Jim1967

I must say I am truly shocked and sad by some of the responses Betsy got here. She doesn't need me to defend her but really?? If she cannot come here and release a little frustration without being bashed then what is the point of this site? Isn't this the very reason Alex created this place to begin with? For us to help one another. Sure we are not all going to get along but clearly she didn't post frustration just to be beaten down further Very fact is she is struggling and while she didn't come out and "say help me or what would you do or do you have any advice" she let off steam. She clearly needed some encouragement and some reassurance. -Sincerely yours, Truly Disgusted

Wow if I gave up after month 1 I would never be where I am today. I don't think my weight loss kicked in until like mid way through month 3. There is probably a good chance you have no fill or very little in that band. Honestly, you are not giving it a chance from the sounds of it. A lot of people, myself included seem to have had that feeling "OK, I had surgery now the weight is going to fall off"....It is frustrating but it doesn't work that way. Sorry you are going through a tough spell but I recommend seeking out a support group or talk with your Doctor. Your expectations seem a little high at the moment.

Hopefully it will be different this time. I have a good tool to work with.

That's my biggest fear...

You're absolutely right Laurigee. My Wife reminds all the time of the struggle.

Thanks Rebecca. You're doing great yourself. While I agree men seem to lose quicker than women I was 450 pounds on surgery day. Losing is easy if you break the cycle when your that overweight. I can only imagine how many calories I burned just getting out of bed in the morning. I lost 38lbs doing a 6 month monitored diet preop and quite honestly that last two months of that six I wasn't trying all that hard. I was 488 at that time and was lucky to stay on my feet for 10 minutes without my legs screaming at me I did it without trying honestly. I just cut back on everything and the weight came off.

The thought of this scares me....I get this is no 'fad' diet and I am making that lifestyle change but I fear the weight will come back. Losing has always been easy for me but keeping it off is hard. I dropped 170+ pounds on my own once and then gained it all back plus an additional 90. I went from 393 to 219 back up to to 488 all just under a decade. "Normal" scares the hell out me B

I think you need to really sit down and listen to what your body is telling you. Are you being honest with the band and eating the way you should? If so then perhaps you are too tight. You really need to analyze your behavior. I had a rough week once where I seemed to PB and have stuck episodes quite often and it made no sense to me seeing that I hadn't had a fill in 6 weeks. I finally took inventory in what I was doing and realized I slipped into some old habits of eating quickly and on the fly. We spend most of our lives eating a certain way and as easy as it sounded in that Seminar 16 months ago I can tell you it isn't. I thought oh hell eating slow and chewing food is easy...I learned and on occasion I am given a free lesson from my band. Like everyone else said above, only you can decide if your too tight BUT you have to be honest with yourself because in the end any damage done is damage that is self inflicted and only affects you. Good luck and I hope you figure it out.

Funny you mention that. My Surgeon has a unique sense of humor...something that I really like. When I was on the table and they were getting ready to put me under he came over and asked me if I was ready. He then held up the band and said "I want to introduce you to your newest and best-est friend. You treat this friend right and work with him the rest is gravy" After that they knocked me out. LOL

I think Mis73 touches on all the points that I would. My insurance company would accept WW had I done it but they required food journals, and exercise logs as well as receipts covering the 6 months. I did not have any of that so I did the 6 months. My Surgeon's practice had an in-house insurance coordinator. That person took care of all insurance needs between them and I. She knew all the ins and outs. She compiled all the data in the format the insurance company wanted and she submitted it. I really had no interaction with the insurance company aside from the very first call to see if it was even covered at all.

Here is a side by side comparison: http://www.wlshelp.com/lap-band-vs-realize-band.html

I have the Realize band. Surgery was April 2012. It was also my Doctor's personal choice to go with it as well. I put my trust in him and so far it's working out great!!

People who've never had weight problems can be entertaining if you take it that way. Years ago when I lost a ton of weight doing Atkins I had a female co-worker say to me "wow your face is so skinny". LOL Another time a different co-worker said to a buddy of mine "Jim is going to be so handsome when he loses the rest of his weight" I know both comments were truly meant as compliments but it easily could've been insulting. A lot of 'thin' people who never battled obesity are unsure how to handle the situations.

My Doc allowed me one regular meal a day and the other two were protein shakes and that was only 1 week. I had to do a 6 month supervised diet for insurance and in that time I lost 38lbs and I think that is the reason why he didn't enforce a preop diet on me.

You're welcome. I think the key will be for him to have a better understanding of how it all works and the patience it requires to be successful. Everything takes time and this journey is no different.

My suggestion would be to ensure your Husband is educated and if possible following along with your journey. Reason I say that is because there is a lot of misconceptions about Bariatric surgery as a whole. A lot of people tend to think it is a 'magic bullet' and that there is no work involved. I have had a co-worker take a month off of work and he came back and said to me "you haven't lost all the weight yet?" Wish you the best of luck!!

Key to not vomiting is to eat slow and chew, chew and chew....and chew some more. LOL. I still struggle with it especially when I am pressed for time. You spend a great deal of your life eating a certain way and then all of a sudden you're supposed to change. My Nutritionist told me from the beginning to start practicing now while I was going through my mandatory six month supervised diet. I wish I did it as it would have been an easier transition. I know eating slow and chewing really fine sounds easy but it really isn't. Now you have to actually think about what you're putting in your mouth. I have had several stuck episodes over that last 9 months and have vomited several times. It is not pleasant and I have been lucky to not cause a slip.

Some people do but then some do not. There are some who have been fortunate enough to never need a fill There are some that take several fills and I am one of them. People lose differently then others so I am sure you will hear a mixed bag of responses. I don't think my weight loss really picked up steam for me until I was two months post op and my first fill was 5cc. One piece of advice I can offer is not to get to hung up on losing that first month post op. That first month is really a time for healing and give your body a chance to get acclimated to the band. I got really frustrated at first because I figured "OK I had surgery when does the weight move"...I learned the hard way it does not work that way, at least for me.

ehhh...had they offered me 16% I would've been all over it but 15%?... I think I'm good

I usually buy the Spring Valley brand at Walmart. Pretty cheap...I would avoid the "Bariatric" named stuff. It is usually more money but its the same stuff you can get at Walmart.

You're very successful and you set a great example for others. Very good advice here. I would add that patience is a must also. Things will go slow at times and there will be some frustrating moments. Key is to stick with it and do whatever takes to keep an eye on the big picture and stay the course. This journey is not just about scale movement and weight loss which we all tend to focus on. I am still learning at 9 months out. Best of luck!!

Honestly the worse part for me was the gas cramps and I think I made the gas cramps even worse by stupidly drinking a lot of apple juice once I was allowed to have liquids. Typical achy left shoulder due to the gas but other than that it was not bad. I had surgery on a Monday and I easily could have gone back to work on Wednesday (I do have an office job where I sit all day)

You'll do fine. This was by far the easiest surgery I ever had and I have certainly had my share. I was up walking the halls with a Nurse two hours after coming out of Surgery.

I would think you would be OK. I definitely recommend a pillow for your stomach during the ride.

Great article as always Jean!!