best of Luck!!

Thanks all. I know in the end a new sleep study is much needed. Just dread it. It's a bit of PITA but I guess I have to go so I can start sleeping better.

My Doc just had me on liquids along Protein shake for 24 hours then I was on my own to eat/drink normally. Like Rob said most Docs have their own methods and rules. Like Rob I drink Water before leaving the office after a fill because if you can't get water down then nothing is going to go down. My Doc believes in slow and steady as well. You want to ease into that green zone rather then being overly aggressive and end up too tight then having Fluid removed just to start all over again looking for that green zone. Took me about 5 months to find the zone and then one little fill after that and it was game on. BTW the needle can look scary compared to most needles but it does not hurt. I have had blood drawn that was more painful then a fill. If you do not like needles I suggest you close your eyes and not watch. Good Luck!