Jim1967

Ladies, I sincerely mean no disrespect but I truly believe the original poster who by the way appears to be new to the site was looking for some encouragement that she can find her way and that others know what she is going through. I don't think her intent was to spark a debate about the merits of why a particular person chose surgery. It sounds to me like she needed some positive uplifting and all we have here is a debate, a debate that can go on and on unless you agree to disagree and move on. KRussell the original poster commented earlier about how she could barely bend over and tie her shoes. I can totally relate to that. Also, today for the first time in a very long time I walked up two flights of stairs in my office building. I was a little winded by the time I reached the top but I did it...and you know what it felt damn good. Even my arthritic Everyone is different, everyone has their own circumstances. It's what makes us individuals. Without sounding like a politician I believe the site motto should be "Support your fellow Bandster through and through"

Band will never ever stop you from putting food in your mouth. Only you can do that. Band is either going to allow the food to go down or its going to get stuck and lead to sliming and/or vomiting. That's is part of getting to know the band and working with it....figuring out the signals and stopping before it's too late and you have an episode. Hopefully what I am saying is not coming off as preaching. Being just under two months in I don't pretend have all the answers.

Everyone has their own circumstances for wanting/needing the surgery. Real important thing is we support and encourage one another. That's the whole purpose of this site and the real reason why most of us come here.

Thanks for this because it carries a lot of weight (no pun intended). I cannot base my journey off of someone else just like they cannot base theirs on mine. While yes they are starting out lower than me they may or may not lose as quickly as I because I have a lot more excess weight to drop.

I can completely relate and you are not alone by a long shot. If I am not the heaviest member of this site I must be damn close....and believe me I am not bragging. Sorry to hear you are going through such a rough time. Hopefully you will find a good Doctor who can guide you and get you on your way. My Wife tells me I don't give myself any credit for what I have done so far. I tried to explain to her that there is fine line in accountability. While yea I had a great start I need to keep on myself to make sure I keep going. In 2003 I weighed 394 pounds and went on Atkins and in 19 months I dropped 170 pounds. I was 220!! Well look at me now....it all went to my head and I started feeling comfortable with myself and I let it all slip away. For the life of me I don't know how it happened. I don't know how I gained it all back like that. Did ignore signs, did I not care? I just don't know. Fast forward to 2011 I am up 93 pounds from my original weight. I don't know if any amount of weight loss will be good enough for me now until I break 219. Trust me you're not alone. Everyone has a story....

Thanks Matt. You also, You're doing fantastic. My wife and I do the same thing with the fan and I think I am one of the rare people who enjoy wearing the cpap. I like the crisp cool air in the sinuses. I find it refreshing and almost like a cool winter night. Very relaxing....

That's awesome news. Congrats. I am just curious how much do you have in the band now? I got my 2nd fill this morning and now have a total of 6cc in an 11cc band. I hope this is it for me as well. I am on liquids until tomorrow morning.

Actually I felt more pinching having blood drawn then I do having the fills. I got a fill this morning and as soon as she found my port it was quick and done.

Here is a link to a really decent article on restriction: http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html I find personally I have to do a lot of internal talking between my brain and my stomach. You don't want that feeling of being stuffed but yet you want to feel satisfied so that your appetite is suppressed. As I eat I try to have that internal talk. Is it real hunger or is it head hunger. I also tell myself at times "OK, that's enough for now. I can always have more later". If food hurts going down then you need to reevaluate the issue. Are you chewing food up small enough?, are you biting off more then you can chew? Are you eating slow enough? Or perhaps your band is already too tight. Take a look at that article it's pretty good. I read it from time to time as a reminder I should only be eating enough to be satisfied and not stuffed. A lot re-training of the brain in the way I look at food will probably always be a work in progress. Excessive vomiting can cause band slippage. So avoid that as much as possible. I have had a few stuck episodes because I ate too fast or didn't chew. It's not a pleasant feeling and actually hurts a bit.

Hi Matt, I have never heard of anything like this. I used my CPAP immediately after surgery and had no issues. I did have a lot of gas cramps for about 3 or 4 days but it passed and it's normal but I saw no relative correlation to the CPAP. Are you using a CPAP mask that is forcing the air into your mouth? Maybe that is causing a problem. I only use a mask that covers my nose. Might be a good idea to check in with your Doctor. Good Luck,,Jim

I got my first fill of 5cc two weeks ago and got another 1cc this morning. Hoping to find the green zone soon. Jeez I am already past the half way mark of what this band can hold.

If you're getting banded you better get used to needles fast...

Body fortress whey powder that walmart sells is low on carbs. 1 scoop is 4g of carb but it yields 26g of protein. Depending on how low your daily carb count is you can do Simply Smart milk and 1 scoop of powder and blend with a little ice ends up 17g carb but a nice number of 36g of protein. I know 17g can be a lot especially if your doing Atkins induction.

Thank you all for the kind words and advice. I have to say looking back at my post from yesterday I am a little embarrassed I got down on myself like that and cried poor me. I am lucky in a lot of ways and I am determined to make this work. I really hope anyone new to this process doesn't get discouraged by my post. I am less than 2 month post op and only have had one fill. My journey is just starting. Please do not get discouraged by my words above. I would delete it but then all the good, kind words and advice that followed would be lost and that would be tragic. It's funny how one day can make a difference and I didn't even step on the scale today....

Thank you all and you're all right....I just need to shake out of this and get with it. It is what it is and I made the choices and they're done. Now I just have to do the needful and get it done. mylynn, that was also my exact reason for not having bypass and yes my wife is my number #1 fan.

Both but if you look closely I have the same Yoda quote...

Some how practically everyone who knows me know I have had this surgery. It is my own fault as I told so many myself and word of mouth especially around the office travels. Most of my relatives now know thanks to my Mother who loves to gossip. None of this would bother me if it wasn't for the fact I constantly get asked "how much you down", "how much you plan to lose". I even had a former manager ask me "what are you going to do with all the loose skin when you drop all the weight". I felt like tell him I was going to smother him with it....LOL I had a buddy come into the office and because of travel he hadn't seen me in a couple of weeks and he jokingly said "what you haven't dropped all the weight yet". I have a fairly thick skin (hehe no pun intended) but this is getting quite tiresome. Not only do I have to deal with my own thoughts of "why is the scale not moving", "Am I getting enough protein", "Am I consuming too many calories", "I thought the weight would drop faster". Now I have to have the constant reminder of it all because I did not keep my damn mouth shut!! I wish I never told anyone aside from my wife....now in the back of my mind I am afraid of failure. To be known as the fat guy who couldn't lose weight after having weight loss surgery. Today has been a rough day work-wise and scale-wise. I am a bit down on myself to the point where I gave up on work today to post this and try to adjust my attitude. My attitude just plain sucks today...today is one of those "should have I gotten the bypass instead." I have my eating in check today just fine but the scale is toying with me again. I was 413 last Friday and today 415. I know it's only 2 pounds but seriously it's going in the wrong direction. Sorry for the pity poor me story but I would rather post here and get it out rather then take it home to my wife. She deserves better....

I went through a good couple of weeks of not losing and I just figured maybe i was still healing up but when I started tracking what I was doing I found I was not getting nearly enough Protein. Since I started upping the protein the scale started moving.... mylynn, nice signature..

Oh and I had a max out of pocket for the year of $1500 which I had already met prior to surgery so everything was covered with no cost to me. $5K for the surgeon, $1500.00 for Anesthesia and $14K for the hospital stay. I stayed overnight. Thank god for insurance!!

Hi there,, I have Cigna and they covered my surgery as well as my fill adjustments. What Cigna covers may depend on what tier coverage your company purchased. I recommend you call Cigna and ask for the written policy on weight loss surgery. Someone on this board posted a week or so ago that Cigna changed the requirement on a supervised diet. It used to be 6 month monitored which is what I did but someone on here said they only had to do 3 month. Here is a link to Cigna's policy on wls surgery that I was given. Again it sounds like it changed and this doc was only credible up until 5/15/12. Remember this is your insurance and you are a customer. Call them and ask them for information in writing and they will provide it. Good Luck, Jim sorry forgot the link: http://www.cigna.com/customer_care/healthcare_professional/coverage_positions/medical/mm_0051_coveragepositioncriteria_bariatric_surgery.pdf

This morning I had a sausage, egg and cheese wrap from dunkin donuts and must have ate it too fast because the hiccups started along with the stuck sensation and then the sliming....eating slow and chewing food very fine is something I am working on. I just got my first fill of 5cc this past Tuesday.

Hi Gar thanks for sharing your story. I have only been banded a short time so I don't have long term experiences to share. From what I read in your post it sounds like your putting a lot of pressure on yourself. What drove you away from working with the band? What is the point of having it if you don't utilize it? Needing help with your demons is nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. We have one trip down the road of life and it's all about health, happiness and longevity. I suggest getting in with your doc and get your band assessed and adjusted if needed. Several years ago 2003 to be exact I went on a low carb diet at 393 pounds and dropped 174 pounds in 19 months. I was walking around at 220 and felt great. Fast forward to 2011 I was back to 486 pounds. At 44 years old I decided wls was the way to go because its about quality of life and I need help with my food addiction both physically and mentally. I wish you good luck and hope you can find your way. Best, Jim

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Thank you!