cheryl2586

You can not eat six bites and be full for five hours that is so not right. You should be able to eat 4 oz and not be hungry but the average time between meals should be about 4 hours 5 at the most. Are you excersising. The band is not going to do it alone you know. You have to excersise and my friend had three fills before she lost one ounce. I have been at a stand still for almost six months Im not discouraged. Isnt the lap band a diet? Yes dont you hit a plateu with every single diet? Yes. You cant let this thing control you. You have to control it. Get up tomorrow and start over fresh with the same diet you had post op for a few days then add full liquids then go to solids. Its all trial and error you can not let this thing take over your life you have to take control over it. Chin up and you will do it.

Amen for that post. I have always been hungry even after a fill a year later but have lost 70lbs your stomach is still there it still works your going to be hungry. Even when you get restriction you will still be hungry at times only it will take longer this surgery in no way takes away hunger it just helps you to get full faster but you are going to be hungry that is such a misconception just like not having pain is so not going to happen.

I am by no means scolding anyone but come on you have to know pain is involved

I am not being smart here. I have seen this posted from so many 1 day post op to 7 days post op. You can not have surgery without pain it is impossible. Your sites are going to hurt your port site is going to hurt like heck. Does anyone really understand what they do to you when your in surgery? Your not fillet open gently by any means. I work in surgery I see what they do. Your filled with gas that isnt all the way taken out. It hurts like anything. You just can not have surgery without pain it is impossible. Take gas x, take your pain meds, get some lozenges cause the tube they put down your throat may give you a sore throat. It will get better your port site may hurt for 3 months it is sewn in the muscle. If your sites become red or hot big flag for infection if you are running temp another big flag for infection. They might even tweak your nose just to make sure you are asleep. Surgery hurts they cut through skin, muscles, nerves, they all have to heal. Hang in there it will get better. Wait til you lose weight and bend over one day and your port pinches you that feels wonderful. Heal well and relax you are feeling normal

How can you have surgery with no pain. Come on people now of course you are going to have pain and some will have lots of it. It is all part of post op for any surgery. Surgery = Pain

There are many signs you have eaten too much that is why you should always measure and those include shoulder pain, runny nose, sneezing, hiccups, excessive salivation, vomiting ( which you should never get to that point) Just eat 3 to 4 0z and thats all then you wont have to worry. If you are hungry later you can always drink a shake.

NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO carbonation will expand your pouch. No soda ever ever ever. LOL

I can not eat breads, pasta, cinnamon kills my guts and so does even the slightest piece of chocolate. I do well with most meats except for steak, I do well with beans and chili has been a big fan of mine. I also have to drink protein shakes for breakfast cause nothing is passing in this band in the morning. It doesnt open enough until around 11 and I only have 2cc in there. Not crazy anymore about eggs. I love cottage cheese and sugar free pudding. I will never eat frosted mini wheats ever ever again that stuck worse than anything and omg the pain I couldnt wait to get it down. I dont do cake, or muffins either. If I want pizza I just eat the topping and not the bread.

My first question was and would be soooooo how many surgeries have you performed. They mostly want to know what your concerns are more than anything. But definitely you need to know how many he has performed. My surgeon is 3000 plus and I would never reccommend a surgeon who hasnt done a lot of them. What are your risk of surgery? Another biggie you want to know. You will know what to ask him.

Scramble eggs with shredded fat free cheese is good add some onions and green pepper yummy. Cottage cheese is a good source of protein, sugar free pudding when you need sweets. I dont know if you can have fruit yet but protein shakes with frozen blueberries or strawberries or frozen banana in them are awesome.

My protein shakes from GNC are loaded with vitamins. I dont take supplements and my vitamin levels are fine. My b-12 was low once and I took shots for two months. Couldnt sleep after that. But I feel great without suppliments. I think if your eating right the only thing suppliments are doing is making you have very expensive pee. Really only sleeve patients and by pass patients should take vitamins for life.

Why wouldnt you want to tell them I dont understand that. I tell everyone and have been and inspiration to so many to have the surgery when they have seen my results. I dont understand why people want to hide that they had surgery. You may not know the life you could be saving by telling your story. Thats just my opinion.

They can put a patch behind your ear so you wont wake up sick. Its like a dramamine patch it works well. Also I just want to say this. I have been banded for 13 months with good success but there are bad roads traveled all the time. When things get stuck, when you cant tolerate certain foods, constant gas, fills, nose running from being too full, shoulder pain from eating too much, hiccups from being too full, it is still a daily struggle. Some days its not fun one bit. You have to realize you have done something to your stomach that isnt supposed to be there so there will always be some issue. However it is worth the sometimes aggravation of it all. Its still a diet you can not eat what you want when you want. There will be times when you wont be as restricted and eat like hell. Its all part of this decision the only thing I can tell you is you have to bear with it because the outcome is far better than being obese. Its not easy and if anyone says it is then they are not realistic. It is still a diet. If you go back to eating things that go down easy like ice cream, chocolate, and any other goodies you can swallow it wont work. Its healthy food all the way. Chins up and dont fret you wil get used to all the crazy crap that goes with this wonderful world of banding.

I went from a 48 DD to a 44 C I worked for a bra company for a while for women who had mastectomies and it is true most women do not know how to measure themselves for a good fit. The way to measure for a correct fit is: Take a tape measure and measure under the breast all the way around. This is your band size. To get the cup size you want to measure your breast in the middle all the way around and subtract your band size from the cup size. Say your measure 46 inches around under your breast and 48 inches across your breast you subtract the 46 from the 48 and you will get 2 these numbers are equivalent to the cup sizes: 1” / A 2” / B 3” / C 4” / D 5” / DD You should always be able to wear your bra in the middle if its the first hook you need to go up a size if its the last hook you need to go down a size. If you go down in the band size you must go up in the cup size for instance if you are a 48 B and need to go down to a 46 you would go up to a C cup. Hope this helps. Some measure differntly but this is a common equation when measuring for a bra.

Girl you do not want to lose 100lbs in six months that is way too fast. Slow and steady is the lap band. If you want drastic weight loss like that then the by pass or vertical sleeve would be your way to go. Most likely it wont happen with the band unless you starve yourself. Some people get the misconception that hunger is not involved with the band but you will still be hungry. That is too much weight loss in six months you will be sick and unhealthy if you go that fast. I would not do that. Your hair will fall out too and you will have some sagging skin for sure.

If you are getting pain in the middle of your breast bone that could be food getting stuck that is usually a sign.

It is common to have port issues and pain for several months post op this is normal. It will go away eventually it is sewn in to the muscle to keep it in place. As far a shoulder pain you may always have it. There is a nerve that runs from the stomach to the left shoulder and the band presses on that nerve when you eat too much. If you are having shoulder pain daily you could be overeating. Thats how I know when I have went over what I am supposed to eat. Everything takes time and in time you will learn all these things.

I had dry heaves for three days couldnt even leave the hospital it was the diladid that did me in once I stopped taking it and went on liquid vicodin I was fine a year later and 70lbs gone so Im happy. Listen if you think once that stops there wont be anymore bad days Im here to tell you and I think anyone who has been banded can tell you there are bad days. When food gets stuck, when you get a fill and it sucks royally. Dont be so discouraged its too new you will find a lot of days you will want to rip it out especially when you have an intolerance for foods you want but cant eat because they will tear up your stomach. It will get better but there will always be bad days at one time or another.

People think because you are big your stomach is big. My surgeon who has done 3000 plus surgeries said it doesnt matter how big a person is everyone he has ever operated on stomach was the same size. If you need more than a 10 cc band then you should opt for one of the other procedures. Bigger band tighter restriction can in the end cause necrosis. I wouldnt want 14cc around my stomach. No one realizes that there hasnt been a lot of research on the band long term. You are constricting an organ so 20 plus years down the road what will happen???? Do we know. Will the stomach be able to keep a band that long if not then what. Take it out? People think about it. I have been in the medical field for 30 years done much research, worked in surgery and even a 400lb person had the same size stomach as a 200lb person. So many people I have seen after 5 to 6 years getting it out. Not trying to scare anyone but who has had the band more than 10 years. Even a hip or knee replacement doesnt last more than 15 years.

I was a year post op before I had my first fill. If you have a good surgeon the only way he should be filling your band is 1 you are scrounging for food 2 your weight loss has stopped 3 if you can eat more than a normal portion. Steak may never be something you can eat its just the way it is with the band. I think your ready for a fill.

What a great job you did congratulations that is the hardest time for all of us. I got filled on the 30th my first since surgery a year ago. I too feel renewed and ready to move forward with the coming year. God bless.

muscle milk is not a good protein shake and why its just what it says its for those building muscle. People you need protein isolates whey protein isolates and that is it. Carnation instant breakfast gives you no protein. You should be drinking a protein powder with at least 30 to 50 grams of protein in it. Read your labels its not all good. My doctor told us we could use carnation instant breakfast if we could not afford or didnt like the tast of other protein powders but he said it is not a good source of protein at all.

Relax you probably think you have fluid in your band most doctors dont put any or leave very little after surgery. Your swelling has gone down and now you can eat. It happens and if he did put that much fluid in your band at surgery then shame on him and you need to not see him again. That is just wrong so is doctors putting 14 cc bands in people. Its just wrong. You probably dont have fluid he might have put that much in to see that it was working properly but Im sure he took some out. or most of it out

You shouldnt be using dressings folks it harbors bacteria. Take them off and let your wounds breath fresh air. If you are demabonded you dont need a dressing if you have sutures you dont need a dressing. Undress those wounds and let them breath.

I just had my first fill after one year. It didnt hurt at all. Dont eat a big meal 12 hours before the fill and if you have a morning appointment dont eat before you go or just eat light. like a protein shake. I dont agree with those big cc bands 9 to 10 should be the most. Surgeons are pushing those larger cc bands and you will end up getting too restricted. After a fill liquids only for 24 hours and soft food for three days after that is my surgeons guide lines. I dont see why anyone would need a 12 to 14 cc band its just not right. You dont have to crush your meds you should be fine with them. It is an office procedure unless they cant find your port or have trouble accessing it. For those not having surgery yet please do not let your doctor put in a large cc band its not needed. I work in surgery and you know whats happening they are coming back and getting them out.