jayeedee

Here is what a year of weightless looks like for both my husband and myself. I got the band Feb 28, 2011 and my husband got the Sleeve Oct 3, 2011! We are so happy .... I'm down 113 lbs to date!

I have finally received all of my EOB's from the insurance company and here is the breakdown of expenses:
Physician (Consult & Pre-op 2 appts) - Total billed $346 & insurance paid $81.25 and I have $70 in copays.
Nutritional counseling (4 appts) - Total billed $405 and insurance allowed and paid $324.
Psychiatry Eval (2 appts) - Total billed $200 and insurance allowed $103 & paid $78 and I have $50 in copays.
Anesthesia - $2,875 billed and insurance allowed and paid $646.40.
Surgeons fees - $2,211 billed and insurance allowed $1,189 and paid $1,039 & I have a $150 surgical copay.
Hospital fees - $23,584.60 billed and insurance allowed $2,029 and paid $1,954 and I have a $75 copay.
I have Federal BCBS Basic plan. My total out of pocket costs to date have been $345. I feel very blessed and fortunate.
~Amanda

I told the people in my life that meant the most and that would support me. Did they all support me at first.... No... but when it all comes down to it... the only person that matters is ME.
You tell who you want to tell.... just be sure your ready for some good and not so good responses...
Good luck

I am no pro by any means, but I find that if you deprive yourself, then you will probably end up making a larger food mistake later. If I want something, I have it, just in a much, much smaller size portion than I would have in the past. When I started this journey, I knew I wanted to make it something I could live with forever, so there are no foods off limits for me. At the same time, I don't eat them everyday and not in nearly the same portion sizes as pre-band me.

I didn't set a goal, crazy as it sounds. I got my band, followed band rules and settled in at a weight at the top end of a healthy BMI. If I wanted to work harder I could lose more, but I am not that motivated. My PCP would be happier if I lost 10 more, but my bloodwork is good now, so he isn't pushing too hard.
For me, getting banded was not about dieting, it was about healthy habits that I can live with. I've been maintaining this size/weight now for coming up on 2 1/2 years. I think I've found it!

I went for my pre-opt with the surgeon. He does a small group first to discuss the process and then meets individually with all the patients. While in the group meeting, I heard someone call out another patient. I heard the name and it flagged an old memory. I looked down the table and saw my very best friend from middle school. I have not seen her in 15 years. We began to cry and are so excited to share this journey with a friend. It is so crazy we crossed paths again. We each moved long away from out home town and had different paths. We found out we each had two children the same ages. We have supportive hubbies regarding the surgery! We are so excited. We are scheduled the SAME DAY for surgery!
Now I have all of my LBT buddies and a old friend. I think I was meant to cross paths with her again. Some of my foundest childhood memories are with that girl!
Just had to share....
Katy

Hi gang! I just came back from the doctor's office. I had my 1cc fill {second fill} that the surgeon put in on Thurs taken out. It was just too much for me. I lost 6lbs since Thursday night! What a wonderful relief it is to be able to drink Water and not have it gurgle, slime, stuck or throw up as I've done the past few days. I was miserable but just thought I needed a few days for the second fill to settle. WRONG! So, now I'm back on liquids, correction, still on liquids, for the next day or so, then mushies and then maybe by Friday, I'll be able to have a nice grilled rare NY Strip steak!
I am 2 lbs away from Onderland. Hopefully I'll be able to keep the 6 lbs off and get back into working out {haven't worked out since Thurs as I had no energy to do anything}! Oh, what a relief it is........

I had a fill today because my band really has had no restrictions up tll now. I am at 6cc's now. Seems like alot considering it is a 10cc band. But I feel ok, except for the burning shoulder pain still. Finally I think they are coming around that it may be something to do with the nerve near my diaphram. For some reason I must be sensitive to the band, so he said give it another month and then I may have to try this pill for nerve issues and see if it helps.
So far I have lost weight pretty well since surgery, It has been alot of work trying to fight off the urges to keep eating. I have been walking my poor husband to death lately and considering he's a mail carrier, walking after work is probably the last thing he wants to do, but like he said, "We are in this together"
I was getting kinda nervous because I have been able to eat pretty much what I want up till now. I really try not to, but sometimes it is really hard to say no to an awesome piece of grilled fish and veggies when we are out.
Weighed in today, I have lost 40# since January. Honestly, I didn't think I would be losing this fast. I guess when you set your mind to something that really matters, the pros out weigh the cons. I feel like I am in such a good place right now. Ask me a few years ago and I would probably have to say, I wasn't there yet and probably wouldn'y have done as well. So when they tell you it's just a tool, their right. Your head and heart has to be there as well or it won't work I guess.

I love coriander, can eat spinach,broccoli is Ok (so long as it is soft and the flowers only) but cannot stand the peppery bitterness of rocket. Pesto is great, I use it in mash as well as on Pasta. Beetroot is yummy but I wouldn't really want to drink it. The other vegetable which is really trendy atm which I thing is highly overrated is fennel - I cannot stand the aniseedy taste.

omg, it bought tears to my eyes. I did cop a little bit of holier than thou judgement from several people, not least my usually lovely lapband surgeon, because i didnt have a big flappy tummy. The before pics i took were on my phone and dont really show clearly what a mess my belly was, but oh, my, has it been cleaned up!!! I feel like the evidence of my brush with cancer has been erased, gone are the hernias, the ileostomy scar, the misshapen almost hernia behind the ileostomy, the ruined bellybutton, the adsortment of at least a dozen scars and punctures, the weird curtain of skin on my upper belly. The flatness of my new tummy is a bonus, at present with swelling, im about the same measurement as i was before, so my midsection is going to be very slender, unfortunately my ass is still the same size, lol. But without going into detail why did nobody tell ne how much better my, ah, bits would look? DH's eyes nearly popped out of his head! And my inner thighs are so smooth! Wowzers.
So...... Gone are all signs of one of the darkest periods of my life and in their place, one lovely smile on my tummy to remind me how lucky I am to be here and to be healthy. I didnt quite realise I would feel tjis way about it, and Ive been off the drugs for days, lol

Wanted to let everyone know surgery went well. It was exactly like I fell asleep and woke up banded. More pain in recovery than I expected due to the trapped air. Good news is its already starting to resolve and I am still sore but I can tell that is getting better as well. The doctor said he had to repair a small hernia also so that may be the cause of the added pain. I consider myself a strong person and Im just gonna take it one day at the time. Thanks everyone for your thoughts!!

WebMD says daily is good: http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20050728/6-secrets-of-successful-weight-loss

Rockon, that's awesome! How much is in your band now?
Nicole, I know, we're all on different schedules. I have my second fill next monday. I' can't wait! I have 6 cc's in my band (14 cc band).
My weekend was good- kids all lice free, LOL. And I worked out 6 out of 7 days- goal is 5, so awesome!

Just a quick note to share my excitement at hitting another mini-milestone. I can't believe I'm even writing this post!!! I just want to give hope to the newbys and people undecided about banding - you can be successful and lose a bunch of weight rather quickly like with gastric if you focus on what you're doing. I'm by no means perfect and I have been very bad about exercise - but I do stick to my 800 calories per day pretty religiously. I love you all for being there for me - you have no idea what your kind words, information and support have meant to me over the last year. BEST OF LUCK TO US ALL ON OUR JOURNEYS!!!!!!

One year ago today, I had my lap band placed and my life changed forever. I'm down 80 lbs as of this morning, but it's so much more than weight loss for me:
-No more acid reflux
-Cholesterol and triglycerides are normal
-PCOS under control
-No more crippling back pain
-Feet don't go numb after standing for a few minutes
-More energy
-More self esteem
-No more hiding from cameras
-Shopping in any store I want (see ya later, Lane Bryant!)
Without the lap band, there is no way I could have achieved all this. Thank you Bandy, you're a lifesaver!

For my 39th birthday I am happy to say I am down 35 pounds after surgery 2/17. MY BP is down to 120/78 and I feel great!!!

Still have about 20 lbs to go. But......
Saw some jeans on the internet that helps give you a little booty. Cause mine is flat and wide. Anyway, had never been in this store, was nervous that I couldn't find anything to fit me. While looking at the jeans (Was so hoping to be able to look without the assistance of sales person but a skinny sales lady came over) She asked if I had ever worn there denim before? I told her I saw the ad on internet but I didn’t see any 14's. I was so embarrassed. She asked why I was looking for a 14, so thinking their 14's were smaller then other places, and wishing I hadn't come in….I started running my mouth,,,,,"I recently have lost a lot of weight and needed to get new clothes and really didn't know what size I needed, thank you anyway"…..and tried to leave. She told me to go to the dressing room and she would bring me some jeans. When she handed them to me she said "don’t look at the size" I put them on and they fit so nice, I went out to show her and she gave me such a great smile and said "those are size 10." WOW!!! Ok they are made a little big but I don't care they are 10's. I HAD to buy them.

Thanks for the good thoughts. I MADE IT!!! The first 25 miles were difficult (mentally more than physically). I came home at 5:00 am and had to pick up my left leg to get it into bed, I couldn't really lift from my hip. When I woke up a few hours later, I think I had gotten vertigo from a plugged up ear and I proceeded to be extremely sick for the rest of the day. I was only able to eat a half a piece of toast and the juice from ramen noodles all day. I really thought there was no way I would be able to get out of bed and do it again Sunday morning. Who can walk 25 miles on that many calories and having been in that much pain?
The "old" me would have said that was enough of an excuse and stayed in bed. The "new" me got up at 3:00 am, had a little Breakfast to see how I felt, and when I found I was okay, I got ready and went. I was really proud of myself for just being there! I finished the second 25 miles at about 4:00 pm on Sunday. Several blisters and sore joints to show for it, and I might add I will NEVER do it again, but I set a goal and I met it! Also I was a new low weight this morning, that put the icing on the cake.
My son finished too, as did everyone else who started the day (5 people of about 60 didn't show up on Sunday). That was another factor in my decision to get up and go, knowing that young kids as well as people older than me were going to get up and finish what they started, even though they were hurting too. I was walking with a breast cancer survivor who takes medicine that makes her hips ache a lot, and she finished. She thought I encouraged her, but I had to let her know that her being there encouraged me too. I had read her blog every step of the way through her treatment, and I was inspired by her willingness to take on such a physical challenge. Yay us!!!

Unfortunately, this is completely normal. Make sure to eat and get in your Water in. You aren't really supposed to worry about your weight until you are all healed up. The lucky people manage to maintain or lose a little weight between mushies and the first fill, but some do gain. Just don't stress out, make healthy choices, get in your Protein & water, rest up and heal. The weight loss generally takes time with the lapband, and there are pauses, plateaus and slow downs all along the way We just have to keep moving forward and looking at the overall picture.

I am sitting here at 192 lbs. I started at 337lbs. My life has changed so much. I look back now and say...what the hell did I do to myself! I was out of control! Now the scale is my best friend! I just want everyone to know that you can do it too!

After dancing around it for weeks, I am glad to say that I, Elizabeth, have lost...
100 POUNDS!
I am so happy! I can't believe it!!! Last night I fit into jeans from my sophomore year of high school and AH. It's so exciting. I'm on Cloud 9 right now!

after spending some time in contemplation, I've determined that I am not capable of buying medicine on ebay. Too scared lol.

Wait Wait Wait - I too had this dilemma.
I was told by one pharmacist that they no longer carry liquid tylenol. I almost paid a fortune on Amazon.< /p>
BUT - another pharmacist showed me what was right in front of my face the whole time.
Next time - Go look in the cold section and look for TYLENOL SORE THROAT. I figured there was other crap in it like a nyquil.
NOPE - ONLY ingredient is Acetaminophen 500 mg
They market it for sore throats to make it go down easier!!!!
Here is what it looks like:
http://www.alice.com/products/1191225?p=1191225&&source=pricegrabber
Description
Non-drowsy. Pain reliever, fever reducer. Contains 1 Medicine: Acetaminophen 500 mg per 15 ml - Sore throat/Fever; Body aches/Headache. Does not contain alcohol. Each Tablespoon Contains: Sodium, 11 mg
Hope this helps others like it helped me!!! I find it everywhere!!!

Today I am declaring my success with the WLS.
I have definitley been in the Green Zone since last July, both myself and my Surgeon agree.
I have automatic Portion Control and calorie intake.
I am raley hungry and never think about food.
I go to the gym every chance I get because I like it. If feel empty if I miss a day.
I'm wearing size medium shirts and jackets, and have a 36" waist.
I have been gaining and loosing the same 3-5 lbs for a while now. had a .5cc fill 2 weeks ago, dropped 8 lbs, and gained back 3.
Only a few more to my goal.
I do not want, or need another fill. It would not make any difference.
There is nothing left I can do but let it go and not worry about loosing weight anymore. If I should loose 1 lb per month, I would be happy
to be 12 lbs lighter a year from now. If I don't loose any more weight, I'm still happy right where I'm at.
So, that's it. There is nothing more I an do.

This is just surreal. I've read the stories of those that lost 100 pounds or more on this site and thought I would NEVER EVER be writing that post myself. But here I am!!!!. This morning I officially broke the seal and crossed over the 100 pound mark. I just cannot believe it. Life sure is different in so many ways - and being told how fantastic I look, and being hit on by cute guys, is a whole new thing and feels pretty good (I'm married so it's just harmless attention . ) I love this site and all the supportive people on here. We are all in this together and need to be there for each other as no one else truly knows what we are going through. THANK YOU to everyone on this site and hopefully I will make my goal of losing about 30 pounds more by my one year bandiversary! BEST OF LUCK TO US ALL ON OUR JOURNEYS!!!!!